Page 23 of The Alpha's Surrogate

She got up and locked the door, then went into the bathroom. The last thing she wanted was for Callahan to overhear her talking to someone he suspected to be dangerous. He wasn’t wrong. She dialed Klaus and he picked up immediately, as if he’d been waiting for her call.

“Yes?” His gruff, angry voice was a far cry from Dr. Stephanie’s kind one.

“Hello, Klaus,” Josie said. She tried to keep her voice even but it shook anyway. Klaus scared her. Period. Only a fool wasn’t scared by such a man. “Look, about yesterday, I think I owe you an explanation.”

“I’m going to stop you right there, darling,” he said in a remarkably calm voice. “You have nothing to explain to me. The facts of the case are simple, you see. You found yourself some macho alpha, even after I specifically told you not to get anyone involved.

“You broke the terms of our agreement when he got involved. Remember, I know where you are, and I will be coming to collect what I’m owed sooner or later. Plus a penalty, of course, for breaching our agreement. You wouldn’t want anyone to get hurt, would you?”

“But I didn’t tell him!” Josie whisper-yelled. “I promise, Klaus. He doesn’t know what’s going on between us. I wasn’t expecting him to drop by unannounced like he did—”

“You’re on the clock, Josie.” Klaus’ voice sounded hateful. “Tick-tock, tick-tock.” He hung up.

Josie sat curled on the bathroom floor for several minutes after her call with Klaus. She’d wanted to buy some time, but all she’d done was make the time run faster. Callahan was right. Returning to Silver Peaks would be a really foolish thing to do, with Klaus and Garry watching out for her.

She was in over her head and she didn’t know how long she could keep dealing with this all by herself. She needed to tell Callahan everything. Klaus already thought he knew, so what was the difference?

Then she thought about what Callahan’s reaction would be when he found out. He was bound to go looking for Klaus, trying to solve everything and save the day. The last thing she wanted was his blood on her hands. She couldn’t live with herself if he got hurt on her behalf.

She had to find a way to get through the surrogacy. That was her way out. All she needed was time, and it was the one thing that she didn’t have nearly enough of at the moment.

Josie found Callahan in the kitchen, sipping coffee from a mug and reading a newspaper. The coffee beans were so strong the smell filled the entire kitchen, hanging around the ceiling like an invisible cloud.

She wondered if he’d overheard her conversation with Klaus. It seemed unlikely. If he had, he wouldn’t be sitting down so comfortably, sipping coffee and reading a paper.

He looked over the top of the paper. “Hey, there’s some coffee in the pot if you want some.” He turned back to the paper and then snapped his head up again, smiling. “You look nice.”

That caught her by surprise and she blushed.

“Ah, what do you know? She’s human after all,” Callahan teased, laughing a charming laugh. “Oh, don’t be so serious. You really do look amazing, Josie. That dress is wonderful.”

It was a multi-colored summer dress with a deep cut and a flowing skirt. It hugged her body, but not tightly, and it was the perfect outfit for the warmer weather. “Thank you,” she said. She never really did well with compliments, and Callahan had always been filled to bursting with them.

Fortunately, he didn’t seem to know anything about her conversation with Klaus, which was a blessing in itself. She walked over to the counter and poured herself a cup of coffee, then walked over to the table and sat across from him.

“Oh yeah!” he said, setting down the paper. “I got a call from Dr. Stephanie about an hour ago. She wanted to tell me that they were ready to move on to the next phase with you. They want to see you tomorrow.”

“Yeah, she called me too. The appointment is for ten am.”

“Awesome,” Callahan said. “I have a few errands to run tomorrow, but I could always drop you off at the center and come back in time to pick you up afterward. Yeah, ten am works.”

Josie frowned at him. “Huh? You’re not going with me, Callahan.”

“Like hell I’m not,” he retorted. “Why not?”

“Think it through! I know you heard Dr. Stephanie warning us that all interaction between us had to go through the center. And I know you’re aware that personal relationships are against the rules. How would it look if you came to drop me off like a loving husband?”

Callahan frowned, thinking about the problem. “You can’t walk all the way to town, Josie. Even if you did, there would be questions asked regarding how you got there if you arrive dripping with sweat.”

“You know I can drive, right?” she asked, irritation plain in her voice. “Don’t you have like four cars parked outside?”

He made a face. “Well, they may know my cars.”

“Now you’re just being ridiculous, Callahan.” She shook her head. “Look, you know what I’m saying is right. I’m going in alone. I know my way back here. Plus, I don’t need you trying to do everything for me like I’m some helpless invalid. I’m not!”

He recoiled at the attack and his face turned grim. He picked up the newspaper and the coffee mug and walked out of the kitchen. Josie frowned into her mug, boiling.

He stopped at the kitchen door and said, “My guy called. He’s fixed your door and locked your house. He’s on his way back with the new keys.” With that, he turned and left.

---