“For fuck sakes, Julius. Fucking tell me what’s going on!” I shouted.
“Someone purchased your sperm and now she’s pregnant.”
“WHAT!” I shouted as I stood up. “How did that happen? YOU promised me it wouldn’t!”
“I don’t know, Grayson. I’m still trying to find that out. Apparently, you matched exactly what this woman was looking for and they sent your profile to her. I’m still investigating and when I find out exactly who did it, they’re fired.”
“How do you know? Are you one hundred percent sure?” I threw the warm liquid down my throat.
“I was going over the list of donors and pregnancies for the month and I saw your donor number listed.”
“FUCK! You’re the goddamn director of that facility! How could you let this happen? Didn’t you take it down after a month like you promised me you would?”
“YES! I took it down immediately. It happened when I was in Aruba.”
“Now what?” I threw back the rest of my drink and slammed the glass down on the bar. “What the fuck am I supposed to do now?”
“Nothing. There’s nothing you can do. If I were you, I’d forget about it. Pretend it never happened.”
“Right. Pretend it never happened. BUT IT DID! And now there’s some woman out there in the world carrying my kid!”
“Actually, she’s right here in New York.”
Placing my hand on my forehead, I slowly shook my head.
“Listen, Grayson. There are a million donors out there. You’re not responsible for the kid in any way and since you were listed as anonymous with no contact, she will never know you’re the father. Ever. Just forget about it, bro. You can do that. It’s no big deal. In fact, look at it this way, you made a woman who so badly wanted a child happy. You gave her the greatest gift of life and the best part is you aren’t being held responsible for the kid.”
I stood there and narrowed my eye at him as I slowly shook my head.
“Grayson, listen to what I said. Just forget it even happened. It’s not like you fucked her and it was an accident. You’re not responsible for this. You’re not, nor will you ever be tied to this woman and the child. You know, I didn’t even have to tell you. I could have kept this from you and you never would have known. But I told you because you’re my best friend and I couldn’t keep it from you. I have to go. I told Yasmin I wouldn’t be long. We’re going to her mother’s for brunch. I’m sorry, bro.” He turned around and stepped into the elevator.
Walking over to the bar, I poured myself another drink. This was fucking unbelievable. I stood in the shower as I let the stream of hot water pour over me. I kept replaying our conversation repeatedly in my head. Julius was right. I just had to put it out of my mind, forget about it and pretend our conversation never took place. I never should have agreed to the bet in the first place. Of all the mistakes I’ve made in my life, this one was by far the worst of them all.
Chapter 7
Grayson
I was sitting behind my desk when my grandfather walked in.
“Grandfather,” I spoke in shock.
“Hello, Grayson.”
Getting up from my chair, I walked over and gave him a hug.
“When did you get back from Europe?”
“Last night. I’d like you to come over for dinner tonight. I have something I want to talk to you about.”
“Okay. Sure. Is everything okay?”
“Yeah. We just haven’t had a good talk in a while. I’ll see you at seven.”
“See you then.”
He walked out and Christine walked in.
“Did you know he was back?” she asked.
“No. I didn’t.” My brows furrowed.
“Glenn Sharpe called.” She handed me the message. “He needs you to call him right away.”
“Great.” I rolled my eyes.
The moment I walked into my grandfather’s home, Celia greeted me with a hug.
“It’s good to see you, Grayson.”
“It’s good to see you too, Celia.” I smiled.
“Your grandfather is in the living room. Dinner will be ready in a few minutes.”
“Thank you.”
I walked into the living room and found my grandfather sitting in his favorite chair with a drink in his hand.
“Hello, Grayson.”
“Grandfather.” I nodded.
“Go pour yourself a drink and have a seat.”
Walking over to the bar, I poured myself a bourbon and took it over to the couch.
“What did you want to talk to me about?” I asked.
“Are you seeing anyone special? Perhaps you’ve met someone while I was away?”
“No.” I furrowed my brows at him. “Why?”
“Excuse me, Mr. Rhodes. Dinner is ready,” Celia spoke as she entered the living room.
We both got up and took our seats in the dining room.
“Why are you asking, Grandfather?”
“I’ve been keeping a close eye on things while I was away. An eye on the business and an eye on you. It seems you haven’t slowed down at all as far as the partying and women are concerned.”
“And?” I narrowed my eye at him. “What I do on my personal time has no effect on my job or performance. You can see that.”
“That is true, Grayson. The deals you’ve closed and the decisions you’ve made regarding the company have been impeccable. You’re going to be thirty-two years old. Don’t you think it’s time you thought about settling down? Find a special woman you can share your life with?”
“No, Grandfather, I don’t think that. You know how I am.”
“And I’ve overlooked it the past few years because I thought it was just a phase. But like I said, you’re going to be thirty-two years old. I married your grandmother when I was twenty-one and started a family when I was twenty-two.”
“That was fifty-years ago. Times have changed. People have changed. Views about relationships and marriage aren’t the same anymore. What exactly are you trying to say?”
“Family is important, and I think the key to a solid exceptional businessman is the family he has supporting him. You know I’m retiring in a year.”
“Yes. I know.”
“You’re my grandson and I love you very much. But your partying and excess use of women is out of control. I’m giving you one solid year to find someone to love and build a life with.”
“What?!” I exclaimed. “And if I don’t?”
“Then I have no choice but to sign the company over to Alfie.”
“Alfie? You can’t be serious! That pompous ass couldn’t run a company on his own if it was shoved up his ass!”
“He’s doing just fine, and he has a great wife who supports him.”
“Yeah. Under me and with my guidance. His wife has nothing to do with his job performance.”
“Sure it does. A happy man makes you better. If I didn’t have your grandmother by my side when I started the business and over the years, I probably wouldn’t have made it.”