Up until today, Adam hadn’t talked to anyone but his attorney and the fertility doctor about his baby plan, but he knew he could trust Emilio to keep it quiet. So he told him, and his reaction was about what Adam would have expected.
“Wow,” Emilio said, shaking his head in disbelief. “I didn’t even know you wanted kids. I mean, I knew that you and Rebecca were trying, but I had no idea you would want to be a single father.”
“It’s something I’ve wanted for a while. It just feels like the right time to me. And since I don’t plan to get married again …” He shrugged. “Surrogacy seems to be my best option.”
“Why the meeting with Becca’s sister … I’m sorry, I don’t recall her name.”
“Katherine … Katy. I called her as a courtesy, and on the advice of my attorney.”
“So, what did she say?”
“She wants to be the surrogate.”
One brow rose. “Seriously?”
“Yeah. In fact, she was pretty adamant about it. She claims that she’s the only person I can trust.”
“Do you trust her?”
“I believe that she would never do anything to harm Becca’s baby.”
“But …”
“Katy seems very … headstrong. If I hire someone, I’ll be calling the shots. Katy on the other hand is in a position to make things very complicated.”
“Correct me if I’m wrong, but if you tell her no, she could make things complicated, too.”
“Exactly.”
“So you’re damned if you do and damned if you don’t.”
“More or less.” And he didn’t like being backed into a corner.
“So what did you tell her?”
“That I had to talk to my attorney.”
“You hear so many horror stories about surrogacy agreements going bad. Just a few weeks ago Alejandro was telling me about a case in New Mexico. A couple hired a surrogate to carry their baby. She was Hispanic, and halfway through the pregnancy moved back to Mexico and dropped off the map. Unfortunately the law is in her favor.”
Adam had heard similar cautionary tales.
“I think, if you have someone you can trust, let her do it,” Emilio said.
He would make the call to his attorney, to check on the legalities of it and his rights as the father, but Emilio was right. Choosing Katy just made the most sense. And ultimately the benefits would outweigh the negatives.
He hoped.
Three
What the hell was he doing here?
The limo pitched and swayed up the pitted, muddy gravel road that led to the Huntley’s cattle ranch, and Adam lunged to keep the documents he’d been reading on the ride up from sliding off the leather seat and scattering to the floor.
His driver and bodyguard, Reece, would have to take a trip to the car wash as soon as they got back to El Paso, Adam realized as he gazed out the mud-splattered window. At least the torrential rain they’d encountered an hour ago had let up and now there was nothing but blue sky for miles.
As they bounced forward up the drive, Adam could see that not much had changed in the four years since he’d last been here. The house, a typical, sprawling and rustic ranch, was older, but well maintained. Pastures with grazing cattle stretched as far as the eye could see.
The ranch had been in their family for five generations. A tradition Becca had had no interest in carrying on. As far as she had been concerned, Katy could have it all.
And now she would.
The limo rolled to a stop by the front porch steps and Reece got out to open his door. As he did, a wall of hot, damp air engulfed the cool interior, making the leather feel instantly sticky to the touch.
This meeting had been Katy’s idea, and he wasn’t looking forward to it. Not that he disliked his former in-laws. He just had nothing in common with them. However, if they were going to be involved in his child’s life, the least he could do was make an effort to be cordial. According to Katy, the news of his plan to use the embryos had come as a shock to them, but knowing Katy would be the surrogate had softened the blow. And since a meeting with his attorney last week, when he and Katy signed a surrogacy agreement, it was official. With any luck, nine months from her next ovulation cycle she would be having his and Becca’s baby.
After months of consideration and planning, it was difficult to believe that it was finally happening. That after years of longing to have a child, he finally had his chance. And despite Katy and her parents’ concerns, he would be a good father. Unlike his own father, who had been barely more than a ghost after Adam’s mother passed away. Adam spent most of his childhood away at boarding schools, or in summer camps. The only decent thing his father had ever done was leave him Western Oil when he died. And though it had taken several years of hard work, Adam had pulled it back from the brink of death.
“Sir?”
Adam looked up and realized Reece was standing by the open car door, waiting for him to climb out.
“Everything okay, sir?” he asked.
“Fine.” May as well get this over with, he thought, climbing from the back of the car into the sticky heat.
“Hey, stranger,” he heard someone call from the vicinity of the barn, and looked over to see Katy walking toward him. She was dressed for work, her thick, leather gloves and boots caked with mud. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail and as she got closer he saw that there was a smudge of dirt on her left cheek. For some odd reason he felt the urge to reach up and rub it clean.
He looked her up and down and asked, “Am I early? I was sure you said four o’clock.”
“No, you’re right on time. The rain set us back in our chores a bit, that’s all.” She followed his gaze down her sweat-soaked shirt and mud-splattered jeans and said apologetically, “I’d hug you, but I’m a little filthy.”
Filthy or not, he wasn’t the hug type. “I’ll settle for a handshake.”
She tugged off her glove and wiped her hand on the leg of her jeans before extending it to him. Her skin was hot and clammy, her grip firm. She turned to Reece and introduced herself. “Katherine Huntley, but everyone calls me Katy.”
He warily accepted her outstretched hand. He wasn’t used to being acknowledged, much less greeted so warmly. Adam recalled that the hired help had always been regarded as family on the Huntley ranch. “Reece Wilson, ma’am.”
“It’s a scorcher. Would you like to come inside with us?” she asked, gesturing to the house. “Have something cold to drink?”
“No, thank you, ma’am.”
“If you’re worried about your car,” she said with a grin, “I promise no one will steal it.”
Was she actually flirting with his driver? “He’s fine,” Adam said. “And we have a lot to discuss.”
Her smile dissolved and there was disapproval in her tone when she said, “Well, then, come on in.”
He followed her up the steps to the porch, where she kicked off her muddy boots before opening the door and gesturing him inside. A small vestibule opened up into the great room and to the left were the stairs leading to the second floor.
The furniture was still an eclectic mix of styles and eras. Careworn, but comfortable. The only modern addition he could see was the large, flat-screen television over the fireplace. Not much else had changed. Not that he’d been there so