Single Dad's Surrogate

by Annie Young

  “You tell me,” Carter said.

  My eyes scanned over the paper until something finally popped out on the page. I couldn't believe I didn't notice it immediately. “This is missing an important number. What is this company's daily volatility?”

  Carter smiled and handed me another piece of paper. He was prepared. This piece of paper had the name of the company on it, New York Solar Company. “I'm spending over a million dollars on this stock today. I'm either going to buy it or short it. Which should I do? I want your opinion.”

  “Well, based on these metrics, this company is underpriced,” I said, looking up toward Carter.

  He smiled. “That's exactly what I was thinking. That's why I want to jump on it.

  “Carter, look at this, though.” I held up the paper as I spoke. “This company is going to fall apart soon. Definitely within the quarter but maybe even before the week is over. It's all here. The performance trends for this company look good in some ways, but that isn't the whole story.”

  Carter's smile faded. “What if I told you that the market opened an hour ago and the company is already up five points?”

  Maybe he was right. I couldn't be completely sure, but once again there was just something that told me that this company wasn't a good one to invest in.

  I bit my lower lip as I thought about what I should say. As soon as I did, Carter clenched his jaw and his pupils dilated. I kept my lip tucked between my teeth for a just a moment. This wasn't the first time I'd seen a reaction from him to this little habit of mine. He liked it. I think it turned him on. Or maybe I just deeply wished that it did.

  He kept his gazed locked on my lips for just a second longer. I savored the moment, then spoke. “You really want my opinion?”

  Carter nodded.

  “I'd say you have an even better price to short it,” I said. “I've seen you miss this telltale sign before. It's a similar stock to the one from last week and I think it will perform just like that one did, if not worse.”

  Carter slowly pulled on the neck of his tie, loosening it a bit. He cleared this throat before speaking. “I hope you're right.”

  With that, I watched as he put in a million dollar order for the stocks. He had taken my advice and I suddenly felt ill.

  Did I just gamble with a million dollars of someone else's money? I asked myself.

  Carter closed the window on the computer. His desktop background was a photo of him holding a baby. It was adorable and I immediately felt those weird baby-crazy feelings kick in.

  “Who's that?” I asked.

  “That's my baby niece,” he said proudly. “Isn't she adorable?”

  “Yeah,” I said. “She really is cute.”

  Something about looking at that picture of Carter holding a child made all of my emotions come to a head. My stomach clenched and I suddenly realized what my body had been trying to tell me all along. It wasn't just a baby that I wanted. I wanted Carter's baby. He was the one who was supposed to be the father to my child. His seed was supposed to fill me.

  “Well, thanks for your advice on this stock, Jane,” Carter said, temporarily breaking my thoughts. “I'll let you know what happens with it.”

  “You're welcome,” I managed to say before biting my lip again.

  Carter clenched his jaw but then turned away, bringing his attention back to the computer. I went back to my office in a daze.

  This is crazy, I thought, taking a seat behind my desk. But I feel the same way about Carter as I did about those stocks last week. It's like I just know. Sure it's not logical, but everything in me is telling me now. Carter is going to give me a baby. I'm going to have a child from my billionaire boss.

  “I think this job just got a little more interesting,” I whispered, as I sat down and went back to work.

  Chapter 6

  It was only Wednesday, but for some reason, I felt like celebrating. I grabbed the bottle of Cabernet that my mom had sent me a few weeks before and poured myself a glass. Then I sat down in my overstuffed couch, kicking my feet up onto the coffee table.

  Things were really coming together for me. My job was going infinitely better than I could have ever hoped for. My apartment was finally decorated and unpacked. I had made a few friends at work. I had a lot to be grateful for.

  “Here's to things working out,” I said to myself, holding my glass in the air.

  Nobody was there to do the cheers with me, but I didn't care. I was far too happy to be brought down by that fact. I let out a long breath, letting myself sink deep into the cushions.

  My phone rang in my pocket and I pulled it out to see an incoming call from my mom. It was her ritual to call me just about every day and I wondered if she'd ever let me grow up. I answered of course, though.

  “Hey, Mom,” I said, loosely holding the phone against my ear.

  “Hey, Janie,” she replied. “How have you been? You haven't answered your phone in a couple of days. I was worried about you.”

  “I've been just fine,” I said. “How are you?”

  “Everything is the same in Iowa,” she said, with a sigh. “Your father is still working non-stop and I'm here at the house, bored out of my mind. How's your job, honey? You haven't told me anything about it. You're still in accounting, right?”

  “Actually, no.”

  “What do you mean?” she asked, in her typical worried tone.

  “I got promoted.” I lifted myself out of the cushions and sat on the edge of the seat.

  “You've haven't even been there for a month.” Mom sounded suspicious in her response.

  “I know, it's crazy,” I replied. “The boss of this company just took a liking to me. I did some good work on my first day and next thing I know, I'm working directly for the CEO.”

  “You don't find that a little strange?” Mom asked. “I mean, don't you think it's odd?”

  I rolled my eyes. “Mom, can't you just be proud of me? I've worked my butt off to set up my own life out here in New York and now you're criticizing my success.”

  “I'm sorry, Honey,” she said. “I am proud of you. Your father and I are both proud of you. I'm just surprised to hear that you've already been promoted. What is your current role working for the CEO? What kind of work?”

  “Well,” I said, with a dramatic pause afterward. “You, and especially Dad, will be happy to hear that I'm reviewing some of the company's stocks. I basically look over all of the investments and make sure everything is congruent.”

  “You're kidding me,” Mom said, now sounding excited instead of suspicious. “Your father is going to flip when he hears that. You know, I never told you this but your dad always talked about wishing you'd work in the stock market like he does. He was happy when you started working for the Winthrow firm as an accountant but I can't wait to see his face when I tell him about your new job.”

  I smiled wide. I flashed back to the memories of watching my dad circle stocks in the newspaper every morning. Just thinking of it brought back a wave of nostalgia.

  “I guess I owe some of my skill to him,” I said, with a chuckle. “I'm still learning, but so far, I've done pretty well I think. I've made the company quite a bit of money so far.”

  “That's so great, baby,” Mom said. “How about your dad and I call you a little later tonight when he gets home? I think you should tell him yourself.”

  “Sounds good,” I said, before taking another sip of my wine.

  “Okay, Jane. I'll talk to you then. Love you,” she said.

  “Love you too, Mom.”

  After hanging up, my thoughts went immediately to the million dollars that Carter had shorted against the New York Solar Company's stock.

  I shouldn't even look. I'm not at work. This is supposed to be my personal time. Damn if I'm not curious, though, I thought.

  Using my cell phone, I logged into my work profile and found the stock that Carter. It was a good thing he'd taken my advice on it, too. As I had predicted, the value had already plummeted fifteen per
cent in after-hours trading. There wasn't a statement from the company yet but I was sure that there would be one soon. Anybody who had stayed invested with them was surely upset right about now and would be demanding some explanations.

  I smiled. I had to email Carter and tell him what I had just found out. It was the first time I had ever contacted him outside of work hours, but this seemed like a good reason to do so.

  Hi, Carter. I hope I'm not bothering you, but I wanted to let you know that New York Solar Company's stock value is dropping hand over fist. Looks like shorting it was the right decision. I probably could have waited until tomorrow to tell you but I was just too excited not to share the news. -Jane.

  With the email written, I went to send it, but hesitated. I wasn't sure if I was crossing a line by contacting him outside of work hours. It almost felt a little bit taboo for whatever reason. I wondered if any of his other employees ever did it.

  “Screw it,” I whispered, pressing the send button and then tossing my phone to the couch cushion next to me. “He probably already thinks I'm weird anyway. What difference does it make if I email him at night?”

  I finished my glass of wine and kicked my feet up on the coffee table. I grabbed the remote to my stereo and turned on some music. I had no intention of even looking at my cell phone again that night, but curiosity continued to get the best of me.

  Did Carter write me back? I thought. I wonder if he's happy with the news.

  It was too hard to ignore. I grabbed my phone and opened my email, hitting refresh. Sitting in my inbox was an email from Carter. It was a response to my email and my heart fluttered as I opened it up. It was a single sentence from him.

  Told ya you'd be good at this, Jane

  It was a simple praise, but coming from Carter it made me feel incredible. I read the message and could practically hear it in his voice. Especially the part where he said my name. I loved when he said my name.

  Chapter 7

  When I arrived at work the next morning, I couldn't wait to see Carter. The move we'd made by shorting the stocks for New York Solar Company had made more money for Winthrow Holdings than anything I had ever been part of. By far. It pumped me up and gave me confidence that I hadn't felt before. I was suddenly walking with my chest pushed out and my head held high. There was a spring in my step as I stepped through the front door of the building and made my way up to my office. I was on top of the world.

  As the elevator doors opened, Cindy looked up from her desk.

  “What are you so smiley about?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

  Even Cindy's negativity couldn't bring me down that day. I just shrugged as I walked past. “What is there to frown about?”

  “Jane,” she said, stopping me in my tracks. I spun around before heading through the double doors.

  “Yeah?”

  “Carter wanted me to let you know that he won't be in until later this afternoon.” The phone in front of her started to ring and she picked it up before I could respond. So I just gave an affirmative nod and made my way to my office.

  There wasn't much work for me to do, though. My mornings usually consisted of touching base with Carter, where he'd give me my tasks. I sat at my desk and spent a few minutes scanning through some stocks, but finally I decided that I'd just take my lunch break early and meet up with Maddy. I sent her a text and she immediately replied.

  It's like 930 Jane. Who eats lunch at 930?

  I replied back quick.

  Coffee then?

  She replied.

  That I can definitely do. Let's do the coffee shop on fifth avenue, just a few blocks away

  Some fresh air and coffee sounded like the perfect start to the day. I grabbed my purse and headed out the door.

  Maddy was already at the coffee shop when I walked in the door. She was sitting at a table in the corner, with a gigantic cup of steaming coffee in one hand and a jelly donut in the other. Before making my presence known, I approached the barista and ordered a caramel macchiato. While it was being made, I stepped up to Maddy.

  “Hey lady,” I said, plopping down in the chair across from her.

  “Hey!” she said, holding her hand in front of her mouth to keep bits of jelly donut from flying out.

  Maddy washed down her bite with a swish of coffee.

  “Good to see you, Jane,” she said. “I'm so glad you wanted to meet up. How are things going?”

  “I can't complain,” I said, wanting to be a little bit vague. I couldn't tell Maddy how amazing things actually were, because I didn't want her to feel bad. The last thing I wanted was to make my only friend at work feel like I was rubbing my promotion in her face.

  “I heard through the grapevine that you're some kind of stock prodigy child,” she said, with a playful smirk. “Some of the employees in accounting have been talking about you.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “Oh really?”

  “Yeah. Remember when I told you that news travels fast around Winthrow?” Maddy asked. “I wasn't kidding. A lot of people think that Winthrow Financial only works with stocks and other investments. In actuality, though, we specialize in being the biggest gossip factory in the world.”

  She was obviously joking, but I couldn't help but to think that if that were true, then Maddy would have been CEO. The Chief Executive Officer of Gossip Production.

  “For what it's worth, I'm not a stock prodigy,” I said. “Sometimes I just get these feelings about an investment, though. It's hard to explain.”

  “A feeling?” she asked, squinching her face into a confused expression. “I thought you were a numbers girl.”

  “I am,” I said. “Sometimes, though, there's a different part of my brain that kicks in. Or maybe it's not even my brain. It's my gut. It just tells me what to do and it seems like whenever I listen to it, it turns out to be right.”

  “A woman's intuition,” Maddy replied. “Maybe you're an old soul. A wise old soul.”

  “I'm hardly wise,” I said. “Besides, we'll see how many more investments I get right. I've only done well on a couple of them so far and it's quite possible that I've just been lucky.”

  Maddy responded, but her words faded out. Her voice became distant as my focus suddenly shifted. A woman to my right had stepped up to the counter to order a coffee. In front of her was a baby stroller. It caught my eye and I glanced over to see a beautiful baby girl asleep inside of it. She was wrapped in a pink blanket and looked so peaceful. Without even realizing it, I had brought my hand to my belly.

  That's what I really want, I thought. Success at Winthrow Financial is one thing, but a baby of my own is the only thing that will ever make me truly happy. I just know it.

  “Jane!” Maddy said loudly, causing me to face her again. “Are you okay?”

  I nodded quickly. “Yeah, I'm fine. Why?”

  “You're holding your stomach,” she said, looking down to where my fingers were grazing my belly. “Are you sick or something?”

  “What? No, no. I'm not sick,” I replied, quickly pulling my hand away from my body.

  Maddy looked over to the mom with the baby and then back toward me. She was analyzing the situation, trying to figure out what it was that I was thinking. I'd seen her do it before. Not just to me, but to others as well. I assumed she was mining for something that she could gossip with the rest of the office later. There was a minute or so of silence, then finally she shrugged.

  “Anyway, I'm to hear that everything is going well for you up there on the top floor,” she said. “Things are a mess in accounting right now. David has been on my ass about year end reports. It's annoying because...”

  Maddy continued on, chatting away at breakneck speed. My coffee arrived and I sipped while pretending to listen. In reality, though, the only thing that was on my mind was how exciting it was going to be when I finally became a mother. Seeing that little baby had once again sent my instincts into over drive. I just hoped that I could make it happen for myself sooner rather than later.

>   Chapter 8

  When we got back to work, the TV was on in the lobby. I stopped, the familiar tickers scrolling by with numbers that usually got me excited. That wasn't what I was looking at, though. The CEO of New York Solar Company was on, and he was about to deliver a press conference.

  Maddy paused, then touched my shoulder. “I'll catch up with you later,” she said. I nodded, but never turned from the television screen.

  “Ladies and gentlemen,” the man started. “I know there must be some questions about what happened this morning. We believe it to be a question of the big players in this market finally taking notice of us. Fortunately, we have a multi-year head start on this technology, and our patents make our methods proprietary.”

  I laughed out loud, right there in the lobby. I had told Carter that they would say that other companies were trying to bully them out, but the notion that their tech was proprietary was ridiculous. I could think of two companies that had similar solar power generation processes and were bigger than this company.

  Already, though, I could see that the stock had risen a half a point. People were buying it, for now. They wouldn't for long.

  The man continued to talk as I ran to the elevator, hitting the button for Carter's office, more excited than I had been in a long time.

  Usually Cindy stopped me at the door, but today she had a smile. “Go right on in. He's expecting you,” she said.

  Apparently Carter was as excited to see me as I was to see him. I walked in the office, looking at his desk. He wasn't there.

  I wondered where he could be when I heard a loud POP to my left. Carter had a bottle of champagne in his hand, which was quickly overflowing. I rushed to grab the nearby towel, but he laughed and grabbed it himself, wiping the bottle.