Expecting the Sheikh's Baby. KRISTI GOLD

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СКАЧАТЬ believe that he’d offered to father her child. She couldn’t believe that she was actually considering his proposition.

      After pouring a glass of Chianti, Karen strolled into the living room and slumped onto the sofa in hopes of clearing her mind. She loved the fourth-floor brownstone apartment generously provided by the Barones. Gina had decorated the place beautifully with Italian silk sofas, an antique writing table, Turkish rugs. But the elegant furnishings and accoutrements wouldn’t fair well with an active toddler.

      She was getting way ahead of herself. First she had to conceive, then she could decide on the living arrangements. At present the conception should be her top priority. That and Ash’s offer, not his masterful mouth. She needed to get the kiss off her mind so she could think clearly, not a measly mission by any means. Neither was deciding the best option for having a baby.

      She sipped the wine and thought about the day’s events. During her appointment at the clinic, she had been instructed on what the procedure entailed and the possible cost, emotionally and physically, if she wasn’t successfully inseminated after several attempts. She had sorted through some sample profiles of prospective donors, most too good to be true. She had watched several couples in the waiting room looking anxious and hopeful—and in love.

      Maybe Ash was right. Did she really want to bring a baby into the world not knowing its heritage, considering she’d grown up not knowing the truth about hers? Could she really trust that the sperm donors were being completely honest? After all, she had recently learned that much of what she’d believed about her family lineage had been skewed by dishonesty.

      Feeling emotionally drained, Karen set her wineglass on a coaster on the end table and stretched out on the sofa on her back. She’d eaten a light supper of pasta and vegetables but hadn’t tasted much of anything. Too much to think about, too little time. If she decided to go through with the insemination, she needed to make the arrangements in less than three days since that would be right before the most fertile time during her cycle. The same held true if she decided to accept the sheikh’s arrangement.

      Just thinking about making love with Ash brought about a round of chills mixed with a flash-fire heat. She couldn’t deny that the idea held some appeal. She also couldn’t deny that his kiss had left its mark on her libido. Both kisses.

      The doorbell buzzed, sending Karen off the sofa in a rush. She experienced a prickly surge of panic thinking Ash might have decided to pay her a visit expecting an answer she wasn’t quite ready to give. It would be just like him to show up, unannounced, and come upon her wearing a threadbare gray sweatshirt and equally ragged black leggings. She would send him on his way—as long as he kept his mouth to himself.

      As she looked through the peephole and saw Maria at her threshold, Karen was relieved and maybe just a teeny bit disappointed that Ash hadn’t come by to convince her with more kisses. Absolutely ridiculous.

      Karen opened the door to her cousin and smiled. “Hey, you. What brings you to the top floor this time of night?”

      “Just wanted to visit,” Maria said, her shoulders slumped as if she carried the obligations of the universe.

      Karen was immediately concerned, considering Maria had looked incredibly tired of late. The gelateria required long hours and hard work, especially for Maria, its manager. A lot of responsibility for a young woman, yet Maria, even at the tender age of twenty-three, handled it remarkably well. Or so Karen had believed until tonight.

      “Come on in,” Karen said and gestured toward the sofa. “Take a load off. I was having a glass of wine. Join me.”

      Maria dropped onto the sofa and tipped her head back. “No wine for me.”

      “Maybe something else, then? I could fix us some tea.”

      “No thanks.”

      “Are you okay? You look exhausted.” And she sounded depressed.

      She shrugged. “I took the stairs from my apartment instead of the elevator. I’m a little winded, but otherwise I’m fine.”

      Maria always climbed the two flights to visit Karen on the fourth floor and she’d never even broken a minor sweat. Something was seriously wrong, and Karen aimed to get to the bottom of Maria’s distress.

      Karen sat on the wing chair facing the sofa. “Okay, so what’s up?”

      Maria managed a faint smile. “You go first. I want to hear about your baby-making appointment.”

      “Not that much to tell, really. I had an interview, discussed financial terms, then I got a sneak preview of perspective sperm donors.”

      “That must have been interesting.”

      Not as interesting as Ash’s suggestion. Karen wasn’t sure she needed to burden Maria with her dilemma, but she had no one else to turn to. Maria had become a good friend to Karen, a confidante, and she always seemed so wise.

      “I have another offer on the table,” Karen began. “In terms of a father for my child.”

      Maria instantly perked up. “Really? That wouldn’t happen to have come from a handsome Arabian prince, would it?”

      She eyed Maria suspiciously. “Did he tell you?”

      “I promise he didn’t tell me anything. I only knew that he was bent on returning your purse to you.”

      “So that’s how he knew where to find me.”

      “I’m sorry, Karen.” Maria looked more than a tad contrite. “Actually, Mimi gave him the directions and I gave him the purse. He’s very persuasive.”

      “No kidding,” Karen muttered.

      “He’s also absolutely head over heels for you.”

      “Good heavens, Maria. I barely know the man.” But if the sheikh had his way, that would be remedied shortly on a very intimate level.

      “Exactly what did his offer entail?” Maria asked.

      “He’s willing to father my child. The natural way.”

      Laying a hand on her chest, Maria said, “Oh, my. That could be great fun.”

      Exactly Karen’s current thought, and her quandary. “Fun, yes. Wise, I doubt it.”

      “And he was serious?”

      “Very serious. But he won’t do it unless we’re married. He did say that we could make it a conditional marriage and if I decide to end it, I can after the baby’s born.”

      “Are you going to do it?”

      Was she? The terms of the arrangement didn’t seem as absurd once she’d voiced them to Maria. “I don’t know. Part of me thinks that I would be a total fool to do it. Another part of me…well, that part—”

      “Thinks you’d be a fool not to know the father considering the blank spaces in your own family. Not to mention, the sheikh probably has incredible genes and making a baby with him would be an out-of-this-world experience.”

      Karen couldn’t hold back her smile. “Yes, that’s basically what that part of me is saying. СКАЧАТЬ