by J. S. Wilder
“Have a seat.” He pushed his trash from his unfinished lunch into the trashcan. A smear of spicy mustard streaked across his Cherrywood desk. “Damn! Let me clean this up.” Desmonda would break his tail if he stained his desk.
She handed him his half-finished bottled of water and a napkin off the floor he’d missed.
“Thanks.” Quickly, he wet the napkin and wiped up the mustard. “My sister would kill me if she knew I ate at my desk.”
“Why’s that?” Megan cocked her head to the side.
“She decorated all of our offices and I’d hate to have her think I disrespected the work she put into making our office spaces unique.”
“Well, tell your sister, I think she has excellent taste.”
He nodded. His chair squeaking when he sat down in front of his computer. “What kind of work were you looking to do here? We do our own filing and bookkeeping.” He typed a few words into the company’s database pretending to make it appear like he was looking to see any job opportunities even though he knew there were none. Except for the baby-making ones. That thought riled his anger up again and he ground his back teeth so hard a crack echoed in the room.
“If I’m taking up too much of your time, I can talk to someone else,” her voice was soft, full of uncertainty but an underlining determination that made him glance at her.
“No, no, everything’s fine.” He leaned back in his leather chair, steepling his fingers. “I might find a fit for you here if you explain what you’re looking for.”
She swallowed. Her mouth dipping into a sad smile that made his chest hurt and he wanted more than anything to see her laugh. “I-I…you know I work at Sal’s, right?”
When he nodded, she continued.
“He’s closing the place down at the end of the month.” Her hands clenched her knees and her words tumbled out of her mouth so fast he’d have thought she was a chrinnt. “Mitch, he’s my boss, gave me today off to find another job. Which I’ve tried everywhere. But I can’t wait until next month to find employment. I need something now. Actually, I need money…a lot of money.” She hiccupped a cry. “It’s not for me, it’s my dad. He’s in the hospital in the next city, the big one with the funds to care for him, but I can’t afford it anymore. They’ve given me until this evening to pay off the debt we owe but there’s no way I can get the money in time. Cynthia, my friend, told me she did surrogacy here and that she was able to quit her job. So I came here hoping I could do the same. I mean, I don’t know how much you pay or the rules or anything, but I’d hoped I could get a partial payment upfront.” She licked her lips, her body slightly trembling. “I promise I’d be good for it. And I’d signup for two pregnancies if that’s what it took. Please…I have to get the money somehow.”
Her sweat, mingled with fear and anxiety, spiked.
He chewed on the idea of accepting her plight, giving her the money to pay for her father’s medical bills, and doing the surrogacy. It would please his father if he went through with this. And Levx liked her more than any candidate he’d come across before. But he didn’t like the idea of tricking her. Coming right out and telling her that he was an alien from another planet whom her people called dragons didn’t seem like a good idea.
First, he’d get to know her. Make her think the surrogacy was a longer process than she realized. That he wanted to get to know her and what kind of person she was before he committed to her carrying his child…their child.
“Of course. My firm is taking surrogate moms and I’m happy to help you. Let me draw up a contract and you can review and think about your decision.” And he’d tell his brothers to back off if she did sign. He didn’t want anyone else touching her. “You may take it to any of the law firms in the building or anywhere else you’d like.”
She paled but leaned forward. “W-What about my advance? I haven’t even said how much money I need to—”
“Leave me your dad’s name and the hospital, I’ll take care of it.”
“Just like that?” She shook her head. “I’d like to have time to review the contract before I sign up for anything.”
Was she getting cold feet now that this was a reality?
In order to keep his hands busy and not cross his arms, he typed into the computer, bringing up the standard contract. He’d have to tweak it for her.
“May I meet the potential couple?” Her question drew his attention but he continued typing.
“My mate—spouse died before we could have children. It was our hope to have a child and I’m one of the clients here, if that’s all right with you. Or I can locate another family for you to work with.” Okay, so it wasn’t a complete lie. If the Tryns hadn’t attacked and wiped out over half the population, Levx would be married to a female by now regardless if he chose or his father picked for him. As one of the princes to the realm, it was their duty to have offspring and continue the line. Now, fugitives on another planet, even more so.
“I’m so sorry.” She crossed her legs, swallowing hard, her cheeks paling. “But I’d rather review the contract and get to know you better before I make a decision.”
He winced at her sincerity and felt a pang of guilt in his heart like someone had hit him with a pike. “Before she died, we had our embryos frozen. I vowed to her that I wouldn’t settle on just any woman to bare our children, but someone I liked.” He stopped, watching her reaction.
Her soft brown eyes were wide and her mouth agape before she snapped her lips closed. Emotions warred on her face but she nodded. He wanted to comfort her. Ease her worries. Give her time to get to know him before following through with her having his child.
All his life, he’d hated falsehoods, but he couldn’t tell her the truth. What he could do was mix lies with partial facts and hope she agreed. The thought of her calling him crazy and run screaming from the room made his lungs constrict painfully.
“I’ve never gotten the feeling that I wanted to follow through on my promise with anyone until I met you at the diner. I can’t explain why. I just…would you be willing to spend time getting to know one another before we follow through with the insemination?”
Chapter 9
Megan
Megan forgot to breathe. All the air left her lungs in a whoosh and she felt lightheaded. What exactly was he suggesting? That they date before she got pregnant—no, not pregnant—artificially implanted with his and his dead wife’s embryo.
Whoever his wife had been, she was damn lucky. The guy was muscular, handsome, and polite. His office had expensive furniture along with silver and gold figurines that she wouldn’t doubt were real. They looked pricey. Like everything about him and his office. He wore a silk emerald shirt and gray pants that hugged his muscles. His golden eyes seemed to study her like a lion does its prey before pouncing. It both excited and terrorized her. A rush of adrenaline to flee or fight raced through her. Yet, at the time, the desire to strip and crawl across his wooden desk filled her.
He was right. There was some kind of connection…attraction between them. But right now, she had to decide if she would take this leap and do what he asked or not.
“What happens if you decide I’m not the right fit for you and your…child?” The fine hairs on her arms raised. Last thing she needed was to agree to this, have him decide he couldn’t stand her, then owe even more money than she did now.
His dark blond eyebrow cocked. “Then the contract would be null and void if either of us decides to terminate the agreement for any reason.”
“And the loan? The upfront payment for my dad’s hospital stay?” Why did her throat feel like it burned?
“We can think of it as a retainer fee, one that will remain with you to do with as you wish,” his voice sent chills through her and she had the distinct feeling that he wasn’t only referring to the contact.
Get a grip, Megan. It’s not like he’s going to actually date you, fall in love, and you’ll marry and have a dozen kids. Still, her whole face heated. “That seems fair enough.”
“How long before I need to sign it.” She needed time to visit a lawyer. Could she even find one that wouldn’t cost her a fortune to review the contract?
“How about we meet over coffee on Sunday?” he asked.
She cleared her throat. “I-I’m working at Sal’s that day.”
“When do you get off work then?” He tapped a button and a printer churned down the hallway from his office.
“On Sundays? Midnight.” Half the day she spent cleaning houses and she had Mr. Harrison’s lawn to mow and his St. Bernard to wash. Her neighbor had a bad hip and gave her free sandwiches and milk to do his tasks for him once a week.
“I thought the diner closed early on Sundays.” He frowned, his eyes slightly narrowing like he didn’t believe her or maybe he thought she just wanted the money and would bail out the second she could.
“It does, I do other odd jobs when I can.” She hated admitting that but she felt calm inside like she could trust him. Weird cause she hardly knew him.
Rather than sympathy or pity that she’d seen from so many others before, his expression was like he would do the same if in her position.
“I understand.” He pushed a notepad toward her and a pen. “Please write down how I can contact you including the information about your dad and the hospital he’s staying at.”
He made it sound like her father was on a retreat somewhere and not dependent on a dialysis several times a day.
“Thanks.” She filled out everything she could think of that he might need and pushed the notebook back toward him.
When he reached for it, their fingers touched and a shiver of excitement curled through her.
“Excuse me while I’ll grab your paperwork.” He dashed out of the room like she’d told him she had a fatal disease that he could catch by being in a confined space with her.
And how much money would they pay her up front? Enough to pay her dad’s bills? Did he even realize how much she owed? She glanced across the desk, the notebook was gone. Had he taken it? Nausea washed over her. Oh god, what if he called the hospital, found out the amount of her debt, and decided to withdraw his offer?
She stood on shaky legs and peeked out of his office door. The hallway was empty. No sign of him. The printer sounded like it was a few doors down. She crept forward, her stomach knotting with every step.
“Who are you?” a little voice asked behind her and she yelped.
A little boy who couldn’t have been older than four stared at her with wide, blue eyes. Another youngster, with a dinosaur mask, skipped out of an office.
“Are you Renjerian or human?” a third boy asked and she whirled to find him watching her from behind a column, a fake sword in his hand.
“I-I’m human.” She smiled. Must be some game they played. “But I think I heard a monster down the hall.”
The boy in the mask roared, charging away from Megan and the others.
“We’re hunting Renjerians…want to play?”
“Uh…sure.” Not like she had anything else to do. And really, she couldn’t leave without know if she was going to get the contract with…damn, she didn’t even know his name. “How do we play?”
“We need another dragon.” The first boy nodded. “Let me get my mask. You and Dexon can be on the same team and we’ll hunt you. But you have to hide real good cause we can sniff you out easily.”
Such imaginations. She accepted the mask they handed her and pulled it down over her face. The three boys must be triplets for the looked exactly alike with reddish-brown hair and tiny freckles over their faces and arms.
“Should I hide with Dexon or on my own?” she asked.
The third boy shrugged while the one in the mask called out from down the hallway, “Hurry, with me before the Tryns come.”
“Okay.” She dashed toward his voice and found him hunched behind an empty desk. “What are Tryns?”
“Come with me, I’ll show you, but keep your fire breath ready,” he whispered. “That’s the only thing that slows them down.”
“Are the Tryns your brothers? The ones with the guns?” She clawed down the hallway following his lead.
“No, them are the human hunters. They hate us.”
He sounded so serious, like this was real life and not pretend.
“Why don’t they like us?” she asked, playing along.
“Cause they think we are part of the Tryns, but we’re not.” He shrugged. “Hurry up, they’ll find you.”
She ducked down behind a chair. “So what are the Tryns?”
“Come on, I’ll show you.” He grabbed a pad and paper from the desk and quickly drew a picture, pushing it at her.
Her throat closed up, her breathing turned ragged. He’d drawn two figures: one a demon-like creature complete with small leather wings, horns, and forked tail, and the other was what she’d seen last night. A dragon.
“W-Which ones are the Tryns?” she asked in a shaky voice.
He rolled his eyes. “Aren’t you paying attention? They are.” He tapped the paper on the side of the demon.
“And this is a dragon.”
“Yeah, like us.” He puffed out his chest, replacing his dinosaur mask.
She lightly touched her own mask he’d loaned her. “But we’re not dragons or are you pretending we are?” It had to be a coincidence that she’d seen a freaking dragon and this boy was playing them. Maybe he thought of dinosaurs as dragons like they belonged to the same family like cousins. And she’d seen one.
Her skin grew cold as sweat prickled her back. No, she couldn’t have seen a dragon. They didn’t exist. Neither did dinosaurs—anymore.
“No, we’re the dragons. We’re Renjerians from Renjer, our planet we had to flee because of the Tryns. Shhh…I hear the hunters coming.”
All the hairs on the back of her neck stood up. This was just a game and a coincidence that these three boys were playing hunters and dragons less than twenty-four hours after she’d seen one.
She licked her lips after his brothers went down another hallway. What if he and his brothers had seen what she had? That would explain why they were playing this game with dinosaur masks and insisting they—or rather she and he—were dragons or this Renjerians and not just Velociraptors.
“Did you or your brothers see anything like a Renjerian recently?”
He cocked his head to the side reminding her of a lizard looking at prey. It was exaggerated by the dino mask he wore. “All the time.”
“Really?” Was he telling her the truth or was this part of the game? “How often?”
He shrugged. “All the time. We shed our human skin and dive off the roof at night. Should’ve seen—”
“There you are!” one of the boys yelled.
“What are you doing?” a woman asked, her heels marching down the corridor. “You three are supposed to be in bed for your nap. How many times do I have to chain you—”
She stopped abruptly. “Oh, I didn’t realize we had company. Sorry if my boys dragged you into their game.” The woman was pretty in an exotic way. Petite with white-blond hair and piercing eyes.
“No, it’s okay, I was just waiting for…” she didn’t even know the guy’s name… “my contract.”
The woman blinked hard and Megan thought two different pairs of eyelids flashed. No, that was impossible. “Oh? Well, congratulations on joining our firm. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to get these three fed, bathed, and ready for bed or they’ll be up till midnight.”
“Do they sleep here?” Megan bit her lip. She hadn’t meant to say that out loud. Maybe Levx and his company weren’t as well-off as she thought.
“No,” the woman shook her head. “I was finishing some last minute cases. All of us live over at the apartment building.”
Megan nodded, handing back her dino mask to the boy closest to her. As soon as she had her dad’s hospital bills paid for, she was going to have t
he contract reviewed, then check out everything she could find on Renjer Associates. A nagging sensation burrowed in her middle regarding these two small incidents that she’d seen a dragon today and the boys were playing it. Nah, must be a coincidence. And the dragon earlier, it had disappeared fast. Must have been stress getting to me.
Chapter 10
Levx
The knot that had bunched up Levx’s shoulder blades for months lessened some as he printed out Megan’s contract. He was one step closer to fulfilling his father’s wishes so he could return to Renjer and fight his enemy. Now he needed to contact the hospital and pay her debt. His heart gave a hard thump at the thought of her caring for her father so much to have him in one of the best hospitals in the state. Clearly, as a waitress, she couldn’t afford it. How had she managed to get him admitted in the first place?
From what he knew of the prestigious medical center, she’d have had to come up with a down payment to even get in the door. What had she done or sold to do so?
Many of the women he dated either were gold-diggers or wanting prestige or status. Megan seemed to only want to help her father. Her refreshing company made him want to know more about her…spend time with her. What would she say if she knew she had this effect on him? Levx couldn’t stop his smile as he dialed the hospital’s number Megan had given him.
“Memorial Hospital, how may I direct your call?” a woman asked.