Redemption(33)

“Are you mad?”

“About the surrogate thing?”

I nodded.

“Hell, no. I can fulfill a fantasy without having a baby at the end of it.”

“Eww, gross. Are you into pregnancy porn?” Laughter broke out in the cab between both of us.

“Nah, but I’d definitely get off on seeing you that way.”

“I’m not sure whether to be turned on or think you’re a perv.”

“Get them to consent, and then we can discuss it.”

I knew the conversations were far from over. I wasn’t going to convince Annie and Brett overnight, and I was sure the more Dan thought about it, the more questions he would have. There was no way he would simply accept that I wanted to experience pregnancy. But, until the questions arose, I would continue to give my friend a gentle nudge toward letting me do this for her and her husband.



*

I made it longer than I had anticipated before Dan started questioning me about my offer to carry someone else’s child. There had been no mention of it the following week, and even when he finally brought it up, the topic was casual. I’d been talking to Annie about the possibility but didn’t want to be a nuisance, so I hadn’t pressured her. While she hadn’t agreed, she hadn’t asked me to stop questioning her about it, nor had she said no. I was patient. I could wait.

Dan arrived on my doorstep promptly at six. I heard him call out from the front of the house. “Penny, I’m here whenever you’re ready.”

I fastened my earring and slipped on my heels. With one final glance in the mirror, I set out to find my boyfriend. He’d chosen my dress from those in my closet but hadn’t seen it on me. I had been excited to see him in a suit; I was awestruck when he showed up in a tux. The crisp tailored feel of the tuxedo accentuated his build. Standing at my door, he was the man my imagination conjured up any time I’d read a billionaire romance novel. At six foot four, he was tall by any standards, but his perfectly coifed hair and his stunning green eyes were what stood out.

His jaw dropped, and his eyes scanned the length of my body, just before he whistled through his teeth. He didn’t reach for me or invite me in closer. Instead, he walked around me, inspecting every inch. I knew he was pleased, but the attention was unsettling. I needed confirmation, verbal or physical—I wanted to know he was happy to have me on his arm tonight.

Dan’s hand finally landed on my hip just as he came around my right side. The tips of his fingers teased my exposed back. The warmth of his lips pressed gently against my neck, just below my ear. “I don’t have words, Penny.”

But those five had been perfect. His touch, his tone, they expressed more than he knew. When he stood in front of me, he took the back of my neck gently, threading his fingers through the base of my updo, careful not to mess it up. His thumb caressed the underside of my jaw, and he stared lovingly into my eyes. I waited, unsure of where he would take this, but fully willing to follow. His eyes closed, he kissed my cheeks tenderly, and then turned, extended his elbow, and escorted me out the door.

“You went all out.” The stretch limo parked in front of my house was unexpected.

He scrunched his face and looked straight up mocking the best valley girl. “Totally. It’s Ya-sang Min. We can’t show up in a truck.” He never failed to make me laugh. Regardless of whether he was interested in this performance, Dan would find a way to make it fun for both of us...and I loved that about him.

He helped me into the limo and followed behind me. I forced back the thoughts threatening to take over. The last time I’d been in a limo was Joshua’s funeral, but I’d been alone, and Dan was here with me.

“You okay, babe?” He sensed my shift without so much as a word.

I blinked away my past and focused on the present. And the man next to me. “Oh yeah. I’m just completely shocked by all of this.”

“It’s a special night.”

He laced his fingers through mine, and we sat comfortably in silence while the driver navigated the roads back to civilization. Dan lifted my hand and kissed my knuckles. “That dress is smoking hot. You know if you convince Annie to do this whole baby thing, you won’t be wearing stuff like that for a while.”

“Are you worried I’ll get fat?” I ran every day. I had lots of insecurities, but my weight wasn’t one of them, so it was easy to joke about.

“Hardly, I told you what my plans are if you get round. I’m just curious why you would want to do this for people you haven’t known all that long.” His question was genuine and came from a place of love, not judgment.

“Have you ever known you were meant to do something? Regardless of how absurd it might seem to anyone else? Your conviction, the feeling in your gut, tells you this is what you have to do at all cost because the rewards are going to exceed all of your expectations?”

“Of course, but it never involved carrying someone else’s baby.”

I titled my head and waited to see if he was done with the jokes.

“Sorry. Go ahead.”

“There’s something inside me that tells me I came into their lives for this reason. Not just this reason. I see them both being lifelong friends, but there’s a purpose. Most people don’t clearly see the reason they’ve come into someone’s life, but I have the ability to give them something they so desperately want. I can’t explain it to you other than to say, without thought, without reservation, if Annie and Brett are willing, I want to do this.” I looked at him with longing. “And I hope you’ll stand by me.”