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I shrugged. “I guess I can come over every day to get what I need,” I said. “But, I hadn't really thought that far ahead about it to be honest.”
“Give me the bag of goodies,” Raya said.
I handed it over and she dug through it, pulling out the ovulation kit and examining everything else with it.
“Man, I can't imagine having sex and not trying to avoid pregnancy,” she laughed, tossing everything onto the table. Next, she pulled out the pills and read the label out loud.
“Clomid,” she said. “Huh.”
“Do you know what that is?”
“Yeah, it’s a fertility drug. My mom has taken these when she was a surrogate.”
She tossed them over to me and I read the label myself. The prescription was written out to a Cynthia Crane.
“Malcolm said he was giving me fertility drugs, just to increase our odds of conceiving.”
“It’s pretty common practice for surrogacy,” Raya said.
Raya finished digging in the bag and pulled out the pre-natal vitamins. Probably the simplest item in the bag. She read the label, then seeming to be bored with it all, put everything back in the paper bag.
“Sure, you can keep your crap here,” she said. “In fact, I have something better. You can even stay here for a bit.”
“Stay here?” I asked. “Don't you think this place would get crowded with two of us?”
“I'm not going to be here, dork,” she said. “My grandparents are sending me on a trip to Sedona so I can explore the Earth's energy vortexes there.”
“The what?” I asked and then when she opened her mouth to explain, I quickly added, “Never mind. Forget I even asked.”
“Anyway,” Raya said. “Since I'll be gone for a month or two, maybe you could watch my place? Not sure how
long I'll be gone, it all depends on how quickly I open my heart to the energy there. But, if you need a place to crash while you're trying to get knocked up, you're free to stay here.”
“Really?” I almost couldn't believe my luck. Away from my family for a couple of months? That would make things so much easier. “I could kiss you right now, Raya.”
“Hey, it's the least I can do. I'd hate for you to get pregnant while you're being confined over there,” she said. “The bad juju can't possibly be good for the baby.”
“Uh huh,” I said.
I laughed, feeling like maybe things were starting to look up for me for a change. Not only could I stash my stuff at Raya's, I had a place to stay without brothers and sisters barging in and asking questions about what I was doing. My phone went off, and I checked it. It was a reminder for my doctor's appointment that morning. I was dangerously close to running late.
“Shit, Raya, I have to go,” I said. “When are you leaving?”
“Tomorrow sometime. Not sure yet. I'm riding out there with a few friends,” she said. “So swing by later tonight to pick up the key, maybe?”
“Sounds great,” I said.
I pulled myself to my feet and felt like dancing. This was going to be like a vacation, one I clearly needed. In my mind, it was a sign that everything just might work out after all.
I hugged my best friend and ran for the door, trying not to trip over all the junk piled around on the floor. Raya wasn't the most organized person I knew, but she had to be one of the best friends a girl could have ever asked for.
I've never been one to believe in fate or shit, but things were lining up perfectly, and I couldn't have been more excited. Maybe it was a sign that I was doing the right thing.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
MALCOLM
Casey and I had kept in touch, mostly through text messages back and forth. I didn't want to pry and ask her about her damn cycle every single day.
