The Baby Contract

I shrugged. “Maybe he’s getting a dog.”

We all laughed, and I breathed a sigh of relief that I hadn’t accidentally outed Bran’s plan.

“Speaking of plans, are you and Archer planning on giving Emery a brother or sister?” Harper asked Lane.

Her cheeks blushed. “Yes. We’re trying now. It hasn’t happened yet. It’s so strange how within one week ten years ago, I was pregnant and now, despite all the sex, and we have lots of sex, I’m still not pregnant.”

“I’ve heard it can take a year.” I didn’t know why I was offering that. Surrogacy wasn’t the same as what Lane and Archer were doing.

“How do you know that?” Harper arched a brow. “Are you trying to have a child?”

I swallowed, chastising myself for not paying better attention to what I was saying. “My boss has been thinking about hiring a surrogate, so I did some research.”

“An old man recluse is going to hire a woman to carry his child?” Harper stared at me in disbelief. “It’s not you, is it?”

Crap. This conversation was going downhill quickly. “I never said he was old. And no, it’s not me.”

That was an outright lie and it burned in my gut to tell it to Harper. I wondered if I could change my arrangement with Bran and be his personal assistant and find someone else to carry his child. Maybe that woman in his office the other day. But deep down, I knew Bran wouldn’t go for that.

I looked at Lane. “I’m sure it’s going to happen for you both.”

“We’re not worried, but we would like it to happen soon. Emery will be so much older than her sibling. We don’t want them so far apart that they’re not close.”

“Isn’t Dane MacLeod’s wife older than her siblings?” I asked.

Harper gave me a sympathetic smile, knowing I’d once been interested in Dane, but he’d chosen another woman.

Lane smiled. “Yes. Emery is friends with them.”

“See. It will be fine,” Harper assured her.

“I can’t wait. When I had Emery, I was so scared and yet, as she grew in my belly, I’d never felt such love for anything in my life. And when she was born and placed in my arms.” Lane’s expression turned dreamy. “I felt complete. Terrified, but complete. Like I had my purpose, you know. I can see why your boss might want that.”

I managed a smile, but Lane’s words seeped into my gut. How was I going to feel as Bran’s child grew in my belly? Or when the child entered the world?

What if I didn’t want to walk away?

“He could get a wife. That’s how it’s usually done.” Harper popped the olive from her new drink into her mouth.

“If you wanted a child but didn’t have a man, would you be out looking for one?”

Harper shrugged. “Probably not. Then again, men can be like babies so maybe I could get a man-child. Two for one.”

Lane and I laughed.

“Be careful, Harper. Someday some man is going to sweep you off your feet. Then what will you do?” Lane said.

Harper shook her head. “I doubt it. You’re with me on that, aren’t you Anne? You’ve given up on men too, haven’t you?”

I nodded. I’d never really believed I’d find a love like Lane gushed about. I’d wanted to find a solid, wealthy man that I could share a comfortable life with. That quest ended after Dane chose another woman.

Now my life was going to be at the beck and call of Bran as I carried his child. There was no love there. Once I had my twenty-five million, I could focus on other things and not worry about men or love.

Lane made a face. “Just wait ladies. Someday Cupid is going to shoot his arrow at you, and you’ll have no choice but to fall hopelessly in love.”

“I’m very adept at avoiding arrows. How about you, Anne?”

I thought about how I’d so easily and quickly succumb to Bran’s kisses and touch. But that wasn’t love. “I am too.”