His Surrogate For Hire: A BWWM Pregnancy Romance (9 page)

Diana sat quietly as she let the information sink in.

"I didn't mean that. I know how it happened, Di. What's next for
the two of you?"

Diana shrugged. "I don't know. We haven't discussed it yet."

Teresa snickered. "You haven't discussed it yet? What is there
to discuss? The two of you have now been intimate and you should take
things from there."

"I don't know if it's that easy, Teresa. I wasn't anticipating
any of this happening."

"It's obvious you weren't prepared for any of this. But it's
happening. What are you going to do about it?"

"I really don't know, Teresa. I'm not sure there is anything I
can do."

Massaging her temples, Diana tried to think about what she could do
to either move things along, or make things more clear as to where
the two of them stood.

"You are living in the man's house, about to have his baby. You
mean to tell me that does not entitle you to ask a few questions and
set a few boundaries?"

She hated to admit her friend may be right. "I guess I can see
where you are coming from on this, Teresa. Maybe I should ask a few
questions. You just may be right."

The phone went silent.

"Hello?" Diana said, trying to make sure there was no
disconnection.

"I'm still here," Teresa replied. "I was just marking
this date on the calendar."

"Why?" Diana asked.

"It's the day that you finally admitted I was right."

"Bye Teresa."

"I'll talk to you later."

They ended the phone call. Diana's mind was spinning, trying to
figure out what she would do next. Then it dawned on her. Clay had
taken her away on a mini vacation in order to help her to relax, get
rid of stress. There was no reason to put the stress back on herself.
She had read somewhere that the majority of stress was caused by
internal conflict, not external issues. She was causing herself the
internal conflict and there was no reason to.

All she had to focus on was getting pregnant and maintaining the
pregnancy. It was times like this that she had to continue to remind
herself why she was here. The number one reason was not to fall in
love.

Clay had been on the road for the past few weeks. It had been almost
a month since their vacation weekend. They still had not had the
conversation about where the two of them stood with each other or
where they wanted it to go.

This morning, she was just praying that the insemination process
would result in a positive pregnancy. She had her fingers crossed the
entire week, in anticipation of the appointment. She lay back on the
examination table, ready for the doctor to get started with the exam.

"Ms. Baker, so good to see you again."

"Thanks Dr. Carroll. Good to see you."

The doctor stood there with a smile holding the clipboard. "I've
got good news for you."

Diana looked at the doctor curiously. "Okay. Let's here it."

"You are pregnant."

She heard the words coming from the doctor's mouth, but she did not
understand what she said exactly.

"Can you say that again?"

"Yes, you are pregnant."

"Wait. I came in today for the insemination."

Dr. Carroll nodded. "You did. But we always run a screening
first to detect any possible pregnancy. And you are indeed pregnant.
We need to just do a little more and see how far along you are."

Diana held her hand up. "I just need a second."

Dr. Carroll gently rubbed her on the arm. "I know it was not
expected. But isn't it the result you intended?"

The doctor paused. "Does Mr. Marshall know?"

Diana knew exactly what it was the doctor was asking her. "He
does not just yet. I think he will be happy to know it."

"Why don't we go ahead with the exam and I will get you some
pictures on the sonogram to take back with you."

Diana watched on the screen until the tiny baby showed up. Her heart
filled with love, a feeling of fulfillment that she had never
experienced before. She stared at the screen which became blurry when
tears filled her eyes. Diana used the edge of her gown to wipe her
tears away.

She listened as the doctor told her all about how far along she was
and gave her some tips on diet, sleep, and exercise.

"So did you not notice you were pregnant?" Dr. Carroll
asked as she ripped the sonogram pictures off and passed them to
Diana.

"I really didn't. But then again, I've never been pregnant
before so I would not know what signs to look for."

"You may have some nausea from morning sickness in the first
trimester. Eat, but keep track of your weight. I know most people
like to carry on that they are eating for two, but truthfully, you
should pay attention to your weight to avoid gestational diabetes.
I'll give you some literature."

Diana stared at the sonogram picture, trying to take it all in.

"Diana, you will be just fine. We will see you every four weeks
for your visits."

Dr. Carroll left her there to let the information sink in. Diana ran
her fingers over the edge of the sonogram. Just as she was starting
to get attached, she remembered she was in this as a surrogate. But
she wondered if things would change due to the circumstances under
which the baby was conceived.

*****

Diana was not yet ready to tell Charlotte or Clay for that matter.
She knew Clay would not be back home for another few days so she had
some time to spare. She wanted to keep a little for herself for a
moment before she shared the news.

Finally, after all of the stress and the wondering, she was pregnant.
That was what the entire journey was all about. Getting pregnant and
having the baby for the billionaire playboy. And while waiting for
the baby to arrive, the agreement was she would live in luxury and
have all of her needs taken care of. It was a good deal, one she
thought she could see through when she first started. The amount of
money being offered was more than she'd ever seen in her life at one
time. Definitely the kind of gig that could get her back on the right
track.

There were a few things she had not counted on. The immediate bond
she felt with the baby as soon as the pregnancy was confirmed and
falling for Clay. She had all of this planned out, using the
opportunity as a stepping stone toward her future. Diana had a desire
to get out of the career she was in for a while. Her plan was to use
the money from Clay and take some classes while she was pregnant, get
a new certification, and then go and start over again.

She had not anticipated falling for Clay and his lifestyle. When she
agreed to all of this, she thought it would be simple to just detach
herself from all of it and remain aloof. But that was hard to do when
Clay was so charming. He showed genuine concern for her and her
thoughts and feelings. She had not anticipated the conversations and
the ability to get to know one another better. Her assumption was he
would never be around and she would be there at the mansion on her
own with Charlotte, have the baby, and then it would be back to
normal.

That was not exactly how it happened. None of her plans had gone as
she imagined. When she had not gotten pregnant, there was a stress, a
longing to fulfill the contract she signed. Now that there was a life
growing inside of her, it felt like a bit more than just a contract.
At least, that was what she wanted it to be. More than just a
contract.

Teresa had been trying to convince her to ask Clay what was going on
between the two of them. But Diana had not been able to find the
right words. Could she simply ask 'what are we doing?' or should it
be something more like 'am I a little more to you than just your
surrogate?' What Diana did not want to do was assume because he took
her on a vacation for the weekend that meant they were something to
each other that they were not. Sex and attraction was not enough to
slap a label on it and call it a committed relationship.

Diana was mature enough to know that, and also smart enough to know
she was under a contract for the surrogacy so of course that would be
what would come before any feelings that may, or may not, have
developed between the two of them.

When she woke up, she wanted to have all of her meals in her suite,
but decided maybe it would be better to eat outside at the gazebo in
the garden. Getting some fresh air would help her clear her mind.
Diana let the chef know she would be eating outside, before going out
to the garden to see what was newly blooming.

The warm air felt good against her skin. It would be fall very soon
and she would miss the summer weather. The baby was due in early
spring, giving her plenty of time to get a plan in order for her life
post partum.

Diana thanked the chef when he brought her lunch to the gazebo.
Steamed vegetables, grilled salmon, and roasted potatoes. She asked
to skip the wine and opted for sparkling water instead.

Alone with her thoughts and the roses, Diana ate her lunch in peace.
The sun felt invigorating on her face as she closed her eyes and held
her face up to the sun. She decided it would be good to go over and
lounge on the swing for the rest of the afternoon with her tablet so
she could catch up on some reading and possibly surf the internet to
get enrolled in some of the classes she wanted to take.

Diana decided she would like to keep this kind of pace in life. There
was no reason for her to have to give up the calm she now felt. Being
here at the mansion showed her she could do anything if she put her
mind to it. Clay told her the story about how hard he worked and how
often he had to go against the naysayers.

There would be a lot of hard work, but she had to do it. To have such
a great opportunity at hand and not take full advantage would be
insane. Numbers had always been a passion of hers and she wanted to
go ahead and get some classes under her belt for accounting. Nine
months would be plenty of time to get some classes completed.

Sitting on the swinging chaise, Diana got a great view of the entire
backyard. The land, with expertly manicured lawns and the topiaries
in the gardens, the gazebo down by the pond, all of it was
breathtaking. It was the kind of just reward for the kind of hard
work and sacrifice Diana knew Clay put in.

Right then, the desire was there to make a life for herself, a life
bigger than what she originally had in mind. Diana logged off of the
tablet, sat back and rocked on the swing.

She could see the gardener turn around to talk with someone. Craning
her neck to see, she saw Clay walk up behind the gardener. The two
men spoke for a moment and then Clay looked up, seeing her across the
way on the swing. Clay threw his hand up, waving to her. She returned
the greeting, waving back.

Clay made his way across to her. Her heart began racing just as she
realized she would have to tell him she was pregnant. Not knowing
exactly what to say, she thought it best to just start a regular
conversation and take her time divulging the information.

"This is the perfect place to be right now. The weather could
not be more beautiful." Clay smiled as he took a seat next to
her on the swing. The spicy scent of his cologne floated on the warm
breeze. It had become a comforting scent around the house.

"It is a beautiful day. That's why I thought I should have lunch
outside. Then it was too nice to go in, so I sat out here, reading
and relaxing."

"Relaxing. Just what I need you to do." His smile was wide,
full of happiness.

"I have learned to do that so much more. Thank you."

They sat swinging, neither of them talking about what was on their
minds. The words were welling up in Diana's throat, on the verge of
spilling forth. She knew he would be happy to know she was pregnant.
That was what he wanted so badly in the first place. Why was it so
hard for her to just say it?

Clay looked at her, and it was as if his green eyes were seeing right
through her.

"Diana, come on, out with it. It looks like you have something
you want to tell me."

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "Is it that
apparent?" she asked, opening her eyes to look at him.
Nervously, she brushed the hair back that was tumbling in to her
eyes.

"Kind of," he chuckled.

There were all types of thoughts running through her head on how she
could explain to him that she was pregnant. On television, the woman
always did something cute to get the man's attention and let him know
she was pregnant. She was all tapped out of ideas here. This would
just have to be very simple.

"I went in to see Dr. Carroll today to prep for another round of
in vitro."

Clay inched closer to her, taking her hand in his. His expression was
hopeful, eyes sparkling with a glimmer of optimism.

"So? How did everything go?"

Diana squeezed his hand. The trouble with telling him she was
pregnant was not so much about how he would react to the news. She
knew he would be happy about the pregnancy. It was the part where he
figured out the conception occurred the natural way that made her
wonder how he would react.

"Everything went just fine. I'm healthy. Dr. Carroll gave me a
clean bill of health." Diana hoped her response came across cool
and calm.

"That's great. So when do you go for the next round?"

"That's where the good news comes in."

An eyebrow raised, Clay asked more questions.

"Good news? What good news?"

Diana could not figure out another way to say what needed to be said.
All she could come up with was simply blurting out the answer.

"So," she paused, drawing out the word as she spoke. Seeing
the anxiety showing on Clay's face, she went ahead and blurted out
the news.

"I'm pregnant."

He looked stunned, then when the words sank in, his eyes widened and
he bolted upright from the swing.