The Fake Fiance (Second Chance Baby Daddy) Read online

  The Fake Fiance

  ♥

  Melissa Devenport

  Table of Contents:

  Prologue

  Chapter 01

  Chapter 02

  Chapter 03

  Chapter 04

  Chapter 05

  Chapter 06

  Chapter 07

  Chapter 08

  Chapter 09

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Epilogue

  ALL ABOUT MELISSA

  Written by Melissa Devenport

  Published by Perfect Harmony Publications

  © 2020 Perfect Harmony Publications

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  Prologue

  AMBER

  This was an utter nightmare; one she knew she’d never wake up from. Her stomach twisted with rage and frustration as she stared down her boyfriend of two years. Tears pricked her eyes, and she desperately tried to keep them from falling. Unfortunately, crying wouldn’t change the fact that the father of her child had been lying, cheating, and breaking her heart at every turn.

  Sean kept his eyes averted; arms crossed over his chest. It was a sure sign that he was lying through his teeth, and that pissed Amber off more than anything. She had no idea why he kept up the charade, even though she had proof of his infidelity. If he would just be honest, then they could start to work through this, before their family fell apart at the seams.

  Amber huffed and sighed heavily, rubbing her temples. “Sean, can you please just be honest with me? We need to talk about this.”

  He was silent for a long moment before glancing at her with a weary look in his eyes. “What do you want me to say, Amber?”

  She picked up the pile of papers and bank statements before dropping them back onto the couch. “I want you to tell me the truth. Because it’s pretty clear what you’ve been up to. I just want to hear it from your lips.” She felt a little guilty for snooping through his email and text messages, but she’d had reason for it. Amber knew he was lying, and the proof wasn’t hard to find. Sure, it was possible he was working all those nights he paid for a hotel room, but it wasn’t very likely.

  Sean threw up his hands and grunted in frustration, an annoyed look on his face. “Fine. Yes. You’re right, I’ve been seeing someone else.”

  Seriously? He was going to be mad at her? He was the one screwing around, but of course, she was the bad guy. She was the one being unreasonable.

  “Cheating, Sean. Fucking someone behind your girlfriend’s back? Yeah, that’s called cheating.” Amber tried desperately to keep her voice as low as possible. The last thing she needed right now was Katie waking up to hear her parents screaming at one another.

  He heaved a sigh, a brief mournful look on his face. Amber couldn’t help but feel like any regret he might have was from getting caught, rather than any actually feeling bad about his actions.

  “Ok, yes. I’m cheating on you. I know it’s wrong, and I know it’s unfair, but it happened.”

  Hot tears of frustration stung her eyes. This could not be happening. Yeah, their relationship wasn’t perfect, and things had been a bit rocky at times, but after two years together, she never would have expected this. Hell, before this, she wanted to marry him and really solidify their little family. “Why? Why would you do that to me? To our daughter?”

  “It just happened, sweetheart. You were always so busy with Katie and work, and I just got lonely. You weren’t there, but she was.”

  Amber gaped at him, rage stabbing her stomach. Holy shit, was he really trying to blame it all on her? Again, not surprising in the slightest, since he had never been a guy who was willing to admit to any wrongdoing, but this was beyond the pale. Yes, she was busy with the baby and work, but that was not an excuse. And it wasn’t like he’d really tried making an effort.

  “Wait a minute. Are you seriously telling me that while I was dealing with healing from having a baby, being a first-time mom, plus postpartum depression, plus working full-time, you went out for some action because you were lonely? Why didn’t you, I don’t know, actually talk to me about it? Or put forth any effort?”

  He shrugged up a shoulder, eyes cutting away from her. Most of her rage faded into hurt. Two years together, and all he could do was shrug? It broke her heart to see him so blasé about all of this. To Sean, this was apparently no big deal. The fact that he didn’t care about what he was doing to her spoke volumes.

  Amber took a deep breath, trying desperately to rein in her pain. As much as this sucked, she didn’t want to see their relationship crumble. Two years was a long time to waste, and they had a child together. She wanted to fix what was broken here, but she couldn’t do that alone.

  She shook her head slowly, her voice quiet. “Are you done with her? Is this something we can fix?”

  Sean’s silence was deafening. He gazed out the picture window, his brow furrowed in frustration as he shook his head slowly.

  She gasped at the daggers striking her heart. This could not be happening. Not now, not when everything in her life was finally starting to come together. Not when she finally felt like she had everything she’d ever wanted.

  From the next room, Katie started to cry. Amber swallowed hard and turned without a word, leaving to tend to the infant. It would give her a chance to gather herself and hopefully bite back the tears that threatened to overwhelm her.

  She scooped her daughter into her arms, gently hugging the squirming human that had brought so much joy into her life, bouncing her gently to calm her crying. Katie was dry, and she had finished eating not long before Sean got home, so Amber had to assume it was the tension and yelling that had woken her. She knew her mama was upset at something.

  “It’s ok, baby girl. We’re going to be ok.” Amber kissed the top of her head as the baby cooed softly, nestling against her chest.

  In the master bedroom, Amber could hear Sean moving around. Oh, she wanted nothing more than to stay hidden in the nursery and wait for this to all get better, but that was little more than wishful thinking. She couldn’t avoid this forever. Apparently, she had no say in the fate of her relationship.

  With a deep breath, she tried desperately to steel herself for what she knew was coming. The look in Sean’s eyes and his utter lack of contrition told her a story she’d never wanted to hear. Sean was a lot of things, but until now, she’d never questioned his love for her. Sure, he was kind of a dick, but he’d always seemed to care.

  Or maybe she’d just been very good at lying to herself.

  Amber stepped back out into the living room, gently rocking Katie back and forth as she waited, the dread growing with every passing second.

  When she heard him reenter the living room, Amber knew she had to face the music. She had to watch him leave, no matter how unprepared she felt. If this was going to be over, then she needed to at least watch him walk away from everything they’d built together.

  She inhaled deeply, cradling Katie close to her chest and stepping back into the living room, working to put a calm look on her face. Her baby deserved so much better than this.

  “I’m sorry, Amber. You deserve better than me.” For the first time since she’d faced him down with the proof of his antics, Sean really and truly sounded like he regretted all of this. Or, at the very least, he regretted getting caught. He regretted that he wouldn’t be able to keep leeching off her and using her.

  “I’m leaving.” His words sounded so final. Just like that, two years of her life crumbled down around her ears. All of the time and energy she’d put into this relationship just disappeared in two words and a puff of smoke.

  Amber inhaled deeply. No matter how angry she was at Sean, she hadn’t wanted this. She’d figured they’d have a fight and then eventually work through his infidelity to continue building their life together.

  He was leaving, and she wasn’t going to stop him. She wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of seeing her cry and beg him to stay. He’d lost the right to see anything like that from her.

  She watched him, not saying a word, waiting for him to finish his obviously prepared speech.

  Sean cleared his throat, shifting uncomfortably from foot to foot. “Ah. I’ll be back later this week to pack my things and make arrangements for everything to be moved. Within the next few weeks, I’ll be heading to Redding, California. I’ve got some opportunities there that will really help the company expand…”

  Amber had a feeling that he was searching for her approval, a blessing that would absolve him of sin. He was trying to brush his mistakes under the rug and pretend he was leaving for business reasons.

  Before this, if he’d asked her to move with him, she probably would have. She’d have given up her good job and her brand spanking new promotion, just to keep their little family together. She would have done just about anything for him. Hell, even after finding out he was cheating, she would have been willing to work through it. But he would have had to put in some effort t
oo. He would have needed to care, just a little.

  Amber swallowed hard, nodding slowly. She kissed Katie’s head, carefully maintaining a neutral tone to her voice. “I see. Good luck, then.”

  Sean opened his mouth to say something and then shut it again. Nothing he could possibly say would make this any better.

  If she didn’t know better, she’d say Sean almost looked disappointed that she wasn’t fighting him on this more. But what was the point of fighting the inevitable? He’d clearly already checked out of the relationship, and that had apparently been the case for months. While Amber was busy busting her ass to score a new promotion and supporting him and his burgeoning dispensary, all the while adjusting to life as a first-time mom, Sean was out looking for better and brighter things. It was some cruel, cold-hearted bullshit on his part.

  It hurt that he’d cared so little for her. That he hadn’t even tried to make things better before moving on.

  He gave her a faint smile, leaning close to brush a brief kiss on the top of Katie’s head. Then, without a word, he picked up his bag and stepped out the door.

  Amber gasped as the door shut behind him. The clicking latch carried with it a finality that ripped her soul in half. She crumpled to the couch, dissolving into uncontrollable sobs. As Katie fussed and squirmed, Amber buried her face in the infant and wept for the loss of a man she’d once thought was The One.

  “It’s ok baby, it’ll all be ok.” She murmured over and over, trying desperately to comfort herself just as much as Katie.

  Deep down, she knew that it would, in fact, all be ok. One way or another, she would figure it all out and persevere. And she didn’t have to do this all alone. She knew her best friends Donna and Drake would be there to help however she needed.

  They would be ok, eventually.

  And maybe, if she kept telling herself that, she would even start believing it.

  Chapter 1

  AMBER

  Amber Moore sighed heavily, resting her chin in her hand as she skimmed through the email from her boss for the hundredth time. Less than a month into her brand-new position, and she could already tell it was all going to come crumbling down around her head. Just like everything else in her life.

  She had no idea how the hell she was going to pull this off. As the brand spanking new Vice President of Social Media, failure to attend the 10th annual Corporate Family Retreat would murder her career and probably find her swiftly losing the promotion she’d worked so hard to get. It was just her luck that her company, Child Spark, had an intense family-oriented culture. Which meant bringing her 8-month-old daughter Katie was practically a requirement. Along with her partner.

  Unfortunately, her partner was currently somewhere in California, fucking his mistress into oblivion. Good riddance to him, she deserved better anyway.

  Amber inhaled deeply, running her fingertips through her long, curly red hair. Sean was gone and he wasn’t coming back, but she couldn’t very well tell anyone in the office that. It was hard enough to sell herself as the kind of person who fit in the company culture having just a partner and not a spouse; she couldn’t imagine trying to explain her new situation. Single mom who was unceremoniously dumped by a cheating boyfriend.

  God, she felt so pathetic. Sean was supposed to be the one she spent the rest of her life with.

  This wasn’t how life was supposed to go. According to everything she’d seen growing up, she was supposed to fall in love, get married, have kids, and stay together no matter what. It had taken her awhile to find someone she thought was worthy of that, but Sean apparently hadn’t been nearly as committed as she was.

  Amber was trying very hard not to blame this all on herself. Yeah, maybe she was a bit distant over the past year, but she had good reason for it. No matter the justification Sean had given her, he was the bad guy in the scenario. He was the one who up and left his family for another woman.

  She sighed softly, glancing at Katie sleeping in her bouncer. It was one of the best perks of Child Spark. She got to spend two days a week at home with the baby. That was a company-wide policy. Everyone had the option to work from home part time on a rotating basis. And when they were in the office, there was daycare available, or she could keep Katie in the office with her. While their family-first policies could be a little overbearing—especially when it came to this ridiculous weekend retreat—there were some definite benefits to it.

  Of course, this also meant she had two days a week where Donna could come over for lunch and coffee. And right now, that quality time was what she needed more than anything.

  Honestly, Amber had no idea how she would have survived the past month if it hadn’t been for her best friend Donna Powers. The night Sean left, she and her husband Drake came over immediately with a bottle of wine, pizza and hot wings, and copious amounts of chocolate. They’d sat with her while she sobbed and screamed, reassuring her every step of the way and promising her that she would be ok.

  Friends like that are hard to come by, and Amber still couldn’t believe how lucky she’d been to find them. Sure, they’d brought more than their fair share of drama, what with Donna’s abusive stalker ex breaking into their apartment to attack her, but what good friendship doesn’t have some kind of massive traumatic event?

  A knock sounded on the front door, before Donna poked her head inside with a bright, cheery grin. That was always their first order of business when either one moved into a new place—exchange keys so they could both easily come and go. It was basically like having two houses. Well, aside from the fact that Donna and Drake’s home was a gorgeous sprawling Victorian in Queen Anne, while Amber lived in a small condo down the hill. When Sean left, her best friend offered to let her move in, but Amber hated that idea. She desperately wanted to be independent, no matter how hard that might be.

  But she definitely didn’t mind taking advantage of sharing their nanny when she needed to go shopping or take an hour for coffee by herself.

  “Knock, knock! I come bearing Thai!” Donna breezed into the condo, shaking two big bags before setting them on the coffee table, along with two huge Styrofoam cups. She paused to grin down at Katie, cooing softly at the sleeping baby before turning her smile to Amber.

  It was amazing how much Donna had changed since meeting Drake. Four years ago, she was a terrified woman desperately searching for a way out of an abusive relationship. Now, she had a successful career in her own right, a gorgeous husband who ran the top tech company in the country, two beautiful toddlers who kept their parents running, and an overall fabulous life that Amber was slightly jealous of. But if anyone deserved that kind of blissful happiness, it was Donna.

  Amber groaned as the delectable scent hit her nose. “Oh my god, you are amazing. I’m starving.”

  Donna laughed, shaking her head. “Yeah, I figured as much. I’m sure you haven’t eaten today, have you?”

  There was that typical chiding Donna voice. Amber knew she did it out of love, and she secretly was grateful that her best friend was there to help take care of her when she forgot to do things like eat or sleep.

  “Guilty as charged…”

  Donna just gave her the patented Mom Look. With Joy and Ethan constantly getting up to some shenanigan or another, she’d damn near perfected it.

  Amber shut her laptop and slid over to the couch, plopping down with a sigh and grabbing one of the Thai iced teas, a box of spicy Pad Thai noodles, and a pair of chopsticks. Her life might be in the toilet, but at least she had delicious food to look forward to.

  Donna folded her legs up beneath her as she slid onto the couch, sipping her tea and watching Amber. “So. How are you doing?”

  Amber sighed quietly. She was so tired of the question. Yes, her friends all meant well, but it was gut-wrenching to keep talking about this over and over again. And no matter how many times they asked, Amber was definitely not ok. She wasn’t sure she’d ever be ok again. The betrayal hurt too much.

  Unfortunately, when it came to Donna, Amber couldn’t lie to save her life. Her best friend and former roommate knew her well enough to see through every bullshit line she tried to toss out there. Handy in an emotional crisis, but super irritating every other time.