FILTHY CATCHER
Chapter 1
“You have fought long and hard to get this company off the ground and now you want to take on the responsibility of a child. I don’t know that you have fully understood what that kind of responsibility can entail. I’m here to tell you that it’s not easy and everything that you do revolves around them. You don’t have time for yourself and you don’t have time for a social life. This idea that you have of doing this in this way is a little unorthodox, but not unheard of.” Joan Anderson was only trying to be devil’s advocate and hopefully give her best friend the benefit of her experience.
“You can say anything you want, but I know that the love of your children is unconditional. You complain about them, but I can see the love in your eyes every time that you are around your family. They drive you crazy, but they are yours. I’ve wanted a family for a long time and each relationship that I’ve gotten myself into has led to nothing but heartbreak.” Samantha Mallett had seen her friends grow up before her eyes. She was determined not to fall into that trap of marriage and family until she had made it as an interior decorator.” “I only want what everybody else has. I don’t think that’s too much to ask for. If I can’t have it with a man that I love, then why shouldn't I go for it regardless of opinions? This company has been my baby from the moment that I envisioned it. It has exceeded my expectations and I’m hoping that this new journey that I take will only complement it.”
This was the final time before she was going to go under the procedure to fertilize her eggs with that of the semen of a donor. It wasn’t like she was lacking companionship and growing up had afforded her the opportunity to sample the wares of those guys that had taken an interest in her.
“I look at you and I see that you have your whole life ahead of you. You’re right and I do have the family that I want, but can you say the same thing if you go through with this?” Joan was the prim and proper socialite with her hair in just the right angle to show off her sensuous neck. The designer clothes came from the money that her husband had brought along with him into the marriage. They had worked together to make their mortgage company the one that everybody was going to for the best deal when it came to picking a mortgage for their new home. “You obviously called me to give you the bare facts without sugarcoating anything.” Joan was 5’5, 120 pounds and she had always been the one that people went to for motherly advice.
Samantha knew that subconsciously that she was having second thoughts. She wanted to believe that what she was doing was right and needed somebody to give her that necessary push to go through with it. She had chosen her donor, a blue eyed athlete that according to his portfolio had no addictions or anything that would make him undesirable. His photo made her think of a Norman Rockwell painting.
Samantha was the kind of girl that knew that her prospects were slim and that guys were pretty much after only one thing. The good ones were either married or gay. She had thought that it was an old wives’ tale, but her perception of things had changed lately. One bad date after another confirmed her theory that guys were pigs. There were obviously exceptions to the rule, but so far she had not found them. She was that willowy blonde that liked to wear her heart on your sleeve. She was taller than Joan by a couple of inches and had little bit more weight at 150 pounds. Her best feature was her breasts and they were all natural without the need to go under the surgical knife.
“I was hoping that you would tell me that I was doing the right thing. I understand that this is not for everybody, but for me it might be the only way that I will have the family that I want. There are advantages to doing it this way. The likelihood of the child getting some kind of communicable disease or a trait that would cripple him in his informative years is slim to none. They vet everybody that goes through those doors and that sperm rank is superior in every way to any other one that I’ve been to.” “The administrator was very kind and she led me through the process with a guiding hand. I have no qualms about where I want to do this, but going through with it is another matter altogether. I’ve been thinking about this for so long that it has become something of an obsession for me. My last somewhat serious relationship with a callous football player had turned into a matter of trying to keep his octopus hands off of me through high school. I did like him and I could see myself marrying him like all women do when they meet a perspective suitor. It was just that his attitude was deplorable and I really didn’t want to be around him any more than necessary.”
“I don’t think that your mother would approve. I know that that doesn’t matter to you, but maybe you should take that into consideration. Have you thought about what you’re going to tell them when you finally break the big news? It’s not like you can tell them the truth, unless of course you want them to have a heart attack right in front of you.” Joan could see that Samantha was a bit of a Bohemian and had a flair for the dramatic with the kind of clothes that were a little bit too tight for her frame. She did admire the way that she had pulled herself up to make something out of herself.
“My mother is the last person that should be giving advice. She was hardly ever there when I was growing up and most often that not was in some kind of rehabilitation center for months on end. My stepfather was a damn drunk and I had to literally dance around him to prevent him from getting his paws on me. There was one night that I had to get exceptionally violent. Let’s just say that he won’t be trying anything like that again.” “I know that I am the spitting image of my mother when she was my age. It’s the only reason why he had designs on getting his hands on me. It was a good thing that he wasn’t really my father and he had died a long time ago a couple of years after my birth. My stepfather was not exactly shy with his affections and touching me inappropriately had turned into a game of wills. The last time was the final straw and left him with a concussion and a gash over his eye. I haven’t seen him in a long time and I don’t have any plans to see him anytime soon. Living on my own has become my reality from the moment that I was 16. I did manage to stay with Joan and her family until I was old enough to strike out on my own.”
“I know that your mother and you don’t see eye to eye, but maybe you should talk to her. She might have some insights.” Joan knew that she was barking up the wrong tree for the sake of trying to prevent this from happening. She had already stalled the proceedings a couple of times and it was becoming an effort in futility to come up with any reasonable excuse. “I would never judge you for what you are about to do. I could never say that my children aren’t my life, because that would be a damn lie.” Joan watched as Samantha chewed on her recent manicure in a nervous habit.
Samantha had already made up her mind and stood tall and walked with confidence up those stairs. She looked back one last time to see Joan shaking your head in disbelief, but her opinion didn’t amount to much. She had her own mind and own body and she could dam will do whatever she wanted with it. She’d gone through the necessary counseling mandated by this company to make sure that there were not any underlying psychological reasons for her to do this. “My baby is well on its way to becoming a fortune 500 company. I have several employees and I could easily take a step back and let them do the lion’s share of the work. This is my company and I am the president and I worked tirelessly to make a name for myself. The Mallet name has become synonymous with buildings and residential owners alike that have come to me for my expertise.
She opened the door and went inside to meet with the administrator who was there personally to oversee every tiny detail. Tabitha had a bond with Samantha that went beyond just a client relationship. They actually found themselves to be friends and this led to the main reason why this company was going to get her business.
“I was beginning to think that you might have cold feet. If you’re ready, the doctor is prepared for you. It won’t take too long and you will be well on your way to being a mother. I’ll be in there with you every step of the way.” Tabitha took her by the hand and helped her to get into a customary green gown that was opened in the back. Samantha walked in on her own power and climbed up on the table where everybody was waiting to begin. Time was money and that was no more evident than the way that the Dr. was constantly looking at his watch to determine if he was going to make is Tee time.
Dr. Stevens was the best in the business, but he was in it for the almighty dollar. He didn’t even bother to look at the sample and had assumed that everything was in order. He mistakenly took the wrong sample from the refrigerated unit and implanted the seamen without even realizing his mistake until it was too late. He felt embarrassed and decided to keep quiet, until such time that he was called on the carpet for his actions.
The procedure was over with fairly quickly and Tabitha was a woman of her word. She stayed with her all the way and being distracted by keeping her calm was the only reason why something like this could happen.
A week later and things didn’t exactly go as planned. Tabitha was a stickler for details and went over every little move that everybody made during the procedure. She could see that Dr. Stevens was shaking and she had mistakenly thought that he was under the influence of some sort of pharmaceutical aid. A routine drug test proved otherwise “I need to see you in my office. Don’t even think about leaving here until you see me and security will be well informed that you’re not to leave the premises.” She could see the way that he was wringing his hands and looking around nervously while biting his bottom lip.
She went to her office and sat there and was waiting for the other shoe to drop. Her friend that decorated her condo was now recovering. She got this bad feeling in the pit of her stomach and it made her dread the very appearance of Dr. Stevens at her door. She decided to do some paperwork, but even that was not even near enough to keep her occupied.
Dr. Stevens came in and sat down with a heavy heart and a burden that he was about to relay with some trepidation. He was the youngest at 25 with millions of dollars tied up into this company as an investment in his future. This was many different business practices that he had dipped his toe into lately to secure a retirement at a very early age.
“I don’t know what happened, but you’re not leaving here until you tell me.” That awkward silence hung in the air. She placed her hands on the desk in front of her and stared at him like he was going to burst into flames.
“It wasn’t my fault.” He told his story from beginning to end and then sat back with a sigh of contentment for getting it off his chest. He would have gladly taken it to his grave with the ulcers to go along with it.
Tabitha excused him and told them that there would be a necessary review of his actions. She was not looking forward to telling her new friend the mistake that was made. This was the first of its kind and not something that she was proud of.
Samantha came in and was appalled and rightfully so. After some time, she decided the best thing to do was to move forward. “I sank a lot of money into this procedure. What has been done can not be rectified. Who exactly did I get besides the one that I had chosen?” The answer that she heard was not what she was expecting.
Jack Von was in for a rude awakening. She couldn’t believe that her baby daddy was going to be the one man that had made her swear off men entirely. How could it be possible that the man that was all hands would be implanted in her womb? It was a question that was left to linger in the air. She had it all planned. They say that if you want to make god laugh then you made a plan.