“I’ll find another doctor for you. We can get a second opinion. You know some of these doctors don’t know what the fuck they’re talking about,” I told her.
Saje was now weeping. “No, Reason. I have one of the best doctors in the country. She knows what she’s talking about. Baby, this is our reality. I’m a useless wife.” She cried harder. “I’ll never be able to carry my husband’s seed.”
I pulled Saje against my body and cupped her face in my hands. I kissed her, wishing I could soothe away any pain she felt.
“Did she tell you why?”
“Yes,” her voice lowered. “She said what I’m experiencing is premature ovarian insufficiency (POI).”
“Meaning?” I quizzed, confused about what that meant.
“Meaning, it’s early menopause. My ovaries stopped functioning normally. That’s why my periods are irregular, or sometimes it doesn’t come at all.”
“This is only a temporary hiccup. Saje, I love you regardless of what some doctor said.” I tried to comfort her, but I was talking to myself, too, because this was hitting me hard. “Baby, you ain’t have to go by yourself. Why didn’t you tell me? I would’ve gone there with you.”
Her lips quivered. “I thought I was going to hear good news. I had plans to surprise you and all.”
“It’s gon’ be aight, beautiful. This is something we both want, so I’ma find a way for us.”
Saje’s fake lashes fluttered rapidly.
“I got you. I got us.” I assured her, and I meant every word.
“Reason, I feel like I can’t breathe. After finding out this information, I need to go somewhere to clear my mind.” Saje backed away from me and rushed toward my office door.
I stood, quietly watching her. Seeing her this distraught didn’t make me feel comfortable letting her leave alone. When she realized I wasn’t budging, she turned around.
“Reason, I promise I’ll be okay. I need some alone time, and I’ll be back early enough to cook dinner for us tonight.”
“You worry about dinner. I got it,” I told her. She already had enough on her mind. “You sure going to the back house won’t help you? Baby, the spa, the gym, the indoor pool, the aquarium, the library, and everything else you need to make you feel relaxed is all right here.” I tried to sound convincing so she would stay home where I could keep an eye on her.
Saje massaged her temples. “Reason, I need to go for a drive, my love. I’ll be back.” She got on her tippy toes to kiss me.
It was hard backing down when all I wanted to do was protect her, console her, and not let her go through this alone. But despite how I felt, if alone time was what she needed to help her cope with the news she received, then I couldn’t do anything but respect that.
Saje walked out as sadness consumed me. I shook it off because right now, it wasn’t about me. I needed to make her feel good and show her that her man had her back regardless.
I sent Khésha a message to place an order. I needed the biggest and best flower arrangement to arrive at our mansion by the time Saje made it back home.
After she confirmed my order, I pulled up Basheer’s contact and called him.
He answered on the first ring. “Yo, Reason. I was just about to hit you up to tell you about this new talent I’ve found. They legit guaranteed to make us big bank.”
New talent was the last thing I wanted to hear about. “Bro, that ain’t what I called for.”
“My fault. What up?” Basheer went from sounding excited about sharing information about the new talent to sounding serious.
I didn’t mean to be rude, but my family came first. Business talk could happen later.
“Tell me about your childhood friend and his wife who own the surrogacy business.”
“Word? You serious?”
“As a muthafuckin’ heart attack,” I responded. I wouldn’t go into detail about my wife’s condition, but I needed to weigh all our options. My patience was wearing thin, so I blurted, “You know what? Just set up a phone meeting for me this week with them.”
“Aight, I’ll set that up.” He chuckled.
“What’s funny?”
