Carrying His Baby

Chapter 6

Hallie just looked at Aldous. She was done talking for now. Now he could do all the talking. If he was asking her to do something like keeping the baby, he needed to explain.

But he didn’t say a word. He just looked… panicked. He looked panicked.

Well, that was appropriate. She was pretty panicked herself.

“Why?” she asked, finally.

“My mom would kill me!”

Hallie goggled. That was absolutely the last thing she was expecting. The self-made alpha billionaire who was known for his business acumen and playboy lifestyle was scared of his mama?

“Okay, I get how that’s not a complete explanation. My mom pretty much raised me single handedly. She…”

Hallie saw the admiration and love just light up his face and felt herself soften. Anybody who loved his mama like that had something good in him.

“She is incredible. She’s strong, and principled, and proud of me. She is also a very strict Baptist.”

Ah, thought Hallie, there it was. His mama believed that abortion was murder. Hallie didn’t agree. Hallie wasn’t going to have a child just because his mama wanted her to have it, too.

“I can’t have a baby just because your mama disapproves of abortions,” she pointed out reasonably.

“I know. I’m asking you to consider it. We can work out an arrangement.”

Hallie rose.

“I’m not looking for money.”

Aldous rose, too.

“Look, can we talk about this somewhere a little more private? I don’t know how to handle this. But I want to do it right. Can we go sit on a bench in the park and talk about it?”

Hallie wanted to say no. But that’s what she had come for, right?

So she nodded and left, not looking over her shoulder to see if he was following her.

He effortlessly fell into step beside her. She didn’t say a word until they were sitting on a bench. He was still holding his sandwich.

It made her hungry.

“Hallie, just hear me out, okay? I don’t know how I’m supposed to react to this. I accept that the decision is completely up to you, but I hope that you will decide to keep it. I know that pregnancy means you will need to miss work, especially when your work involves you going places and being so active. That missed experience might mean missed opportunities in the future, too. Plus there will be medical bills. That’s what I meant by arrangements. I don’t want you to make your decision because you might have to give up opportunities. I can make sure that you are comfortable, and I have contacts that will help you make up whatever you lost in that time. That’s all I mean by arrangements and compensation, though if you want more, then that’s also something we can talk about.”

That took the wind out of Hallie’s sails a bit. That sounded really reasonable, actually. Part of the reason why she wasn’t ready was that she simply couldn’t afford it.

“But Aldous… I don’t know if I’m ready to have a baby.”

There was silence.

Finally, he broke it.

“You could always give it up for adoption. I have the resources to make sure we do a complete background check on any potential adoptive parents.”

That was true. But she wasn’t sure.

“Why do you think your mama will even find out about this?”

Aldous grinned, and that charm that was second nature to him radiated off him.

“Mama always knows. She seems to read my mind. And, well, I promised her, fifteen years ago, that I would never lie to her. I got into a lot of trouble because I lied to her. She had to pull triple shifts for months to help pay off my debts, even if I worked two jobs, too. She made me promise, after giving my ass a good hiding, that I would never lie to her again. A lie by omission is also a lie. I don’t play with technicalities with her. I owe her honesty, Hallie. It would break her heart if I had to tell her that her grandchild lost the chance to be.”

“I can’t imagine she’d be too happy about giving up her grandchild, either, in that case.”

Aldous’s smile was… tender and loving, realized Hallie. She had never seen him looking so soft and approachable.

“She believes in helping people. She is very set in her ways, but she has a heart of gold. I know, she’s my mother, and I’d obviously say that, anyway, but she really does. She believes that children deserve a loving home with both parents, together. My dad died when she was pregnant with me and she always felt guilty, somehow, that I didn’t have a father. She would understand that it’s for the best if we give our child to parents who can be there, together.”

Hallie considered that.

“What if she tells you to marry me?”

That made Aldous stop short.

“No, she wouldn’t do that.”

He sounded a bit like he was trying to convince himself.

“Well, it’s not like I want to, either, hot shot,” said Hallie, with something resembling her usual spirit.

“No, I mean… She believes that people should get married when they’re right for each other, too. She doesn’t approve of my, well, lifestyle, but she thinks I’m, well…”

He actually looked embarrassed, thought Hallie. That made her grin. He was cute when he was embarrassed.

“What does she think you are?”

Hallie couldn’t help teasing him.

“She thinks I’m sowing my wild oats and will settle down soon.”

Hallie chuckled.

“Well, I suppose she knows you pretty well.”

“She does. She doesn’t approve of the women I date, but she’d expect me to do right by the woman who’s pregnant with my child. The baby growing in you, that’s ours, Hallie. I’ll be there for you if you choose to have it.”

“I need to think about it,” said Hallie.

“I know. I’m not trying to pressure you. I’ll get a car to take you back to your office. And here’s my number. This is my direct line, and this is my direct email. You can reach me on that any time you need to. I won’t let you be humiliated like that again,” he promised, and that made Hallie melt.

She hadn’t said it. But he had seen, and he was angry about it. That mattered to her.

She took his number, and fed it into her phone. She rang him.

“That’s my number. The only one I have, I’m afraid,” said Hallie with a smile.

Aldous smiled back at her and she felt her heart beat just a bit harder, just a bit faster. He was the father of her unborn child.

She knew, somewhere in her mind and deep in her heart, that she had already decided to keep the baby. But she needed to think about it before she made it irrevocable and told Aldous that.

“If you do choose to have the baby, I’ll make sure that everything is taken care of. Everything I can do, I will do.”

Hallie believed him. But she still needed to think about it.

It didn’t take her long to realize that she did want to keep the child, after all. Knowing that Aldous wanted that option, knowing that he would help her, made a huge difference.

By evening, she was sure. She called him.

“Aldous?”

“Hallie.”

“I’ve made up my mind.”

“Okay…”

“I’ll need your help with some stuff. Especially finding the right parents for our baby.”

Hallie could almost hear the sigh of relief from the other side.

“I’m glad. I’m really glad you made that choice, Hallie. I… We need to meet. I have a few files.”

Hallie giggled.

“Files? About what?”