When we step into the elevator, his scent envelopes me, and a wave of images nearly knocks me off my feet. His eyes lock on mine, and it’s like opening up a locked chest. Memories of the night we spent together hit me hard. The desire, the passion—feeling him inside me. I’d never felt more wanted. More Alive.

Standing inches apart, I’m so tempted to lean into him and let nature take its course. Some things you can’t fight. Like fate. You can’t fight fate. Fate will always find a way.

His intense gaze pierces me. It shoots straight to my heart and down to my pussy. He looks like he feels it too. This magnetism drawing us closer.

He steps forward and I meet him, taking a step of my own. This is crazy. Insane even, but I can’t deny the attraction that exists between us.

His fingers brush across my cheek. “I know you don’t know me, but something’s happening here.”

Closing the gap between us, I part my lips in anticipation.

Quickly, his tongue darts out and runs over his lips.

Kiss me, I shout in my head.

Right when his lips hover over mine, the elevator dings open, breaking the spell.

He clears his throat, and I close my eyes briefly. When I open them, a man is waiting for us to exit the elevator.

“What are you doing here so late?”

The man’s eyes widen, and an evil grin spreads across his face. “And who’s this?” His eyes move to my stomach and back to his friend as his smile widens.

“Client. Contract to go over.”

“I see. Well, got what I came for.” He holds up a briefcase and we step around him.

He steps into the elevator. “See ya tomorrow, big guy.” He winks.

“Fucking Weston and his big mouth.” Brodie mutters the words to himself.

“What?”

Squinting, he pinches the bridge of his nose. “Nothing.”

I follow him down the hall sensing a change in him. His shoulders hunch forward and he rolls his neck, rubbing it, as though he’s now tense.

The moment that transpired between us is long gone.

“Have a seat.” He extends his hand toward an intimate seating area to the side that overlooks the city.

“Quite a view.” I remain standing, enjoying the picturesque nighttime Dallas skyline.

Instead of taking his seat, he walks over and stands next to me.

“It’s nice.” His jaw ticks as he speaks.

“I bet you feel on top of the world. Up here looking down…” I press my palms on the glass and look below at the city lights wondering what to say next.

“We both know we have something else to discuss.”

I gulp and my breath hitches. He knows, or at least suspects.

“Yeah. You wanna start, or should I?”

He sighs. “Let’s sit.”

“Okay.” I follow him back to the chairs.

He takes one and I take the other.

Brodie turns to me, our knees touching as he takes my hands. Electricity sparks between us and his eyes shine, telling me he feels it too. We share an undeniable attraction.

He stares at me long and hard. “Is it mine?”

Tears burn in the corners of my eyes and I don’t know why. It’s a simple question with an easy answer. Hormones. It has to be the pregnancy hormones making me so weepy. Emotions are a bitch, and everything about this amplifies times a thousand.

I suck in a breath and close my eyes trying to fight the tears. “Yeah.” I whisper the word. “It’s yours. I know you don’t know me or if I am telling the truth. But I wouldn’t lie about this.”

“I believe you. I think someone put drugs in the bottle we shared. Everything’s a blur.”

I wipe my eyes. “Makes sense. A lot about that night was a fog until I walked into your office a few days ago.”

“Is that why you hadn’t told me?”

“It’s a little embarrassing not remembering who you slept with. Can’t exactly go door to door.”

Tenderly, he tilts my chin up, forcing me to meet the seriousness of his gaze. “You aren’t in this alone. Not anymore. That’s what I want to talk to you about. Rod wrote you a shit check, he’s a dick, but I want to make you an offer.”

“What?” I ask, confused by his words. “An offer. For what?”

“I’ve thought long and hard about what I’d say to you. I don’t want you to take this the wrong way. I know you probably weren’t planning on getting pregnant by a random stranger at a party.”

“It was some antibiotics I’d taken. They counteracted against my birth control. Lucky us.” I laugh bitterly and wipe my eyes. I love the baby growing inside me, but I wasn’t prepared for this. I wasn’t prepared to care for Brodie in a way I’m not sure I understand, but hearing him say he wants to be a part of this journey with me—it means a lot.

Growing up in foster care I always felt alone. Like I didn’t have anyone else in the world who gave a damn about me. I was just another kid in the system being shuffled from home to home. Jenny and I only met because I’d posted an ad looking for a roommate when my loser boyfriend at the time cut and run, sticking me with all the bills.

She wanted to get out from under her daddy’s thumb. She wanted freedom from her family. She comes from a very religious upbringing. If they knew I was a stripper, they’d cut her off or force her to move back home.

“What’s done is done. Here we are. You said you were low on money. I want you to know that I’ll step up and do what’s right. If you marry me, I can get you and the baby on my insurance. It’d be a marriage on paper. I’m not asking out of love, but convenience. I want you to live with me. I’ll take care of you and the baby. I’ll even look into setting you up with your boutique store.”

My smile falters. I wasn’t expecting those words to come from him. I don’t know what I thought he’d say, but he wants to set me up just like a sugar daddy would. I frown as I stare up at his piercing eyes. “You can’t buy me.”

“Look, I don’t mean for it to come off cold like that. Like I’m buying you. But that baby is part of me. I want to be in my child’s life. You said yourself you aren’t in a financial situation that leaves you with a lot of options. Let me take that burden away. Marry me and move into my apartment. You’ll have a great life. Who knows, somewhere along the way we might actually like each other. I’d like to be your friend.”

I get where he’s coming from but shake my head at the same time. I guess there’s still a part of me wishing for a fairytale. For a man who loves me without a doubt. “It sounds great and everything. But what happens if you meet someone else? Someone you want to marry and have a real family with?”

“You’re not even going to consider this? I’m offering you everything.”

“But not your heart. I want to marry someone for love not money.”

“Okay. So don’t marry me. Just move in with me. I want us to do this together. I don’t want to miss out on anything. I want us to have a partnership. Agree to move in with me and I’ll invest in your business.”

“What if I’m terrible at what I do. Why would you risk it?”

“Everyone deserves someone who believes in them. You don’t have anyone in your corner. Let me be that for you. Do it for our baby. You know our child deserves the best life we can give him or her.”

Indecision weighs on me. It’s all too much at once. “I have a roommate who depends on me. I can’t just up and leave her.”

“You don’t have to decide right now. Take a few days or a week.” He takes my hands in his. “I’m making you a great offer. I have the means to support you and the baby. I take care of what’s mine.”

“I’m not yours.” I shake my head. Yet, at the same time I war with myself. I can’t pass this up. I have to put my own shit aside and do what’s right for the baby. He or she is all that matters. That’s what happens when you’re going to be a parent. I look up at his pleading eyes. “Where do I sign?”