Page 15 of The Game Changer

“I wouldn’t be where I am without the support of my parents. They helped me get off the ground. My mom, actually, was my first employee,” I tell him, using finger quotes around employee. “She came in and would answer phones and help me with paperwork but would never let me pay her for her time. She always insisted that she wanted to be there, helping me get things off the ground.”

“That’s what parents are for.”

“Are you close with yours?” I ask John.

“My mom, yes. She’s one hell of a woman. My dad, no. He hasn’t been in the picture since I was little, and that’s for the best,” he tells me, and I can tell I’ve hit a nerve.

“You’re also close with your sister, right?”

“Yep, one of my very best friends. I’d do anything for Cindi.”

“Where does she live?”

“She’s back in St. Louis, she’s married to my sister-in-law, Stephanie, and they have my nephew, Mason, who’s three, and she just told me yesterday that they did another egg transfer, so hopefully in the next week or so they’ll know if it worked and will be adding another kid or two to the mix.”

“That’s awesome! I’ve done many ultrasounds for fertility patients. They can sometimes be some of the hardest appointments to do, but then also some of the most rewarding ones.”

“I bet. They used donor sperm and harvested eggs from Stephanie when they wanted to have Mason. They froze the extras, and I guess they transferred the last two that were viable.”

“Did Stephanie not want to carry the pregnancies, or was that their way of both feeling like they were involved in the process?” I ask.

“I think it was a little bit of both. Stephanie is an attorney in a big law firm, so she works some crazy-ass hours. Cindi was a paralegal, and that’s how they first met. I guess they figured that it would be easiest for Cindi to be the one to be off, and now she stays home with Mason.”

“That’s awesome. Do you get to see them often?”

“A few times a year in person. We talk on the phone and FaceTime a lot. Mason is one of the coolest kids, even if I am a little biased since he’s my nephew,” he tells me, a goofy smile on his lips as he talks about his family.

“Maybe you’ll get to see them more now.”

“Maybe.” He shrugs. “I’ll figure all that out in due time.”

“So, I have another question for you,” I state. John reaches a hand out, pushing a stay lock of my hair behind my ear. His fingers trail down my neck, causing the skin to pebble with goosebumps.

“Ask away.” His words come out a little gruff. We’ve both been inching closer and closer to one another since sitting down on the couch.

“So that charity event, I asked if you’d go with me…” I start my question.

“Yeah, what about it?” he questions. I pull my bottom lip in between my teeth, and I observe as his eyes drop to watch as I do so.

“When I called to give them my plus-one information today, they asked if you’d be willing to be one of the celebrity bachelors up for auction at the event,” I rush out in one breath.

“A bachelor auction?” he questions.

“Yeah, I can always tell them no—" I rush to tell him.

“I’ll do it.” He surprises me. “But only under one condition,” he states, his hand cupping my cheek again. His thumb rubs along my bottom lip before he leans over and steals a kiss.

“What’s your one condition?” I ask a moment later, once he’s released my lips.

“That you’re the highest bidder at the end of my time on stage.”

“Oh!” I say in shock. “Um, I’m not sure I’ll be able to afford what some of the bachelors go for,” I tell him honestly.

“Don’t worry about the cost. I’ll give them my card. I’ll do it, but I only want to go home with you,” he reiterates.

“So let me get this straight, not only will you be my date to the event, but you’ll donate yourself to be up for auction and then pay for the winning bid, all so I can ‘win’ you?”

“Sounds about right,” he replies before kissing me once again. I push against his chest to get him to stop his incredible assault on my mouth so that I can get some stupid answers. “Something wrong?” he asks, a cocky smirk on his lips.

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