31. A Paid Surrogate

31

A PAID SURROGATE

L aken hadn’t planned on doing what she had, but after seeing how nervous Jamie was next to her brother she realized she was being a wuss.

It wasn’t that big of a deal.

She didn’t want him to think that she was embarrassed about being his girlfriend. Maybe in the beginning she didn’t want to be like the other women linked to him.

Then she realized that wasn’t the case.

If he was willing to let her into his daughter’s life, then this wasn’t a passing thing.

He wanted to be enough for someone and she needed to make sure he was aware that he was.

That meant doing the one thing she didn’t want in the beginning.

The most important people in her life knew and that should be enough.

But it wasn’t.

By doing this now, it would blow over soon.

“Are you sure about this?” Jamie asked.

“Positive,” she said. “I’m sure there is going to be confusion over who I am. Some might even think I’m Penelope’s mother. Are you okay with that? I should have asked that first.”

“It’s fine,” he said. “People are going to be looking into who her mother could be. We are probably going to have to make an official release that you’re not Penelope’s mother.”

“Do you want to do that?” she asked.

“I’m okay with it.”

“But by doing that, people are going to be searching. I’m going to assume her birth certificate is sealed.”

He laughed. “This isn’t a secret. I guess I just didn’t think to tell you this. But no one is going to ever find out who birthed Penelope.”

“How is that possible?” she asked, frowning.

“Penelope was born in Connecticut. I told you what I did. Mercedes had a place to live and a babysitter of sorts, but I made sure she was away from anyone she knew and her old habits. She agreed to it for the sum she was given.”

“No one she worked with knew she was pregnant?” she asked.

“No. She didn’t want them to know because she knew she’d go back to it and didn’t want to be judged for any body change.”

Laken snorted. “It’s not like she was a model,” she said.

“Whatever made her happy. My attorney drew it all up as she was a surrogate. A paid surrogate.”

She grinned. “You didn’t do much differently than a lot of people would do if they couldn’t have a child themselves. Getting a surrogate and paying for everything.”

“Exactly,” he said. “We both got what we wanted in the end. Her name is nowhere on the birth certificate. I am Penelope’s biological father. I’m not the first single father out there that had a surrogate for their child.”

“Are you going to say that?” she asked. “If asked.”

“No,” he said. “It’s no one’s business. But if somehow it ever gets leaked, that is all anyone will see.”

“Why didn’t you tell your parents that?” she asked.

“Because that wouldn’t have been any better in their eyes. They knew I didn’t have a relationship with Penelope’s mother. I’d said she’d never been in the picture. They put it together themselves. If I said I hired a surrogate, my parents would have said that was unnatural and I should have just waited until I was married. In their eyes, I think it might have been worse.”

“And it’d be a lie,” she said. “You can’t bring yourself to lie to them, can you?”

“It’s not a lie,” he said. “Legally that is what it ended up being, it’s just not how it came about. So yeah, maybe all those teachings from my father shoved down my throat stuck.”

“I’m proud of you, Jamie. You’re a great person who just got a little wild and out of control. We all go off course at some point in life.”

He laughed at her. “I’m sure I was more than you. I’ve heard how you just wanted to make your brother proud and prove how hard of a worker you were.”

She cringed. “My mother said that, didn’t she?”

“Maybe,” he said.

“I know West is proud of me. We want to make our parents proud. West is my big brother.”

“But he was like a father to you too,” he said. “He had a lot on his shoulders at a young age. When he and Abby have kids, he’ll be prepared.”

“He was like a father to me. To all of us. He didn’t get a chance to just be a kid.”

“I don’t think you did either,” he said.

“No,” she said. “That was my choice though.”

They parked and walked into a restaurant that was packed and heads turned their way.

Jamie was noticed. She reached down and grabbed his fingers like she’d said she was going to do.

“Table for two,” he said.

They were led to a table, pictures were being snapped. The show they’d just left was still on the TV so she knew there might be people in here that could have seen him.

“My choice is to do this,” she said, leaning over and kissing him. “You got to be a kid when you went to college. I could have and chose to be the good girl working hard. Now it’s time to play.”

He laughed and held the chair out for her. “I think I like this side of you,” he said.

“You should,” she said.

An hour later they were leaving the restaurant.

Jamie had several pictures taken, and she was in more than half, she knew. Some came over for selfies and autographs and he took the time out to give them.

He was never greedy with his time. It stood to reason why he was so popular with fans.

When they got back to her place, she kicked her shoes off and pulled her shirt out of her pants.

“Are you undressing?” he asked.

“I’m off today. That means I get to be comfortable.”

“I guess I didn’t get that memo,” he said.

“You could keep some clothes here and then you won’t have to worry,” she said.

“I can do that,” he said.

She didn’t expect him to say she could leave clothes at his house. She hadn’t even spent the night once.

She’d been there a few times and played with Penelope, but not once had he kissed her in front of his daughter.

She knew they would get there, but she was going to let him decide those steps and she wasn’t going to feel bad one way or another.

They raced to her room and both started to undress quickly.

When she would have dove on the bed, he picked her up and laid her down. Gently too.

His mouth closed over hers.

“Are you feeling better about today?” she asked.

“I am,” he said. “Tomorrow will be another day and we’ll see what happens.”

“Don’t think of that,” she said. “Think of me.”

“I can do that,” he said.

He moved down her body, kissing her neck, her chest, each breast and nipple one by one.

He was pinching and flicking, licking and sucking.

He was playing her body like it’d never been done before.

By the time he moved down between her legs she was all but ready to reach over and get her toy and finish off on her own.

“Jamie,” she said. “Stop dragging this out.”

“Sorry,” he said. “I want to show you my appreciation for everything you’ve done for me.”

“Just for today?” she asked, arching up when he put a finger inside of her.

“Sure,” he said. “We can say for today.”

She opened her eyes and looked at the smirk on his face. “You think you’re so adorable.”

“I know I am,” he said. “But what I’m thanking you for is your love. For being there for me. Standing up for me and next to me.”

“Oh, just that,” she said. “That was easy.”

He inserted another finger inside of her and she squealed a little. “Easy like you?”

She laughed. “How about if I tell you that I got a nifty little shot in my arm for birth control last month? Would you be okay with that?”

He’d told her before he was always protected. That even after he found out Mercedes was pregnant, he’d gotten tested for over a year to make sure he was clean.

She believed everything Jamie had told her because there were times in his life he could have lied to make things easier and he never did.

He told the truth knowing that it might be harder in the end.

That was the kind of person she wanted in her life.

“I’m good with it,” he said.

He removed his fingers, got on his knees and pulled her hips closer to him, lined up and entered her fast.

She let out a moan, then sat up so that her legs were wrapped around his hips. They couldn’t move much like this, but it didn’t matter.

Right now, this wasn’t about sex but more about their connection to one another.

Love.

What they felt for each other.

This was slow and steady for them. They had all day so might as well.

Her arms went around his neck, her mouth to his and she let him do all the work.

Just slight movements in and out and a gradual build up.

“I could stay like this all day,” she said.

“Which is why you took the day off,” he said.

She smirked. “All part of my plan.”

He smiled softly, his lips meeting hers.

The longer they kissed the faster their hips moved until she felt that buildup hit her all at once and send her over.

Jamie kept up what he was doing though. He wasn’t pushing fast at the end like he normally did, he just kept going until he was moaning with her, then flopped backward, his back hitting the mattress and her landing on top of him.

“Are you okay?”

She laughed. “That is a good way for one of us to get hurt.”

“Nah,” he said. “I’ve got you.”

“You do,” she said.

“I always will,” he said quietly.

She sure wasn’t going to question him on that though. It was an emotional day for him and she was glad that they could be together for it.