2. Harle
HARLE
T he short one was cute. Funny. Flirty. Sitting there with her chin in her hands, gazing at me with shining eyes. Nothing serious about her, that one.
Cassidy, on the other hand. Cassidy was something else. Absolutely gorgeous with her blond hair, serious green eyes and honey kissed skin. She was also tall, around five foot ten would be my guess.
Gesturing to the overloaded table, she said, “Please, eat something while we go through the contract.”
Figuring that seeing me eat would settle her nerves, I grabbed a plate and started loading it up.
Hannah piled up her own plate and moved to the counter, boosting up so she was sitting on it. “I’ll be over here, out of the way.”
Not quite out of the way, since apparently she’d plonked down right next to the paperwork Cassidy had prepared. Cassidy moved across the kitchen to grab it and I firmly resisted the urge to drop my gaze to her ass.
When she retrieved the stack of papers, I could see that her hands were trembling. I felt the impulse to reassure her, which was completely ridiculous. She didn’t know me, after all. What could I say that would make her feel better?
She sat back down, handing me one pile of papers and keeping the other for herself. “So, um, this is the contract. Nothing too complicated, just outlining the terms we discussed. But it is pretty thorough.”
I nodded, mouth full of cheese. Swallowing, I picked up the papers. It was a lot of information, but I couldn’t really sign it without reading through all of it. This was going to take a while.
Cassidy fidgeted with her hands, yet again. “I know it’s a lot to take in. We can go through it together if you’d like.”
I set the contract down and met her eyes. That’s when I knew exactly what I could do to make her feel better. “I appreciate that. Why don’t you walk me through the key points?”
She visibly relaxed, shoulders dropping an inch. “Of course. So, the main things are...”
As Cassidy started explaining, I found myself distracted by the way her lips moved, the slight furrow in her brow as she concentrated. I forced myself to focus on her words, not her face. This was business, after all. Just business.
I nodded along as Cassidy finished explaining the contract. Her voice was steady, professional, but I caught the slight breathlessness there.
“So, that’s about it. Do you have any questions?”
I glanced at the contract, then back at her. Those green eyes were intense, searching. For what, I wasn’t sure. Honesty? Reassurance?
“Nah, I think I’m good. Seems pretty straightforward.”
Cassidy blinked, surprise flitting across her face. “Oh. Okay, great. Well, if you’re ready, we can sign.”
She pushed her copy over to me, along with a fancy-looking pen. I picked it up, twirling it between my fingers.
“Ladies first,” I said with a smile.
“Oh, okay.” Cassidy’s cheeks flushed slightly as she scooted her chair closer and bent over the first copy, signing her name with a flourish.
The way she was leaning over, I caught a glimpse of cleavage and had to drag my eyes away. It seemed like bad manners to perv on a woman you were just about to hand your jizz to.
“Your turn.”
I scrawled my signature on both copies, pushing them back towards Cassidy.
Hannah, who’d been pretty quiet, piped up from her perch on the kitchen counter. “Well, that’s that! You guys are officially baby-making partners.”
Cassidy shot her sister a look that could’ve curdled milk.
I chuckled, breaking the tension. “Guess we are.”
Hannah hopped down from the counter, her curls bouncing as she landed. She sauntered over to the table and plopped into a chair, fixing me with her bright eyes.
“Can I ask you something?”
I shrugged, popping another piece of cheese in my mouth. “Sure.”
Resting her elbows on the table, she gave me a searching look. “Why are you doing this? You’ve agreed to no payment for it, as well as keeping out of the baby’s life. What’s in it for you?”
I wrapped my hands around my coffee cup, watching the dark liquid swirl as I tried to find the right words. The sisters waited, the kitchen suddenly feeling smaller, more intimate.
“You ever...” I cleared my throat, started again. “You ever watch someone try something over and over, knowing it’s probably gonna fail, but they keep hoping anyway?”
Cassidy’s hands stilled in her lap. Hannah’s playful expression softened.
“My sister, Sarah... she tried for five years. I watched her go through all of it - the temperature tracking, the fertility drugs, the rounds of IVF.” I traced the rim of my cup with my thumb. “She’d call me at three AM sometimes, crying because her period started. Again. Or because another friend announced their pregnancy. Hell, she stopped going on social media altogether after a while.”
Cassidy made a small sound, something between understanding and pain.
“The worst part was watching her hope die, bit by bit. Every negative test, every failed treatment... it was like watching someone slowly bleed out, you know?” I rubbed my beard, remembering those awful years. “She’d put on a brave face for everyone else, but I’d find her sometimes, just sitting there, staring at nothing.”
Hannah had gone completely still. “What happened to her?”
“She got lucky, finally. After they’d pretty much given up and were about to stop trying, her husband asked if she could handle one more round. She agreed. Now she’s got three kids.” I smiled, remembering the day she called me about the first positive test, crying so hard I could barely understand her. “They’re amazing kids, and she’s the happiest I’ve ever seen her. But those years of trying nearly broke her.”
Cassidy’s knuckles were white where she gripped her own cup. “That’s why you responded to my ad?”
I nodded. “Yeah.” Shrugging to let them know I was done with that part of the conversation, I said, “Plus, it’s not exactly a hardship. Just seemed like the right thing to do.”
The kitchen was quiet for a long moment. Cassidy dragged in air and cleared her throat. “Well, um, thank you. I really appreciate it.”
“Honestly, it’s no big deal to me, like I said.”
“Well, I think that’s a really big deal and I can’t wait to be an aunty. And on that note, what happens next?”
The way Cassidy blushed, I figured I knew what happened next. I reached for my satchel, feeling the weight of the moment. The sisters’ eyes followed my every move as I unzipped the bag and carefully extracted a small, nondescript jar and placed it in the middle of the table.
The jar sat there, innocent-looking but loaded with significance. How fucking bizarre. Handing over my genetic material to a stranger in her kitchen.
Cassidy’s face went from pink, to pale and back to pink in record time. She stared at the jar like it might explode, her hands twisting in her lap. “Oh fuck, this is so much weirder than I was expecting.”
I bit back a chuckle. For someone who’d put out an ad for a sperm donor, she sure was squeamish about the actual sperm part.
Hannah, on the other hand, leaned in for a closer look. “Huh. I expected it to be... I don’t know, glowier or something.”
That broke my composure. I let out a bark of laughter. “Sorry to disappoint. Left my radioactive stuff at home.”
“Shame. I wouldn’t mind seeing it.”
Cassidy shot her sister a glare. “Hannah!”
“What? I’m just saying what we’re all thinking.”
I leaned back in my chair, thoroughly entertained by their dynamic. Cassidy looked like she wanted the floor to open up and swallow her whole. Still, I didn’t like to see her so uncomfortable. “It’s alright. I know it’s a bit weird. But hey, that’s what we’re here for, right?”
Cassidy nodded, still not meeting my eyes.
“You might wanna get on with it though. That’s over an hour old and from the information you sent me, its viability is about to drop.” I pushed to my feet, stepping back as Cassidy did the same. “So on that note, I’ll head off so you can get on with it.”
“Th-thank you.”
Christ, she looked so nervous I wanted to hug her. “No problem. You lemme know how it goes and if you need more help.”
“I will, thanks.”