The Surrogate

“But if it’s a real emergency, call me. I will be back on my plane in five minutes. I don’t care what the time is where I am.”

“Archibald!” she shouted into the phone.

“Yes, Esther?”

“Listen, dinner was great, and we even had a lovely time the night before, but before we start rushing into things I need to know what we’re doing.”

“What are we doing?” Archibald paused. “We are having dinner, Esther. It’s when we are both free, and it’s nice to have dinner with you.”

“Not to sound like a grade school girl, but I feel like we need to define our relationship. Saying we are having dinner does not exactly cut it.”

“Do you want to do that over breakfast? I know a great place, or better yet you can come by my place. I make a great omelette.”

“Archie, as nice as that sounds I have a meeting I cannot be late to this morning with an architect.”

He sighed. “Well damn, Essie. I mean, I thought we could just see where things go.”

“Things are going to change with a small child showing up in about eight months, and then sticking around for that baby’s whole life. Most people figure this kind of thing out before they make the choice to have a child together.”

“True.” Archie sighed on the other side of the phone. “Smart and beautiful. Well, I guess I hope we’re friends.”

“Yes, of course, Archie.”

“It wouldn’t upset me if we were more.”

Essie pursed her lips. She wanted to say the same, but something inside of her said that she did not have the luxury to be a romantic. She looked over at the wall where the pictures of her family hung, and finally decided what to say.

“I don’t want to crash and burn before the baby comes. I want for us to have a relationship that will be good for the baby, so while I want us to be close I don’t know if we can start rushing into a romantic relationship.”

“But you’re open to it?”

Esther sighed again. “I would never have to schedule custody and play dates with your secretary.”

“What a bonus!” Archie exclaimed over the phone. “For that convenience, let’s get married.”

“Wow. What an offer from a naked man over the phone at the crack of dawn. Let’s get hitched, it will make life more convenient,” Esther replied dryly, and caused Archie to laugh unabashedly over the phone.

Archie sighed into a regular tone before finally saying, “Well, I promise to not get fresh with you. I knew you had boundaries, but I will officially promise not to cross them.”

“You weren’t going to before?”

“Well, I would be a gentleman about it, but I did have some plans in mind to persuade you. However, I won’t try unless you think it is a good idea. Mother always knows best, as the cliche goes!”

Archie seemed so chipper for early in the morning, and Esther felt satisfied with his answer.

“Thank you. Now please go shower because I’m sure you stink.”

“I smell like a field of daisies. I don’t know what you are talking about.”

Esther chuckled. “Have a good day at work, Archie.”

“I hope we can have more talks like this where I’m naked. It’s exciting.”

“Archie!” Esther said with an almost scolding tone

“Sorry. Sorry. I will keep the cheek to a minimum.”

“Bye, Archie.”

Esther hung up her phone, and made herself some toast for breakfast before taking a quick shower herself. Quickly consuming the crispy slice of wheat with orange marmalade, she was under the hot rushing water of her shower only a few minutes later. Standing there letting the warmth relax her muscles, Esther admitted to herself why she had suddenly called Archibald up.

She was not worried about him.

She was worried about herself.

Esther had not been with anyone since Josh, and pregnancy hormones left her more vulnerable than usual to cheap tricks. Nothing about Archibald was cheap, but she had seen all this flirtatious behavior before all those years ago. Even as a teenager, she was stronger then than she was now, and that first shot at romance between them ended disastrously.

How would this time end?