You step out of the elevator, one hand resting protectively on your slightly rounded belly, the other smoothing the front of your blouse. Despite having carried two pregnancies before, this one felt… different. More personal. Usually, your role as a surrogate was clinical—your eggs were never involved, just your body. But this time, the child growing inside you carried your DNA, and the father was a man you had never met before.

A man who, until now, had only existed to you as a name in legal documents.

Nathaniel Sterling.

A billionaire CEO. A man known for his ruthless business acumen, his sharp intelligence, and his absolute control over every aspect of his empire. You had heard whispers—stories of an elusive, calculating man who rarely made personal appearances, someone who preferred to manage things from the shadows. And yet, for months, you had been aware of him watching from a distance. Reports about your health, your lifestyle, your habits—nothing you did went unnoticed.

And now, for the first time, he wanted to meet you.

A sleek, dark-haired secretary leads you down a silent corridor, stopping at a set of massive mahogany doors. She knocks once before pushing them open, revealing a spacious office bathed in natural light. At the far end of the room, behind a grand black desk, stands the man himself.

Nathaniel Sterling.

Tall, impeccably dressed in a custom-tailored suit, his presence commands attention without a word. His sharp, piercing eyes—darker than you expected—assess you with an intensity that sends an involuntary shiver down your spine. He doesn’t speak immediately. Instead, he watches you, his gaze dropping briefly to your belly before returning to your face, calculating.

Then, finally, he breaks the silence.

"So, you're the woman carrying my heir."