The Offering by Angela Hunt Read Free Book Online

I’ll be under the árbol de vida. ”
    I sat perfectly still, listening to the rumble of heavy trucks, until the transmission blinked out.
----
    Two days later, as I stood in the living room trying to encourage Marilee to play the cheesy practice keyboard on loan from the school, the clump of boots on the porch stairs distracted me. I squeezed Marilee’s shoulder. “Guess who’s home?”
    â€œDaddy!”
    Marilee abandoned her keyboard and ran toward the front door,with me only a few steps behind her. Gideon and Snake stood on the porch, both dressed in camo, both grinning. Gid winked at me. “I hope you don’t mind that I brought someone home for dinner.”
    My heart flipped over like it always did when he looked at me that way. “You could have brought an entire platoon and I wouldn’t care. I’m just happy to see you.”
    Gideon caught Marilee as she leapt into his arms, then stepped into the house to swing her in a circle. She giggled and lifted her hands for more when he put her down, but he reached out and pulled me into an embrace.
    â€œWhat’s gotten into you?” I asked after he kissed me soundly.
    â€œShh.” He glanced over his shoulder and told Snake to make himself at home; he’d be back in a minute. But first he wanted to talk to me.
    While Snake sat on the sofa and entertained Marilee, Gideon led me into the kitchen. “Okay, I’ve been thinking about it,” he said, his eyes dark and earnest. “And the way you talked about us having our own house . . . I want that, too. When I get out of the military, more than anything I want a normal life for us and our kids.”
    â€œWhen you get out?” I pronounced the words carefully, testing his meaning. Gideon often talked about the music store he wanted to open when he was free of the military, but he had never given me any idea of when that might be.
    â€œI’m not going to re-up. I’m going to finish the two years I have left, then I’m done. I’m walking away.”
    I stared, momentarily unable to imagine Gideon as anything but a soldier. His skill, training, and heightened awareness permeated every aspect of his being, so how could he set aside part of his personality?
    â€œDid you hear what I said?” His hands fell on my shoulders and gave me a little shake. “I want out, Mandy, I want to be around to put my kids to bed and make more babies with you.”
    â€œDid you say babies ? As in more than one?”
    â€œYeah, I want as many as we can handle. So what I’m saying isthat I’ve been thinking a lot about your idea. I even asked some of the guys what they thought about it. I checked out some stuff on the Internet and—”
    â€œWhat are you saying?”
    â€œI’m saying your idea might be okay. I’m trying to understand how that sort of thing operates.”
    I caught my breath, surprised by the intensity in his voice. “I’ve been thinking, too. And I’m not going to pursue it if you’re going to hate seeing me pregnant. I need to know you’ll be comfortable with the situation.”
    A wry smile crept into Gideon’s voice. “You’re sure it’s not illegal? Everything’s on the up-and-up?”
    â€œIt’s legal, but not everyone approves of surrogacy.” The words came out in a rush, so I paused to let them sink in. “Here’s how it works: the baby will be the couple’s biological child, but they’ll pay me to carry it until it’s born. For my part in the arrangement, I’m pretty sure I could earn as much as you do in a year.”
    Gideon’s smile twisted. “That can’t be right.”
    â€œIt is; I’ve done a lot of research. And we won’t incur any expenses, since we’re covered under your health insurance. Everything I need will be supplied by the other couple.”
    Snake and Marilee laughed in the