A text from Lauren read:
Jade, you need to seriously consider your options. Freezing your eggs and getting a sperm donor should be your last one. You don’t have to have a baby on your own. Believe me, it’s difficult. If I didn’t have Jack, I don’t know how I’d cope.
And this from Ava:
Making a baby in a Petri dish is too clinical and so not sexy. Why don’t you get Mr. Musician to help you out? In the fun ‘let’s get naked and sweaty’ kind of way.
Jade laughed.
“What’s so funny?” Nate said as he leaned over the back of her chair, his head inches away from her face.
Jumping, Jade almost dropped the phone on the floor. She swiveled in the chair to face him. “Oh, Ava thinks she’s come up with a brilliant idea.”
Nate raised a questioning eyebrow.
“I’ve been talking to the girls about having a baby, and I’m considering freezing my eggs and using a sperm donor when I’m ready. But Ava thinks I should use you.”
“What the hell?” Nate straightened and took about one hundred steps back—okay, maybe only two, but his reaction was hilarious.
“Relax. She was only joking… Well, I think she was. With Ava you can never tell. Don’t worry, I’d never ask you to be a donor. Unless you wanted to. Do you want to?”
Nate stood rock solid. Speechless.
Jade burst out laughing, clutching her stomach. “If you could see the look on your face. Scared much?”
Grabbing her hand, he pulled her onto her feet and wrapped an arm around her waist, crushing her chest against his. He ran the pad of his finger along her collarbone. The fingertip glided down the V of her top and back up again. The laughter died instantly, and Jade bit her bottom lip.
“If you could see the look on your face. Turned on much?”
This time it was Nate’s turn to laugh, but it was soon cut off when Jade slid her hand over his arse and squeezed. “I sure am.” No point denying it.
He grinned slow and sexy. “Let’s get out of here.”
“I wish I could, but I have a meeting in about ten minutes.” Jade sighed.
“Another meeting? Is your friend okay?”
“This is a parent-teacher interview for one of my students. And yes, Ava’s good. She’s pregnant and had pre-baby jitters.”
“What about tonight?”
“I meet the girls every Tuesday night at Jovi’s for drinks. It’s a ritual we never miss unless there are dire circumstances.”
The golden flecks in his hazel eyes flashed liquid heat. “I can think of something dire that’s making me extremely uncomfortable at the moment. Are you sure you can’t miss it?”
Her gaze dropped to his crotch for a beat. Yep, there was no mistaking his discomfort. “Sorry, we never put guys before girls.”
Stepping away, her body already missed his closeness and heat, but she really had to go. She picked up her bag, and they walked out of the hall, locking the door behind them.
Then she remembered the cat. “How’s Dorito?”
“Full and happy. I put him outside this morning, and I haven’t seen him since.”
“You didn’t keep him?” What was she saying? She already knew he couldn’t.
He frowned. “I’m not staying long enough to have a pet.”
The thought of him leaving left her with a heavy heart. It was probably because they’d become friends—hopefully, friends with benefits. And a man so gorgeous would make any woman sad to see him go. The weight on her chest couldn’t be for any other reason.
