TO LOVE HIM AGAIN:THE BILLIONAIRE'S SECRET CHILD

Sera's POV

"Shh, baby." I rock my wailing son in my arms, my own tears threatening to fall from my eyes.

His cry is piercing, and doesn't seem to be stopping anytime soon. He's been crying all morning, and I don't know why.

"Sweetheart," I murmur in his ears. "Tell mommy what's wrong. Are you hurting?"

Ezra's response is a louder cry. Tears trickle down my own cheeks, and I swipe it angrily.

"You're okay, sweetheart. You're okay." I don't know if I'm telling myself or I'm telling him.

A knock on my door sounds, and I'm glad to see Owen walk through. He takes one look at both of us with tears falling from our eyes, and he laughs.

"When you told me there was an emergency, I didn't know it was two!"

I roll my eyes and shove Ezra into Owen's arms. He immediately stops crying, and my jaw drops.

I sniffle. "He hates me, doesn't he?"

"Of course not, Sera," Owen replies. "You're both having a bad day."

"What does he know about bad days? He's only four."

Owen grins. "I used to have bad days even in the womb...at least that's what my mom used to say."

Ezra hiccups, whimpering in the crook of Owen's neck.

"Go take a shower, Sera. You look horrible."

I grimace. "Way to make a girl feel special."

He raises a brow.

"I can't, though," I explain. "I have to submit this article to Wendy before six p.m. today."

"Damn," he whistles, glancing at the digital clock on my desk. "It's already past three. Have you even started?"

"No," I say. "I tried but Ezra kept crying. I gave him food, he said he wasn't hurting anywhere. His temperature is fine, he..."

"Hey, it's okay," Owen cuts in. "He's fine now, look."

Sure enough, Ezra's playing with the collar of Owen's shirt, little hiccups leave his lips.

I run a hand through his thick dark hair. "Hi baby."

His grip tightens on Ezra's shirt and I sigh, taking a step back.

"Thank you, Owen," I breathe. "Thank you for always coming when I need you. Now, I'm just going to work on this in my room."

I pick up my laptop and soda.

Owen waves at me. "We'll be here."

It's a huge relief to be left alone for a bit. My reflection catches in the mirror when I step into my room, and my jaw drops in horror.

Blood-shot eyes, brown hair up in a tangled mess, and cheeks flushed. I look like I went through hell... and was spat out.

My clothes are strewn across the room, the sheets in a pool on the floor. The relief disappears, and I swallow the lump in my throat.

Don't cry, Sera. Not again.

I place my laptop on the desk and stare at the blank page, fingers hovering.

Nothing comes to my mind. No word, no topic... nothing. I'm just blank.

Working as a junior copywriter for Q's magazine has been tasking. I'm grateful for the job, and like all writers, waiting for my big break.

But as I stare at the blank document, tears burn at the back of my eyes, and that big break seems wayyy out of reach.

I rest my head on the desk, and I sob. Ezra's giggle filters into the room, and I only cry harder.

I'm so tired, drained. I really am.

***

Owen's loud gasp drags my eyes away from my screen.

"That better be gossip," I say.

After crying, I had decided to take a much needed shower, and do a little cleaning.

I felt better almost immediately. My thoughts are now finally free to roam, and I'm slowly rounding up on my article.

"Sera, you need to see this."

"I'm coming," I tell him. "Let me just send this to Wendy."

My hands fly over the keyboard, eyes scanning the contents like a hawk.

In few more sentences, I conclude with a full-stop, and I smile, sending the document to Wendy, my boss's email.

Fingers crossed, I hope she likes it.

With a groan, I pop my fingers and head over to Owen. Ezra's playing in his play pen, finally happy.

"What's up?" I plop down beside him.

Owen scrolls on his phone. "Someone on our team got a verified information."

I wait for more, but he doesn't speak.

"Well," I press my lips together. "Are you going to tell me what the information is?"

He chuckles. "Hold on, I want to show it to you. Remember the rumor we heard?"

"We work in a PR firm, Owen. We've heard a lot of rumors." I roll my eyes.

"Oh hush," he glares playfully. "The Adrian Cross rumor. He's proposing to his mystery lady."

My heart drops. "W-what? Wh-who's the lady?"

"No one knows. At least not until Saturday."

That's two days from now.

The frantic thump of my pulse pound in my ears, blood rushing through my veins.

"He's getting engaged?" I whisper, throat thickening.

"You've gone pale, like you've seen a ghost." Owen frowns at me, brows pinched together. "Are you okay?"

My head bobs. "C-can I see it?"

He hands me his phone, and sure enough on our office platform, the information is there, supplied by one of our fact-checkers.

"Adrian Cross is set to propose to his mystery woman on Saturday. The rumors have been confirmed that this engagement will be a private announcement, and is set to happen in New York City."

"Wow," I breathe, speechless.

It's taking a lot to keep my tears at bay, my lips wobble and I bite down on it.

"It's crazy, isn't it?" Owen says. "All the ladies who are obsessed with him will definitely be sad."

Crazy...that's definitely one word to describe it.

My lungs squeeze tight in my chest, and I bite on my lip harder until I can't hold the tears anymore. They fall like waterworks, streaming down my cheeks.

He's getting engaged. He's proposing to someone else.

What did I expect? Why do I even feel so much hurt?

It's been four years. Four years no contact.

"Sera, Jesus." Owen blinks at me. "You're crying."

I hiccup, swiping my cheeks but the tears don't stop.

Owen pulls me into a hug, and I sob like a baby while he shushes me.

"What's going on, love?" He asks.

"I-I..."

"Talk to me, what's wrong? Are you upset that he's getting engaged?"

"It's not that," I croak.

"Then, what is it?"

"Mommy!" Ezra squeals, climbing out of his play pen.

Familiar green eyes stare up at me, lips pouting. He climbs up my legs, settling in my lap.

"Don't cry, mommy." He climbs up my legs, settling in my lap. His chubby hands wipe my cheeks.

"Thank you, baby." I kiss his head.

Owen smiles at him, then turns to me with raised brows. "What's going on?"

"Adrian Cross..." I gulp, sniffling. "He's Ezra's father."

His mouth falls open, eyes wide. "You're kidding!"

Before I can delve into the tragedies of my past relationship, my phone rings.

"It's..." I frown at Owen, "Wendy. Why is she calling? Did she read my article already? Is she..."

Owen holds my hand. "Pick up the phone, Sera."

"O-okay." A shaky breath leaves my lungs.

"Hello, Wendy."

"Sera! Glad I could reach you," she says. "I need you to publish the article on Mr. Cross' engagement. Is that going to be a problem?"

Will writing about my ex boyfriend, and the father of my son's private engagement be a problem?

Very much.

I clear my throat. "Not at all, I-"

"Great! Send it in tonight. It'll be released by seven a.m tomorrow morning."

The line goes dead.

Sera's POV

This is not a good idea.

But it's not a bad idea either.

At least that's what I keep trying to tell myself while staring at the flight tickets to New York in the next four hours.

"Sera?"

I'm jerked out of my thoughts to find Owen blinking at me, a frown on his face.

"How're you feeling?" He asks.

I shrug. "I'm okay."

His brows dip. "Do you still love him? You never told me about your relationship with him."

A bitter laugh leaves my lips. "I'd rather not rehash the memories."

"I understand," he hums, eyes dimming. "I got you coffee and donuts, though."

Owen holds up the bag of goodies, the scent wafting through my nostrils. My stomach grumbles, eager.

"Thank you." I grab the bag from him, taking a sip of the coffee.

Coffee makes everything feel better, and I need it for the way my heart is hurting.

"You're welcome." He smiles. "How's Ezzy?"

My son's little face comes to the forefront of my mind, and I find his picture on my desk. "He's fine. He's at school, thankfully."

"Alright." Owen smiles back and gets up to leave but pauses, settling back down.

I raise a brow. "What's going on?"

"Not to be a bummer but... did you see the post?" He leans forward, voice dropping an octave lower. "The internet is going crazy."

The smile on my face disappears, spine stiffening.

"Yea." My lips press into a thin line. "I did."

I had to turn my phone off when every notification chime almost made me lose my mind.

"The most eligible bachelor slash billionaire is off the market. There's a lot of wailing, and speculation about the mystery woman."

"Of course there is," I reply. "Everything's pretty hush hush."

This is the last conversation I want to have, not to mention I had to write about my ex's engagement last night.

"But he hasn't been seen with anyone, so why now?"

I shrug. "Because he knows what the media is like."

Owen nods. "I don't blame him though, I wouldn't want to-"

A chime from his iPad interrupts him.

"Oh shit!" He cusses, shooting to his feet with wide eyes. "Wendy just got into the office."

Owen and Wendy have their...differences. He's never at his office, and Wendy hates that.

I chuckle at his panic-stricken face. "She's going to be upset if she sees you here, hurry up."

"I'll talk to you later, Sera."

He leaves my office, and I take a bite of the donut.

The flight tickets still glare at me, and I let out a long sigh.

I just need closure. To let him go officially.

"I hope I don't regret this," I mutter.

Grabbing my phone, I call Ivy, my best friend. She picks up on the fourth ring.

"Hi!" She greets, sounding out of breath.

I smile. "Ivy, hey. Is this a bad time?"

"No, Sera. What's up?"

"D-did you hear about Adrian?" I mumble.

"Oh honey," she sighs. "He's proposing to his mystery lady."

"Yea..."

The line crackles for a bit, and her voice comes in again. "I know you still like him but-"

"I don't!" I blurt.

"But," she punctuates, "I think you should let him go, holding on to the past is not healthy."

"I'm not holding on to anything. It's just Ezra..."

"Sera look-" she cuts in, "Ezra's still young. There's still years for him to know his father."

I don't reply for a while, staring at the flight tickets.

"Okay, don't judge me Ivy-"

"Oh no," she groans. "What did you do?"

My heart pounds, throat drying up. She's already judging me and I've barely gotten a word in.

"I-I need closure, Ivy. You adviced that I should move on, but I can't do that unless I get closure."

"And how do you want to get closure?"

I chew on my bottom lip.

"No, Sera!" She gasps. "Don't tell you want to crash his engagement."

"I don't!" I nearly shriek, shaking my head as if she can see me. "I'm not going to crash it. I just want to talk with him."

Ivy clicks her tongue. "It's a bad idea, and that's me putting it nicely because frankly, it's the worst idea you've ever had."

The bite in her tone sends a pang through my chest.

"Why?" I hiss, eyes twitching. "Four years, Ivy. It's been four years since, and I've not been able to move on."

"And you don't think that's a 'you' problem?" She snaps.

My brows pull together and I stare at the caller ID to be sure I'm still talking with Ivy. Sure enough her name with a bunch of flower emojis stare back at me.

She sighs. "Listen, I'm your best friend, Sera, and trust me when I tell you you're only going to get yourself more hurt."

"Too late," I say. "I've already gotten tickets."

The line goes quiet before she speaks again. "How are you going to get in? It's invite only."

"I know you were invited, Ivy." I roll my eyes. "Don't play coy with me."

Ivy is a model with a large fan base, so she gets invites to most of the events. Having her as a friend has helped my career because she gives most of the gossip for my articles.

Unfortunately, she didn't give me this one.

"I was," she confirms.

"Please, Ivy," I beg her. "You know I need this, come on."

Adrian Cross was once the boy I loved. Until he broke my heart, and I was left with a baby that belonged to him...and a heart that still beats for him.

"Sera... there's no way to change your mind, is there?" Ivy asks.

I frown. "Why do you keep trying to stop me?"

"Because you will get hurt, Sera," she practically wails. "I'm only trying to protect you. But if it's what you want, I'll send you the code to get in."

Seeing the rumors and the confirmations have already hurt me. There's nothing left to hurt, nothing left for him to ruin.

Now, I just need to officially cut all ties. Just...nip it in the bud and move on with my life.

"Thank you," I whisper, heart heavy. "It's something I have to do."

The notification from her pops up on my open laptop.

"I can only wish you the best, Sera."

"What do you mean by that?" I ask, lips pulled down in confusion.

"It means whatever you want it to mean," she replies. "By the way, what of Ezra? You'll keep him in LA?"

"No," I respond. "I'm taking him to meet his father."

Sera's POV

I was twenty when I met Adrian in college, and it wasn't love at first sight. At twenty four, I got the video, and the news that ruined us.

~Flashback~

"I'm sorry," I say into the phone, eyes watering.

Adrian sighs. "I know baby, but you need to trust me."

We had our usual fight the night before. Adrian is a the quarterback captain, and it's safe to say the ladies love him.

This time, I found red lip stains on his jersey, so I got upset. He didn't like that.

"I'm trying," I sniffle.

"I have never cheated on you, and I'd never. I love you, Sera. You know that."

I nod, swallowing the lump in my throat. "I love you, too. I'm sorry for accusing you of cheating like I always do."

"Are we good?"

"Yea," I croak, wiping my eyes. "How was the party?"

I was too upset to meet him at the last party for the semester. We're heading home today, and I'm regretting standing him up all because of red lip stains.

He yawns, loudly. "It was alright, I didn't really have a lot of fun, you know why. Can I see you at the cafeteria before you go home?"

"Definitely."

"Alright, darling. I'll text you."

We say our goodbyes, everything is settled between us and I smile, the line disconnecting.

My phone chimes with a message from an anonymous number.

I frown, clicking on it to reveal a video clip.

That should've been the point to turn off my phone, or to delete the video immediately. But curiosity got the best of me, and like they say... it kills the cat.

I jam my fingers down on the play button, and watch the video of my boyfriend, Adrian.

He's shirtless on the bed, and in only a tiny piece of briefs. An equally undressed girl clings to his chest, and he holds her.

My jaw drops, stomach dipping.

No, this can't be.

I squeeze my eyes shut, wishing that when I open them, it won't be my boyfriend wrapped half naked around some girl.

But the picture is still there... and I don't need a genie to tell me that I had just been played.

Adrian's text pops in at that moment, with the time to meet up at the cafeteria, and the screen blurs from the tears in my eyes.

I don't respond. Instead, I grab my already packed suitcase and leave the hostel, shooting a text to Ivy that I've left for home.

Unknowing to me that an even terrible news was waiting for me at home.

~End Of Flashback~

"This way, Laurel," I tell the sitter I hired, voice loud over the chatter, as I direct her toward the entrance flanked by reporters.

I tighten my grip on Ezra's hand, making our way down the carpeted aisle.

Ezra and I arrived in New York yesterday. Unfortunately for him, he's not going to do a lot of sight-seeing because this is only meant to be a weekend dash in, dash out.

"Good evening, ma'am," a tall lady in a uniform greets."Your name and the code, please?"

She stands beside a bouncer, earpiece in and an iPad in her hands.

"Good evening, I'm Sera," I say. "Sera Lane. The code is..."

"Wait," she says, typing on the iPad with furrowed brows. "There's no Sera Lane on the invite."

My heart stops. "I have the c-code."

She shakes her head. "I'm sorry but if you're not on the invite, we can't let you in."

"You don't understand-"

"Ma'am please leave the way." She looks over my shoulder, motioning for the next person.

Ezra begins whining and Laurel immediately takes him from me. I dig around in my purse for my phone, dialing Ivy.

The call rings, and rings... but I get her voicemail.

"Excuse me..." I glance at the lady's name tag. "Toria. Excuse me, Toria."

Irritation crosses her face, her jaw tightens. "Yes, ma'am?"

"I'm sorry," I apologize. "I don't mean to be a bother, b-but can't you just run the code? I have a son here who's going to get cranky real soon."

She spares Ezra and Laurel a look. "I suggest you go home, ma'am. We're under strict instructions, and Mr Cross doesn't take to being disrespected."

"Why can't you just use the code?"

"The code is only respective to invitees."

Ivy didn't tell me this. My cheeks burn with embarrassment. Fingers trembling, I try Ivy again.

This time it rings once, and goes straight to voicemail, almost like it's intentional. I try two more times, and the same thing happens.

Other guests go through freely, some staring at me as I hover in a corner, all dolled up for an event I wasn't officially invited to.

I shouldn't have come.

Typing out a text to Ivy that I'm stuck outside , it double ticks immediately. She's seen it. The three dots appear and disappear, but no texts come in.

I try again, and this time... only a single tick.

And that's the confirmation that she's ignoring me on purpose. Why?

Anger brews in my chest, heart pounding.

"Toria..."

She glares at me, and I bite my tongue.

Clicks from reporters go by, and I pray to everything holy that they don't capture this embarrassment, this humiliation.

"Come on, Laurel..." I mutter, voice shaky. I clamp down on my jaw, keeping my tears at bay.

I shouldn't cry. It's fine.

We turn to leave when a voice stops me.

"Are you leaving, dear?"

An African-American woman speaks, her lips pulled into a confused frown. She's stunning with Afro hair adorned with gold jewelry.

"Yes, urm-" I clear my throat. "My best friend...she didn't tell me about the code being on invite only, and I j-just..."

"Is that your son?" She points to Ezra.

I nod with a wobbly smile. "Yes, he is."

"Hm." She squints. "Come on, I'll tell them you're with me."

My heart soars. "Are you sure? I don't want to be an inconvenience."

"Nonsense." She waves me off, her jewelry clinking with every movement. "Something tells me you really want to be here."

This feels like a Cinderella moment, except this fairy godmother is helping me have my final heartbreak, pushing me to the painful closure I desperately need.

"Thank you, so much," I say, eyes watering at her kindness. I look down on my phone, but still no text or call from Ivy.

She shakes her head, giving Ezra a little handshake. "It's nothing. Besides, you didn't come all this way with such a beautiful boy only to be sent back home."

I walk beside her and immediately remember my manners.

"I'm Sera Lane," I introduce myself.

She smiles. "Antoinette."

Antoinette informs Toria that we're with her, and just like that... we're allowed into the beautifully decorated room filled with only a handful of people.

I scan the room for Adrian, plucking a glass of champagne from one of the waiters and snagging a cupcake for Ezra.

"Thank you all for joining us tonight."

I can recognize that voice anywhere, even in my sleep. My eyes find him immediately.

Adrian stands tall in the front of the room, and for a moment he's the only one I see.

"As you all know, I'm proposing to my future wife tonight... so," he pauses, eyes scanning the room, and he gives a nod to someone in the crowd.

The crowd parts as a woman steps out.

Adrian drops to one knee. "Ivy Shawn, will you marry me?"

Everyone gasps, squeals erupting but they slowly fade to the background.

"Yes," Ivy smiles.

All the air leaves my lungs, and I watch with parted lips as my ex boyfriend proposes to my supposed best friend... and she says yes.

As if they can hear the sound of my heart breaking, their eyes find my shocked ones.

And they stay locked.