Isabella: Our Adopted Baby

Chapter 4

$80,000? Did I hear her right?

I stopped where I was. $80,000 was a lot more than I had ever been offered at any job. Did I even deserve to make that much? They didn't even know how things would go between me and this Giovanni guy.

"We have a contract for you to sign. We offer a 30-day guarantee so our clients have the chance to get used to those who sign the contract. Once those 30 days are up, if you are not satisfied, you can terminate your contract and move on. You're only locked in for 30 days."

What would be the harm in signing it? If I didn't like this Giovanni guy and his rules, I could leave after 30 days. The money was too good to say no.

I turned around and walked back to her desk. "Do I get to meet this Giovanni guy before I sign the contract?"

Someone behind me cleared their throat. I turned to see a tall man in a gray suit standing in the doorway. His light hair was shaved close to his head as was his facial hair. He had his hands in his pockets. I hadn't even heard him walk up to the door and I was standing pretty close to it.

My eyes met his and I could understand, just from his gaze, why he was the one in charge. He had a large and dark presence. It wasn't scary but it was intimidating.

He was handsome. Someone with as much money as he supposedly did typically looked nice. This was no exception. I could smell a hint of a musky cologne coming from him.

He pulled his right hand from his pocket and held it out for me. "Giovanni Kingston."

I could hear he had an accent but I wasn't sure what kind it was. Maybe Italian? I wasn't good at determining the nationality of accents. I'd never traveled out of the country. I had never been to the West Coast. I wanted to be adventurous but I didn't have the money to be.

Slowly, I reached out and shook his hand. It was much bigger than mine and more tanned. "I'm Isabella. Uh, Lawson."

He nodded slowly and briefly glanced up at Jennifer. "Have a seat, Isabella."

"I'm okay to stand."

His eyes narrowed. "That wasn't a question."

I looked back at Jennifer. She was looking at something on her computer. I was sure she could hear us but she wasn't paying us any mind. It was like she didn't care what happened in her office or to me.

"Do I need to punish you for not listening?"

I looked back at Giovanni. He couldn't be serious. "Punish me? I'm not a child."

"You sign that contract and you will be my child. I can punish my child."

I rolled my eyes and pushed past him. I started towards the door. "I haven't signed the contract yet. I'm not going to if you think that I'm going to listen to you and act like I'm a child. That's insane."

"$80,000 isn't enough to convince you?"

I opened the door and turned to look at him. "I'm not selling myself for $80,000. Not when I don't get a say in what happens to me."

"Would you for $100,000?" Jennifer asked, surprising me.

I hesitated. I'd never seen so much money before. I wouldn't struggle to pay my bills with that kind of money. Honestly, anything was enough to cover what I needed it to.

"Have a seat, Isabella."

I let the door shut behind me and slowly made my way back to the chair I'd been sitting in prior to Giovanni entering the room. I watched him as he sat down in the chair beside me.

"We'll give you $100,000 for the first month that you're under contract. During the first month, you're unable to make changes to your contract. Giovanni wrote the contract so you will follow his rules. After that, if you choose to stay, we can renegotiate your contract so it suits you a little better. Giovanni, of course, will have a say. The contract won't be finished until you come to a resolution. But that's something we can discuss in 30 days."

I looked from Jennifer to Giovanni and back. "Do you do background checks?"

Her mouth twitched. "Yes. Adult Surrogacy is a legit operation. We do everything by the books."

"Do I have to stay the entire 30 days?"

She nodded. "If you breach your contract, you will owe us the agreed-upon amount. It's in your best interest to avoid that."

My eyes widened. I couldn't pay $100,000. I didn't have that kind of money. I didn't think I'd even had that much in my life. I was backed into a corner with no way out.

Jennifer handed a folder over to Giovanni and got to her feet. "Giovanni will go over your contract with you. When you're ready to sign, open the door and I will come back in."

I watched her walk out of the room. The door shut behind her slowly though it felt too fast. I didn't want to be stuck in a room with someone who was willing to punish me like a child. Who knew what else he would do to me?