Page 10 of Surrogate for the Bratva
The expression on my brother’s face stopped my heart.
“What? Jacob, what is it?” I went to his bedside and took his hands in mine. “Talk to me. Please.”
“It ain’t good, sis. Even if I don’t need a transplant which I almost certainlywill, I’ll need expensive breathing treatments just to make sure I’m eligible for a transplant.”
“No.” My hand flew to my mouth to stop the outraged scream that wanted desperately to break free. “Jacob, no.”
He flashed a sad smile. “Yeah, so it looks like I won’t be a problem for much longer.”
“What?” I frowned and grabbed his chin, so he was looking at me. “What do you mean?”
He shrugged and looked away, sadness and resignation hung around him like a cloak.
“Jacob, what does that mean?” My heart raced and my hands shook because somewhere deep down I knew what he was saying, but dammit I was gonna make him say it.
“Come on, April, you know what it means. We can’t afford the drugs, the inhalers, and the pulmonary rehab. We can’t afford it which means I’m as good as dead.”
Tears streamed down my face as his voice put my worst fear to words. “No.”
“Yes. We don’t have the money and there’s no chance in hell we’ll get it.”
No chance in hell. “We could sell the house and get a good amount for it.”
“We could, but then we’ll have to pay rent, and it still won’t be enough. Don’t do it, not for me,” he squeezed my hands. “Please April.”
I couldn’t promise that, I knew it. “I will do anything and everything I can to make this happen, Jacob and you can’t ask me not to. After everything we’ve been through you can’t.” He was the only constant in my life, and I wasn’t sure I could survive this life without him. Sure, I complained sometimes but I did all of it because I loved my brother, not because I had to.
“You have a side hustle as a bank robber I don’t know about?”
“Not yet,” I tried to joke. “But for you, I will.” But I didn’t have to rob a bank, not when there was a very rich and very powerful man who wanted to use my womb.
Shit.
I could save my brother’s life by becoming a surrogate for Roman Stephens. One year of my life, pumped full of hormones and all the downsides of pregnancy without the baby. But it would be enough money—more than enough—to keep Jacob alive and cared for.
I had to do it.
I was going to quite literally sell my body to keep my brother alive.
ChapterEight
Igor
“What do you mean she’s going to turn down the offer?” I glared at Maxim even though I knew this wasn’t his fault. “Did you explain to her that Mr. Stephens was rich and powerful?”
Maxim’s lips twitched. “I did and she asked if he was anything she should give a damn about,” his lips lost the battle with the smile. “She was quite fiery. I can see why you like her.”
I did like her which was reason enough not to do this. “And that is why you think she will reject the offer?” It was quite generous, and more than any agency would ever offer her but there was something about April that roused my protective instincts. I wanted to help her out of her predicament, and I was sure that three hundred thousand dollars would be enough to entice her.
Maxim shrugged. “She wasn’t impressed by money or power which means she might be offended by the offer.”
“Offended? Most women would literally kill to be in this position.”
“Ah yes,” he agreed. “But you like her precisely because she is not like most women, don’t you?”
He had me there. “If she refuses then I will make a counteroffer.” I hoped the woman wasn’t too silly or too sentimental to take this chance to save herself and her brother. She’d downplayed the severity of his illness and from Maxim’s research I knew that keeping him healthy required a lot ofmoney, more than they both made in a year. “Iwillget her agreement.” Now that I’d found a woman, I was determined that April would help me continue the Romanov bloodline.
“How will you do that if you are determined to keep yourself hidden from her?”
