Tempting Perfection

The men watched each other. Kurt released my hand and put his arms on the table. “Go ahead. I’ll run worse on you. By the time I’m through, there won’t be anyone who doesn’t recognize you for the cowardly fuckwad of a father you are. And how you abandoned your family.” Kurt rose, and I followed. “I. Dare. You.”

Doug sat back with a smug look. “You’re just like me. You’ll ruin your son’s life. You’ll ruin her life.”

I laughed out loud, and both men shifted their focus to me. “I’m sorry. But Kurt is nothing like you. I’ve known you for all of two seconds, and it’s painfully apparent that you’re a terrible person. Trust me, I know terrible people.”

Doug slapped his hands on the table, rising to his feet, and Steve stepped forward. “Damn it. I made you who you are. It’s because of me you look the way you do.”

I’d had enough. Luckily, I had my clutch and phone with me. Taking out my phone, I pushed the button and asked the all-knowing phone wizard, “How much does a sperm donor get on average?”

The robotic voice answered, “Sperm donor fees average from three hundred to four thousand dollars. Below are the sites I found for reference.”

“Perfect.” In my wallet, I had four hundred dollars. I looked at Kurt. “How much cash do you have on you?”

Kurt pulled a messy bunch of bills all wadded up and not in any order out of his pocket.

“Good grief. Let me count that.”

There was a little over two thousand dollars.

I added it to the stack and looked at Steve, who had his eyes trained on Doug. “Do you have any cash on you? Can you ask security outside as well? I’ll pay you back.”

Steve pulled out his wallet and handed me a stack of bills. Around fifteen hundred. I put it all in a neat little stack while Kurt watched with interest. Another security man walked in with around another thousand. “Okay, here’s how I see it. And, Kurt, it’s ultimately your decision. But this guy wants a cut because you look like him. Five thousand dollars is above the range for sperm donation, not to mention the other money you’ve already given him. Give him his fee and be done with him.”

The corners of his mouth twitched up, and he grabbed my hand. “Thanks for the sperm donation, Doug. Hope you have a great life. Don’t contact me again. And if you run a story hurting Mom any more than you already have, I will ruin you.”

We walked out of the room with our heads held high, neither of us turning back.

Chapter Forty-Five

Sawyer

Everything was perfect. Absolutely wonderful. I was entering my third trimester. Amanda remained in the facility. According to Steve’s contacts in Denver, her mental state continued to decline as she talked about aliens and voices with more frequency. She was truly disturbed.

I still had security, but it wasn’t as stringent. It was more fitting to being the significant other in Kurt’s life as opposed to someone with a crazed stalker.

That day, when Kurt returned from the studio, we were going to take a drive over to our land and see the progress on the house. Afterward, we were going to have a picnic on the beach with Knoah and Garrick. Maybe we might be able to eat at their new home instead. It wasn’t quite finished, but they had air conditioning.

My phone rang with Kurt’s ringtone.

“Hey, handsome. How was rehearsal?”

“Good. The new studio setup is working great. The guys like having our own label. You were right. The fans want ‘Found’ released after that teaser we gave on Good Morning America.”

“Oh, good. The initial reaction to the Lost and Found tour seems to be off the charts, too. I looked at the numbers this morning.”

“Yeah, I showed the guys what you sent me. And they agree. We’re going to move the tour back to start in April.”

Contracts for the venues would go out within the week. “Why is that?”

“Dylan will be eight months old by then. A three- to-four-month-old on the road just seems a little too stressful.”

This would make life a little easier. Maybe. Who the hell was I kidding, it would be total chaos. “Sounds good to me.”

At least Christmas would be enjoyable without rushing off to tour for three months.

“Sawyer, if it gets to be too much—”

This had been a constant worry for Kurt. We were in this together and would manage how to do it all together. “I promise I’ll tell you.”