The Billionaire's Baby
Author
Kimi L. Davis
Reads
🔥24.3M
Chapters
78
Chapter 1
Alice
My eyes scanned the contents of the medical report, my heart sinking with each word. I could not make sense of the jargon, but with my brother’s heart condition, I was able to understand the gist of it.
And it did not look good.
“Wh—what does it mean?” I asked, even though I already knew what the doctor was going to say.
He fixed me with a gentle stare, his light blue eyes shining with compassion. “You don’t have to worry, Miss Gardner, yet. However, the sooner you get this surgery done, the better.”
“I understand,” I muttered, willing my heart to slow down. “But there’s still time, right?”
“Of course. But the more you delay, the more difficult it’ll be for him in the long run,” he stated.
I nodded. “I understand. Thank you, doctor. Thank you so much.” I stood up and promptly exited the doctor’s office and into the waiting area, not sure whether to feel relieved or worried.
You need to be worried. Extremely worried. You need to get him surgery which you don’t have the money for. How are you going to do it?
The realization had me stopping and holding on to the wall next to me because my knees were threatening to give out from under me.
Tears stung my eyes, but I did my best to stay strong. I couldn’t cry. I couldn’t be weak. I sat down on a nearby chair, waiting until my body returned to normal.
The hospital waiting area wasn’t busy at the time of the day. There were a few people scattered all around, and a couple of ladies sat next to me, busy talking to each other. No one knew me. No one was going to bother me. I would sit here for a few minutes and then go home.
“Are you going to go?” The woman to my immediate right said to her friend. Dark hair flowed down her back like a curtain, and she was wearing an olive green dress.
“I want to, don’t you? I mean, he’s the most eligible bachelor in the country. I would love to be his wife and live a life of luxury,” her friend replied, who, upon a covert glance, turned out to have dark blonde hair and was clad in a floral printed dress with a pair of pink wedges.
“As much as I love a life of luxury, I have no desire to have children. So I think I’ll pass,” green dress said.
“Not even for a million pounds? I would sell my soul for a million pounds, and he is only asking for a child. I think I’ll do it,” pink wedges said.
A million pounds? Who? What? How?
“Um, excuse me?” I said to them. “Forgive me, I couldn’t help overhearing your conversation. Is there some sort of a lottery happening?” I could make out the gist of their conversation, but I didn’t want to assume anything, and a million pounds was no less than the lottery for me.
Green dress gave me a friendly smile and rolled her eyes, but it was the lady with the pink wedges who said, “If you call marrying the sexiest man alive and giving him a child in return for a million pounds a lottery, then sure, I guess there is a lottery happening.”
“Pardon me?” Was she serious? Who would do that and why?
“Here, read it for yourself.” Before I could say anything, the lady thrust a newspaper in my hands and pointed at the advertisement, which had been circled in red.
Bride Wanted.
I quickly read through the advertisement, feeling perplexed by the minute. I stared at the strange advertisement again, still wondering how it could be real.
Gideon Maslow, world-renowned billionaire entrepreneur, owned the world’s biggest business empire. A man so rich and powerful, he was practically royalty.
The UK’s sexiest man alive, ten years in a row.
And he wanted a wife, a woman who could provide him with an heir for his vast kingdom in less than a year. And this marriage would only last for one year.
And what would the woman get in exchange for her body and soul, rented out for twelve months?
One million pounds in cold, hard cash.
After the baby is born, you’re expected to give away your baby, shake hands, and walk away flush with cash.
What kind of girl would agree to such an advertisement?
Well, I would.
It was only for a year. I could be a stranger’s wife for a year.
~***~
"What a disgusting pig!”
I winced and looked up as yet another beautiful woman stalked out of the CEO’s office, her face red with fury. I could tell she’d been crying. Her mascara was running down in thin black streams while her gray eyes were bloodshot.
The woman stormed toward the lone elevator on the floor and stabbed the call button repeatedly until the elevator arrived. She gave the room full of waiting women one last disgusting stare and scoffed. But as the elevator door slid shut, I swear I heard a muffled sob escape her.
Dear lord, could he really be so bad? I fidgeted uncomfortably. Perhaps I should’ve stayed home instead of bothering to come down here for an interview.
That’s how Gideon Maslow was planning on choosing his bride. And I still couldn’t understand why he was doing this.
As far as I knew, the man could have any woman he wanted, so why was he planning to marry a complete stranger?
“Number twenty-seven, Ms. Hannah, Mr. Maslow will see you now,” the bored lady at reception said in a monotone.
A lady with jet-black hair and green cat-like eyes stood up gracefully and smoothed her already smooth pink dress. Pasting on a seductive smile, she confidently sashayed inside the office. My confidence faltered for the twenty-seventh time as she marched across the waiting room and into Gideon Maslow’s office, self-assuredness plastered on her face.
I knew I was nothing compared to these women.
Even though I wore my best dress and coat for this, I wondered if I even stood a chance…
I had absolutely zero interest in the man himself, I was interested in what he was offering. Money.
Seeing the hefty amount the man was paying was the only reason I was sitting outside his office, waiting for my turn, ignoring the pangs of anxiety attacking my stomach.
When I saw the amount, I knew the money would be enough for my brother’s surgery, and I needed to do everything I could to make sure Mr. Maslow picked me to be his wife.
All I had to do was give him an heir, and then I would be able to save my little brother’s life from his horrible disease.
The door opened once again, and the lady, Hannah, stormed out looking livid. Her lips were pulled back in a snarl. Grunting angrily, she stormed toward the elevator.
“That tosser rejected me because I’m not a virgin! What planet is he from?!” she shouted, earning gasps from a few women.
The elevator doors opened, and Hannah wasted little time in getting in. Once the elevator doors closed, the chatter of women erupted all of a sudden around me.
Women were talking amongst themselves, and I heard a couple of them say how they weren’t virgins and didn’t expect Gideon Maslow to be so incredibly backward.
However, I could feel my chest relaxing, and it was only because I had a secret that I’d kept with me since high school.
For a long time, I’d been ashamed of it, but now it just might be my saving grace.
