A Baby For Billionaire Knox

THEME: A kiss with the boss

KNOX MARTINS BEACH HOUSE

Eretia woke up to a cool morning. She lay on the bed in silence for a moment until she heard footsteps by the door. Eretia got out of bed, feeling stronger now and her legs were steady.

Knox Martins came knocking on the bedroom door. “Eretia are you up?” He asked.

“Yes.. yes.. I am awake! Please come in boss.” She replied.

“Are you sure?” Knox asked a bit surprised that she was inviting him into her room.

“Of course! Don’t worry I am not naked and I won’t try to seduce you if that’s what you are thinking!” She giggled.

Knox chuckled as he opened the door. He saw her sitting at the edge of the bed.

“Good morning boss!” She waved at him.

“Good morning Eretia, how are you feeling now?” Knox asked.

“I.. kind of feel stronger this morning.” Eretia answered.

Then she suddenly remembered her ankle. “Oh my ankle…” Quickly she stood up from the bed and took few steps forward and then stopped.

“Does it still hurt? Are you okay?” Knox questioned with concern in his tone.

“I feel…” Eretia voice trailed off as she looked up at him.

Knox shot her a confused look. “You aren’t feeling any pain in it?” He asked.

“Yes… I am not feeling any pain in my ankle anymore.” Eretia twisted her ankle.

“Really?” Knox walked closer, grabbed her wrist and pulled her to the bed.

“Sit down.” Knox instructed and she obeyed him. He crouched down and removed the bandage on her leg. He examined the ankle by twisting it gently.

“Does it hurt?” He asked.

“No.. no.. I am not feeling any pain.” She answered.

Knox was stunned. It was a fast healing! Last night he had thought of taking her to the hospital this morning to get an X – Ray done on her ankle but she was fine now. It would have taken days for her to heal if she had sprained it and it would have taken weeks if it was broken.

Knox stood up. “Is this a prank so you won’t visit the hospital?” He scrunched up his face.

“Believe me, I am not pretending to be fine.” Eretia said with a serious look on her face.

Knox Martins nodded. “Alright. Come to the kitchen to have breakfast.” He said.

“You already cooked?” Eretia raised an eyebrow.

Knox hummed a positive response.

“You shouldn’t have -”

Knox cuts her off. “Hurry up before it gets cold.”

“Okay, I’ll take a shower first.” Eretia said.

“Your choice.” Knox Martins moved out of the room.

And then Eretia remembered what she thought was a dream. Climbing into bed, Knox was kissing her? No! That had to have been a dream. If not a dream, a hallucination and not in reality. So Eretia shrugged off the thought as she went into the bathroom.

Minutes later, she left the room and headed towards the kitchen to the smell of bacon and egg frying. Eretia stepped in and found Knox there. She stood at the doorway and watched him until he turned and his eyes flicked over her. There was nothing in his expression that told her if anything had really happened last night.

“Sit down…” Knox said after she walked in further into the kitchen.

“I should be the one doing all this for you.” Eretia said.

“You can take over when you are perfectly fine.” Knox replied.

“I am better now.” Eretia smiled.

“You can take the day off today.” Knox said.

“No.” Eretia declined.

Knox furrowed his eyebrows. “It is an order.” He said.

And there was no arguing with him so she let it drop. Knox dished out their food and they ate in silence. Eretia picked on her food as she wondered if Knox had kissed her last night.

“No! Knox Martins can’t do it. He didn’t do it right? Of course he didn’t kiss me.” Eretia bantered within.

Knox Martins stood up and carried his plate to the sink. Eretia picked her almost empty plate too.

“You didn’t eat much.” Knox scanned her plate.

“I am so full.” Eretia replied as she went to where Knox stood by the sink and she rinsed the dishes as he washed them. When they finished doing the dishes, they both wiped their hands on a towel.

Eretia needed to know what was true and what had been her imagination. But she was scared to ask her boss for a confirmation. What if he didn’t kiss her like she had seen it or even imagined it in her head?

Knox Martins broke off the silence. “Won’t you give Oliver a call? I mean.. to let him know you are doing fine.”

“Of course… I’ll give him a call and I also need to thank him.” Eretia stuttered.

“Alright.” Knox made an attempt to leave.

Eretia wet her lower lips before speaking up. “Boss, I need to ask you something.”

“Questions again.” Knox turned back to face her. “What is it?” He placed his hand on his waist.

Eretia stared at him and said. “Did you kiss me last night?”

Knox was taken aback by her question. Slowly he moved closer and he leaned his weight on the island and also folded his arms.

Eretia avoided meeting his gaze. She assumed that the surprised look on his face meant that he wouldn’t do such a thing with her.

“I am disappointed.” Knox Martins whispered.

Eretia shook her head slowly “I know.. I shouldn’t have asked such a question. But I need to know if it is true or I just imagined it in my head while I was sleeping.” She stated without even looking at him.

“Well I always thought if I ever kissed a woman she would at least know she has been kissed by a man.” Knox said.

Eretia knew that was true at least for a man like him. Knox Martins is famous and wealthy so he would never kiss her. Eretia knew Knox would think she wasn’t in her right mind and she had been imagining all sort of things.

“Never mind.” Eretia said. And she would have left if he hadn’t touched her upper arm pulling her to a stop.

“You are serious, aren’t you? I mean… what you saw while you were sleeping.” He asked.

Eretia still didn’t look into his eyes. She was embarrassed as she stared at his bobbling Adams apple. There was no way she could meet his gaze.

“Forget it.” Eretia said, jerking free gently from his hold on her upper arms. She would have made her way to the door but Knox stopped her again and swirled her to face him.

They stared intently at each other for some seconds before he reached the tips of his fingers to her cheeks. The soft touch riveted her to the spot.

“You remember it right?” Knox tilted her jaw so she could look into his eyes when she tried to look away.

He stared at her but still her gaze drifted on his Adams apple instead.

“Did.. did you.. kiss me?” Eretia stammered.

About a minute clicked by with Knox just touching her cheek. “I kissed you.” He admitted.

Eretia exhaled and the sound was unsteady. So it hadn’t been been a dream. Knox Martins had truly kissed her.

“Oh.” She whispered.

“Oh yes.. I kissed you last night. I know I shouldn’t have done it without your consent. But I won’t apologize for kissing you.” Knox replied in a low tone.

Eretia met his gaze as he covered the inch between them so she felt his breath on her skin. And before she could think of what to say his lips were on hers. Her eyes widened in shock, she couldn’t move, she couldn’t think of what to do and she just existed for that moment. Knox nibbled on her lower lip and soon the contact was gone.

Eretia could see him again, moving back and his eyes looking into hers. She fought the urge to touch her lips as he was farther from her.

“Now you will remember that I kissed you.” Knox whispered. Last night was his first official kiss to a woman.

And even though he wasn’t touching her now, it did nothing to lessen his impact on her.

She looked dazed at the moment. “You were leaving to call, Oliver.” He reminded her.

The mention of Oliver made her stomach clench. An hiccup escaped her chest, she turned and hurried towards the door.

Knox closed his eyes. The truth is he had thought about kissing her from the first day. “This should stop.” He mumbled.

Eretia was in a relationship with another man. And it was pathetic. He shouldn’t be kissing her but she had succeeded in tipping his world off balance. He thought and concluded that he would gain the courage to apologize later.

***************

FEW HOURS LATER

“Where are you going?” Eretia asked Knox when she bumped into him on her way out of the bedroom to the living room.

“I need to meet up with a fashion designer.” Knox answered.

“Okay.” Eretia nodded.

They stood staring at each other in silence. He needed to apologize for kissing her even though he had said he wouldn’t do it.

Knox itched the bridge of his nose. “I am sorry.” He apologize.

Eretia looked away from him. Knox tucked his hands in his pocket.

“I don’t know if you still want to work for me. But Eretia, I would understand if you want to leave right now because of what I did last night and earlier. Actually, you can leave… to save your relationship with Oliver.”

Eretia didn’t respond.

“My mom would definitely understand if I explained things to her.” Knox added.

My mom? Eretia thought she had heard it wrongly. Knox just used my mom for Mrs Elaina Martins. He was changing? She mused.

“Say something.” Knox mumbled.

“I am not in a relationship.” She said. “I mean.. Oliver is not my boyfriend.” She added quickly.

Knox Martins forehead creased. “So who is he to you?”

“A savior. Oliver found me. I was buried in the sand by the beach so he helped me to the hospital. I don’t remember anything about my family or who I am.” Eretia bit the inside of her cheeks. She hated the fact that she had to lie to Knox Martins too.

“So Oliver took me in. I am working so I can repay him for helping me.” She ended.

Somehow Knox felt the tinge of happiness within him. She wasn’t in a relationship with Oliver. Then he suddenly pulled her into his arms with a huge smile forming on his face.

“Eretia, I am sorry for everything. The snow, your ankle… everything.” Knox rushed out his words.

Even though Eretia was surprised by his action towards her, she didn’t know when she wrapped her hands around him.

And Knox hugged her tightly. “You want to stay.. don’t you?” He asked.

“I have a contract with your mom.” Eretia replied.

“Please this is not about her.” Knox whispered into her ear.

“Now do you want me to stay?” She asked.

Knox Martins was silent. He need not to think too much to find the answer, he already knew what his heart want. He pulled back to look at her.

Eretia was quick to assume that he wasn’t ready to let her into his life completely. “Look boss, I will leave right away if you don’t-”

Knox Martins lips crashed on hers and the kiss was a little rougher than the previous one in the kitchen or last night. He held on around her waist and the back of her neck. Eretia met him eagerly not wanting to break the contact but soon he parted from her and placed his forehead on hers.

“Stay… I want you to stay with me.” Knox confessed.

Knox Martins had no idea why he was acting differently with Eretia. Maybe because she was the only woman that has ever yelled at him aside of his mother and the only woman to move his heart in a strong way. Knox wondered why he was reacting so strongly to her being there with him.

Eretia was silent. She was also surprised by her boss attitude. He wasn’t acting all tough and mean towards her. No one would ever imagine that he has such a soft and loving side in him.

“I won’t stay too long.” Knox said with a smile on his face. He kissed her forehead and moved out of the house.

Eretia sank onto the couch, looking down at the tips of her fingers until they touched her lips. She tried to think of everything. Heat surged into her face and neck when she recalled the kisses with Knox Martins. She could hardly believe Knox Martins really asked her to stay with him and the kisses.

What does that mean? Her heart beat rapidly and her middle clenched.

“Is this the way humans fall in love?” Eretia thought deeply and she wished she could know the answers to all the questions in her head.