Falling For Her Billionaire Baby Daddy

Zoe started to cry because the loud noise had frightened her. The wet towel covering her face was also making her uncomfortable. "Get back!" Taylor screamed at them. The fire had spread to the bottom of the stairs. "Let's go into Rosemary's room."

They ran back and hurried into Rosemary's bedroom which was also filling up with smoke.

"We're going to have to jump out through the window," said Taylor. "That's the only way for us to get out of this house alive."

"This is crazy," said Rachel. "What started the fire?"

"I don't know but it started from the kitchen," Taylor answered. "Look, we will get into all of that later, but right now, we need to get out of here fast."

He opened one of the windows and looked down to see where they would land if they managed to jump down. Taylor heaved a sigh of relief when he saw that the window opened to Rosemary's flower garden.

"I guess we'll have some soft landing down there even if it means killing some of Rosemary's precious flowers," he said. "We can tie some bedsheets together and fasten them to the bedpost and then we use it as a rope to get us down."

Elaine was already on it, ripping the bedsheet off the mattress and twisting it to form a rope. Meanwhile, Taylor rummaged through Rosemary's wardrobe to find another bedsheet to link with it.

Once the bedsheets were tied together and secured to the bedpost, Elaine climbed out through the window while holding onto their makeshift escape rope. She bravely let herself down to the garden below.

"Rachel, throw Zoe to me," Elaine called out from the garden. "I'll catch her and then you can come down alone. It would be easier that way."

"She's right," said Taylor. "It's time for Zoe to get out of here."

She let him carry her terrified child and watched him bend low over the window before releasing the toddler into the waiting arms of her nanny. "Now, it's your turn," said Taylor who now looked exhausted.

"What about Mom and Rob?"

"We can't help them now, Rachel. Let's try and get out of here first. Come on, get down."

"You go first, I insist," she said.

Taylor hesitated only for a moment before grabbing the bedsheets and climbing out the window. Once he landed in the garden downstairs, he looked up and gestured to Rachel to follow suit. When she grabbed the bedsheet, she felt herself gasping for air and feeling dizzy. When she coughed, her head pounded painfully and she could barely focus on the task at hand. "Rachel, come on!" Taylor yelled desperately from the garden.

By now, she could hear the sirens of the fire truck coming in the distance. There were more voices in the garden now. The haze in her head didn't let her focus enough to decipher which voice belonged to whom. Rachel finally managed to get herself on the window sill but when she stepped off it, she lost her grip on the bedsheet and blacked out as she fell.

*******

Rachel woke up to a rhythmic beeping sound coming from somewhere near her. When she opened her eyes, she felt as if someone had stuck tiny needles inside her eyelids because of how much they stung.

A quick scan of her surroundings told her that she was in a hospital room and there were all kinds of tubes attached to her chest and hands. Her throat was parched and her lips were dry.

"Water," she croaked as she tried to lift herself to a sitting position. She groaned at the effort because her back ached when she tried to sit.

"You're awake!"

Rachel turned in the direction of the voice and was pleasantly surprised to see Derek sitting on a chair beside her bed. He looked disheveled yet incredibly handsome.

"You're here," she rasped and then coughed because of the dryness in her throat.

"Hey, take it easy," he said softly and gently propped her against the pillow.

Derek picked up the jug of water on the bedstand and poured some water into a plastic cup. He held it to her lips for her to drink.

She drank the water hungrily and felt refreshed immediately.

"Thank you," she whispered, glad that she now sounded more like herself.

Derek took her hand in his and squeezed it gently. "You gave everyone a scare," he said. "I nearly passed out when I got the call and heard what happened. I'm so glad you are ok, Rachel. I was so afraid, I flew down here like a madman." She chuckled. "I'm so sorry I scared everyone. I don't even remember much of what happened. Where's Zoe?"

"She's with your mom and Elaine along with the others at my penthouse. They're all fine and before you ask, I insisted that they all stay there and rest while I take my turn here with you."

"Oh?"

"Taylor was discharged this morning," Derek continued. "He too had a rough time with smoke inhalation but it seemed you had it worse than him." "I'm glad to hear that he's ok," she said wearily. "But my mom's house...?"

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"The first floor got burned up pretty badly, mostly the kitchen and the bottom stairs. But it's nothing that can't be fixed easily."

"What happened? Did they ever find out what started the fire?"

"A faulty fuse in the kitchen blew up. I guess it's been damaged for quite some time but nobody noticed. I'm just glad that you all made it out of that house alive."

"I hope that wasn't my fault though," Rachel said guiltily. "I was in the kitchen before the fire started. I'd been there to make myself a cup of coffee. Maybe the coffee maker triggered the bad fuse and caused the fire."

"I doubt that was the cause," Derek disagreed, "but even if it was, the culprit was the damaged fuse. It was a disaster waiting to happen. I'm glad that you guys noticed the fire before things really got out of hand." Rachel sighed. "Poor Mom, she must be so devastated."

"Not really," said Derek. "She's shaken but not devastated. The insurance company will fix the damage and if they don't, I'll pick up the tab."

"You don't have to do that. Mom wouldn't want you to pay for fixing her house anyway."

"We shall see when the time comes, won't we?" He replied with a confident grin.

"How did you get here so quickly?" Rachel wondered.

"Shane called me as soon as you guys were rushed off to the hospital. I got on my jet as soon as I could, and I arrived in New York yesterday morning."

Rachel frowned. "Yesterday morning? But the fire outbreak happened last night."

"No, Rachel. The fire outbreak happened two nights ago. You've been unconscious for 36 hours."

She was stunned by this piece of information. "I can't believe it. I felt like I just closed my eyes and opened them here. Speaking of which... I remember falling off my mom's bedroom window."

"Yes, and Taylor caught you before you landed on the ground. He's officially my hero," said Derek with a hand to his chest.

Rachel blinked back tears. "He saved my life," she whispered. "Taylor saved my life."

"And I am eternally grateful to him for that," Derek replied softly.

"I feel as if fate has given me another shot at life with you, Rachel," he continued. "I thought you were overreacting when you stormed out of Rickman Manor with Zoe three days ago, but now I understand what you were trying to say." "What?"

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"Everyone deserves to be with someone who makes their life complete," Derek explained, "someone who adds color and beauty to their life. For me, that is you, Rachel."

She was stunned by this revelation. Was this really happening? Had Derek finally figured out what she'd been trying to make him understand?

"I admit that initially, I stayed with you out of duty because I felt guilty for abandoning you and Zoe before," Derek confessed. "I thought giving you and Zoe whatever you wanted was my way of restituting for my past mistakes with you, but that was not what you wanted. That's not love."

Rachel felt her heart swelling with hope as Derek continued to speak.

"You wanted me to need you, to acknowledge your importance in my life and now I finally understand," he declared. "These past few days without you have been hell for me, Rachel. I felt lost and useless. I don't want to ever feel that way again. I don't want to ever live my life without you, Rachel."

She gasped with joy.

Derek finally gets it! She thought triumphantly.

"You complete me and you have made my life meaningful," said Derek tenderly. "I love you, Rachel Lane. I love you with all of my heart and soul and I want to go through the rest of my life with you beside me." "Oh, Derek," she broke down in tears. "I love you so much, it hurts."

He leaned forward and embraced her as tightly as he dared. When he broke the hug, he wiped her tears away with his thumbs.

"It won't hurt anymore," he said lovingly. "I promise."

Someone knocked on the door, interrupting the intimate moment. Derek straightened himself and sat back on the chair. "Who is it?" he asked.

"The doctor," answered Mark from the other side of the door.

"You have got to be kidding me," Rachel laughed. "You brought your bodyguard to the hospital?"

"Well, the media got wind of what happened and they know you're here. The paparazzi are already camped outside in front of the hospital."

"Not again..." Rachel groaned dramatically. When will they ever be free from those nosey paparazzi?