Page 15 of How to Date a Younger Man
His jaw ticks. “What makes you think all I’m looking for is a lay?”
I pause at his question. The seriousness and determination in his tone confuses and intrigues me at the same time. The look on his face is sure. Confident. “Why are you here, Griff?”
He shifts, turning his hips so he’s facing me straight on, his whole body aligned with mine. He takes my hand in his, running his thumb along my knuckles before meeting my eyes again. “I’ve never hidden the fact that I care about you, Layne. That’s why I’m here.”
Softening, I smile. “I’m sorry for making insinuations. God, I must sound like a bitch. Honestly, I’m glad you came. I realized after I hung up from Kris that I didn’t want to be alone.”
He lets go of my hand and picks up his drink again. “Yeah, when my sister hung up, I knew one of us needed to come over. She insisted you wanted to be alone, but I wasn’t buying that for a second.”
“Smart man.” I nod, taking another sip of the deliciously crisp drink.
“It’s not my first rodeo.” He grins.
I throw the remote at his head. “Are you referring to my six breakups in the year before Brian?”
His lips twitch. “Maybe.”
I take a deep breath and let my head drop back against the couch. He’s right. I’ve been through my fair share of men in my hunt for Mr. Right, and Kristen and Griffin have had a front row seat to all my dating disasters. Brian seemed the most normal of the bunch and to be honest on paper we looked like the perfect match. We’re both lawyers. Both in our mid-thirties.
Ugh. I need to stop thinking about Brian.
“Onward and upward,” I say, raising my glass to Griffin’s.
After clinking our glasses together, we both take a sip as a comfortable silence settles over us. It’s nice being with someone who just gets me, someone I don’t have to pretend around.
“Are you that torn up about this guy?” Griffin asks, his dark brows pushing together.
I take a moment to consider his question, and examine how I actually feel right now. And when I do, I begin to realize that it’s not my heart that hurts. It’s mostly my ego. I’m mad at myself that I wasted so much of my time on Brian before I figured out we weren’t right together.
But after all the dating mistakes I’ve made, I thought it wise not to spring the baby thing on a man on one of our first few dates. And by then, Brian and I had clicked so well and were operating on the exact same page, that I never even bothered bringing it up. I thought it was a forgone conclusion. He told me all the time how glad he was that he found me.
“I just feel like I wasted so much time when I really don’t have time to waste. I know my soul mate is out there somewhere, you know?” I swallow, a fresh wave of emotion hitting me. “It just sucks.”
Griffin frowns as he gazes at me. “You have nothing to worry about, Layne. You’re gorgeous, successful, and—”
I hold up one hand, stopping him. “I have everything to worry about. I’m thirty-four years old. If I don’t have a baby soon, I may lose my chance for good. Did you know that a woman’s reproductive health declines drastically at age thirty-five?”
I expect him to make some noise of agreement or sympathy, or maybe offer a bit of encouragement. Instead, his face contorts into a frown.
“That’s what this is about?” he asks, a line forming in his forehead. “Your desire to become a mom?”
I nod. “Of course.”
“Fuck, okay then, that’s easy.” He blows out a breath as he says this. Then he leans forward, meeting my gaze with a serious expression. “Let me give you what you want. I can put a baby in you.”
The tequila must be hitting me harder than I thought, because I think Griffin just suggested he be my baby daddy. There’s absolutely no way he suggested that. But one look at his face tells me this has nothing to do with tequila and he is dead serious.
I sit there for a moment in stunned silence. Then my hazy, alcohol-soaked mind starts going a mile a minute, racing with all the reasons this is a very bad, very crazy idea.
“Griff . . .”
He grins wickedly. “Fully functioning baby maker,” he points to his crotch, “right here.”
I roll my eyes and chuckle at him.
“Look, before you say anything, hear me out. I’m not saying we need to get married, or anything. Hell, you don’t even have to date me and I can simply be Uncle Griffin. You said your clock is going to run out in a few years, and I know how important being a mom is to you. I could help. All I’m suggesting is a simple transaction that’ll lead to something miraculous. The oldest one in the book, really.”
