"Brian, Amanda - Womb For Rent" - читать интересную книгу автора (Brian Amanda)

"The offer stands at fifty thousand dollars for the initial agreement. The amount will then double if the child is a boy."
Talli stared at Joseph in surprise. "Joseph, I'm shocked. You stand there so prim and proper and here all the time you knew exactly what was going on."
"Well, Miss Talli, the good Lord gave me two eyes, two ears and only one mouth. That way I can look and listen twice as much as I speak." With that said he gathered up the newspaper, tucked it under his arm and walked through the kitchen doorway.
"That man of mine. Sometimes he even makes me wonder." Maimie shook her head and wiped her hands on her apron.
"Fifty thousand dollars. That's quite a lot of money, isn't it?" Talli said softly, her mind busily working the numbers.
"Fool, he wouldn't know a good woman if the Heavens dropped one in his lap. I thought I brought him up better than that, but I guess I've failed. The good Lord knows why a man wants to find a woman in a newspaper instead of the old-fashioned way of courting her. Joseph and I may not have had much in the beginning, but the love we have for one another always saw us through. Too much fighting and bickering bout the petty things nowadays, that what's wrong with the world. What's so wrong with a little spooning now and then? Sure beats sleeping in separate beds. How's a body supposed to keep warm on a cold night? Someone needs to whack some sense into Derek Cameron, that's for sure."
Talli's stomach flip-flopped. The thought of sharing a bed with Derek was enough to raise anyone's internal thermostat.
She smiled at Maimie. Her deep devotion for Derek showed through with her every action, even if her words spoke otherwise.
"Thanks for breakfast, Maimie. It was terrific as always. Come on, dogs. We've got work to do."
The four dogs leapt from their positions on the floor at the sound of her voice. Talli pulled the door shut behind her. Fifty thousand dollars was a lot of money to pay someone for having a baby. Right now, she could think of fifty thousand good reasons why she should be that someone.






(BM) CHAPTER 2

Derek lifted his weary head and let his glasses drop onto the leather inlaid desktop. "These have potential. This one here... Miss Schmitz. Set up an appointment today at eleven, follow it at twelve-thirty with Miss Casanova. Same for tomorrow with Miss Bender and Miss Hite."
"Derek, are you sure there isn't anything I can say to get you to reconsider. It's not too late. We can write it off as media hype. It's done all the time."
Derek shook his head at Anthony. "No, this isn't hype. The offer stands. All I have to do is find the right woman for the job."
He leaned back in the chair and watched the dogs run across the lawn toward Talli. She knelt on the ground and let them bowl into her - a pile of fur and denim. The same tight jeans he had found himself staring at earlier during breakfast. His fingers itched to touch the fabric, to see if it was as soft as it looked.
"She's good, isn't she?"
"What?" Distracted by the question, Derek turned from the window. "Yes, she is. Came highly recommended and the dogs really like her. Even passed inspection with Maimie."
"That old busybody? Since when does it matter if Maimie likes your employee's?"
Derek smiled at the gruff tone Anthony used in referring to Maimie. Over the years, the two had shared a mutual, yet grudging admiration and respect for one another. "Since she makes life miserable for me otherwise."
"Hmm, I see your point. So, how about Talli? She looks to be the right age. And you already know her. She's your employee. Seems perfect to me."
Derek swivelled around to face Anthony, and brought his hand down hard on the desk between them. "No way, not Talli. I would never dream of asking one of my own employees to be a surrogate mother for me. I don't want to know anything about the woman until she applies for the position."
Derek swung back to the window, his gaze following the dog's movements and Talli's as well. There was no way one of his own employee's was going to be the mother of his child. It wouldn't be right, he told himself as he watched her bend over and pat one of the Dalmatians heads, presenting him with a delectable view of her backside.


Precisely eleven o'clock the next morning, the doorbell chimed. Joseph approached the door, pausing to straighten the Renoir in the foyer as he passed. Satisfied with the angle of the painting, he continued on his way across the marble floor. Opening the door, he drew up short at the sight of the woman on the other side. The first of Derek's applicants had arrived.
As Derek strode down the hallway, Joseph drew in a deep breath and pulled the sliding doors to the living room shut behind him.
"Mr. Cameron, your interview awaits. Oh, and sir?"
"Yes, Joseph?"
"Good luck."
Derek frowned. What the heck was that supposed to mean, he wondered?
Later, Derek realized exactly what Joseph had meant by his comment. He pressed the heels of his hands against his eyelids in frustration. The past two days had been an unparalleled disaster. Four interviews and not a normal one in the bunch. On paper, they all looked impeccable, excellent references, stable backgrounds and highly qualified to raise a child. In person, the four were fearsome, flighty, fruity and footloose. Nothing seemed to be going right for him. When had his simple plan of having a child turned into a three ring circus? He looked down at the paper strewn desk and realized any more work tonight would be futile. His head pounded, tension wrecking havoc with his brain. Maybe Maimie would have something in the kitchen that would help.
~ * ~

Talli padded barefoot across the kitchen, a pile of peanut butter cookies stacked neatly on her plate, the worn blue and silver football jersey hanging low off one pale, bare shoulder. She tucked her feet beneath her on the chair, the silver leggings snug across her calves.
The kitchen door swung open as Derek walked in, startled to find someone else still up.
"I'm sorry, I thought everyone was asleep." Talli started to rise.
"No, stay. Don't leave on my account." Derek dropped down heavily into the opposite chair.
Talli watched him shove his fingers through his gray streaked hair with a groan. "I'm a good listener, if you want to talk, that is."
"Things aren't going the way I planned. All of the interviews I've had so far have been duds. Worse than that, I can't believe anyone would actually consider those women to be mother material."
"Why not?"
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."
Talli shrugged. "Try me."
Derek stood. "Okay, you asked for it. Yesterday, the first interview, Helga, she was a big German woman, taller than me." He raised his hand a good five inches above his head. "She was roughly six foot six, and very muscle bound. She literally picked me up to show me how strong she was, as if that mattered. I thought she broke my ribs."