by Lynn, Sandi
“Hey. There’s Grayson’s best friend, Julius. I’m going to go say hi.”
He handed the cashier his card, signed the receipt, grabbed his carryout bag and headed out the door before I could make it up there. I walked outside to see if I could catch him when I noticed him across the street and walking into the cryobank building.
“That’s odd,” I said to myself. “I wonder why he’s going there.”
My curiosity was peaked so I crossed the street, entered the building and saw him standing and waiting for the elevator.
“Mr. Chambers,” a woman spoke. “Your one o’clock cancelled.”
“Okay. Thanks for letting me know, Carla,” he said as the doors opened, and he stepped inside.
When he turned to push the button to whatever floor he was going to, he saw me standing there. His eyes widened as the doors shut. This didn’t make any sense. I walked up to the woman named Carla.
“Excuse me. That man who just got on the elevator. Does he work here?”
“You mean Mr.Chambers? Yes, he’s the director. Why?”
Shit. I needed to come up with something quick.
“I purchased sperm from your bank.” I placed my hands on my belly. “And I swear I went to high school with him.”
“He’s been the director for about seven years. His family owns the company.”
“Oh. Then that wasn’t him. My mistake. Thank you.”
I turned and hurried out of the building. My heart was racing, and my body was shaking. Why would Grayson and Julius lie about where he worked? I walked back into the diner and sat down.
“Where were you?” Charlotte asked.
“I tried to catch up with Julius, but he was already gone.”
“What’s wrong?” Laurel asked. “You’re as pale as a ghost.”
“I’m not feeling well all of a sudden. I’m going to head home and lay down.”
“Do you want us to come with you?” Charlotte asked.
“No. I’ll be fine. I haven’t been sleeping well at night because she’s kicking a lot and I’m uncomfortable.”
I went into my purse and pulled some cash out with my shaking hand.
“Lunch is on us,” Laurel spoke.
“Thanks. I’ll call you later.”
I ran out of the diner, hailed a cab and took it back to my apartment. What the fuck was going on? I paced back and forth trying to figure it out. Grayson’s best friend was the director of the New York Cryobank. The same bank I used to find a donor. And yet, both Julius and Grayson lied to me about where Julius worked. I paced around while recalling specific events in my mind. I went back to when I told Grayson about the baby and how I used a donor from the New York Cryobank. He could have told me then Julius worked there but he didn’t. Shit. I needed my laptop which I left at Grayson’s penthouse.
I ran out of the building and hailed a cab. When the driver pulled up to the curb, I threw some cash at him and ran inside the building.
“Good afternoon, Harper. Is everything okay?”
“Yeah. I left my laptop upstairs and I’m late for a Skype meeting.”
I took the elevator up and saw my laptop sitting on the island. Running to it, I opened it up and pulled up all my emails from the cryobank, specifically the one with the profile for Donor 137665. I placed my hand over my mouth as I stared at it.
Donor 137665 is a highly educated, top of his class graduate from Yale. With his high I.Q. and competitive nature, he is extremely successful in the corporate business world. He has an outgoing personality and loves to socialize and meet new people. As an avid classical music lover, he relaxes by sitting down and playing music by Beethoven and Bach on his grand piano.
Height – 6’2
Weight – 190lbs.
Eye Color – Blue
Hair Color – Brown
Hair texture – Straight
Ethnic Origin – Caucasian
Ancestry – English, Irish, Scottish
Religion – None
Education Level – Masters
Areas of Study – Business, Finance, Investment Management
Blood Type – O+
Pregnancies – No
Expanded Genetic Testing – Yes
Instruments – Piano
Favorite Food – Mexican, Italian
Outdoor fun – Skiing and walks on the beach.
No. I shook my head. This can’t be. Tears sprung to my eyes as I stared at the picture of Grayson when he was a child. I ran to his study and started going through his things. I sat down at his desk and opened the drawer on the right-hand side. The ringing of my phone startled me. It was Grayson. I let it go to voicemail while I opened the drawer on the left side and sitting there was a picture of him and his parents when he was a child. Grabbing it, I ran to my laptop and tears streamed down my face as I stared at both pictures of the same child. Instantly, I felt sick to my stomach, and I fell onto the stool. Grayson kept calling, and I kept letting it go to voicemail. My heart was racing out of my chest and I needed to calm down for the baby’s sake. I slowly closed my eyes and took in three long deep breaths.
Chapter 39
Grayson
I was sitting at my desk when my phone rang, and it was Julius.
“Hey, Julius. What’s up?”
“Grayson, she’s going to figure it out if she hasn’t already,” he spoke in a panicked tone.
“Who? What are you talking about?”
“Harper. She just saw me at the cryobank.”
“What?!” I stood up. “Did you talk to her?”
“No. I had just stepped in the elevator and I went to push the button and there she was, standing there. The doors shut before either one of us could say anything. Grayson, my name is at the top of the directory right where she was standing.”
“FUCK!” I have to go.”
I immediately dialed her, and it rang and then went to voicemail. So I kept trying as I ran out of the building. Goddamn it! Where was she? I called her apartment building and talked to Sammy.
“Sammy, it’s Grayson Rhodes. Have you by any chance seen Harper?”
“Yes, Mr. Rhodes. She was here a while ago and then left. She was in quite a hurry.”
“How long ago?”
“About a half hour.”
“Thank you.”
I ended the call and dialed my building.
“Charlie, It’s Grayson Rhodes. Have you seen Harper by any chance?”
“Yes. Mr. Rhodes. She’s upstairs now.”
“Whatever you do. Do not let her leave that building. Do you understand me?”
“Yes, sir.”
Shit. Shit. Shit. She’s not stupid and it wouldn’t take her long to figure everything out.
Harper
Julius must have told him that he saw me and that I saw him. He’s scared now and he’ll be heading here. I placed my hand on my belly as I took in a deep breath and waited for Grayson to show up. About fifteen minutes later, the elevator doors opened and the sickness I already felt intensified.
“Harper, I’ve been trying to call you,” he calmly spoke as he walked over to me.
“STOP!” I shouted as I held up my hand from behind. “I have one question for you and you better tell me the truth. Are you Donor 137665?”
Silence momentarily filled the air.
“Yes. I am. Let me explain. Please, sweetheart.” He took a step closer, and I jumped up from the stool.
“Don’t you ever call me that!” I shouted as I faced him and pointed my finger at him. “You knew all this time that this is your baby and you never told me?” What kind of fucking game are you playing?”
“First, you need to calm down for the baby’s sake.”
“YOU DON’T GET TO TELL ME TO CALM DOWN!”
“Harper, you’re a smart woman and you know you need to calm down.”
“I want the truth, Grayson. The whole fucking truth. NOW!” I screamed.
“I’ll tell you everything but please just go sit down
on the couch.”
I inhaled a deep breath as I walked into the living room and he followed behind. I took a seat while he paced back and forth across the room.
“It all started with a stupid bet between me and Julius. If I lost, I had to donate my sperm. Which I did lose. He promised me that nothing would come of it and that he just got pleasure out of making me suffer. He told me it would be buried where no one would ever see it for one month and that I had nothing to worry about. Then him and Yasmin left for vacation and somehow my donor information got sent to you. When Julius told me that a woman had purchased my sperm and was pregnant, I flew off the handle. He told me just to forget about it and that I made some woman very happy. Then my grandfather called me to dinner one night and gave me an ultimatum. He didn’t agree with the way I was living my life and told me I had one year to find someone and fall in love or else he was going to sign the company over to Alfie instead of me.”
“So you used me?” I narrowed my eye at him.
“Just listen to me, please.” He took a few steps towards me.
“Don’t you dare take another step towards me. I swear to God, Grayson.”
“You have no idea how sorry I am for all of this.”
“Really? You used me so you could get your grandfather’s company, Grayson?”
He took in a sharp breath.
“Let me guess. You had Julius look up the woman who bought your sperm.”
“Yes, and I’m totally ashamed. It wasn’t his fault. I made him do it. I felt like he owed me for my goddamn sperm getting out there in the first place.”
“So what were you going to do once you got your company? Dump me?” Tears started to stream down my face.
“Harper, please. That was the plan but then I fell in love with you. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me.”
I wiped the tears that wouldn’t stop falling.
“So you knew all this time you’re this baby’s father, and you were just going to dump both of us like we’re nothing? Like we’re trash to you?”
“Don’t say it like that. I wanted to tell you so many times.”
“Then why didn’t you?” I shouted as I stood up from the couch.
“Because I couldn’t. The last thing I wanted to do was hurt you or the baby. You have to believe me. I love you and that baby so much that it hurts. You changed me, Harper. You’ve made me a better man. A man who is finally capable of love.”
“Bullshit, Grayson! You lied to me every single day we were together. Charlotte was right.”
“Right about what?”
“About you. That’s why we got into that argument. She never trusted you from day one.” I paused for a moment as something hit me. “Oh my God! Julius was the one who delivered the flowers from the center that day. Starbucks wasn’t a coincidence, was it? You followed me there.”
He looked down as he placed his hands in his pant pockets.
“The job. The apartment. All this time I was nothing but a pawn in your sick little fucking game!”
“That’s not true. I love you. It may have started out that way, but I had feelings for you right from the start. The more time we spent together, the more I fell in love with you. You have to believe me.”
“I will never believe another word you say again. You are an arrogant piece of shit who doesn’t deserve to love or be loved by anyone. You are nothing but a cold and calculating man without any regard for other people’s feelings. You hurt me in the worst possible way, and I will never forgive you for that.” I swallowed hard. This game is over, Grayson, and you better believe I fucking won it. I hope you rot in Hell.”
I grabbed my purse and laptop and pushed the button to the elevator.
“Harper, please.” He grabbed hold of my arm and fell to his knees. “Don’t leave me. I need you and our daughter. I love you so much.”
“This baby is mine and only mine. You signed away your parental rights to this child. I don’t ever want my little girl to know what kind of man her father really is.”
As soon as the doors opened, I yanked myself out of his grip and stepped inside.
Chapter 40
Harper
The only thing I felt was the shattering of my heart. It hurt so bad that I’d swear I was having a heart attack. I sat in the back of the cab on the way to my apartment trying to hold it together the best I could. As soon as he pulled up to my building, I climbed out and watched as Sammy held the door open for me.
“Good to see you, Harper. Mr. Rhodes called looking for you.”
“I know, Sammy. You won’t be seeing him around here much anymore.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. Are you okay?” he asked as he pushed the elevator button for me.
“Not really.”
“If you need anything. Call me.”
“Thank you.”
I finally made it to my apartment. The moment I stepped inside and shut the door, I fell to the floor in a fetal position and started sobbing. My phone that was in my purse kept ringing. I ignored it. I stayed curled up on the floor for what seemed like hours. My door opened and Charlotte and Laurel came running in.
“Oh my God, Harper. Are you okay?” Charlotte asked.
“Harper, what happened?” Laurel placed her hand on my shoulder.
“We tried calling you and when you didn’t answer we got worried, so we came over,” Charlotte said.
“Tell us what happened. Is it the baby? Do we need to call 911?” Laurel asked.
I slowly shook my head.
“It’s Grayson. It’s over.”
“Shit,” Charlotte spoke. “Come on, let’s get you up and on the couch and you can tell us about it.”
“I can’t. I don’t want to move. I can’t move.”
“Yes, you can, sweetie,” Laurel said as her and Charlotte grabbed my arms, helped me up and walked me over to the couch.
“I’m going to make some hot tea,” she said as she walked into the kitchen.
“Harper, what happened?” Charlotte asked as she brushed the strands of hair from my face.
“You were right about him all along. He was only using me to get his company.”
“What? I don’t understand.”
Laurel walked in and handed me my cup of tea.
“The baby.” I could barely speak.
“What about the baby?” Laurel asked.
“Grayson’s the father. He’s Donor 137665. And his best friend, Julius is the Director of the cryobank. He said he lost a bet and he had to donate his sperm, but Julius promised nothing would happen with it. But somehow someone screwed up and sent his profile to me. Then his grandfather gave him an ultimatum. He told him he had a year to find someone and fall in love or else he was signing the company over to someone else.”
“That fucking asshole,” Charlotte said.
“So he sought me out. The woman who purchased his sperm.”
“And what the fuck was he planning on doing once he got his company?” Laurel asked.
I looked at both of them as the tears started flowing again.
“I’ll kill him,” Charlotte snapped.
“He begged me to forgive him. He said that he fell in love with me and wanted to tell me so many times, but he didn’t want to hurt me. You should have seen him. He was on his knees begging me not to leave, and he told me I changed him.”
“Doesn’t matter. I’m still going to kill him,” Charlotte said.
“I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but I do believe he loves you, Harper,” Laurel said.
“WTF, Laurel!” Charlotte snapped.
“I’m just saying when I see them together, I notice the way he looks at her. There was no pretending going on there. What he did was wrong and unforgivable, but I do believe he loves you, Harper.”
“God, I’m going to fucking kill him! I told you, Harper. I told you something was up with him!” Charlotte spoke.
“Now’s not the time,” Laurel said.
“I just want
to go to bed.”
“Of course. Come on.” They helped me up.
“Listen, Harper. You can’t stress out about this,” Charlotte said. “It’s not good for the baby. You have to think about the baby. You don’t need to be going into labor.”
“I know. I love him so much and I don’t know how I’ll get over this.”
“We’ll be here to help you, sweetie,” Laurel said.
“Thank you for coming over, but I just really want to be alone right now.”
“Call us if you need anything. I don’t have a client until eleven o’clock tomorrow, so I’ll be by in the morning,” Charlotte said.
“And I’ll be by after work,” Laurel spoke. “Speaking of work, what are you going to do?”
“I’m quitting. There’s no way I’ll work for that man. I guess I’ll have to text him and tell him.”
“Where’s your phone?” Charlotte asked. “I’ll do it for you.”
“In my purse.”
After sending Grayson a text message, she left my phone on the nightstand and the both of them left. I lay there and cried myself to sleep.
Chapter 41
Grayson
I threw my glass at the wall as it shattered all over the floor. Then I took another glass and threw that as anger consumed me.
“Whoa,” Julius said as he walked in. “Grayson, calm the fuck down.”
“I can’t. God, Julius, you should have seen her. I’ve never felt so much pain in my life. What the fuck am I going to do?”
“There’s nothing you can do. You lied to her for months, Grayson. I warned you about this.”
“I love her so much. You don’t understand. I can’t live without her and my daughter.”
“Then you’re going to have to try and win her back. But to be honest, I don’t think she’ll take you back. Not to mention she’s probably going to sue the fuck out of the cryobank.”
“She won’t do that.”
“You can’t be so sure about that.”
“I know her, and she won’t.”
“You know her when she’s stable. God knows the mental state she’s in now. You fucked that poor woman up. She loved you, man.”