Page 13 of The MC’s Surprise (Bikers and Babies #4)

Vegas

I had promised Sierra she could work with me at the casino, but a part of me wished I could take it back.

Ever since she agreed to help the crew, she’d been going full steam ahead.

She had a notebook she carried around with her everywhere that was filled to the brim with ideas and plans.

I didn’t want to take her attention away from that.

What she was doing was important, and me and the crew needed her help more than I needed another cocktail waitress on the floor.

Besides, I hated the idea of her being around all the cigarette smoke. Wasn’t that bad for the baby?

I was watching her on the monitors, chewing on my thumbnail as I considered my options.

I didn’t need an assistant like Prez did when he met Maggie.

With the managers and the staff, I had the support I needed there.

I didn’t want her on the cleaning staff in the hotel.

Too much heavy lifting. What was the possibility that she knew anything about IT?

If I could have her working with our IT guy, it’d keep her off the floors and at a desk so she could rest.

With my thoughts on Sierra, I didn’t hear Charlotte coming until she stepped into my office.

I didn’t have a chance to brace myself for the rush of butterflies in my stomach.

I hoped that didn’t show in my expression when I lifted my head to greet her.

My smile immediately fell when I saw the look on her face.

“What’s wrong?”

“I thought we agreed we weren’t hiring her,” she snapped.

Blinking slowly, I frowned. “I said she wasn’t here for an interview the other day. She didn’t tell me she was looking for work until later. What’s the problem? You were just telling me you were short staffed.”

“My problem is that you didn’t talk to me first.” She stuck her lip out in a pout, making my stomach clench and my breath catch. That look did me in every damn time. “I thought you valued my opinion.”

I was on my feet in an instant, coming around the desk to hover at her side.

“Hey, hey… I do value your opinion. I’m sorry, I should’ve let you know.

But just give her a chance. Sierra has worked here before, she’s good with the guests and a hard worker.

And…” I hesitated, worried it would ruin my chances with her if I told Charlotte about the baby.

Charlotte noticed the pause, her eyes narrowing slightly. “Justin? What is it?”

She was the only one in the world who got away with calling me by my first name.

Not even Sierra, who was carrying my kid, called me that.

I didn’t fight her on it. It made the conversations feel special when we talked to one another.

Hopefully she felt the same way and this wouldn’t ruin everything.

“She’s carrying my kid,” I admitted. “We had a fling during the summer and she got pregnant. When she said she was looking for a job, I asked her to come work here. I want her close in case anything happens.”

Charlotte’s mouth hung open as she stared at me, sort of like how mine did when Sierra first told me. I wanted to point it out, ease the tension a little, but I also didn’t want to make light of it. I cared too much about how Charlotte thought of me to make jokes.

The shock I expected. The anger that followed was a little bit of a surprise. “So, what? You’re going to have a kid now? Are you dating her or something? Because even if you are, I’m not going to let her get away with not working. I’ve got a business to run and–”

I tried taking her arm, hoping to bring her to the couch so we could talk, but she jerked her arm away from me, the fury evident in her eyes. My hope that this wouldn’t affect my standing with her vanished in thin air.

“Answer me, Justin! I can’t believe you! I was gone for a month and you decided to be this reckless? And now I’m forced to work with someone who will try to leverage that connection and get away with murder! This is why I wanted you to talk to me before hiring someone!”

A knock at the door interrupted us before I could get a word in edgewise.

We both glanced at the door, and I couldn’t decide if it would make it worse to answer or if giving her a minute to cool off would be better.

The knock sounded again and workplace obligation took over.

I headed for the door, opening it to find Theo, my IT guy, standing on the other side.

His frown said he’d heard at least part of the shouting on Charlotte’s part, but he was polite enough not to say anything about it.

“What’s up?”

“Pretty sure we had a meeting set up for right now.”

A quick glance at my phone proved he was right. We were supposed to meet to talk about a few system upgrades he wanted to do after some complaints from guests about spotty wifi.

“Uh, sure. Can you give me–”

“Don’t bother,” Charlotte hissed as she stomped past. “I’m leaving. I’ve got work to do.”

My heart sank, but maybe this was for the best. I’d been pining over Charlotte for years. She never gave me the time of day. Maybe if she hated me, I could finally get over her. I couldn’t chase after her forever. Not with a kid on the way. I had to focus on what was important.

With a sigh, I let her go, stepping back to make room for Theo to join me instead. When I sat behind my desk, I slumped a little in my chair. Theo gave me a commiserating look.

“Women, huh?”

I huffed a laugh, shaking my head. “You’re telling me. So what’s up?”

He went over the upgrades he wanted to install, most of which went right over my head. The little I did understand sounded good, though. And it would help with our shitty wifi situation by a lot.

“I’ll have to shut down the internet for a little while, though, while the patches are put in. I’ll make it as quick as possible, but it won’t be instantaneous.”

I waved away his concern. “That’s fine. I’ll offer vouchers to the guests for the inconvenience. Any chance I can pay you overtime to do it overnight? That way we’ll disrupt as few people as possible.”

He nodded easily, which was a relief after the shitshow I just had with Charlotte. “I can do that, boss. I’ll aim for a Tuesday night. It’s our slow night.”

“Sounds good. Let me know if you need anything from me.”

Out of habit, my gaze shifted to the monitors pulled up on my computer as he finished up. When I saw Charlotte cornering Sierra, alarms went off in my head and I was on my feet before I even made the conscious decision to move.

“Sorry, Theo, but I need to handle something.”

I ran out of the room without a backward glance, racing down the long hallway to the main floor of the casino.

I couldn’t run through it without causing chaos, but I walked as quickly as possible to where I’d last seen Sierra on the monitors.

When I arrived, Charlotte was gone, but Sierra didn’t look happy.

“Hey, are you alright?”

She turned from where she’d been wiping down the serving trays, her lips pursed to hide her frown. “I’m fine. Why?”

How creepy would I come off if I said I saw Charlotte cornering her on the monitor. I’d have to admit I was watching her, which definitely upped the creep factor by a lot.

“Is this about Charlotte?” she asked, like she could read my mind.

I grimaced and nodded. “Yeah, I guess she wasn’t happy about me hiring someone behind her back and I didn't want her taking it out on you.”

Sierra raised an eyebrow, her expression bland. “I hate to say I told you so, but I did warn you.”

“Yeah, well… I’d rather have her pissed at me and my kid nearby than worry about you moving away for work.”

Her lips twitched and I could tell she was fighting a smile when she finally turned and gave me her full attention. When she stepped closer, I felt my breath freeze in my lungs. What were the chances I managed to piss off both women in my life on the same day.

“I promise unless I had no other choice, I’m not leaving town. We might not be together, but I want this kid to know both their parents. I wouldn’t have come out here and told you if I didn't want that.”

“Yeah, you would,” I murmured. “You’re too good a person to hide a pregnancy. Pretty sure you would’ve called and told me you were getting an abortion if you knew any earlier.”

She twisted her mouth in a sad attempt at hiding her smile. “Okay, maybe. But that’s just because I believe in open communication. I’m not going anywhere, Vegas. Even if I can’t work here.”

“You can,” I interrupted. “It’s my casino. She’ll get over it. But… What are the chances that brilliant mind of yours can come up with a job that’ll get you off the casino floor? I’m worried about all the smoke around you and the baby.”

That time, the smile broke free. She laughed, rolling her eyes at me. “I’m fine, Vegas. Now go be the big fancy owner and let me get back to work. I’ll see you later.”