Total pages in book: 73
Estimated words: 72442 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 362(@200wpm)___ 290(@250wpm)___ 241(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72442 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 362(@200wpm)___ 290(@250wpm)___ 241(@300wpm)
“You’re sure you want two or three of these?” I asked casually.
Harleigh looked at me holding the baby and said, “As long as it’s with someone like you? Yes.”
My brows rose. “You’re thinking that you want to have my babies?”
Her mouth opened and closed, then she shook her head as her cheeks flushed. “Ummmm…as much as I want kids, I think we should probably give it at least another couple of dates before I decide whether or not I want to have your children.”
I pulled the bottle out of Allya’s mouth and propped her up on my shoulder. She burped before I could even get the first pat in.
Laying her back down softly into the crook of my arm, I went back to feeding her and talking to the woman beside me.
“I want kids.”
Chapter 13
If you think about it, the most popular prosthetic limb is the dildo.
-Things not to say to your mother
Harleigh
I looked at the man that just kept surprising me.
“You do?” I asked softly.
I would’ve thought he’d have been burned by what had happened with his ex, but that didn’t seem to be the case.
“I have always wanted at least four or five,” he admitted. “But then everything happened, and I got off track.”
I felt my stomach sink.
“You wanted that baby,” I said softly. “God, that must’ve killed you to find out it wasn’t yours.”
He shrugged, looking like it meant nothing when I could tell by his lack of words that it did.
“I’ll get them one day,” he admitted. “I’m not even forty yet. That’s still young, right?”
I nodded my head. “If you were female, I’d say you needed to get started now. But since you’re definitely male,” I teased, giving him a once over. “You don’t have to worry about the same things.”
“Definitely male,” he agreed. “What’s with that look you just gave me?”
I blinked innocently at him. “What look?”
“The one that clearly said you wanted to eat me alive,” he countered.
I sobered then. “Why’d you leave, let me leave, and not come see me?”
I was always quite direct.
My dad liked to say that I was his blunt child. The girl that always told the truth, even when it hurt to hear.
There was this one time in kindergarten that my dad loved to tell everyone about. Apparently when I was ‘meeting the class,’ my dad and mom had taken me in. I was supposed to tell my tablemate something nice that I liked about their drawing that they’d done while our parents were meeting with the teacher and going over what we would be learning that year. And apparently, in front of the entire class, I informed the kid that he had no drawing abilities whatsoever, and could really use some schooling to help him with his lack of skills.
My dad loved it.
My mom, not so much.
“Truthfully?” he asked quietly.
I nodded once, my eyes focused on the baby downing the bottle in his arms and not the man himself.
“Because I’m no good for you.” He shrugged. “I’m broken.”
I waited for him to say more, but that was all that he had to say, making my eyebrows rise in question.
“That’s it?” I asked, poking his side.
His brows lowered. “That’s not enough?”
I shook my head. “Not really, no. I was thinking something like you still loved your dead fiancée, or that you were sparing yourself the heartache. Something like that. Instead, you just say you’re broken?” I tilted sideways in my seat. “Let me ask you something, Slate. Are you broken? Or are you trying to keep yourself closed off because you feel what I’m feeling?”
He opened his mouth, closed it, then opened it again before saying, “I…”
“You…” I let that linger there. And when he still didn’t tell me, I started to nudge him. “You what?”
“You’re right,” he said. “But that’s my prerogative, not wanting to get hurt again. I wish there was another, better reason, but there’s not. I’m just broken. There’s something fundamentally wrong inside of me. Each and every girlfriend I’ve ever had has broken up with me, cheated on me, or died. I don’t have good odds.”
“I don’t like that answer,” I said stubbornly. “In fact, that answer’s not good enough. You’re going to have to try.”
His lips twitched at my words. “Is that what you think?”
“That’s what I know,” I countered. “You wouldn’t have invited me here if you didn’t feel something for me.”
“You’re crazy in your head if you…” He paused when both my phone and his phone rang at the same exact time.
Frowning, he reached into his pocket with his free hand, tucking the bottle underneath his chin as he continued to feed the baby.
I pulled my phone out and saw my father calling.
Frowning seeing as it was only now six in the morning, and my dad didn’t get up early anymore if he could help it, I placed it to my ear and said, “Dad?”