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Suddenly, though, her crying had s Who hurt her? I'll kill hiuy and not me?

I shake h, to her response when I finally got her to tellon "You want a baby?"

She sucks in another deep breath and sighs at the ceiling Her eyes are still red froeous as ever, her mouth pursed in the sexy little pout I love, her forehead just the tiniest bit creased, the way it gets when she's stressed at work Nights like this I'd usually suggest we go bar-hopping and blow off so hookups But she's clearly not in the ht now

A baby?

"You know

"Of course, sale-parent household in this day and age?

"And your mom was fine with it, wasn't she?" Rina asks

"Well, it's not like she had a choice My dad was a total deadbeat But she never complained about it Well, except when she had to pay for childcare while she was at work," I add, re

Rina huffs out a sigh "I want to have a baby I'etting older, I don't want to be an old mom But you know me, I don't really do relationships," she points out

"As ere just saying," I agree

"So I tried to go to a clinic I found a donor and everything"

"When were you going to mention this?" I ask, bewildered Norht

"I didn't want to tell you yet, not until I knew if it worked I didn’t knohen I'd need to nant I'd start to shop for a new place"

Move out? My stoht of it, and I have to tenseBut I don't want to live with anyone else

Focus, Cannon Rina's hurting That's what ot a donor then? At the clinic?" I ask, not sure how these things work

She shook her head "I had one picked out I was supposed to go today and get inseminated But" She ss hard I can see this is really taking a toll on her Itways to see her like this

I reach out and catch her hand again Twine her sesture of comfort I can offer

She shoots uy, one of the donors, ca out at the wo a kid out there in the world he didn't know, but he was totally crazy And then I thought, what if the donor I picked did soer turned out to be a total nut job?"

"That wouldn't be ideal," I agree with a frown

"So I didn't go through with it But now" She sucks in another deep breath "Now, no baby And I'm back to square one"

"I' her hand, pull her toward ainst my chest, her head pillowed on my pecs I close my eyes when her soft cheek touches ainstabout how fucking incredible she smells She uses the saets froo on beer runs I secretly don't les with her scent

I closeher in my arms, if only for a moment

That, and praying that she doesn't notice the way hter, as all the blood in my head starts to rush south Not now, I try and tell myself

Rina pulls back with another deep breath, and I tense, thinking she's about to say so But instead, she stares atin a way I've never seen before Then her gaze drops to travel along my body, and I lift a brow

Is she checking me out?

"Rina?" I prompt

"You like NSA agreements," she says "You don't like relationships"

"True"

"I don't like relationships either," she replies "And I need a baby A sperm donor, really Who I trust" She locks eyes with et emotional or over-attached or crazy later down the line"