The Millionaire's Wrath (ON HOLD)

1-Fish Caught in the Headlights

*The twins homecoming celebration.

Nick's POV

If it was up to me, I wouldn't have been sitting here listening to the people around me coo over the one month old twins I was basically forced to hold.

If it was up to me, I wouldn't have been three quaters sober nursing one of the worse hangovers of my life, in broad daylight. With no painkillers.

If it was up to me, I wouldn't have been at my brother and his new wife's home at all.

If it was up to me I would be still be sitting at home with a scotch in my hand watching the days go by.

But I was and I wasn't.

It only seemed like God answered my prayers when the woman I'd been looking for, hoping she would come back for four months, walked through the door.

When our eyes met she looked like a fish caught in the headlights.

Is that even the saying? Who cares.

She seemed surprised to see me at my brother's house even though she'd been ignoring me, and gone without a trace for four months.

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention the not so small baby bump she was sporting. She had to be at least almost six months pregnant.

I couldn't breathe. Counting back, if I correctly judged the leghth of time she's been pregnant that put me in the bracket of potential fathers to her child.

But if she was pregnant with your child, why wouldn't she tell you about it?

The notion of the child being mine completely vanished with that realization, followed by the searing rage I felt within about her fùcking other guys around the same time she was making love to me.

My heartbeat increased when she began going down the line of people sitting down greeting them with a hug and a kiss starting with My brother's wife, Ariel.

When she got to me she looked me in the eye a leaned down to hug me too.

My natural response was to inhale the scent wafting from her that I hadn't smelled in what felt like a millennium. When she pulled away, one of the twins started to complain. It was Amour, her brother was still sleeping peacefully on my left arm.

"Oh come here." She cooed taking the whining baby from my grip. She sat down in the seat closest to me and seemingly unconsciously moved closer to where our arms touched.

After a moment I relaxed, feeling more content with her beside me than I have in months. Even though she was pregnant with another man's baby.

I felt the smile begin to grow on my face after Alex handed us the bottles his wife had made for the twins.

We fed the children in a comfortable silence. I lifted Aiden to burp him, when he did I felt the air tickle my neck I chuckled.

"I could get used to this." I said.

I don't know where the hell that came from, but I said it.

"Me too." She said in a whisper, almost like she was talking to herself. Just as she got those words out Amour, the baby that she was holding, let out what we both thought was a fart until a few moments later when the baby started to scream.

I'll just say, I was relieved that I was holding her brother, who turned out to be way more calm and quiet .

"Ariel, don't you want to come get your daughter?" She laughed, nervously.

No answer.

I looked around and saw that everyone was busy, or at least pretended to be.

Honestly their actions were understandable because, who really wants a crying baby?

"I think you need to change her." I suggested.

"What?" She asked I already heard the panic in her voice. "I can't, I-I, they didn't teach us that in the parenting class I was taking yet. I don't even know where the diapers are!" She finished in one breath.

I was quite for a time, then I decided, 'how hard could it be to change a child?'

I reached down to retrieve the diaper bag. Since most people cleared the room as soon as she started screaming, I figured it'd be okay to change her here.

Here goes nothing...

Carefully I switched babies with An-her, and laid Amour down on the burping blanket that I spread out on the ottoman.

I, first pulled the replacement diaper out, along with a few baby wipes and powder.

When I opened her diaper I didn't know what to expect.

The whole diaper changing process wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. The end result was definitely worth the nastiness of the experience.

Within ten minutes the little girl had fallen asleep.

Just then her parents walked back in as if nothing happened. If I was a stranger, I wouldn't have thought anything of it. But judging by the winded hair Ariel was now sporting, and the look on my brother's face I knew they'd been up to something.

"Eww. You guys could be a little less obvious. God. The children?" I chided, only half joking.

"Oh my, were they a hand full?" Ariel inquired while briskly walking towards me.

"Aiden was a little angel. Weren't you baby?" She cooed still holding the child.

"And she," I said pointing an accusing finger at Amour, "Is definitely the spawn of my evil brother."

"She wasn't that bad was she?" Alex asked overlooking the blatant insult.

"Yes."

"Not really."

She and I answered at the same time.

"You didn't have to change her shìt."

"Language." I heard my mom say from the kitchen.

"Doesn't every baby need to be changed on a regular basis?" She asked rhetorically.

"Yes they do, but I'm pretty sure the average infant is not screaming at the top of their lungs trying their damnedest to kick someone's face in." I said a bit on the irritated side.

"Touche'."

Just then a man with dirty blonde hair, around my height, a little less built , walked through the door.

Everyone looked at him expectantly, but said nothing.

The man seemed to be at a loss for words and said nothing back.

She noticed the confusing tension in the room and cleared her throat. When everyone's attention was on her she said, "Ari, this is Jordan, the plus one I was telling you about."

"Oh, I see." Ariel let out a forced laugh. "So this is the father of your baby?" She asked.

I didn't hear the questioning tone I heard 'So this is the father of your baby.' And I snapped.

Before I knew it I stood up, sacked the guy in the face, and was out in my car.

The only part of the aftermath I heard was a very feminine sounding, 'what the hell?' Before I pulled off.

I was definitely not going to hear the end of this, but I didn't give a shìt.