“I’m a busy man, you know this. I don’t have time for dating. But a man has needs, and women like that are the type that approach me at parties.”
“Yep, gold diggers will do that.”
“They were a convenient distraction from my busy life, but I never invested any time or money into them, and knowing their true intentions, I always wore condoms. Please believe me when I say they were never who I wanted.”
“Then who did you want?”
“You, Penny.”
She rolls her eyes.
“I’ve wanted you since I first saw you, but you were all of eighteen, and I was thirty. It wasn’t decent. But that night…I just couldn’t anymore. All those women in their skin-tight dresses, trying to press up against me, made me feel hollow. Then, there was you, working your ass off, never complaining, so fucking adorable in your messy hair and oversized glasses. I wanted you so badly, but I was determined to do the right thing. It was the alcohol that made me slip, but I’m not at all upset by it.”
“So you want to raise the baby together?” she says, her voice wavering ever so slightly.
“Not just together, Penny. As husband and wife.”
3
PENNY
How on eartham I supposed to respond tothat?
Considering I’ve had a crush on Greyson going on four years now, I should feel ecstatic.
Yet, his offer to marry me feels hollow.
He said he’s wanted me for years, yet gave no indication of his affection, and as I’d said, I don’t want to be a job.
“No, thank you.”
“Is it that I’m too old?” he asks, his dark features contorting in offense. “Because that makes me a damn good provider.”
“No. I don’t trust that this is what you truly want. You’ve never expressed an interest in me, or having children, for that matter.”
He pushes my plate out of the way and reaches across the table, folding his hand over mine.
“Let me at least try to show you how much I want you.”
“How?”
“Move in with me, let me take care of you, let me show you how fucking badly I want you. And if you don’t believe me, you can leave, but it can’t be until after the baby comes.”
“But that’s five months away!”
“Five months that you’ll be provided and cared for.”
“And all I need to do is move into the guest room?”
He chuckles and shakes his head. “Not into my guest room, Penny. Into my bed.”
“But…” My words trail off as I think of how good it felt to have his massive body pressed against mine.
“While you’re in my home, we’re to act like a couple in every way. If you are hungry, I’ll make sure you’re fed. If you need clothes, makeup, or anything else, I’ll give you a credit card to purchase what you want. And if you are in need of relief, that’ll come from me, too.”
I swallow a thick knot in my throat. “Relief?”
“I know how thoroughly you enjoy the attention I give to you.”
