Ties That Bind Us

We Meet By Chance

Callum drove at a speed limit that was only a tad bit illegal. He was angry and he wanted to vent out his frustration so badly. How could his mum have decided to put him in such a tight position, she had gone ahead to demand his baby as her birthday gift. Callum thought this to be preposterous.

His mind was in disarray for two reasons. One,he had no idea where he would find a girl that would be wiling to be his surrogate without any hidden motives. He knew that women usually only flocked around him because he was wealthy and he hated that. Two,the problem of finding such a girl in such short time was another bother. He exhaled tiredly, not knowing how to approach the matter. He had thought of making Ariel,his surrogate but when he thought about it carefully, he knew it would be a bad decision. He knew all too well that Ariel was very much in love with him and she would quickly grab the opportunity to bare his child. He didn't want to hurt her more than he already had because involving her in a matter as delicate as baring his child would only cause her to have more expectations of him which he knew he would be unable to fulfill. 

He didn't want a love relationship, only someone who would birth his child, get paid and get out his life forever. He knew that Ariel would happily accept his conditions because she would have some hope that he would fall in love with her burnt he wouldn't, he would only break her heart in the end and she deserved better. That was absolutely the reason why he needed to have his child with a stranger, it would be just a contract with no feelings attached.

His mind was so occupied by the thought that he didn't see the girl that was running across the road,tears in her eyes and confused as hell. When his eyes came in contact with the girls,he swiftly applied the brakes of his car and luckily, the car stopped,only missing her by a few inches. The girl slumped on the ground and he quickly rushed out of his car,afraid that he had hit her.

He went to her and took her in his arms,quickly checking if any damages had been done. He was glad to find out that he hadn't hit the girl,she seemed to have fainted from shock or something else because he couldn't help but notice that she had tears in her eyes. That wasn't the only observation he made,he also found her to be very beautiful and couldn't help but wonder why such a young and beautiful girl would run into the road like that. By then,a small crowd of people had gathered and they all seemed worried about the girl.

He quickly carried her bridal style and took her into his car so he could take her to the hospital, she seemed to have suffered minor cuts due to the fall and taking her to the hospital for medical care was the least he could do. At least, it would cancel out police involvement and his reputation would be saved,it was already so fragile.

He drove to the hospital quickly, only taking his eyes off the road to check on the still unconscious girl carefully laid on the backseat of his car. Immediately he arrived the hospital, he demanded that she be given a thorough check up and a stretched quickly came and wheeled her away.

About an hour later,the doctor approached him and revealed that the girl was completely fine,she had only suffered minor injuries which had already been taken care of. He also told Callum that she had woken up so he could go see her. Callum thanked the doctor and exhaled before walking into the hospital room.

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Allegra opened her eyes weakly but quickly shut them back due to the brightness of the sun that washed in on her face,through the widow. After trying a second time, she was able to steady her vision. She looked around and tried to decipher where she was through her surroundings. The blue curtain, the medical devices all around and the not so exciting smell of disinfectant instantly gave away the fact that she was in a hospital.

She tried to remember why she was here and when she did,she quickly stood up from the bed despite the slight ache that was starting to develop in her head. The nurse rushed in to stop her,cautioning her that she desperately needed rest,having fainted from shock. She tried to explain her problem to the nurse but the older woman was willing to hear none of it and Allegra was forced to lie back in bed when the doctor finally intervened.

She couldn't help but feel angry at the person who had caused her to land in the hospital, cooped up like a child when she was supposed to be out there,looking for ways to get money so she could save her mother. About a few minutes later, the door opened and a breathtakingly handsome man in a black suit walked into the room. She couldn't help but look away shyly when her eyes came in contact with his ocean blue eyes that seemed like a deep void. "I'll quickly leave you with your wife sir,call me if she needs anything." The nurse said and quickly excused herself from the room, leaving both of them alone. Allegra blushed at being referred to as the wife of this gorgeous man but her face quickly scrunched in a frown when her brain finally registered that he must be man who was responsible for her being here due to his reckless driving.

"Are you OK? How do you feel?" He asked with a bored look and Allegra threw a glare at him. He was busying behaving as if asking about her welfare was something he was forced to do. "I'm not fine actually." She threw,laying back on the bed to relax a bit.

He looked at her like she had just said gibberish before finally replying. "I don't get it,what do you mean by you're not fine? The doctor just said you were perfectly fine,except for some minor injuries which you sustained." Callum said, not quite understanding what she was getting at. She glared at him spitefully.

"Forget whatever the doctor said. I'm the patient and I'm the only one who can tell how I really feel. I'm telling you right now that I'm not fine. I'm not fine because the most important thing in my life has been taken away from me. I'm currently in such a dilemma and it's all your fault, were you sleeping while you were driving? Didn't you see that I was crossing the road?" She asked, desperately needing to vent her frustration.

"Excuse me? You were the one who ran into the road without looking, you're the cause of all this. I'm going through a hard time and instead of heading home to rest after such a long day at work, I'm stuck here,having to make sure yourself even though this is all your fault." He threw back angrily, he hated it when other people blamed him for their own mistake.

"What do you mean this is my fault? You were the one who nearly ran me over with your car." She accused, tears starting to form at the edge of her eyes. "I almost ran you over but I didn't, thanks to my sharp vision but you,what were you thinking running into the road like that? Did you have a death wish? Is your problem that big that you've resorted to commit suicide? What exactly is your problem anyway?" Callum shouted at her thoughtlessly.

Allegra didn't realize when she burst into tears as the thoughts of the events that had taken place that day and the bad news the letter had revealed came rushing into her mind. Callum instantly became confused at her sudden mood swing. Just a minute ago,she had been arrogant with him and now she was crying? He couldn't help but wonder if she was really in some sort of trouble.

He decided to tread cautiously. "I'm sorry if what I said hurt you,it was not my intention." He apologized and she gazed at him before sniffing and wiping away her tears. "It's OK, it's not your fault. I guess it's just my bad luck." She said as more tears strode down her cheeks.

Callum couldn't help but be worried about her now,especially when she was saying such scary and ambiguous things. "I'm sorry to intrude but I can't help but feel worried about you. You seem to have a problem and I would like to help. Just tell me what the issue is and I promise to help where I can." Callum promised, shocked at his own words. Where was all this sympathy and kindness coming from?

He had always know he wasn't one to show empathy but somewhere deep within, he felt inclined to help this girl with whatever her problem was. "Why should I even tell you? I don't know who you are or what your intentions may be." She said and bit her bottom lip softly. It was something she did from habit.

"Sorry about that, I haven't introduced myself yet. My name is Callum Knight and you are?" He introduced and asked. "I'm Allegra Winston." She revealed and he took her hand in his and kissed it in a gentlemanly type of way,she looked away shyly. "This is one heck of an introduction, don't you think?" She asked with a small laugh.

"I guess. So can you tell me what the problem is now?" He questioned and she hesitated a bit,finding it hard to discuss something so serious with a total stranger but somewhere deep down,she just felt she could trust him. After asking a second time, she finally opened up and narrated everything to him in tears. He said nothing for a few minutes and she instantly began regretting even telling him but his next line of words took her by surprise.

"I'm willing to give you the fifteen million dollars needed for your mother's release." He deadpanned and she starred at him in utter shock. She knew there had to be a catch but she tried to keep an open mind and maintain control.

"What do you want in return?" She asked, expecting the worst.

"A child." He simply said.