Page 39 of Her Baby His Gift

“No.”

Damian chimed in. “This situation will be an adjustment. It might even be weird at first, but I trust that we can do it.” Damian pleaded with Carter. “I know it’s a lot to ask, but will you gift us with an opportunity to have a baby?”

Both Damian and Harlem were looking at Carter intently, waiting for an answer. He felt like he was suffocating. He pulled at the collar of his button-up shirt.

Carter was sweating.

The moments dragged on as they waited for an answer.

He couldn’t do it. “Damian, I just don’t know.”

“I would do this for you without any hesitation.”

Carter did have one of Damian’s kidney’s in his body. Damian had already made a huge sacrifice for him.

Damian continued. “You have my blood running through your veins, and I love you like a brother. If you do this for us, it would be as if it were my baby.”

Carter was quiet for a while. Finally, he inhaled and held it for a few seconds before blowing it out, making a big whooshing sound. “It’s kind of impossible to say no.”

“Not impossible,” Damian said.

Carter looked heavenward. “Get the legal paperwork together, and once that’s all set, let me know where to make the deposit.”

Chapter 21

Harlem sat at her desk, feeling not only queasy but uneasy.Did I make a mistake?Her emotions were all over the place, and it wasn’t just because of the IVF treatments. Seeds of doubt started to grow shortly after the decision was made. Once the embryo transfer occurred, those seeds had matured into full-grown Venus Fly Traps.

Having a baby was supposed to be a joyous occasion. The entire process was much too stressful. Her experience was worse than what she’d expected. Harlem couldn’t remember a time where she and Damian had been so far apart emotionally. Physically they were just as disconnected.

They hadn’t made love since they began treatments almost two months ago. Understandable, but she missed the soft touches and firm embraces.

Harlem stared at her cell phone as if looking at it would make Damian return her calls. She had already left three messages, and it wasn’t even lunchtime. Harlem didn’t want to becomethatgirl who was the clingy type, but she was afraid she was becoming just that.

Focus on work,shetold herself. Harlem read the same line on her computer for the third time.

She was genuinely worried if their relationship was going to survive. Lately, Damian would disappear for hours at a time without any explanation and come home drained.

Against her better judgment, Harlem picked up the phone and called him. It rang several times and again went to voice-mail.Was he in an all-day meeting?Harlem called the landline to his office. His Admin picked up on the first ring. “Damian Fox’s office.”

“Hi, Natalie. This is Harlem. Is Damian around?”

She paused. “Damian has been off-site this week.”

“Oh.” Harlem was not only disappointed but surprised. She hadn’t known he wasn’t in the office.

Natalie continued. “You know that he and Dana have been burning the midnight oil getting ready for the Landing deal.”

Harlem knew about the Landing deal, but she hadn’t known that Dana worked so closely with him on it.Why didn’t he tell her?Harlem did her best to beat back her jealously. “That’s right. I forgot.”

“Is everything okay? Should I reach out to him?”

“N-no.” Harlem stuttered. “It’s not important. I just wanted to hear his voice.” She heard a beep on her cell. “Natalie, another call is coming through. I’ll talk to Damian at home tonight.”

“Okay. Sounds good.”

Harlem disconnected and clicked over. “This is Harlem.”

“Hey. You called?” It was Damian.

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