Page 75 of Babies for the Big Shot

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“Same, buddy,” I whisper. “Same.”

I rest a hand on my stomach. On the small, stubborn life I haven’t told him about. Not because I don’t want to…

But because I don’t know what will happen if I do.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Nick

“Q4 numbers don’t justifythe spend,” I say, flipping to the next slide. “If the burn rate holds, we’ll bleed profit by January.”

The door slams open mid-sentence.

“Darling.”

Rebecca.

Perfect.

Chairs swivel. Interns stiffen. One of the junior VPs makes a choking sound. I finish my sentence. Then, and only then, I look up.

She’s dressed as if she’s a model. Tailored black blazer, long legs, red lipstick weaponized. She doesn’t enter the room. She takes it.

“Rebecca,” I say. Flat. Neutral. “We’re in the middle of a meeting.”

“Oh, I know,” she says, gliding forward. “But I couldn’t resist.”

She kisses my cheek loudly. A warning shot.

I don’t move. That’s the only defense with her: stillness.

The room tilts. The air tightens. Every eye pretends not to watch.

She turns to the table as if she just remembered it exists. “Don’t mind me. I won’t keep him long. Although…” she lets her gaze drift back to me, “you all do realize he’s allergic to rest, right? Exhausting just being near him.”

Someone laughs. Someone else pretends to type.

“I need a minute,” I say, rising. “Keep going without me.”

The tension unspools as I lead her out.

I don’t speak until we reach my office. I open the door and gesture her in, and she takes her time walking past me. She’s acting as if this is all hers.

Including me.

I shut the door behind us.

“This isn’t what we agreed on,” I say, voice clipped. “You said you’d find out who sent the photo, not stage a performance in my boardroom.”

She just smiles, unfazed.

“Was there a purpose to that little entrance, or are you just bored again?”

She turns in a slow circle, surveying the room. “Still so corporate. Doesn’t anyone in this building believe in art?”

“Rebecca.”

She drops into a chair across from me, crossing her legs, settling in for the day. “Relax. I was nearby.”

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