Five Year Secret

One-Night Billionaires #4

by Blakely Stone

Five years. That’s how long I've kept the truth from everyone.

One night with my brother’s best friend. My biggest mistake. My dirtiest secret.

And the son I never told him about.

Coming home should have been a fresh start.
Instead, I walked straight into Warren Carter’s world again—
the boardroom, the hospital halls, the dark looks that make my pulse race.

Now there’s no avoiding him.

Not in the hospital halls. Or after work.
Not when every glance sparks something I buried years ago.

He still sees his best friend's sister.
I’m terrified he’ll find out who I am now—the mother of the son he knows nothing about.

The closer we get, the heavier the truth becomes, until it’s not only my heart on the line anymore.

Because some secrets don’t stay buried.

And what’s between us could ruin more than just a second chance.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary, Second Chance, Contemporary Romance, Second Chance Romance, Family Drama, Forced Proximity

384 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 29, 2025

About the author

Also know as B.B. Stone

Reviews

[Jetscarbie · Rating 2 out of 5]

These MCs were frustrating (possible spoilers ahead)

H has a traumatic past, so he’s emotionally constipated. h is…just there. They’ve always had a thing for each other, but never acted on it….until that one night. 😩 H regrets it almost immediately and worries about h’s brother finding out (H’s BFF) and he even tells h to keep quiet about it. He bounces like the house is on fire, and ASAP blocks h on everything. 🙃🙃 this man really don’t want her contacting him again.

I can’t remember if it’s 5 or 7 years later, but whatever….now h has a kid. H hasn’t seen her in all these years BUT it never once crossed his mind that it could be his kid.

Naturally, they start hanging out. After they finally have smex, she decides to tell him about the kid. THIS MAN FLIPS OUT and he’s angry asf. How dare she not tell him. Ummm, I guess he forgot he blocked her.

So they kind of work it out…sort of. He’s still simmering in anger. It doesn’t stop the smex, though. In secret, he gets court papers made up for half custody of his kid. (Yeah 😂 this is totally the way to move with a woman you claim to love. This is even going to be worse than telling a woman “to calm down” 🤦‍♀️)
Let me tell you, it doesn’t go over well when h finds out. At. All. 3rd act breakup plus she gets her own lawyer and files papers for FULL CUSTODY!

Eek. They are both gross.

Anyway, he realizes the error of his ways. He goes to finally talk to his BFF. Yeah, the whole brother’s BFF ended up being nothing. Like…that was literally the whole reason he was scared to be with her. So dumb.

Quote from brother:
“You think I give a damn that you slept with my sister? We’re not kids. What I care about is you stringing her along.
She doesn’t need your guilt. She needs your spine. Fucking be a man.”

THANK YOU! Finally, somebody with sense.

He barely grovels. His main grovel was to withdraw the court papers. Within a week, they were doing the body tango again.

1 year later, she finally agrees to marry him. She’s also pregnant again.

h is gross for not telling him about the kid. Yes, I get that he blocked her on everything, but she knew how to get ahold of him. She’s also terrible for not telling H about the kid BEFORE she had smex with him. Finally, she should have been more mature and had a reasonable conversation with him when she found out the court papers.

H has every right to be angry but come on. Grow up! Quit blaming everything on your past. Take some accountability and have a mature conversation on how to move forward. Quit with the emotional whiplash.

It’s fair to say that I didn’t like the MCs which is why I rated this 2 stars. Meh

[Shorty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh

I did NOT agree with her or her attorney. She had ways to tell him he was a daddy. She chose to keep that lie then got mad at him for wanting to protect his self so that she couldn't just bounce with his kid. That ruined this book for me

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5⭐ Five Year Secret is a stand alone book in the one knight Billionaires series by a new to me author, Blakely Stone. It's a ONS, 9 year age gap, secret baby with a best friends sister trope that keeps you turning pages until the HEA. The MMC is a grumpy lawyer with abandonment issues and the FMC is a strong independent woman who fights for her self worth and her son. I seriously couldn't predict how this book would end since this couple wasn't even committed until the last couple chapters.


Janie Harrelson just graduated college and in 2 days time will be moving to Chicago for grad school. Her parents threw her a party and tonight she is seeing her brothers best friend, Warren, in a different light, but that will unfortunately change...

Warren Carter moved in with the Harrelson's his senior year of high school and so this family is his family and he doesn't want to ever risk that relationship. He's a busy family lawyer but after one to many drinks and sitting by a fire with Janie things get heated pretty quickly.

The next morning, he tells her it was a mistake, sneaks out and blocks her number. So, when Janie finds out a couple months later that she is pregnant, he refuses to have anything to do with her, she makes the decision to keep the father a secret.

5 years later she returns home to Florida to direct a program that she conceived and started but didn't expect that Warren would be on the board and they would have to work together.

She follows her gut instinct and lets Warren know that he's a dad but he leaves in a rage and cuts her out of his life again. But he wants to be in his son's life but in what capacity?

[thebeespot72 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: 3.5/5

I saw Five-Year Secret as a Facebook Ad. She’s his best friend’s sister, and after they hook up, she gets pregnant. She keeps the baby from him for 5 years. She tried to tell him, but he blocked her, and she figured that since he didn’t want kids, he wouldn’t want anything to do with her. What was so frustrating was that when she told him the truth, he got mad that she hadn’t tried hard enough to get hold of him. The story leaned more toward the frustrating side than the angsty one for me. Some unresolved issues on his family side didn’t seem to develop fully, either.

[Summer Stanley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good listen. The narrators did a good job of bringing this Story to life. The main characters were the best but there was little differences when it came to the other characters voices. But if you enjoy Brother's Best Friend surprise baby stories then this will hit the spot for you.

[Christine · Rating 2 out of 5]

No….

[Meg · Rating 3 out of 5]

ehhhhh MMC sucks - lies to the reader, himself, MFC, and his best friend

Honestly - this entire book really makes no sense at all. The whole “issue” with their relationship never ends up being an actual issue. The MMC also lacks any sort of accountability and the MFC has way too many moments of not standing up for herself and panting after the MMC

Spoilers …….
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The entire issue of “your brother is my best friend” and “if he finds out we slept together it’s horrible and world-ending for everyone”… this point of contention never materializes and falls flat when the MMC finally tells his best friend he slept with his sister and it ends up being a TOTAL nothing-burger….. yet it’s repeatedly used by the MMC as a reason to push the MFC away . This is poor plot writing.

He also blocks her phone number, implies what they did was a mistake, leaves no room for doubt that he wants nothing to do with her —- and then he’s mad that she didn’t chase him down to say that she’s pregnant? After he said he didn’t want kids?? And especiallyyyyy when he admitted privately to himself that he might’ve told her to abort it.

Theeeeen he spends most of the book punishing her for not telling him, despite her not being able to get ahold of him, saying he’ll never trust her again, and then he drafts custody paperwork behind her back and continues to tell her he can’t promise anything to her her or their son long term, he’s still SO mad, but he can def still fuck her, but he wants to see where things will go. Ummm mixed messages??

Like - he lies to himself and the reader and the MFC. It’s a sign of poor characterization and lack of growth development.

The only good thing is that the MFC **FINALLY** put her foot down and stood up to him and held her ground - if only for a couple of pages before the author undid it. Sigh.

[Kat · Rating 1 out of 5]

mmc pmo so bad, weak fmc, no tension, zero chemistry

[wags · Rating 1 out of 5]

I love the secret baby trope & this one had potential. Great concept but don’t think it was executed all that well.

Potentially the worst fmc ever. I hate how she’s written to consider herself the wronged party & never takes any true accountability. I could go into a ton of other details on why she was the worst but she just wasn’t written well.

There were multiple errors in terms of timeline in the story - small Things like not accounting for the time of day accurately based on a reference a few paragraphs earlier or talking about him delivering spaghetti to the table but then right after saying how someone’s still at the stove making spaghetti. those were frustrating but not enough where it would’ve made me dislike the overall story but unfortunately the fmc was.

[NaziaS · Rating 1 out of 5]

He PMO’Ed me so bad

[tyna · Rating 1 out of 5]

Awful fmc

[Andrea · Rating 2.5 out of 5]

Five Year Secret started out so well with a story that drew me in, but the conflict and how long it played out was unrealistic. This is brother's best friend/secret baby trope that is really interesting to begin with and takes a lot of turns along the way. Janie's been halfway in love with her brother's best friend for years. Warren came to live with them when his family cut all ties to him because he wouldn't go along with the lie that would tear the family apart. Both her brother, Blake, and Janie considered him their friend and their brother, yet Janie hasn't given up hope they'll be much more in the future. After years of dancing around each other, Janie and Warren give in to their feelings, but Warren is horrified the next morning when he realizes what they did and adamantly states that they'll never talk about it again. Janie's now going to school in Chicago and after a few weeks discovers she's pregnant. She calls Warren to tell him but he was serious about not ever discussing it again because he's blocked her. She keeps trying to find another way to tell him, but he's completely broken their connection. When Janie and Beckett come home to see her family, she knows she has to face the music with the truth. This is where the book lost its authenticity and I began to dislike Warren. When Janie told him that Beckett was his son, he raged and turned on her with palpable hatred."How could you keep my son from me!? You had no right!?" When she told him that she tried so many times to get in touch with him but he had blocked her, he got even more hysterical and told her she could have found another way to tell him. Um, why should she have to when she's done enough? He shut her down and shut her out, just like he had been shut down and shut out by his father and family. He's lost all integrity and believability. Warren's anger can only go on for so long, right? He hung onto it way too long and he became a footnote in his own story. He finally took some responsibility for Janie not being able to speak to him and admitted to being wrong to block her, but he continued to blame her because she had many other ways to tell him about his son. That conversation repeated and repeated until the very end. He was not a good friend, let alone boyfriend, and his redemption arc was too short. The plotline that should have been edited or changed is the story of the secret pregnancy. When Janie called her mother to tell her she was pregnant, her mom asked who the father was and Janie said "I don't want to tell you, yet. I want to tell him first." For five whole years Janie doesn't tell her family the name of the father because she has to wait to tell Warren. That's just not feasible. With a lot of work, this could become a good story! Christopher Warzynski and April McCoy do an admirable job with the narration. Their dynamic voices, varied intonation and inflection gave each character a unique voice and personality. They kept the pace steady and it was a joy to listen to them bring the story to life. 

[S Powell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Janie is celebrating the night before she leaves for grad school in Chicago. After all the speeches and celebrating is over, she is sitting out back at the fire pit with her older brother's Bff Warren, and they end up sharing a kiss that turns into more. He sneaks out her parents’ house in the wee hours of the morning after telling her it was the best night he ever regretted. Once she leaves home and is studying in Chicago, she learns she is pregnant and when she calls to tell Warren, he ends up blocking her number. She can't tell her family he is her baby's father, so she says it is a random guy, and her family supports her all the way and 5 years later she comes home. Her first day at her new job, she runs into Warren and learns they will be working together on the initiative she is heading up at the hospital. Janie goes through a whole lot of emotions and indecisiveness wondering how and when she should tell Warren they share a son. Warren is very upset when he finds out that she kept this from him all this time but also feels guilty that he blocked her number. He doesn't want to have a relationship with his son that mirrors his relationship he has with his own family and slowly gets to know his son and along the way, falls for Janie all over again. While they reconnect and try to build their own family, what is going to happen when her family and her brother, his BFF find out they share a son.

What a story... I felt for Janie and the single mother life she built for herself and her son. But also felt for Warren for how his wealthy family kicked him out and basically disowned him all those years ago. There are some real emotions in this story that felt real, and I was so invested in this couple and couldn't put the book down.

This was such an emotional read... don't sleep on this one!.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Pat Stanton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Janie and Warren's Story

This is the final book in the One Night Billionaires series and it ties the series together in the epilogue with all the main characters making an appearance.
This book features the family law attorney, Warren Carter, who helped Pope Carrigan through the guardianship and eventual adoption process of his young brother.
Warren was disowned by his wealthy family when he was a senior in high school because he testified against his brother who had caused the death of a young girl due to his drunk driving. The Harrelson family informally adopted him, with Blake becoming his best friend and his younger sister Janie becoming a good friend.
Janie Harrelson is 9 years younger than Warren and Blake. The book starts with a going away party for Janie which ends in a ONS between Warren and Janie. Both panic and she moves to Chicago as planned, only to discover that she is pregnant. She only tells her friends who the father is, never contacting Warren.
Fast forward 5 years and Janie is back in Palm Beach with their 4 year old son. She eventually tells Warren and things explode.
Warren is a noble character who was badly scarred by his parents so he does things to not jeopardize his relationship with his adopted family. Janie feels guilty, which she should be, and she pushes Warren for commitment, weeks after admitting to hiding his son from him. She also listens too much to her friend, blindly taking her advice. She also blindly follows her attorney even allowing the attorney to falsely portray Warren.
The book is good and a compelling ending to the series.

[Lottie’s · Rating 4 out of 5]

Five Year Secret by Blakely Stone delivers everything you could possibly want out of a classic "brother's best friend" and "secret baby" contemporary romance. The premise immediately pulls you in: Janie returns home after five years with a major secret, only to run right into her past—and her new boss—Warren Carter.
The overall community consensus perfectly highlights what makes this book work so well: the heavy emotional angst, the forced proximity workspace dynamic, and the slow-burn, unresolved chemistry that keeps you turning the pages. The stakes feel incredibly high, and the author does an amazing job building up the tension before the inevitable reveal. It leans heavily into the "right person, wrong time" trope, which leaves you deeply invested in their path to redemption.
My only critique keeping it from a full 5 stars is that the miscommunication and the long-held secrecy can feel a bit frustrating at times, making you want to shake the characters into just talking to each other.
That being said, the experience of the audiobook is top-tier. The dual narration by Christopher Warzynski and April McCoy was very nice and they did a fantastic job bringing Warren and Janie to life. Their voice acting beautifully captured the emotional weight, the raw anger, and the underlying passion of the story. If you enjoy spicy, dramatic second-chance romances, definitely give this audiobook a listen.

[Nathalie DeSousa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let me start by saying that you will have to pick up this book!! OMG it is probably the most heartfelt/dramatic of this series (and trust me you will want to read all of them!) but so so beautiful. The story of Jaine and Warren starts when they are just teenagers harboring crushes on each other, but afraid to let them bloom as he is her brother's best friend. Until one night when passion takes over, however that night makes them both questions loyalty, so she leaves pregnant. 5 years later she is back in town to work with him, and after all the time and space, the feelings are still there raw and intact that is until he finds out about his son.

This is a story of secrets, of wanting to belong but afraid to claim it, of learning to chose, of accepting love. The characters are so relatable, the story is intelligent, gritty, at times bubbly and then sad, their conversatiosn are intelligent and lead to insights to their secrets to the realness of their lives. The story tests the bonds of loyalty, the idea of legacy, soulmates who find each other. I cannot say enough, just go get the book !.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Gazelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Christopher Warzynski and April McCoy narrated this book. Warren has abandonment issues from his childhood. The only real family he has known is his best friend Blake's family because they chose him. All he had to do was stay away from Blake's younger sister who was younger than them. One night they act on their attraction, and he immediately jumps to worst case that he'll be lose the only family he has left. Janie kept her son from Warren for 5 years. Warren is a family law attorney. Janie is independent and trying to protect herself and her son. Personally, I don't love third act breakups, miscommunication tropes when they are the only ones to blame or adults that can't have a conversation. These two characters both were frustrating at times. I think they both jumped to conclusions and instead of having the hard conversations with each other they took advice from outsiders. I did enjoy the book, but I still wanted to throttle the characters because all they had to do was use their words and also letting others convince them that they were doing the right thing when they didn't really think it was the right thing. This was my first book by this author, and I look forward to reading more.

[judy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is based on secrets. It is very emotional and powerful. It has an unplanned pregnancy to a young woman who is still getting her career started while away from her family. Janie has been harboring feeling for her brothers best friend for years. They finally succumbed to their passion then her ghosts her out of fear. Warren is afraid he will lose his best friend and his family if he admits his feelings for Janie because his parents threw him away. This is a very complicated situation and storyline. Trust becomes an issue between Janie and Warren when they reconnect years later. It is a roller coaster of emotions that they have to navigate. Warren has to decide what is the most important thing in his life and how to obtain it. He has to rebuild trust with the people who are the most important to him. Beckett wants to have his mom and Warren to eat breakfast, watch movies and have family time together. I enjoyed reading this book. I loved how the author tied the other characters from this series together in the epilogue. It brought it full circle.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Marissa Castellon · Rating 5 out of 5]

The whirlwind of emotions I had throughout this book I mean my goodness!

Janie is Warrens best friend Blake’s sister. Their family took Warren in as a teen after some family issues. Janie and Warren end up having a one night stand before she leaves town that leads to Janie keeping a secret for five years. They reconnect when Janie returns home and she finally admits the truth to him that leads to them both being angry, devastated, and hurt by each other’s choices over the last five years. The author had me hanging on by a thread there for a while. I felt myself getting angry right along with them at the chain of events.

“After years of scraping by, I don’t even know how to trust the idea of something working out so perfectly.” I felt this statement to my core.

I absolutely loved getting to read an update on Pope and the family from Nine Week Nanny and how he was tied into this book. Also with Sam and Cole from Ten Day Affair with literal tears with the honor of her mother Evelyn Taylor.

[Emily M · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 rounded up. Secrets come out and secrets have turmoil. This book is incredibly frustrating purely because the main parenting has so much drama and resentment towards one another that it makes it actually hard to read at times. Both of them have done wrong and both of them just want what’s best for their son. But as far as their relationship, these two need extreme couples therapy. They truly do not know how to talk to each other as far as their future as a couple it made this book gripping and heartbreaking at a few points. The drama between them keeps the flow going amazing and makes it something you can’t put down. Not the biggest fan at the abrupt ending, but it was a quick read, which gets points..

[Mindy Lopez · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book in the One-Night Billionaires Series by this author, and can be read as a standalone. It is an off limits, second chance romance between Janie and her brother's best friend Warren, who had a one night stand five years ago. These flawed but likeable souls and the unique plot make for an enjoyable read. Once they reconnect, it is a bumpy ride with drama and steam, sexual tension and chemistry, forgiveness and redemption, family dynamic, twists and turns, plus appealing secondary characters. Seriously entertaining.. An emotional ride.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Evelyn Leon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Life altering secrets, abandonment trauma and ultimately forgiveness and love —Janie and Warren stirred so many feelings in me. Their incredible partnership because of their expertise, experience and dedication was so heartwarming. I cried so hard with this book and loved every second of it. I’m so glad Warren got his own story. Warren was also in Nine Week Nanny, Blakely Stone’s previous book — another great book BTW.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Terra Oenning · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wowsa this book is a must read . Its brothers best friend and older man younger woman taboo with surprise child that will definitely have you engrossed from the beginning until the end. Warren and Janie shared one night together and 5 years later shes back with a child. Warren s family threw him away and now he deals with abandonment issues and trust as well, but can he find his way back to Janie? This book is absolutely fantastic and you will definitely love it.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Berta Greenleaf Richardson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Janie is a strong, independent, loving woman who does things she feels is right. Warren is a broken man who is still dealing with how his family abandoned him when he was 17. He finds it hard to trust that he won't be left again. He does not know the secret that Janie carries. When he does he feels threatened and unworthy. They go through trials and tribulations to get to the other side. I highly recommend this book to all second chance romance readers.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Merry Jelks-Emmanuel · Rating 5 out of 5]

He has loved Jamie forever but when an intimate encounter leads to two pink lines, she doesn't tell him. When a job brings her back to her hometown and working with Warren. He is also her brother's best friend and when the truth comes out about his child and Jamie being the mother will he lose everything. This heartfelt story had me from the first page as I connected with Warren and Jamie.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Debdutch · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Five Year Secret” by Blakely Stone

-A heart-wrenching second chance romance filled with secrets, regret, and redemption. I received a free copy and am voluntarily sharing my honest thoughts.

Janie’s five-year lie shatters Warren’s world when he learns he’s a father. Their love story burns with anger, heartbreak, and the slow rebuilding of trust.

This story is motional, raw, and deeply moving and lingers long after the final page.

[Julie Juhl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Five Year Secret by Blakely Stone is part of the One-Night Billionaires series.
Jamie and Warren's story is an emotional heartfelt story. Their story pulled me in from the start and I didn't want to stop until the end. Blakely Stone is written another amazing romance that you won't want to miss reading.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[L KQ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not Enough

Janie and Warren connected one evening which resulted in a child. However, the cost of not being able to tell him until years later is what drives this story. It was emotionally charged and had me in tears. While the chemistry between them was intense, their tension was explosive. The decisions these two make pull at your heart until the very end.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Joy Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book. Janie is the FMC we need! Strong, brave and resolute! Warren is everything she doesn’t deserve! He blames her for everything while insisting that everything is kept a secret! She did keep his secret and he treats her terribly! He barely takes accountability in the end and while it’s redeeming that he sets up the endowment for her; he really puts her through a lot she didn’t deserve.

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished the most AWESOME romance book ever. Warren and Janie had me hooked right away and the way this romance book was written is FANTASTIC. I LOVE all of Blakely’s romance books and recommend not only this book but any of her other books. They all exceed 5/5 stars in my honest opinion.