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“Yep, four of them,” I said, digging out the ultrasound photo the tech had printed for us. I showed Ava each baby as they had done for us earlier.
“Four babies?” Ava said again, her voice cracking. “But how, I don’t understand.”
“That’s the risk with fertility drugs and multiple implantations,” I replied.
Ava still looked stunned, taking the photo from my hand and bringing it closer to her face as if to get a better view. She stared at it for a long time as I chuckled to myself.
“I couldn’t believe it either. Hell, I still can’t believe it,” I said.
Gabe cleared his throat. “This means the pregnancy is going to be high-risk, so to make sure Bella is as safe and comfortable as possible, I’ve asked her to move in with us.”
Ava looked up from the photo and remained stoic. Perhaps it was shock. Perhaps it was something more. Ava had struggled with me being her brother’s surrogate initially, and she had just started coming around to the idea. She said it was a little strange that her best friend was having her brother’s baby, especially knowing that I’d had a lifelong crush on him.
She turned toward me, unblinking. “Wow, this is all just—wow.”
“Can you give us a minute?” I asked Gabe.
“Of course, I’ll be inside. I can show you where you’ll be staying as soon as you’re ready,” he said.
Gabe headed up the stairs, leaving Ava and I alone in the front yard. She handed the photo back to me, and at first, she wouldn’t even look me in the eye.
“Ava, if this is too weird for you, I’m sure we can come up with something else.”
“Too weird? No, I love the idea of you staying here under the same roof as me. I’ve always thought of you as a sister, it’s just...” she trailed off.
“What?”
“It’s just, I’m still struggling with the idea that you’re having my brother’s baby, well, babies, and while I know it’s just a professional arrangement, I worry that with your hormones and your feelings for Gabe, that things could get… messy.”
“They won’t get messy, Ava. I’m grown enough to know that Gabe and I will never happen outside of my dreams. Even pregnancy hormones won’t convince me otherwise.”
“I just don’t want you hurt, Bella. I love you both more than life itself.”
“I appreciate that, Ava. I wouldn’t have signed up for this if I thought I would end up hurt.”
“I sometimes feel bad that I mentioned my brother’s plans to you in the first place, knowing that you were already looking into egg donation and what not to pay for school. I knew you were desperate to find a way and it was like I dangled a carrot right in front of your face.”
I placed a hand on Ava’s arm and smiled at her. “You presented me with the opportunity of a lifetime, one that I’m grateful for, and I know Gabe is too. You’ve helped both of our dreams come true by telling me about Gabe’s decision to hire a surrogate.”
Ava bit her lip and stared up at me. “I hope so.”
“I know so,” I said. “And now, think of the fun we’re going to have living under the same roof for the next few months.”
“It will be nice having you here; I’ve missed you so much since you moved to Chicago.”
I pulled her into a hug. “I missed you too.”
“I have to leave for class soon but let me show you around a bit first.” She looped her arm through mine and together we walked up the stairs and into her brother’s home.
* * *
Ava showed me her room,which was on the second floor and overlooking the expansive garden and pool in the backyard. She had to rush off soon, so she handed me off to Gabe, whom we found in his office.
“Always working,” Ava muttered as we stepped inside the large room decorated in dark wood and leather. “You know, Gabe, with four kids on the way, you’re going to have to learn to step away from the desk now and then.”
“I already have plans in place to take more time off,” he said softly. “I’ve hired enough staff that I could retire right now and let them do all the work if I wanted to.”
“If you wanted to, that’s the key phrase,” Ava teased. She looked over at me. “I’ve always told him he’s never going to find a woman if he can’t pull himself away from work sometimes.”
