Prologue
Royce
“Here you go, Mr. Cavanaugh,” the receptionist giggled after casting an inviting look my way. I took the offered paperwork from her without acknowledging the open invitation in her eyes.
“Thanks,” I mumbled and went to the sofa in the sitting area to fill out the documents. I ran a frustrated hand through my hair and read over the piece of information before signing my name to it. Business never stressed me out. I built my company from the ground up and never broke a sweat, but this was a whole other ball game.
The paperwork she handed me would change my life forever, and I couldn’t believe that I’d gotten to this point in my life. For years, I built my company, spent countless hours designing systems for corporations and countries, but being a workaholic had its drawbacks—I neglected my personal life. Now, I have a huge booming business and nobody to share it with and no kids to take it over one day. Nothing.
Holidays are spent the same as any other day—I work. My life is spent in silence. I turned on the tv just for background noise and to not feel so alone. Yeah, I’ve got my friends, but with our schedules the only time we get together is Friday nights, and that shit is scheduled in. I’m tired of it. Tired of working my ass off and the only thing to show for it is a life filled with empty walls.
I sighed heavily as I started filling out the paperwork and thinking about last Friday when Gerald presented this insane plan to us, and surprisingly it made sense. Or, I wanted it to make sense. I don’t even know at this point. It was crazy to think about. Hiring a woman to have my kid, using an anonymous egg donor in the process. That could be a nightmare in and of itself because you wouldn’t know jack shit about the genetics of the child. What if there were any medical conditions that ran in the family?
Plus, what the hell did I know about raising a kid? My dad was never in the picture, and my mom wasn’t the best role model with her revolving door of boyfriends.
They came in, promised her the moon and stars, she fell in love, and they dumped her, leaving her heartbroken. It was the same story every damn time. I didn’t know the first thing about relationships or how to actually have one. How was I going to teach a kid how to interact with people when I did my best to stay the hell away from people?
I work too much for a normal woman to put up with my hours. The ones willing to put up with my hours are good until they hear about my lifestyle, and if they are okay with the first two, it’s been my experience that they are only around for my money.
So, this is my best option—filling out paperwork for a surrogate to carry my child. It’s unusual and insane, but you know what they say… genius and insanity go hand in hand.
I filled out all the paperwork, but I had some stipulations that my surrogate would have to agree to, and qualifications I wanted for the egg donor of my baby. I was willing to pay to have everything done my way. It’s why my business was successful. If I wanted it done my way, I did it myself. I wasn’t going to leave any of this to chance.
“Who does the screenings for the women who volunteer to be surrogates?” I asked when I took the packet I filled out up to the receptionist.
“The surrogates are vetted, and they have to undergo a psych evaluation to make sure they are stable and emotionally equipped to handle pregnancy. We want to make sure they have a ready support system.”
“How about the egg donors?”
“The women that donate their eggs go through the same process as well, along with a lot of health screenings after filling out extensive medical history paperwork. We want to know as much as possible about any potential health conditions.”
“Good.” I slid the paperwork she’d given me to fill out as well as the contract I had drawn up across the top of the desk and handed it to her. “I have a contract I want the surrogate to sign. If it’s not signed, she doesn’t carry my kid.”
The receptionist looked over the contract and then back up at me. Her eyes were wide with surprise and renewed interest when she saw the figure I was willing to pay to get what I wanted.
“Mr. Cavanaugh, I know it’s none of my business, but why are you doing this? You’re a successful businessman and attractive. Why do you need a surrogate or an egg donor?”
“You’re right, it’s none of your business,” I rebuffed her. She looked taken aback by my gruffness, but I didn’t care. I wasn’t interested in anything with her, and what she was heading toward was written clearly on her face.
“Of course.” She gave me a big, fake smile. “I’ll get this in your file right away, Mr. Cavanagh. I can’t guarantee that we will find you a surrogate that would be willing to put their life on hold for nine months or a donor that will meet all your criteria, but we will see what we can do.”
I watched as she marked the folder with a green tag and filed it away. “We’ll let you know when we find someone that fits your qualifications for a donor, and if we find someone willing to meet your demands for surrogate. It will be a hard task though.”
“As you saw, I’m willing to pay well for it.”
When she nodded, I turned and left the New Hope Fertility Clinic. I pushed it out of my mind and went back to the office. Until I got the confirmation calls, I was going to bury myself in work.
Chapter One
Narina
My stomach was in knots as I walked into the New Hope Fertility Clinic again. They did my evaluations last time I was here, this time, they were supposed to do the deed and put someone else’s kid in me. I wished I had one of my friends with me, but they were all busy with the men they’d fallen in love with or with school. I was on my own, and two seconds away from chickening out of this.
If I had any other options besides going home and being stuck in Almont, Oregon for the rest of my life, I’d be doing that instead of walking into this clinic and selling my uterus for the next nine months. I was desperate.
“Hi, Welcome to New Hope Fertility Clinic.” The receptionist that I’d seen last time I was here was sitting behind the sleek white desk. “Do you have an appointment?”
“Y—yes,” I stuttered slightly from the butterflies dancing through my stomach and approached the receptionist. “Narina Boggs.”