CHAPTERTHREE
Bran
My lawyer was looking at me like I’d lost my mind.
“Should I be offended that you clearly don’t see me as father material?” I’d asked him to meet with him to help me set up the legal logistics for hiring a surrogate and getting full custody of the child when it was born.
He shook his head. “Where did this come from?”
I sat back in my chair, hoping I looked relaxed when, in fact, I was annoyed.
Sure, I might be a bit high-strung, but I was capable of love and caring. Hadn’t I raised Harper from the time she was fifteen? Wasn’t I still looking out for her?
“I want a child. Is that so strange?”
“But you don’t want a wife? That’s how these things usually work.”
I’d considered briefly finding a suitable wife, but there was so much that could go wrong.
What if she got too attached? What if she wasn’t attached enough?
She could try to take my child away. She could use the child to extort money.
No. It was easier to hire a surrogate and have full legal custody of the child.
“I don’t want a wife.”
He continued to stare at me, dumbfounded. It irked me to no end.
“Where is this coming from?” he asked. “Is it because Harper is giving you the cold shoulder? She’ll come around, eventually.”
“This isn’t about Harper.”
Of course, it was a lie. It was partly about Harper. I might be a tight ass, but family was important to me. After my parents died, only Harper and I were left.
While my parents' marriage might have been unstable, their love for me and Harper was solid. We felt it as sure as I felt the floor under my feet. Losing that left a void.
The world seemed lonelier.
“Is it because you’re lonely? Why not get a dog?”
Anger boiled up. “It doesn’t matter why. You’re my lawyer. Are you going to draw up the paperwork or do I need to hire someone else?”
Normally he did what I asked with very little question. Why was he busting my balls now?
He held his hands up in surrender. “I’ll draw up the paperwork. But I’ve been with you for a long time, Bran. I was your father’s lawyer before you. I see it as my duty to help you understand the ramifications of your decisions. Who’s going to take care of this child while you are working sixteen hours a day?”
“I’ll hire a nanny, of course.”
I had a nanny. So did Harper until we were about ten.
“When will you see the child? Kids need love and attention.”
My jaw tightened. “I’m capable of that.”
That was the point of all this. “I could quit running the business tomorrow and still have enough money to support my heirs for generations. Time for a child won’t be a problem.”
“Is that what you’re planning? To work less?”