Love Child by Kat Austen Read Free Book Online Page B

other three were. He would have been happy wearing a Hawaiian shirt and selling coconuts on the side of some island road, but even as free-spirited as he was, he recognized the importance of the company our family had built from the ground up. He might have hated the suit and tie that came with it, but he accepted it.
    “You missed nothing besides the CEO talking about the twenty-percent growth the company experienced last quarter and the projected twenty-five for this next one. Buckets of money, buckets of money, humanitarian project of the month, buckets of money, meeting adjourned.” Ronan clapped. “That’s what you missed. You’re all caught up now.”
    “How was CEO Lockwood today?”
    “You mean Dad?” Ronan shrugged. “Other than definitely noticing his oldest son’s absence—the son he’s been grooming since infanthood to take over when he retires—he kept checking his watch like the rest of us, ready for the weekend to get started.”
    I started drafting a quick email to the CEO, a.k.a. Dad, apologizing for missing the meeting. When we were within the walls of Lockwood Enterprises, we referred to him as the CEO or Mr. Lockwood. It was simpler to separate the father figure from the boss one. I thought it was easier for him too.
    “Got any plans for the weekend?” I asked.
    Ronin grinned. “Always. You?”
    My throat cleared as I typed out the email. “I’ve got a few things planned.” Like taking the virginity of the woman I’ve hired to have my baby.
    Fantastic. Another hard-on. Rolling farther beneath my desk, I gritted my teeth and attempted to ignore the image of Adeline crawling over my cock and riding me until my cum was dripping out of her body.
    “Anything fun?” My little brother’s voice broke me from my haze of lust. “Somewhat,” I understated.
    “You know that to have fun on the weekend, it requires a guy your age to share some part of it with a woman, right? I mean, I get that you missed the memo and they crossed your wires so you think work is the height of life, but believe me, there’s fun. And there’s fun .” His brows filled in the rest . . . or maybe that was my especially creative, albeit filthy, imagination. When I stayed silent, focusing on my computer, Ronin clapped. “That’s it, isn’t it? God, I’m an idiot. Of course it is. You missing the meeting, you being all secret-agent with your answers—there’s a woman in Abel Lockwood’s life. Isn’t there?”
    There was no way I was talking about Adeline with Ronin. In fact, I wasn’t ready to talk about her with any member of my family. Not because I was ashamed or embarrassed by what I was doing but because I knew they wouldn’t understand. My parents had fallen in love and created their family the socially accepted way. So had my two middle brothers. For them, love had come easy.
    One day, perhaps I’d tell them the true manner in which I came to be a father. Until then, I was happy to keep it quiet.
    “Hey, if you need any tips with this mystery girl, you know who to come to.” Ronin shoved off the wall, starting for the door.
    “Not sure I want advice on women from someone who has the track record of a snail,” I fired before he could get through the door.
    He shot me a wounded look. “Hey. At least I’ve got a track record.” He let that hang in the air before lifting a brow. “Oh, by the way, the monastery called earlier. Said your robes are all pressed and ready for you to slip on whenever you want to take those vows. Not that you haven’t already been living the lifestyle . . .”
    When I snagged one of the signed basketballs displayed on my desk, Ronin disappeared. I still threw it though, to close my door so I could get through the rest of the email and get home to Adeline.
    After sending my apology for missing the meeting, I reopened the email from earlier. Once I’d gone through the list of donor mothers in Love Child’s database and narrowed it down to Adeline, I’d hired a private