could. Then I’d take her home and fuck her hard to remind her who she really wanted.
The joke was on me.
“Hey, man, where’s Poppy?” Paul asked me when we found some time alone on his balcony, champagne in hand.
Paul and I went way back to college days. I was almost tempted to mention the confusing interest I had in August. Use him as a sounding board to puzzle out how gay, bi, or whatever the hell I was.
“She canceled on me to go on another date with her lover,” I replied candidly.
When it came to women, we spoke about it openly with each other. From the long list of lovers we both had, shared, and those of our spouses at the time. Unlike many traditional unions, we were far too jaded to believe any sort of pairing would last forever. At least not for men like us.
“Ouch. You here on the prowl?”
I shrugged. “I could be.”
Maybe it would get my head back in the right lane instead of thinking about broad shoulders and chocolate-brown eyes.
“The blonde with the small tits who’s wearing a red dress,” Paul said. “She recently broke off her engagement with Pierce Farraday. Word out is that she’s looking for a rebound daddy.”
I pulled a face at Paul and took a sip of champagne. Cheap bastard never used his good stuff when he had parties. “Women with heartbreaks are too messy. Fuck knows Poppy is enough drama for me at the moment.”
“Why not serve her the divorce papers? What are you waiting for?”
“The baby to be born and for her to put my name on the birth certificate.”
“Thought you said the kid wasn’t yours?”
“Not biologically.” But I felt like the baby was mine. I didn’t discuss it much with anyone because they’d never get it. Declan didn’t, and Paul didn’t either.
“A surrogate would be cheaper than the high-class whore you’re married to, Charles.”
“Don’t talk about her that way, Paul.”
“You know I’m right.”
“It doesn’t matter, man. She’s carrying the baby I want, and I’ll try to treat her respectfully for it.”
Paul started back inside the house. “You don’t make any sense, Charles. You need to think carefully about what you’re doing. Poppy’s smart. She knows you want this baby, and she’ll milk you for everything she can before she hands over the kid.”
But she doesn’t even want the child.
Paul had already disappeared inside, so I didn’t get to repeat the words aloud to him. Maybe that was the reason I wanted this baby because I knew Poppy didn’t. No child needed to come into this world unloved. Every time I thought about how my own actions after my wife died massacred my relationship with Declan, it made me feel depressed.
I could care for the child and give her the life she deserved. I would love and cherish her even if her mother didn’t. I had that to give Poppy’s baby. I needed it to be that baby.
Chapter 6
Auggie
The fretting and whining of the dog at the door woke me up before I unmasked the mystery man who had his back to me. Just a dream. One that was heading in the direction of a very erotic dream too. It took me a while to shake off the lethargy and for my eyes to adjust to the semidarkness of the room.
Lucky was scratching at the door.
His pawing and little whimpers had me stumbling out of the bed to find out what was wrong. If anything happened to that dog on my watch, Dad and Declan would kill me. Then Dad would resurrect me to grill me about what had happened before he killed me all over again.
I opened the door, and the dog scampered inside, still whimpering. He jumped onto the bed and pawed at the sheets before wedging his little body under the bedsheets. Lucky was shaking with fear.
What the hell?
“What’s up with you, boy?” I went over to the dog and stroked his trembling body. He’d been quite fine for the past three days I had been caring for him. The first day for us had been tentative, but by the second, he realized I was there to care for him and not to harm him.
I fed him, played with him in the yard, and walked him to the park close by. Other than that, he was content to stay inside the house. It turned out he even enjoyed watching TV. If I left him inside with the television on, he wouldn’t budge until I turned it