Prologue
The news crashed through Claire and her stomach sank like a cinder block in water.
Premature ovarian failure? How could that be?
At twenty-eight, she hadn’t found Mr. Right yet, hadn’t had children, hell, she was still a damn virgin. She’d always thought she had plenty of time.
“Is there any chance the results are wrong? A possibility that I can still have a baby?” She swallowed and looked at the doctor. His sympathetic brown gaze filled her with dread.
She trusted Doctor Johnson’s opinion. Knew damn well he was a good doctor. He’d been her gynecologist for years. Right now though, she wished he were wrong, wrong, wrong.
Regret gnawed at her heart, tears brimming in her eyes. She should’ve practiced healthier habits. Stopped eating lunch out almost every day at the taco joint she was addicted to. Exercised. Come in for regular, yearly check ups.
Maybe then she wouldn’t have the extra few pounds on her rear. Maybe she wouldn’t be having this problem.
Instead, she’d focused on her job as an accountant for a local company, neglecting her health, her social life.
Now…
“Is there anything I’ve done? Anything I can do?” Clouds of doom closed in around her. A sob choked her. Why hadn’t he replied to her last question? Was the answer so terrible? Could she ever have a baby?
“As far as I can tell, no. But don’t blame yourself, Claire. Sometimes we just get bad genes.” He gave a sympathetic shake of his head. “I’m afraid there isn’t a concrete 5
Alyssa Brooks
explanation in your case, but I’m confident with my diagnosis. You’re blood tests show your FSH levels elevated. Considering the hot flashes, nervousness and occasional missed periods you’ve experienced, premature menopause is setting in.”
“And as for having a family?”
“You need to see a specialist at this point, Claire. Hormone therapy and fertility treatments may help. Though, five to ten percent of women with POF can get pregnant naturally.”
6
Desperate Seduction
Chapter One
One, two, three.
Damn it. It wasn’t as if Blake’s door was going to bite her. Over the last few years, she’d knocked on it a hundred times.
One, two, three.
Oh, why couldn’t she bring herself to ring the bell? It wasn’t as difficult as she made it seem. All she needed to do was press a simple button and voice one simple proposition. A business proposal, really. No big deal.
Claire couldn’t look at it any other way. She needed to get pregnant. Blake would be the perfect father. They were friends. They loved each other. What was a little sex?
She groaned, running her hand through her hair as a cool fall breeze whipped it.
Since the other day her life had changed. Majorly. She’d seen the specialist and listened to the list of drugs and therapies presented as options. She’d considered everything.
Nothing appealed but this.
Again Claire counted to three, her finger hovering at the bell. But she couldn’t do it.
Tears brimmed in her eyes and she choked on overwhelming frustration. A sense of immediacy pulled her. Since she’d received the news, she felt as if she had no time left.
To think of the two years she’d squandered fretting over her ex. She’d given up on finding Mr. Right after her big break up with Mr. Wrong, a three-year relationship with a goody-goody who wanted to wait until marriage, but didn’t want to marry. Half a decade of wasted time that left her alone and a virgin.
Claire wanted to have a baby naturally, if she could. Now . Not in several years, if the medicine proved successful, if she found someone. What if her circumstances deteriorated? Maybe in five years she’d go to the doctor, in love and ready to get 7
Alyssa Brooks
pregnant, only to receive the news she couldn’t. It was too iffy to chance. This was the only way.
Last week, when she and Blake had met at the movies, there had been a moment…
His lips had hovered dangerously close to hers, his eyelids
The news crashed through Claire and her stomach sank like a cinder block in water.
Premature ovarian failure? How could that be?
At twenty-eight, she hadn’t found Mr. Right yet, hadn’t had children, hell, she was still a damn virgin. She’d always thought she had plenty of time.
“Is there any chance the results are wrong? A possibility that I can still have a baby?” She swallowed and looked at the doctor. His sympathetic brown gaze filled her with dread.
She trusted Doctor Johnson’s opinion. Knew damn well he was a good doctor. He’d been her gynecologist for years. Right now though, she wished he were wrong, wrong, wrong.
Regret gnawed at her heart, tears brimming in her eyes. She should’ve practiced healthier habits. Stopped eating lunch out almost every day at the taco joint she was addicted to. Exercised. Come in for regular, yearly check ups.
Maybe then she wouldn’t have the extra few pounds on her rear. Maybe she wouldn’t be having this problem.
Instead, she’d focused on her job as an accountant for a local company, neglecting her health, her social life.
Now…
“Is there anything I’ve done? Anything I can do?” Clouds of doom closed in around her. A sob choked her. Why hadn’t he replied to her last question? Was the answer so terrible? Could she ever have a baby?
“As far as I can tell, no. But don’t blame yourself, Claire. Sometimes we just get bad genes.” He gave a sympathetic shake of his head. “I’m afraid there isn’t a concrete 5
Alyssa Brooks
explanation in your case, but I’m confident with my diagnosis. You’re blood tests show your FSH levels elevated. Considering the hot flashes, nervousness and occasional missed periods you’ve experienced, premature menopause is setting in.”
“And as for having a family?”
“You need to see a specialist at this point, Claire. Hormone therapy and fertility treatments may help. Though, five to ten percent of women with POF can get pregnant naturally.”
6
Desperate Seduction
Chapter One
One, two, three.
Damn it. It wasn’t as if Blake’s door was going to bite her. Over the last few years, she’d knocked on it a hundred times.
One, two, three.
Oh, why couldn’t she bring herself to ring the bell? It wasn’t as difficult as she made it seem. All she needed to do was press a simple button and voice one simple proposition. A business proposal, really. No big deal.
Claire couldn’t look at it any other way. She needed to get pregnant. Blake would be the perfect father. They were friends. They loved each other. What was a little sex?
She groaned, running her hand through her hair as a cool fall breeze whipped it.
Since the other day her life had changed. Majorly. She’d seen the specialist and listened to the list of drugs and therapies presented as options. She’d considered everything.
Nothing appealed but this.
Again Claire counted to three, her finger hovering at the bell. But she couldn’t do it.
Tears brimmed in her eyes and she choked on overwhelming frustration. A sense of immediacy pulled her. Since she’d received the news, she felt as if she had no time left.
To think of the two years she’d squandered fretting over her ex. She’d given up on finding Mr. Right after her big break up with Mr. Wrong, a three-year relationship with a goody-goody who wanted to wait until marriage, but didn’t want to marry. Half a decade of wasted time that left her alone and a virgin.
Claire wanted to have a baby naturally, if she could. Now . Not in several years, if the medicine proved successful, if she found someone. What if her circumstances deteriorated? Maybe in five years she’d go to the doctor, in love and ready to get 7
Alyssa Brooks
pregnant, only to receive the news she couldn’t. It was too iffy to chance. This was the only way.
Last week, when she and Blake had met at the movies, there had been a moment…
His lips had hovered dangerously close to hers, his eyelids
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