BPOV

"Okay, what about him?" I pointed to one of my regular patrons. He was cute, he had a stable job, and a sweet, yet dominant personality. I knew she'd absolutely hate him—at least as a boyfriend—which was what I was going for.

I had thought Edward was certifiable when he'd proposed his side of the bet. But as the days went on and I spent almost all of my free time with him, the more I could see us having a baby together. It was the little things that were opening my eyes to the gentle nature that hid behind his overbearing personality.

There were times he looked at me as if I could do no wrong. He'd press soft kisses to my eyelids every time before we parted, causing butterflies to erupt in my belly. He made me feel something no other man ever had; he made me feel cherished, like I was the most valuable woman in the world.

Of course, then he'd open his mouth, say something utterly ridiculous and I'd want to slap him. But that was a part of my desire to be with him, as well. I loved the push and pull of our relationship.

Rose turned on her stool, squinting. "The tan, muscled guy with the long hair? Eh…I mean, he's not too bad. What's his name?"

"Jake. He's twenty-six, a personal trainer who works in classic cars on the weekends. He's a good guy."

"Classic cars, I like that. At least we'll have that in common. Sure, set it up."

I clapped my hands, jumping in place. "Great! Yay! Oh, you're going to get along so well!" I was lying through my teeth, but hopefully, Rose couldn't tell. "Have you heard from Edward? Has he set you up with anyone yet? He won't tell me anything."

She shrugged, taking a long drink from her glass, attempting to stall on answering. "Um, I mean, yeah. He's already set me up on three dates. They were okay, but nothing special. Honestly, they were a little…pretentious for my taste. Not that I'm not a classy chick, but one of them took me to the opera, Bella. The opera! I've never felt so out of place. Hopefully, this Jake guy will be better."

"Don't you worry, Rose. I know what you're looking for. You want to be treated like a lady, but you also want someone who's down to earth and shares your interests. I got you, girl. What days are you free, so I can let Jake know?"

"I have a lot of work to catch up on, so nothing during the week. I'm only free Sunday. Edward has a date set up for me on Saturday."

"Sunday it is then! I'll get all the details worked out and have Jake call you."

Rose nodded before leaning her head in her hand. "This is way more exhausting than I thought it would be. I didn't realize how much effort I'd have to put into all of this, with getting ready and listening to these guys go on and on."

I could feel my heartbeat quicken as panic set in. I couldn't have her giving up now. "You can't think that way, Rose, this is important. I have—I mean, you have a lot riding on this."

Her eyebrows raised, and she gave me that "don't bullshit me" look. "What exactly aren't you telling me? I know you two have some sort of bet going on, depending on whose guy I pick, but I don't know what the wager is. Is he wanting you to do something super embarrassing?"

"Um…"

"Oh, come on, you can tell me! I'm your best friend!" She grinned, leaning in close.

I fidgeted in my spot, chewing on my lip. "It's um…well…"

"Oh, just spit it out, Bella! It can't be that bad."

"Well, if he wins, he wants us to have a baby together."

Rose sat there for a moment, just staring at me. I couldn't quite tell what she was thinking from her expression—aside from the look of shock on her face. "I…wait, you…oh, my God! And you agreed to this? Are you fucking insane! Now I definitely can't choose one of his guys! You can't—oh my God!"

"You choose whoever you want, Rose! One of his guys or one of mine, you do what's best for you. I…can I be honest with you?"

"You can tell me anything, Bella."

I glanced around the mostly empty bar. It was unlikely that anyone would need anything in the immediate future, and if they did, Harry could handle it. "Come on, let's go talk in the office."

—MM—

Rose propped herself on the edge of my desk. "So, what's going on?"

"Okay, so when he proposed the idea of having a baby together, I reacted exactly how you did. Because I mean, what the fuck, you know? But as time has gone on, I've gotten more and more comfortable with the idea. I'm almost excited? I never really thought about being a mom, but now that the idea has been planted, I keep seeing babies everywhere and thinking about how much I want that."

"You really are insane. You hardly know him, Bella! What if he's a psychopath? Who proposes that as a bet?"

I sighed heavily, sinking back into my chair. "Someone who desperately wants a family, someone who wants to be loved but doesn't know how to get it for themselves. He's not a psychopath…he's a really great guy, Rose."

"So, are you telling me you want to throw the competition? That you want me to just pick one of his guys? Why bother setting me up with this Jake guy?"

I had the decency to look sheepish. "Because you'd hate him?"

"Seriously?" She glared at me.

"I'm sorry. I should have been honest with you. But I was afraid you'd think I was crazy!"

"You are crazy!" she shouted, standing and pacing the small space of my office. "God, Bella, are you serious? Are you sure? He has a lot more money than you do. What if it doesn't work out between you two and he decides he wants full custody? What do you do then?"

"He's not like that—"

"You've known him for a little over a month. You don't know that. Look, I understand this need you're having. No one understands it better than I do, you know that. But if you're going to do this, you need some sort of written agreement, like a prenup, but for having a baby together."

"A custody agreement?" I smirked.

"Yes! I couldn't think of the words. You've got me so frazzled. You need a custody agreement signed and notarized."

"Fine, I see your point."

"Good. I can't believe you're going to have a baby!"

Knowing that Rose was on my side, I breathed a sigh of relief. "That's the hope."

—MM—

"So, I heard three of your dates for Rose were a total flop." I turned, smirking at Edward, who sat beside me on my couch. "I thought you were in this to win this, Masen."

"Oh, sweetheart, I am. I'm saving my best for last. After Saturday, she's going to tell you to cancel the date you've got set up for her. I have to admit, I'm kind of shocked that this is the first date you've set her up on. I thought you'd be playing a much harder game."

I schooled my features, trying not to let him see through my facade. "I don't need to set her up on a bunch of crappy dates just to make my guy look better in comparison. I hope you've figured out if you're more of an autumn or spring color palette."

He chuckled, before pulling me close to him. His lips trailed the length of my jaw before reaching my earlobe, which he nipped and sucked at lightly. "And I hope you're ready to admit defeat and throw away your birth control pills, because I'm going to win," he whispered, before standing and leaving me wanting in my spot.

I took a deep breath, calming myself. A grin spread across my lips. Little did he know, that was the new plan.

—-

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