The Baby Bargain

CHAPTER 1: Harker –––––––– Harker glanced at his watch. Alison was late. Again. She was the most brilliant woman he’d ever met but she needed to work on her punctuality. “Alison!” he yelled. “Don’t bellow at her. She’s not your dog.” Merri sat across from him at the table in his office looking as perfectly put together as always. They’d been friends since junior high and she never had a hair out of place. She looked like a blonde cover girl model, but it’d always been her kindness and intelligence that’d attracted him. She’d fallen for his college roommate, Tobias, and that’d been the end of Harker’s infatuation with Merri. Even back then he’d known that it wasn’t worth losing the only two friends he had over a one-sided crush. “I know she’s not my dog, but she’s late.” He’d like her to be his sub, but he had more important plans for her. “Alison, get in here now!” “She’s getting your lunch.” Merri sent him a disgusted look. “Stop yelling. She’ll be here when she’s done.” “Did he yell? I thought that was his normal tone.” Alison swooped into his office like a refreshing breeze. Harker swore the energy in the room crackled whenever Alison was in it. She was a whirlwind of movement, both her body and her mouth. The first time he’d met her he’d been fascinated by the barrage of words that’d flowed effortlessly from her lips. They were both rambling and humorous. He’d become even more fascinated over the months that he’d known her, always waiting to see what odd or inappropriate thing would come from her soft pink lips. Alison dropped a wrapped deli sub, a bag of chips and a can of cola in front of Merri. “That’s the only tone he ever uses around me.” “Maybe if you were on time, I wouldn’t.” Most people, besides Merri and Tobias, treated him with deference because of his wealth but not Alison. She didn’t seem to care about his money or power. It annoyed and excited him. “Please.” Her brown eyes sparkled with amusement. “You scream at me when I’m in my office and I’m not late then. I’m working.” She dug in the bag from the deli. “I do not scream.” He held out his hand. He was starving. “Screaming implies hysterics and I’m never hysterical.” “You can say that again. Dour is more like it.” She dropped a wrapped sub in his hand and then put a water and a bag of apple slices on his desk. “He was even dour in college.” Merri laughed. “I was not. I was serious and hard-working. We wouldn’t have this business if I hadn’t been.” “Tobias and I worked hard too.” Merri opened her bag of chips. “But we also knew how to have fun.” Her eyes met his and then darted to Alison who was seated across the table with her lunch in front of her. He gave Merri a glare and shook his head. She’d noticed his interest in Alison and had mentioned, more times than he could count, that he should ask her out. What Merri didn’t understand and what he couldn’t tell her was that he had no plans on dating Alison. He had another arrangement in mind that would be beneficial to both of them. All he had to do was find the right time to make her the offer. It may require a little persuading at first, but he’d convince her. He always figured out a way to get what he wanted. Alison opened her bag of chips. “Speaking of having fun. I’m going on a—” “Where are my chips? And why do I have water? I want a soda.” “Because you need to start eating better.” Alison chomped on a chip. “You’re not a young man anymore. You have to watch your cholesterol and blood pressure.” “I’m not old.” That was so insulting. “I’m in great shape.” He worked out every day and saw women, young women, checking him out all the time. “You said your blood pressure was high. Chips are loaded with salt and that’s not good for high blood pressure.” “My blood pressure is high because you drive me crazy.” “Me?” She pointed at herself. “What do I do?” “Do you really want me to start? It’s a long list.” He unwrapped his sandwich. “What’s this? It’s not what I ordered.” It was full of vegetables. “It is what you ordered. Roast beef.” He stared at the sandwich and opened it slowly not wanting to see what vegetables she’d had them add. “It’s not going to bite you,” said Alison. “I’m well aware of that.” “Then why are you opening it like it’s going to attack you?” She tried and failed to keep the laughter out of her voice. Normally, he loved her sense of humor. She could find fun in anything but not when she was torturing him. “Why did you do this to me?” He looked at her. “I’m a good guy. I pay you well.” “They’re vegetables, not poison.” She rolled her eyes at him. “I hate tomatoes.” “There are no tomatoes on there even though I can’t understand how anyone can hate tomatoes.” She sighed pulling one from her sandwich and biting into it. “They are so yummy and good for you.” The look of pure satisfaction on her face made the blood rush to his c**k. He wanted her looking at him like that after he made her come or better yet, when she had his d**k in her mouth. s**t. She had him wanting to be a f*****g tomato. “But it’s fine if you don’t like them. To each his own and all that.” She waved her sandwich at him. “I had them add extra green peppers. You like those.” He almost groaned as she pulled another tomato from her sandwich and licked the mayonnaise off it. Merri snorted. He tore his gaze away from Alison and gave Merri a quick “shut up” look. “I do like green peppers but why is there so much lettuce. I didn’t order a salad.” “You should’ve,” Alison muttered around a bite of her sandwich. “I may as well have. I can barely see the meat. This is not double meat. I like double meat.” “Meat isn’t good for you, especially deli meat. It’s full of nitrates, fat and sodium.” “There’s no cheese.” He picked at the vegetables. “Your cholesterol.” Alison turned toward Merri. “Does he know nothing about health?” “He’s a man. Men think they can continue to eat like they’re in their twenties and they’re too stubborn to listen to good advice...about a lot of things.” Merri gave him an exasperated look before glancing at Alison. “I know about health and I don’t have high cholesterol. Why do you think I do?” Talking to Alison was like mental calisthenics. “You said you were going to have a heart attack.” Alison took a big bite of her sandwich, trying to look innocent. “I never...” He was going to strangle her. “I said that because you make me crazy and you’re going to give me a heart attack, not because I have high cholesterol.” He snatched her bag of chips. “Hey, those are mine.” “You should’ve gotten me chips instead of these.” He tossed the apples at her. “I’m not the one complaining about my blood pressure and my heart.” She threw the apples across the desk, smacking him in the chest. “Give me back my chips.” “No”—he leaned forward and dumped them in the middle of the table—"but I’ll share.” “They’re my chips,” she huffed as she took one. “You have apples.” “I’ll share those too.” He opened the bag and dropped them in the middle of the table next to the chips. “And I’ll forgive you for the shitty sandwich.” He closed it and took a bite. “I’m not apologizing.” She sent him a challenging look. “You should be thanking me. Vegetables are good for you.” “So is squashing impertinence.” He frowned at her. “But we can talk about that later. Now, let’s hear how the facial recognition enhancement is going with my software.” He stressed the word “my” because it annoyed the s**t out of her. He loved watching her bristle and struggle to keep from arguing with him. He was pretty sure that one day she was going to go off like a hot tea kettle. She’d spent countless hours writing this code. It was more hers than his, except he owned it. He’d leverage that possessiveness of hers to get what he wanted. She was young, in good health, extremely intelligent and for some reason his c**k wanted her like it hadn’t wanted anyone since he’d been a horny teenager. He’d weighed all the pros and cons and had decided that she was the perfect woman to bear his child.