waved a hand. “That’s the easiest thing to fix.”
He gawked at her again. “There’s no way to make our sperm live.”
“I didn’t say the baby would be biologically yours. You could get sperm from someone else.”
“I’m not allowing some human to have sex with Hailey.”
“She doesn’t have to. One of my friends’ nieces got pregnant by asking a friend of hers to jackoff into a cup, and she inseminated herself. It took two tries, but it worked. Just find some human you can pay to give up his goods, then you can try that. They’re called sperm donors. That’s how some people do it if they can’t afford expensive medical procedures and they aren’t having fertility problems. Do you really care if the baby is biologically yours? I would have adopted if I wasn’t able to have kids. It wouldn’t have mattered to me. I would have loved the hell out of it just as if it were my own.”
He frowned. “I think we should find Big. Where is he?”
“Programing robots in another cabin, to have it ready in case Fig comes home.”
“Let’s go find him. You shouldn’t be alone.”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “Why not?”
“Some of your suggestions were unstable.”
She got off the floor and grabbed her sack. “I’m not nuts. I just think outside the box. You should try it sometime. At least I’m giving you possible solutions to your problems. What are you doing, besides sulking in the hallway? What’s that going to do for you? Nothing. Now, I’m going to go talk to a robot.”
He watched her walk away and enter the lift. He hoped her mental stability wasn’t failing. It would destroy Big if that happened. He reentered his cabin and checked on Hailey. She slept peacefully in the bed.
He leaned against the wall, memorizing everything about her. One day soon, she’d be gone. Pain clawed at his heart at the thought. He truly and deeply loved Hailey. Losing her was going to kill him.
There’s got to be a solution. Gemma’s words haunted him. Think outside the box…
Twenty minutes later, he had an idea. It wasn’t as bad as kidnapping Hailey’s parents, but it was a close second. It would be risky, but he had everything to lose if he didn’t at least try.
He rushed out of their cabin.
Chapter Ten
“Hailey?”
Blade’s hands stroked the hair from her face. She opened her eyes. They felt a little swollen, and she quickly remembered why. He sat at the edge of the bed, leaning over her. She gave him a small smile.
“Wake up, beautiful.
She let him help her sit up. He offered her a glass of fruit juice. It was cold and delicious. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. We need to talk.”
She nodded. “I’m so sorry that I fell apart last night.”
“Shush.” He scooted closer.
She studied his face. “You look tired. Did you not sleep well?”
“I haven’t slept at all. I contacted Rod. It took hours for him to respond to my pings, but he finally did.”
“Rod? Oh. One of your six from Clone World.” She took another sip of juice. “Why?”
“I needed to see if he could do me a few favors. While we all avoid stations and colonies, he’s been known to visit the ones without port authorities. He’s skilled at passing for being a human as long as there are no scanners.”
“That sounds dangerous.”
“It is.”
“Why would he do that?”
“We’re not certain, but he does. Rod even takes jobs from some humans. That’s why I thought of him. Not only does he travel to places where we don’t go, but he’s got funds. I told him what I might need, and he’s agreed to provide both things to me.”
She wasn’t awake enough to follow along. “Both what things?”
“Secure transportation and funding. When dealing with humans, funds are a requirement.”
She reached over and placed the glass on the nightstand. “You’re sending me away? It that what you’re saying? Rod knows someone who can get me safely back to Prospect, and he has money to pay them?” Don’t cry. Don’t cry, she silently chanted. “So soon? I thought it would be a while. I’m sorry for what I said last night.” She grabbed ahold of his shirt. “I’m not ready to go!”
He covered her hand with his. “No, baby. It’s not that.”
The relief that hit her was strong.
“I had this idea last night. It’s Gemma’s fault, really. She said I could hire someone to kidnap your parents off Prospect and bring them to you.”
“What?”
“I told Big he needs to keep