His Surrogate For Hire

Clay closed his eyes, as if he was deep in thought or meditating. It looked like the kind of thing that should not be disturbed, so Diana sat quietly waiting for his response.

“So we made this baby together?” Clay stared at her, asking a question that was truthfully more rhetorical in nature.

She nodded, unsure whether he was happy about it or exactly how he was feeling.

Clay took a seat next to her again. “This is great news.”

When he responded, Diana felt like she could finally exhale.

“I did not know how you would respond.”

A reassuring hand on her back, Clay tried to comfort her.

“I am so very happy right now. So very happy. Why would you think otherwise?”

Diana shrugged. “I don’t know.” She could see the opening for the conversation that they needed to have for so long.

“I was not sure what was going on between the two of us. Like where do we go from here? Or from where we were when we were on vacation?”

Clay recognized what Diana was trying to say.

“We have not talked about that. I guess we need to.”

Clay turned to her. “Please know I have been thinking about all of this. It’s not like it has not been on my mind.”

He paused, just long enough to know he had her full attention. “I gave up on finding love. Completely was over it. I always wanted the wife and the kids to come home to. But the more I worked, the less that seemed likely. It did not seem like I would ever find the right person to start that family with. So I thought about adopting, but as a traveling businessman, no matter how much money I had in the bank, it was hard to find an agency that would let a single man who lived life on the road adopt. So I opted for surrogacy. That seemed like the right option, especially because I wanted my child to be my own flesh and blood.

“And then it was a lot harder to find someone than I thought it would be. Then I found you. You were perfect. And then well, as you know, so much more happened than I anticipated. More than I think we both anticipated. I was not prepared to fall for you, Diana. But I did and I have to ask you to forgive me because I did not know how to approach the subject. So I just went back to work instead of addressing it sooner.”

To hear him finally admit what he had been thinking and feeling was a relief. It made her more comfortable with the way she felt. Finally, it felt like she could disclose all that she had been feeling for Clay as well.

“Hearing that makes me feel like I am not going crazy. I was not sure if we shared the same sentiments and it was difficult to figure out how to deal with what I was feeling.” Now that she had his attention, she thought it best to divulge all she had been thinking as well since they were laying everything out on the table.

“This was nothing more than a job for me. A gig that would help me make some changes in my life. Something that would help me to get to where I would like to be in my life for once. To know I could relieve some of the stress in my life by the sudden windfall would be great. To boot, I thought it would be nice to give someone something they really wanted in life. It’s not too often that you get the opportunity to do something like that for someone, especially something of this magnitude.

“I thought you would be some kind of pompous jerk that was incapable of carrying on a decent conversation without talking about himself and himself only. That was not the case. You were sweet and kind and seemed to genuinely care about talking with me. I had not met anyone like that in quite some time. Talk about refreshing.”

Clay laughed. “I get what you mean. Most people think I’ll be some kind of arrogant jerk. They are usually pretty surprised to find out I’m not.”

“I have to admit, I was glad to know you were someone that was easy to talk to. So when you invited me on vacation. I thought it would be a great opportunity to get to know each other more, especially with the arrangement we have made. Well, to find out there was some kind of attraction between us, I was not expecting that. Not from you and not from me.”

Clay took her by the hand. “Now that we are on the same page, what do you think should happen next?”

Diana shook her head. “I’m not sure. Usually I have the answers to these kinds of things, but I don’t know what to think. This is a bit more complicated than just dealing with a relationship.”

Clay’s forehead wrinkled. “I’m not sure that it has to be.”

“I don’t understand.” Diana wanted to hear him explain further. She did not want to assume anything that Clay would be thinking or feeling.

“Well, I’m thinking we need to go with the flow and let things work out the way they work out. If we both have feelings for one another, then let’s be okay with that and let those feelings lead us wherever they may lead us. I know, once again, that may not feel like a definitive answer, but I don’t think any one of us has all of the answers when it comes to love and relationships.”

“I can agree with you there, Clay. It’s really hard to deal with the unexpected and when it comes to relationships, I have not been the best in making decisions or choosing the right person.”

Clay squeezed her hand, holding on tightly. “Diana, I think the two of us have made the right decision and I think we know it. Maybe the problem is we are fighting it and that is what is causing the confusion.”

“Or maybe the fact that the baby was conceived the natural way and not through insemination makes it more complicated.”

Clay gazed into her eyes. “Why would that make it complicated?”

Diana dropped her eye contact, trying to find the right words to describe what she was trying to say.

“The insemination would make it less personal. Don’t you think it was something to the fact that the insemination was not successful, but the two of us had s*x and the baby you want so badly was conceived?” Diana posed the question, hoping Clay would get the point of why she was so confused. It was a fact that she had been pondering since that morning.

“Since the moment you told me, I’ve been thinking that.” Clay held up the sonogram.

“I’ve wanted a child of my own for a while now. Whether or not I had the woman to complete my life was in question. But now I get a child and the mother of that child happens to be a good woman, I woman I am interested in, and potentially falling for, I think it is okay if the program changes a bit. In fact, I think it has to.”

Diana could feel the tears pooling up. She was not sure how she could hold them back, but she managed.

“Thank you, Clay.”

“For what?” he asked with a smile.

She rubbed her hand on his cheek. “For being such a good guy and for changing this girl’s life.”

Clay tilted her chin up, their eyes meeting. His lips brushed hers lightly with a kiss. He smiled.

“Since we are giving out thank you’s, I guess one is in order for me as well.”

“For what?” Diana asked.

“For changing my life as well.”