by Amy Bellows
He sits back in his chair. I see the indecision in his eyes. He’s clearly kind. I watched him tip the barista. And he’s been nothing but polite in our interactions. But this isn’t what he wanted, and based on all of the specifications he listed, he’s a particular sort of man.
“There are charities for bonded omegas who need unbonding procedures,” he says.
“I don’t qualify. I make too much money. Barely. And I don’t want to sabotage my shop to qualify for charity. Besides, there are omegas who need it more than I do. Omegas with kids or abusive mates. My mate isn’t abusive, just gone.”
“Can I ask what happened?”
I look away from him. It isn’t a story I want to tell, but it looks like I don’t have a choice. “I met my mate when I was 18. He was a judge at one of my debate competitions my senior year. He pursued me—said a lot of pretty words. My parents told me not to bond to him, but he seemed so perfect. And at first he was. I never thought about why a thirty-two-year old alpha would want an 18-year-old boy who looked young for his age. When I got older, he lost interest. And then he… well, there were others. All young like I was when we first met.”
Sebastian’s jaw clenches. “That’s disgusting.”
“Yeah… well. It is what it is. If you’d like to double-check my story, he’s been prosecuted for statutory rape before. His name is Lev Schneider. I promise you that I’m not making this up for your sympathy.”
There’s a lot of the story I don’t tell him. For instance, I don’t mention that despite everything, when I’ve tried taking Doxum myself, I’m still attracted to older guys. Even though I’ll never be with one ever again after what happened with Lev. Or how I sleep next to a heated blanket big enough that I can bunch it up behind me, and pretend it’s Lev.
Sebastian doesn’t need to know any of that.
He stares at the table between us for a few long beats, before looking back up at me.
“Are you aware of how emotionally taxing this would be for you? From what I understand, an omega has to take a daily dose of Doxum in order to get pregnant from an alpha outside their bond, and… are you aware of what that’s going to be like?”
I look away from him and nod. It will make me feel needy and desperate for affection. And since I’ll need to see him regularly in order for the artificial insemination to take hold, it will likely make me needy for him. But I’ve become quite accustomed to wanting an alpha I can’t have. I don’t see why this would be any different than when Lev left me.
At least this time when it’s over I’ll be free of him.
“I can handle it. I promise to keep my distance and be professional. From what I’ve read, we’d need to spend time together every day, which I know is a huge commitment. That’s why I offered to do it for 50,000—”
Sebastian shakes his head. My heart sinks. He isn’t going to go for it.
“I’ll pay you the full 100,000. That’s not under negotiation. As for seeing each other every day during the insemination process, I think that would suit me well. I’d like to get to know the surrogate of my child. In my advertisement, I mentioned that I’d like the surrogate to be involved in my child’s life. It would be nice to have a surrogate I get along with.”
Does that mean he’s open to this? It seems too good to be true.
“Then you’ll consider it?”
“You’ll have to forgive me, Thomas. I’ll need to check out your story before I commit to anything. I would have paid a private investigator to look into you regardless. My family has enough money that I need to be cautious. But as long as everything is as you say, I’d like to move forward with this arrangement.”
Finally. A break. A way out. After years of trying to figure out what to do about this, I feel hope.
“Thank you,” I say.
“You don’t need to thank me, Thomas. I think you’re an excellent fit. I’m glad that this situation will offer you something meaningful. Maybe we can both give each other a second chance at happiness.”
I can’t help but smile. Maybe we can. I don’t think I’m going to mind seeing Sebastian every day.
“So, you say you like mysteries, huh? Other than Tana French, which authors do you like?”
Sebastian said he wanted to get to know the surrogate of his child. So we’ll get to know each other. I promised him that I’d be a good surrogate, and I want to follow through on that. If Lev has taught me anything it’s this: I want to be the kind of man who keeps his promises.
“Have you read anything by Jo Nesbo?” he asks.
I shake my head.
“He’s quite good. A little grim if you ask me, but…” he pauses. “I apologize. You’ve got me talking about books again. I’d like to be sure we’re on the same page before we venture down the rabbit hole of my international mysteries obsession. Would you like to be my surrogate, Thomas?”
I smile. “Yes. I would. I mean, I know you need to talk to your private investigator. But as soon as you’re ready, I’m ready.”
Sebastian Adams sits straighter in his seat and looks me up and down with a twinkle in his eyes. “That makes me very happy, Thomas. I’ve been waiting to have a child for a long time.”
About the Author
Hello. Thank you for reading my little book. I’m an Mpreg romance author and librarian. When I’m not writing or librarianing, I’m usually chasing my daughter around the house or snuggling with my wife. The Heat Professor is my sixth published book.
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Author’s Note
Many intersex children are subjected to harmful and unnecessary surgery, often without their parents’ permission. Currently 1.7 percent of children born in the US are different from what is typically called a boy or a girl. Intersex people are as common as redheads. For more information about this, click here.
For more information on how the decriminalization of consensual adult sex work exposes human trafficking violations and increases safety for sex workers, click here.
To see the ridiculous/creepy Golden Girls socks I ended up purchasing while working on this book because they were so bizarre, click here.
Acknowledgments
There were a lot of people who helped me with his book. First, I’d like to thank Sharita Lira for acting a sensitivity reader for this story, and working with me from the very beginning to help me portray Damien’s character respectfully. You’ve been such a wonderful mentor to me, and working with you on this book was very special for me.
I have six wonderful beta readers. Thank you Deb S. You had a lot going on your personal life, and you still did amazing work, as always. Thank you Amy D., Tracey G., Rachel T., Kim P., and Nicole B. I really appreciate you.
Thank you to M.A. Hinkle and Abbie Nicole who both edited this manuscript.
To Charmaine Ross, who designed the cover: thank you for working a lower res image to create the perfect cover. I love it.
And I’d like to thank my wife for laughing at all of the dick jokes in this book. You’re the best.
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