Baby For My Billionaire Rival (Billionaire Daddies)

22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

Epilogue

I have never been prouder than the moment I watch Caroline walk across the stage to accept her diploma. The light brown hood drapes down her back along with her brilliant curls of blonde hair as the audience applauds.

From my arms, Ava burbles, her chubby hand pointing toward the screen that projects Caroline’s image for the whole hall to see. “That’s right, who is that, Ava?” I coo, patting her bottom. “Mama, right?”

Ava is seven months old tomorrow and her legs are strong enough to prove it as they excitedly kick at my side. Her smile is big and toothless and her big brown eyes are exact replicas of her mother’s.

“That a girl!” my brother Evan yells from beside me, wolf-whistling between his fingers.

I step on his toe lightly. “Not that kind of place, Ev.” I glance nervously down the row to where Gram sits, tall and proud. She looks back at me, a cool smile on her lips. But when her eyes land on Ava, you’d think the sky opened up just for her the way Gram smiles.

We might not be the best of friends, Gram and me, but we’re getting there. Ava certainly helps smooth things over between us.

And I have a feeling today will change everything.

“Ava girl!” Caroline cries out when she spots us after the ceremony. She rushes over to me, plucking the baby from my arms. Ava screams in laughter as Caroline peppers her face with kisses. “You were such a good girl. No crying at all, hm?”

“Almost,” Jude says, grabbing my arm. “But Jake’s a baby whisperer.”

Caroline looks up at me and I swear it’s like the first time. Without the accusations of being a janitor. “Yes, he is, isn’t he?” Her eyes flare in mine deviously and I can already hear her asking when we’re going to start working on Jacob IV. I try to focus on something else to avoid getting hard.

Ava grabs the tassel of Caroline’s cap and yanks on it, laughing loudly.

I lean in, give Caroline a peck on the cheek, and snatch the cap. Can’t afford much more when she has her adoring public to greet. But later, I hope to steal many, many more kisses. “Superwoman right here,” I announce, ushering her into the arms of her brother.

“You’re damn right about that!” Chase says.

I watch as Caroline is passed around from person to person. Getting a master’s degree is an achievement for anyone. For Caroline, it’s tenfold. Finished the first half of her second year pregnant, went into labor during class, and didn’t even take time off from her school work after three days of labor to keep things on track for graduation (I have Fig to thank for that, given all her patience and support).

I bowed out of the program after the first year to focus on the arrival of our baby, a little girl, to our surprise considering how men seem to run in my family. I have an open-ended invitation to return when the timing is right.

Frankly, though, between booming business and watching Ava grow, I don’t know if I much care. I always wanted to fill my father’s shoes. And I thought his legacy would be Simmons Sauces. However, I have never felt closer to him than the moment I became a father, held my baby girl for the first time and felt a profound love spill through me. I’m working on transitioning to a smaller role, giving Brody the CEO position.

Family is everything to me.

Caroline finally returns to me, tucking herself into my side. I kiss her forehead as she fields questions and congratulations. Things haven’t always been easy for us. Welcoming a baby is no easy feat. Not to mention both running companies and balancing life in Georgia and South Carolina.

But since we reunited, I’ve never been scared of losing her. She’s my partner in crime. Mother of my child. The woman I adore.

And today’s the day I make it official. Little does Caroline know that in the pocket of my suit jacket (yes, I’m wearing a real gosh-darn suit for this occasion) is an engagement ring. She thinks we’re all heading back to the farm for a big party to celebrate her accomplishment. Which is true, we are. There’s just going to be something else that makes this day even more special.

If I don’t throw up from nerves before I get to ask.

“Everyone’s probably already there, Jake,” Caroline says, a slight huff of frustration in her voice.

I took the backroads to get home, insisting we stop along the way to pick up a few extra things for Ava and also pull into a drive-thru for a diet soda. I’m trying to kill time and get everyone to the farm before us so that they can all be there when I pop the question. “Relax, it’s your party. Doesn’t start until you arrive.”

Caroline looks at me with a soft smile. Before she can speak, Ava gurgles in the back. “Ava wants attention, hm? Been stuck in the car too long because Daddy needed a soda?”

“You got one too,” I tease, finally turning into the driveway.

Once we’re parked, Caroline collects Ava from the back seat. I nervously lean against the car tapping my foot.

“Sorry, am I not moving fast enough for you?” Caroline asks. “Mr. McDonald’s drive-thru...”

“Hm? No! I’m just.”

“I’m moving as fast as I can.”

I sigh, brushing my thumb against my forehead. “You’re moving plenty fast, Caroline.”

“Daddy is impatient,” she mutters to Ava who happily stretches her legs once lifted in the air. “Oh God, Jake, she needs a diaper change. Stinky…”

My shoulders lock up to my ears. “Well, why don’t we go say hi to everyone first and –”

“I’m not walking in there with my child wearing a dirty diaper,” she laughs. “Gram would disown me.”

The process drags out even longer as we trot over to our house on the property so Caroline can change Ava. I pace the floor, hands in my pockets, running through what I’ve planned to say in my head over and over. I can hear Caroline’s gentle cooing to our baby in the next room and my heart melts.

“Alright, we’re ready!” Caroline announces. Ava babbles in agreement.

I let out a big sigh, take them both into my arms, and kiss Caroline long enough that it makes Ava jealous, her little hand slapping against my cheek to get my attention.

“What was that for?” Caroline asks, face blushing, eyelashes fluttering.

I smile and take her hand. “Come on.”

When we arrive at the barn, it is eerily quiet. Caroline frowns. “All the cars are here. Where is everyone?”

I hold the door open for her.

“Jake…?”

“Go on in, honey.”

Caroline walks in, the silhouette of her with Ava on her hip framed by fairy lights adorning the rafters. She looks back over her shoulder with a strange smile. I can read her mind. This is like…

Exactly like our first date here at the farm, sans dinner table. The lights, the flowers, everything in place. Beyond the lit center of the barn, all of our loved ones gather tightly together, their smiles bursting at the seams.

“Jake, what’s going on?” Caroline asks.

I stride to the middle of the room and reach into my jacket. “I think you’ve got an idea.”

Her eyes light up. “What? Now? ”

Jude rushes over and swipes Ava out of Caroline’s arms, her broad grin distracting Caroline long enough so I can settle onto the floor before her on bended knee. “Caroline…”

Her hands fly to her mouth. “Oh my God.”

“I don’t know where to begin. Because there are so many things I love about you,” I say. My eyes catch my mother’s in the shadows. She’s already tearing up and Gram is patting her arm in support. I can’t look at them or else I might cry. “There are so many things I admire about you.”

Caroline shakes her head in disbelief.

“Let’s start with the obvious. You’re an amazing mother. There’s no one else I’d want to raise a child with. You’re compassionate and loving, you have been tireless in your effort to be a good mother when you already have the weight of the world on your shoulders. Ava is lucky to have you.”

“Jake, please,” she whimpers, whisking a few tears out from under her eyes.

“We might have been from different worlds at first, but appearances can be deceiving. And once we stripped away all the assumptions, you saw my soul the way no one else had.”

She glances over at Jude, Chase, and Ava, smiling ear to ear.

“I love you so completely. You make me a better man. You’ve made me stronger. Made me see my true purpose in life to give my love freely. Not to mention you’re funny as hell. And smarter than anyone I’ve ever met.”

Caroline folds her hands in front of her, trying not to cry.

“And I want to walk through life with you. You make life so joyous.” I open the ring box. “I want to take this next step in building our life together. Will you marry me?”

Caroline nods before the words leave her lips. “Yes, of course. Of course, I will.”

Our families and friends break out into cheers. Caroline gives me her hand and I breathe a sigh of relief when the ring fits perfectly, light glinting off the diamonds. She grabs my hand, pulls me to my feet, and throws herself into my arms, kissing me with all her might.

I look forward to a lifetime of her kisses as husband and wife. We’ve already done the hard shit together. We’ve lived together, worked together, we have a child together. What’s one more thing to add to the pot?

Ava’s sharp cry jolts us apart. Caroline sighs. “I can’t even kiss you without –“

I nip her ear with my lips. “Later, when we’re all alone, you can kiss me as much as you want.”

“All over,” she murmurs back, snagging one last peck before Jude returns our daughter into my arms.

“Alright, everyone, let’s celebrate!” I cry out. The barn comes to life, lights glowing in all the corners, jazz rumbling through the wooden slats. Champagne is poured, toasts are made, and dances are danced.

The whole night, Caroline doesn’t leave my side. We trade off who is in charge of Ava, the glue that seals our already watertight connection. The little girl who expanded my heart to unfathomable sizes and brought her mother back to me.

The party finally winds down much later than our bedtimes (with a seventh-month-old, bedtime is embarrassingly early.) Caroline and I walk back to our home, Ava sleeping in my arms. Our home, our place. To love and to worship each other.

We put Ava down to sleep, lingering over the crib with our arms tangled together, watching her chest rise and fall, her pink lips parted as she dreams sweetly.

“Oh, Jake…” Caroline says with a sigh.

“I know what you’re going to say,” I chuckle in her ear.

She lifts her eyebrows.

I nod toward Ava. “You want another one.”

“I – how did you –”

“I can read your mind, Caroline. Have you forgotten?” I grab her hand and kiss the inside of her wrist, her engagement ring sparkling.

She flushes, wrapping her arms around me. “I know what you’re going to say too, then.”

“Do ya now?”

“You’re going to say, ‘One thing at a time,’” she says.

I nod. “Spot on, Gladstone.”

Caroline gets onto her tiptoes, snagging my lips in a kiss. Long and promising of much, much more in the privacy of our bed. “But here is the thing, Simmons. We sort of have a way of doing everything at once. Don’t ya think?”

I bite my lower lip and shake my head. “You’ll be the death of me.” I kiss her. “The life of me.” I kiss her again. “And everything, everything in between.”

Thank you for reading Baby For My Billionaire Rival. If you loved this book you will also enjoy Billionaire's Match , a Surprise Pregnancy Romance.

Spencer Sullivan is NYC’s most eligible bachelor. He hired me to find his perfect match. Instead, I got pregnant with his baby.

Spencer is irresistibly handsome, loaded and totally unavailable. Work is clearly his top priority even though he claims he wants to find love.

Ending up at a five-day silent meditation retreat together was a crazy coincidence. We weren’t permitted to speak but our bodies found a way to talk to each other.

When Spencer finds out about the baby, I’m certain he’ll run. He’s too busy conquering the world to be a daddy. And I want a man who’s all in.

Doubts cloud my mind. I’ve learned the hard way not to trust what a man says. Broken promises have made me wary.

Can I trust him to do the right thing?