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I knew this would happen eventually, but knowing something in your mind and realizing it’s really happening are two different things. The first attempt at insemination had been so effortless that I almost forgot it had taken place, and I’d been warned that it might take several tries.
“Wow,” I said, not able to muster anything else.
She had me change into a gown so she could do a quick ultrasound, telling me there wouldn’t be much to see at this stage of the game. I didn’t want to see anything at any stage of the game, determined to keep myself separate.
She spread cool gel on my stomach and rolled the wand back and forth while looking at the screen. I watched her face, which remained relaxed, signaling everything was normal. That was all I needed to know.
A moment later, there was a rapid ticking behind the wavelike sound, and she nodded. “Heartbeat perfect,” she said, snapping off the machine before I could really get a good listen.
A heartbeat that wasn’t mine was emanating from me? Thankfully I was lying down because it made me a bit dizzy. She silently made some notes on her tablet before nodding briskly at me and telling me I was all done for now.
I breathed a sigh of relief when she handed me some towels to wipe off the goo. Everyone on the medical side was conscientious about keeping things brief and clinical, which was a bit alarming initially since they were so friendly otherwise. I grew to like it, though, since it helped me keep things straight in my mind. This was not my baby.
But holy cow, it wasababy. I was really pregnant.
“We’ll let the agency know,” she said, already halfway out the door. “Be sure to make your follow-up appointment before you leave.”
My brain fog cleared away as I thought about the next payment hitting my bank account within the next few days now that I was officially a surrogate. The shock kept me from feeling nauseous again, but as I made the next appointment, Alex gave me a sleeve of crackers and a bottle of water from a cupboard behind her desk.
“Stay hydrated and keep a little something on your stomach even if you feel awful. It really will help.”
“Is there anything I shouldn’t do?” I asked. My most strenuous job was cleaning Leo’s apartment, and even that wasn’t overly physical. But what if they told me to take things easy? I didn’t want to have to quit any of my jobs.
“Don’t wrestle any tigers,” she teased. “Other than that, just live your life normally.”
That was good to hear, especially since I was running late to Leo’s place. I nearly fell asleep on the bus over there from the strange, bone-deep exhaustion that had taken over me the last week or so. I dragged myself up the private elevator, sagging against the mirrored walls but not wanting to look at myself too closely for fear. I looked as limp as I felt.
Right before it stopped, I took a hard look at my midsection, pressing my oversized t-shirt flat, then shook my head. It would be months before I was showing, and even then, I was certain I could hide it from my employers. I’d need to take a bit of time off to recover after the birth, but I figured it would be a lot easier since I wouldn’t also be caring for a newborn.
Outside Leo’s door, I mustered all my energy to greet him with the same level of cheer he always showed me. His good nature always perked me up, but as tired as I was, I had to put on a facade today. It was of utmost importance that he didn’t suspect anything off, so he wouldn’t worry and try to make me herbal tea or something.
I found I had a smile on my face as I unlocked the door, thinking about my sweet boss’s caring nature. It was hard to believe I’d been a little unnerved by him the first time I met him, with his huge stature, serious, military haircut, and slight Russian accent, but he was really a big teddy bear. He wouldn't fire me even if he found out I was pregnant somehow. I'd keep my favorite job as long as I could still do the work.
Wow. I was really pregnant. If I hadn’t been running late, I would have taken a little time to sit and process it, especially the part where I had to tell Gran. The first few payments from the agency went to past due utilities and one of her medical bills, so she couldn’t argue it wasn’t a sound financial decision. I was also going to make her come clean about her secret doctor visits, and the prospect of that made my stomach roll over.
As I opened the foyer closet to pull out my work slippers, I glimpsed a man I’d never seen before, standing just inside the door of Leo’s office down the hall. It was already odd to see anyone other than the cook who came a few times a week to leave his refrigerator packed with meals, but this man had a menacing aura that made me pause. As big as Leo but older and with a scowl on his face that could have spoiled milk, his shirtsleeves were rolled up to reveal a beefy arm full of tattoos. He stood out in stark contrast to the luxurious apartment’s cream brocade wallpaper and gleaming marble floor.
I was frozen in place when I spied a gun in his hand and nearly fainted when another equally big guy who looked even more unsettling than the first pushed his way past him, also brandishing a gun. I opened my mouth and snapped it shut again, scooting into the hall closet as they both barreled toward the front door. I yanked my backpack off and groped around for my phone to call for help.
Leo stormed out after him, yelling in Russian and grabbing the second guy’s arm to get him to stop. I must have made a movement or a noise because Leo looked past him and spied me, half in the closet with my phone in my hand.
He rolled his eyes, of all things, and shook his head toward my phone. Don’t call for help? He certainly didn’t seem all that upset about this armed home invasion. I watched in horror as the three of them kept yelling in a language I couldn’t fathom two syllables of, soon figuring out that Leo was giving them instructions. One of them clearly disagreed with him, but after a moment, the two armed men rushed past me and out of the apartment.
This wasn’t normal. Not at all. So why was Leo gently taking my hand and pulling me out of the hall closet sanctuary as if it was?
“I’m really sorry, Sunshine,” he said. “Don’t give that another thought, okay?”
“They had guns,” I said. I was born and raised in New York and still had never seen one so close.
With a shrug and the grin that usually made me forget everything but his dimple, he folded his hand over my phone and took it out of my death grip before sliding it into my backpack.
“Sometimes the software business can get a little rough.” He turned a bit more serious, swearing softly under his breath as he looked at the front door the men had just slammed out of. “Seriously, though. It’s taken care of. You’re perfectly safe here.”
My stomach flip-flopped, and I tried to nod. Tried to stroll calmly past him to get to the guest bathroom at the end of the long hall. The only thing I succeeded in doing was leaning over and puking all over the floor.
Chapter 6 - Leo
The morning wasn’t going well at all. Burya refused to go out in the slight drizzle of rain and ended up having an accident on my bathroom rug. Annoying, but just more practice for fatherhood. As soon as I sat down with my first cup of coffee after getting the rug in the washing machine, an alarm alerted me that there was a breach on my personal server.
