Billionaire Daddy

Chapter 16

After my long and well-needed nap, I decided to get myself ready for this evening's dinner at Xander's. I can't decide if I should wear something casual or dress up but knowing myself I settle for casual because tonight it will just be him and me. I wear a red blouse and some black skinny jeans. For my shoes, I wear the tan ankle boots that I've worn before. After getting dressed I begin styling my hair and doing my makeup. I decide to wear my hair down in waves and put a little effort into my makeup. When I'm done I continue to stare at myself in the mirror for longer than possible. My mind has come to terms with the pregnancy but I have yet to accept the fact I'll be a mother. My hands move to my stomach and I just wish I wasn't alone in this situation. Suddenly I hear my phone ring jarring my thoughts and I see a text message from Xander saying that there is a car waiting for me downstairs. I pick up my things and leave the apartment.

When I get to Xander's penthouse I lightly knock on his door and the next second I see him open it.

"Natalia." He moves closer to quickly kiss me and gestures for me to enter his penthouse.

As I walk in I notice the smell of food being prepared in the kitchen but I walk further and I notice a medium-sized pine tree decorated in lights and ornaments. The pine tree is placed in the living room and underneath the tree is a small box. I smile knowing that it could be for me.

"I see you decorated for the holidays?" I gesture to the tree.

"I wanted to keep it festive for you." He says and I smile at the thought.

"Thanks." I love him for doing this but in my mind, I hate myself that this will be my one and only Christmas with Xander because I'll soon be leaving him to take care of the baby. The baby. The thought of having a baby next year makes me anxious. Noticing my silence, Xander turns to look at me.

"What's wrong?" He asks with concern.

"Nothing." I lie. I hate lying about my pregnancy in front of Xander. I wish I called this whole weekend off but it's too late to leave. He kisses my forehead to reassure me. "Why don't I take your things up to my room unless you want your own room for tonight?" He asks.

"No, I don't mind staying with you." I really don't want to be away from him because I don't want to be alone with my thoughts.

"Okay, I'll be back." He says while grabbing my two small bags from me. As he walks upstairs I head towards the living room to sit down and wait till he gets back.

When he does get back he joins me by the couch and asks if I wanted to drink any wine. I tell him that water was fine because I'm feeling a little thirsty. In truth I know I can't drink since I know now that I'm pregnant. Xander comes back from the kitchen to tell me that dinner should be ready in an hour. I suggest if we could watch a holiday movie just a way to distract me and to give an excuse from lying to him almost every other minute.

Soon after the movie is done, dinner is ready and we head to the dining room to eat. It's quite clear Xander's personal chef went all out for this dinner. Most of the table is filled with mashed potatoes, gravy, green peas, dinner rolls, a salad with apples, and a plate of tenderloin meat placed at the center. I feel myself salivating at the sight of the food.

Much through out the evening we continue to eat and talk. I know I should have kept my distance with him but at the same time, I want to treasure every moment before I leave him. Xander reaches out to place his hand on top of mine which makes me smile over his reassuring gesture.

"I know it's Christmas Eve but do you want to open your presents?" Xander asks while changing the subject.

"Sure. I would love to." I reply.

"When my sister and I were kids we would be too stubborn to wait for Christmas so my mother permitted both of us to open one gift of our choosing." I love it when he mentions little stories from his past.

"Sounds like something you would do," I say and Xander smiles at my comment. We sit down next to the tree and I open the small box left under the tree. The box is wrapped in a small red bow as I unwrap it. Inside the box is a small silver charm bracelet with different charms. I look up at Xander for an explanation.

"It's something that made me think of you," Xander says.

"It's beautiful. Thank you!" I smile up at him.

"You're welcome. I'm glad you like it." He says and I inspect the necklace and its charms. One of the charms is a little coffee cup probably to remember plenty of times when I went and got him coffee at the office. The other charm is of a silver heart and the last charm is a small sailboat to remind me of our date. He is so thoughtful.

"So what did you get me?" He asks waking me from my thoughts.

"Right! I left it with my things upstairs. I'll be back." I say as I get up from the floor and make my way to his bedroom. I see that my things are set up in Xander's walk-in closet. When I see my stuff I grab the small envelope in my bag. I quickly head downstairs to hand it to him.

"Here you go," I say keeping a smile and Xander opens the envelope to reveal two pieces of paper. "They're tickets to see that baseball team you mentioned before." He smiles as I explain.

"Thank you. How did you get box seats?" He asks.

"I was able to pull some strings." I had a friend from college who turned out to become the assistant manager after graduating. I was glad I still kept in contact with him to get the tickets and seats.

"Always surprising me." He says while he moves closer towards me to swiftly kiss me. God, I'm going to miss this. Too soon he pulls away I look up into his eyes and I can sense he is holding something back.

"What's wrong?" I ask in confusion.

"It's nothing." He dismisses.

"Try me," I say as I gently sweep my fingers across his cheek.

"I...I think I have fallen in love with you." He says and I only want to say it back to him because I really love him but I stop myself from doing so. I really want him to know but I can't because I'll be leaving him soon. "You don't have to say it back this moment." I smile because I'm glad he knows the right things to say. I move closer towards him and I kiss him urgently because I know I can't say the words to him but all I can do is show him. We eventually pull away from each other and decide on watching another movie. I lay my head on his shoulder as we watch the film.

Most of the evening we continue watching the movie to pass time until we head upstairs to sleep. I quickly get changed to my pajamas and by the time I finish I see the room is dim. Xander is already in bed as I approach the bed. As I get under the covers to sleep I feel myself drawn towards Xander. My body instinctively moves next to him while Xander wraps his arms around me. I feel so safe in these arms and I feel the urge to never want to leave them. My eyes grow heavy until they close but I swear I could hear Xander whisper "Goodnight Natalia" and sleep takes over.