The Married Billionaire’s Surrogate

“Two more months, honey,” she spoke to her growing stomach and sighed. Only two more months to decide what she would do with her life. It was not like she could lean on Steven anymore after he had lied to her. As much as she tried she couldn’t bring herself to trust him.

The sound of footsteps on the marble floor disturbed her thoughts and she abruptly turned back to see Elizabeth in her nightgown approaching her. It was already something past nine, so she wondered for a moment what her mistress was doing down there at that time, but chased away her opinions and stood up to face her.

“Do you need anything, madam?” Alicia asked when she spotted something glinting in Elizabeth’s hand. It was either glass or metal.

“I need you to vanish from my life,” she said it peacefully as if she was asking for her usual glass of wine and put the blade of the knife to Alicia’s throat.

Alicia was spell-bound. What was happening? The rhythm of her heart paced and she sensed her hands getting sweaty. “M-m-madam?”

“I am sick of you and Steven and that hideous baby of yours. I’ve had enough of putting up with all of you,” Elizabeth was talking in her ear and Alicia cringed a little.

“What are you talking about? I don’t understand.” Alicia attempted to push her captor’s arm away and wiggle out of her grasp, but without success.

“You mustn’t be the mother of the Wyatt family heir. Oh, no, I’ll never let that happen.”

“Now I am sure you planted the necklace in my room all those months ago. Why? Why are you doing this to me? Why do you hate me?” Tears welled up in Alicia’s eyes again.

Elizabeth just brought the knife closer to her throat making a small cut on her skin. Alicia cried in pain to which Elizabeth grinned. “I can’t stand you, do you understand me now? I can’t bear to see your face close to me!” Elizabeth’s grin widened as she pressed the knife deeper and deeper when she suddenly stopped. The expression on her face froze as the color left her skin.

Alicia didn’t know how, but she succeeded in grabbing the fireplace poker and stabbing it into Elizabeth’s arm. She screamed and by the time Alicia was running away, her mistress was on her feet again.

“Why don’t we calm down… Elizabeth?” Alicia spoke making a few steps backwards toward the hall. If the woman attempted to hurt her again, at least she could try to run outside.

“Oh Elizabeth? Am I Elizabeth to you now? What happened with madam? What happened with the shaking hands and the innocent look? Or was that only one of your games to seduce my husband?” Elizabeth furiously yelled.

“How dare you tell me that after all this time? I did everything you asked of me, served you and cleaned after you and…” Alicia started.

“And what? Say it! We know perfectly well that you didn’t do that out of charity or compassion for the woman who can’t have her own child. You did it for Steven. To capture him in your claws forever.” Elizabeth was close again, rage evaporating from her eyes. Luckily she didn’t hold any sharp objects this time.

Alicia felt the baby stir in her stomach and instinctively placed her hand over it. No one would do it harm even if she had to fight for that with her life. She looked at the woman standing before her and for a moment pity overflowed her. Pity that she couldn’t have her own family. That she was alone.

“You know that I agreed to be a surrogate mother for your baby. And I would have done it… Only I-I couldn’t separate from the child. It has become a part of me and when I heard that you were going to take it to Europe I…” Alicia said, biting her lip.

“You tricked us. You liar. I believed that you were honest and that you would respect your word. That you would help me and my husband, hear me, MY husband have a family! And what did you do, hmm? You took both my man and the baby for you!” Elizabeth threw the vase closest to her on the floor. It shattered in millions of tiny pieces.

“I thought you said Steven didn’t love me. He used me only to get an heir,” Alicia spoke but Elizabeth seemed not to hear. Everything clicked in her mind then. How unjust she had been toward Steven, how much she had been wrong not to trust him and confront him for a thing he hadn’t done. Oh my God, he truly loved her and Elizabeth and the whole world knew it. How stupid Alicia had been.

“You took them, damn you! I regret every penny I’ve given you, every minute I’ve seen you in this house.” Elizabeth was madly throwing things around, breaking and crashing everything in her way until she eventually turned back to Alicia. Her brown face was crooked with anger and her hair disheveled.

Alicia noticed Elizabeth’s hands closing tightly around her shoulders. She was breathing in her face shaking her slightly. “I want you gone! Do you hear me? Gone from mine and Steven’s life!”

“That’s not going to happen! Never! I love Steven and I’ll never abandon him!” Alicia roared back.

“Disgraceful wh*re!” Elizabeth lifted her hand to slap her when the front door jerked open and Steven rushed into the room.

“Leave her, Elizabeth! Stop right there and keep your hands off Alicia!” Steven’s voice boomed into the mansion, freezing Elizabeth on the spot.

“What do you want now, you idiot? Can’t you see? Can’t you see her manipulative –“

“Enough, Elizabeth. We’ve been torturing each other for so long! It’s over!” He fished a manila folder from the inside of his jacket and threw it at her.

“What is this?” Elizabeth screamed bewildered.

“Divorce papers. We are divorcing and putting a full stop to this horror we’ve made of our lives,” Steven said now calming himself.

“But it can’t be! We-we can work things out… We – “

“No! I love Alicia and that is how it will always be. You better get that into your head and leave this instant. You’re no longer wanted here.”

There was pure rage in her now red eyes as her hands balled into fists and Elizabeth was out of the mansion. And out of their lives.

“Steven,” Alicia said and threw herself in his embrace. Suddenly she felt something wet down her legs. “My water broke. Oh, no. Not so early.”

A sharp pain cut through her stomach and she could feel the baby moving down. Oh my God, it was actually coming. She cried and screamed in pain and terror.

“Al? Is the baby coming?” Steven’s voice was worried.

“Yes, Steven,” she found strength to answer and screamed again as the pain was becoming stronger and stronger in every minute.

His phone was in his hands and he was talking loud and fast and yet she couldn’t concentrate on hearing him. “You’ll be okay, love. The doctors are coming.” He sniffed and lay a kiss on her damp forehead. “I am so sorry… For everything. I should have–“

“I understand now, Steve. I love you.” She looked at him and was amazed to see tears falling from his eyes in a torrent.

An hour passed with Steven’s hand on her shoulder and her nails digging deeply in his skin for support, and the heir of the Wyatt family entered the world with a healthy cry.

“It’s a boy,” the doctor said, giving it to Alicia. It was a small black boy with huge black eyes that continuously moved from her to Steven and back. The both of them cried, hugging their son and planting kisses all over his small body.

“Welcome Jonathan Junior!” Steven said excitedly and kissed the top of Alicia’s head. It was a lovely name. The name of Steven’s father and she knew that it meant to him a lot. “I love you,” he said.

“I love you, too,” she replied weakly, fatigue nestling in her bones. Her mother’s statement was ringing in her ears again, only this time it was hers. She stole a quick glance at Steven and whispered it to her son. “Giving myself to a married man was the best thing that happened to me.”

The end.