I smile, emotions I’ve never felt swarm me. Damn you Remy. Damn you. “I’m sure they’ll be pleased to hear how thankful you are.”
Thankfully, that’s the end of the conversation and I didn’t have to give her too much information. If I’m lucky, she’ll forget by the next time I come, and I won’t have to actually give her the information.
My evening with her passes quickly. We watch some TV together, reruns of a show we’ve always like, while Maddie regals me with tales of one of her friends from school and how she came to see her this afternoon too. A lot of Maddie’s friends disappeared the first time she got cancer, but there are a couple who surprisingly have stuck around, even this second time.
I don’t get to dwell on how unfair life has been to my little sister for long though. She’s dozing off when my phone vibrates in my pocket. Fishing it out, I see his name flash on the screen and think seriously about shoving it back into my pocket and pretending I didn’t see.
Remington Winston has a proposition for me, and I’m scared whatever it is will ruin me.
* * *
Walking into the Lamont Hotel lobby, I wonder if I’m doing the right thing. Is showing up to find out what he wants from me the best choice? Probably not, but his cryptic text piqued my curiosity.
Remy: I know how you can wipe your “debt” clean. Meet me at the Lamont Hotel in an hour and I’ll explain
I know he put debt in quotes because he doesn’t think I should pay him back, but he knows it’s something I need to do. I can’t have this hanging over my head.
Stopping at the entrance of the high-end restaurant attached to the hotel, I want to run in the opposite direction. I’m not meant to be here… in fact I stick out horribly in my ripped, faded jeans and high heels. I’m not a businesswoman or a rich socialite. I swear like a sailor and don’t have the first clue about office or social etiquette.
You have to do this. Think of Madison. I keep saying this over and over, trying to give myself courage, but it isn’t working very well. A knot forms in my throat when I lift my gaze to the dining room and see him. He’s sitting there in his designer suit, waiting, watching, ready to pounce at any given second. Remy might be the youngest of the Winston brothers, but he exudes this power that neither of his brothers do. It’s like with one look he can get you to do what he wants, and that terrifies me.
Sex with him was amazing both times, hot as hell, and something that I’ll never forget. I curse to myself, wanting to blame Reed and Fallon for this entire thing, but knowing the fault rests solely on me. Swallowing down the fear swirling in my stomach, I walk up to the hostess. Her eyes roam over me with disgust, and once again I’m forced to hold back the bitchy remarks on the tip of my tongue.
“I’m here to meet Remington Winston.” I grip my clutch in my hands tightly, more to keep from throttling her for the way she scrunches her nose when I say it. I’m sure I’m the last type of woman she would expect Remy to be meeting up with, but it is me, not her or anyone else.
“Right this way.” She motions finally, after staring at the hostess stand for way longer than necessary. I follow behind her, and each step is one I force myself to take. When we reach the table, I can feel his heated gaze on me, but I look everywhere but at him. Not because the man is ugly, dear lord, no. If anything, it’s because he’s so damn attractive I have half a mind to start licking him right here. My mouth waters at the thought, my body reacting to the memory of his touch.
“Mel,” Remy stands to greet me. The way my name sounds rolling off his lips sends a shiver down my spine. This was such a bad idea.
I let him pull my chair out and settle into it, placing my clutch next to the glass of water in front of me, and when I finally lift my gaze to Remy’s, I see a thousand different emotions swirling in his hazel eyes.
It takes me a minute to get my bearings as I stare at him, cataloging his features. The angular jaw that looks as if it was chiseled from stone. His high cheekbones, and the perfectly set eyes holding me in place. He looks like he walked off the cover of a magazine without even trying. How can a man look so fucking good? It almost hurts just to look at him.
“Thank you for meeting with me, Mel,” he says after taking the seat across from me.
I roll my eyes at how formal he’s being. “Sure, Remy. You got me here, now let’s talk about what you want. I’ve still got things I need to do.” This last is a lie. By things, I mean go home, cuddle up with my Yorkie on the couch and catch up on Criminal Minds. Oh, and what my next article for the paper is going to be. Can’t forget about that.
A sour look forms on Remy’s features, and I can see the strain of his muscles in his suit. He’s annoyed, probably expecting me to fall all over him, but I’m not going to.
“You can act like you’re not the least bit interested in what I’m going to propose, but we both know it’s killing you not to ask.” The smirk he gives me makes my thighs quiver.
God, save me from this man before I do something stupid and agree to his terms without thinking about them. “I am, but what I’m not interested in is jumping through whatever hoops you have planned before I find out. All I want is to get this meeting over with so I can back to my normal life.” I’m proud of the way I sound, like I’m mostly indifferent when I’m actually the opposite.
“Oh, don’t worry, sweetheart. No hoops to jump through, and I’m perfectly willing to end this meeting once you agree to my terms.”
He’s so confident I’m going to say yes and that makes me worry more than the smug grin on his face. “Then what are your terms?”
Remy leans back in his chair, eyes never leaving mine as he studies me. He looks so relaxed, that when he tells me his terms, I can’t believe what I’m hearing. “I want a baby.”
“Uh, okay? I don’t know what that has to do with me.” There’s a tight feeling in my chest at the thought of him getting married, having a baby with someone else. I don’t understand it because marriage and babies aren’t something I have any interest in.
His eyes are still on mine, gaze so intense I want to squirm under his scrutiny. “Let me be perfectly clear then. I want you to have my baby, Melody.”
“No.” My answer is immediate and emphatic. “That’s not going to happen. Not now, not in the future. Kids are not something I will be doing… ever.”
Remy shrugs, unphased by my hysteria at the thought of having a child. “Then I guess you aren’t going to get enough money to pay off your sister’s medical bills yourself. A baby is the only thing I want, and you’re the only one who can give it to me.”
The way he’s so unconcerned blows my mind. He knows I want some way to cancel out the money he spent on Madison. I want to earn the money from him somehow, but having his baby? “Are you on drugs?” He laughs, but I’m serious. “No, really, are you? That’s the only thing I can think that would explain this insane request. It’s either drugs or you’re crazy, and I know you aren’t the last.”
“Calm down, Melody. I’m not on drugs and I’m not crazy. I just know what I want and the fact that you have this asinine idea that you want to pay me back for your sister’s medical bills means I have the chance to get it.”
All I can do is look at him, mouth open in disbelief. I really should close it, but I think I might be frozen. He wants me to pay off what I consider as a debt to him by having a baby for him? “And how does that work exactly? I know why Reed and Fallon did it, but that isn’t the same situation. We aren’t secretly in love and just needing the okay to get down and dirty. I have no interest in being a mother.”
Remy’s face has so many emotions crossing it I can’t keep track. Anger, pity, sorrow, lust… he runs the gamut of emotions. “I’m not asking you to be a mother, Melody.”
Ugh, why does he insist on calling me by my full name? I’ve been Mel to everyone who knows me for as long as I can remember. My dad is the one who chose the name Melody, which means of course that I hate it now. “What exactly are you asking me then, Remy? You j
ust said you want me to have your baby. You don’t plan for me to be a part of that? I’m just supposed to be what… an incubator?” I’m not sure why that offends me more than the thought of having his baby. “How is that going to work anyway? We’re just going to go to some clinic and have them shove a turkey baster inside me with your stuff in it?”
“No.” The word is firm, anger clear in both his voice and the way his brows furrow, almost looking like diagonal slants over his eyes and coming to a point between them. Leaning forward, he is very clear when he says, “We’re going to do it the normal way. No turkey basters and sterile jack off rooms.”
Now it’s my turn to be angry. “Oh, so this is just another way for you to get me into bed?” My voice lowers and when I speak, it comes out almost sounding like a purr. “If you want in my bed, Remington Winston, all you have to do is ask.”
One of those eyebrows’ lifts in challenge. “Oh? So, if I asked you to come home with me and spend the night in my bed, your answer would be yes?”
I shrug, trying to appear nonchalant. “Sex is sex Remy. You’re smart enough to know that. I don’t have a problem with sex… just the emotions so many people attach to it. If emotions are going to get involved, I’m not the woman for the job.” I almost tell him I’m not the woman for the job now, but don’t, because even if I don’t want to do this, I don’t want anyone else to either. Plus, I don’t like owing anyone money. I’d willing give up all my morals for my sister and her needs.
“I do know that, Melody. Don’t talk to me as if I’m a child.” He oozes this manliness that no man I’ve ever been with has before. I nibble on my bottom lip as I stare at him, unable to look away from his piercing gaze. “I might be the youngest of my brothers, I might be the quietest, but I’m not stupid. I want you and I have no problem admitting that. As for emotions, well, they were involved the moment I chose you to be the woman to give me a baby.”
The smug look on his face says it all. He has me right where he wants me. I’m his puppet, even if I don’t like it.
“Whatever.” I dismiss his comments, pretending not to care about anything he’s saying. It’s easier if he thinks I’m being truthful when I say my emotions aren’t involved. If we focus solely on the sex and making of the baby, and less on everything else, we’ll both be better off. “Let’s talk about the deal. I give you a baby… and what? You basically say you’ve paid me the amount you paid on my sister’s medical bills and the treatment you got her approved for?” I confirm.
I can see he’s not done with the previous conversation, but he nods anyway, and my eyes move down to the gray folder he pulls out of his briefcase and sits on the table between us.
“Yes and no. This contract,” he pulls a sheaf of papers out of the folder pulls my attention to the words they hold. “states that along with the amount already paid, two hundred and thirty thousand, you will receive another two hundred and seventy thousand upon delivery of the baby. The total amount given will equal five hundred thousand.”
Five hundred thousand dollars? I can’t even begin to wrap my head around that kind of money. I’ve never before seen money like that, and I probably won’t again. But there is still one thing. “I don’t want any extra money. Just the amount you’ve already paid. I won’t whore myself that way.”
Remy sighs. “You’re not whoring yourself for the rest of the money. Put it in the bank and don’t touch it for all I care, but you’ll have it if you need it. Heaven forbid your sister needs more treatment or more hospital bills start to pile up. I don’t want you to have to worry.” He continues to explain, “Our agreement will be very similar to that of surrogacy, except we will be conceiving the old-fashioned way.” He wiggles his eyebrows and I almost laugh, glad for the break in tension because even if I find the situation to be less than fucking stellar, this man does know how to make me laugh.
“Perfect. Where do I sign?” It’s reckless to agree this quickly, without having an impartial lawyer look over the terms, but I don’t care how one-sided the agreement is. It can be totally weighed in his favor. I’m not sure why I’m agreeing to have a baby for him, other than not wanting him to go find someone else to do it for him. I don’t even understand why he wants a baby so badly.
Pulling a pen out of his suit jacket, he hands it over to me across the table and I pause, lifting my eyes from the folder to meet Remy’s. The way he’s looking at me right now makes my heart pound hard in my chest. He thinks he knows why I’m doing this, but he has no clue. He doesn’t know the baggage I carry or the commitment issues I have, or why I work two jobs just to pay the bills, yet he’s looking at me like I’m the reason his entire world spins. Remy’s looking at me like a man that’s completely enthralled with the woman he loves. It’s a heady feeling.
I shake off the way his eyes on my skin makes me feel and swallow, knowing what I’m about to say next needs to be included in the contract.
“I’d like to add something if that’s okay?”
Remy stretches, staring at me curiously while he waits to hear my condition. “Whatever you need will be provided to you. There’s no need to ask for anything else. I will take care of you and what’s mine. That’s what the Winston’s do.” I roll my eyes, shaking my head and causing my dark locks falling into my face.
“I don’t care what you Winston’s do. I’m not here for a free ride, and that’s not what this agreement is about. You want a baby Remy. I’m offering you the chance to rent my womb. Nothing more, nothing less. When the baby is born, you’ll be its parent and I’ll be nothing more than the woman who carried it for nine months.” I hate the way my voice sounds as I say the words, like I’m some heartless bitch.
“Then what is it that you want?”
Before I can say the words, I inhale a deep, shaky breath in an attempt to calm my nerves. I want to be strong, but I feel like I’m failing. Saying all he’s doing is renting my room makes me feel like my heart is shriveling in my chest, but I can’t have more. Not with him, not with anyone. “I want you to promise me that when this is all over, you’ll walk away. You won’t fall in love with me and that we will keep this entire thing strictly business. I don’t do relationships, and I don’t date guys younger than me.” I throw the last part in as a dig knowing he will hate me for throwing his age in his face again.
He smirks like the asshole he wants me to think he is. “That’s funny, because you might not date guys younger than you, but you have no problem screaming their name out loud while you’re coming all over their face, fingers or cock.”
My cheeks heat. “You can’t hold anything that happens in those moments against me. So, you know how to eat pussy. What do you want, an award?” The banter between us is hot, and my skin heats as we bicker. I will never admit it to him, but I want him to fuck me again, just like he did the first night. The way he controlled me, owning my body and fucking it like it was made just for him is what I’ve dreamed about every night since.
“Actually, yes. I do want an award, Melody. Or maybe I just want a reward. I want you… in my bed… screaming my name again.”
I feel flustered and force myself to make a subject change. Goodness things have taken a heated turn. “Just agree that you won’t fall in love with me and that we will keep this professional as possible and I’ll sign the contract.” The entire restaurant falls away when he leans in, across the table.
“I won’t fall in love with you, but I can’t promise you won’t fall in love with me.”
That dazzling smile will be the death of me I know it. “No worries there. I’m immune to love, to any kind of feelings. Got vaccinated at a young age. We’re good to go in that department.” I smile, watching as his face falls a little. He recovers in seconds and after pulling the contract to his side so he can make the necessary additions, slides the folder back across the space between us. Sparks fly when our fingers brush as I take the pen from him.
My body has never felt so hot before. It’s like I’m ready to combust and why? Because
he’s staring at me with want and a level of need, I can’t even begin to describe?
Sucking in an audible breath, I open the folder and read the amendments. The contract practically comes to life before my eyes. I chance a final look up at Remy before turning to the final page to sign. I don’t give a fuck about the logistics. I just want this to be over so I can go home and pretend it never happened.
“There are a few stipulations,” Remy interrupts when I start to scrawl my name. “I want you eating a somewhat healthy diet… and you’re not allowed to have sex with anyone else while you’re carrying my child, or when we’re attempting to get you pregnant. I want to know with one hundred percent certainty that the baby is mine.”
I ponder what he’s said, then nod my agreement, “Got it. Eat Big Mac’s and sleep with all of Chicago. Anything else?” My smartass is coming out.
Fire flickers in his gaze but instead of responding to my witty banter he merely ignores it, shaking his head no. I won’t lie and say I feel disappointed, even though a part of me does, signing my name across the line and binding me legally to him, for as long as it takes.
As soon as my name is scrawled across the line, I set the pen down and shove up from the table. I feel hot and cold all at once, and I wonder if I just made the biggest mistake of my life.
Can I really have a baby with Remy Winston? Can we have a baby and it not mean anything to me?
He must sense that I’m about to run, because he gathers up the contract and eyes me as if he’s the king holding all the power in his hands.
“I’ll be in touch, so we can get to fulfilling the first part of the contract. We’ll both need to get tested, and if you’re on birth control, you need to stop it immediately” I swallow, nodding my head like I’m a bobblehead doll before fleeing the restaurant.
What the hell did I just sign up for?
Winston Brothers Box Set Page 43
