Page 6 of Royal Surrogate 1
“Me and my…?” It suddenly dawns on me what she’s suggesting. “No, no. I don’t have a partner. I just need?—”
“Ohh, you and your wife then,” she says, glancing at my left hand before looking up at me. “I don’t have time for this.” She turns and speeds away.
“But you need the money. For your father.” I call after her, jogging to catch her. “It could be a mutually beneficial proposition.”
“You’re going to give me a million dollars. For my eggs.” She shakes her head, still walking quickly toward the nearby bus stop.
“No, not for your eggs.”
“No?” She stops, turning to face me again. “Then for what?”
“A million dollars—or whatever the final cost of your father’s treatment. To bear my child. My son.”
CHAPTER 4
Renae
“You’re insane,” I say. “I don’t even know you.”
He shrugs. “For the moment. That’s certainly not an insurmountable barrier.”
“You can’t just go around asking strangers to be your surrogate.” I glance around, almost embarrassed to have anyone hear me discussing this.
“Of course. We’ll still need to have some further discussions, genetic testing, negotiate the terms?—”
“I’m not negotiating anything with you. I don’t even know your name.”
“Is that what this is about? Forgive my poor manners.” He flashes that charming smile, extending his hand. “My name is Caspar. A pleasure to meet you, Ms. Renae Foster.”
Caspar. The name oddly suits him. But I don’t have time to muse on this. Shaking my head, I turn to go. Just when I thought my day couldn’t get any weirder?—
“I’m serious,” he says, following me. “If you meet my criteria, I’ll pay for your father’s treatment.”
Despite my better judgment, I stop. How could I not?
He steps around me, facing me again. “I’m not trying to take advantage of you, I promise.”
“How do I even know you have that kind of money?” The wad of cash from the table is heavy in my pocket, but there’s a huge difference between two thousand dollars and one point two million.
“I will provide whatever verification you need before we sign any contracts,” he assures me. “And of course, all your expenses will be covered throughout the duration of the pregnancy. I want you to carry my child in comfort, even luxury. And you’ll need to dress the part.”
“The part of what? Expectant mother?”
“I’m getting ahead of myself.” He shakes his head, then locks eyes with me again.
He really does have beautiful eyes… Too bad he’s crazy. So why haven’t I moved?
“I think we can be of assistance to each other,” he says. “I understand I’m asking a great deal of you, but I have every intention of making you feel you received the better end of our arrangement.”
His sheer desperation should have me running for the hills. But for some reason, I’m still here. I can’t believe I’m contemplating this.
But all I can see in my head is my dad, miserable and ready to give up on his life. If this experimental spinal surgery is as groundbreaking as it appears, he could have his life back. I would do anything to make that happen for him.
Really? whispers a voice in my mind. Anything? Because isn’t that exactly what the universe has delivered into your hands?
I’m crazy for even considering this. I have no idea who this man is, let alone why he thinks I, of all women, would be the best one to carry his child. Or why he wants to give me over a million dollars to do it. I must be the most gullible person alive to even give this offer a moment’s thought.
My cell phone buzzes, and I curse, juggling everything in my hands until I can get it out of my bag.