I had been hesitant to go to Ryan’s workplace to bother him, though Grace seemed to know what she was doing when she insisted I let the guards take me to the hospital, then to Ryan right after.

Getting the news that I was pregnant was a surprise to me. Even though I’d been feeling ill, and certain foods would trigger the need to vomit while others triggered a craving, and I’d started sleeping more than usual, I never connected the dots on my own. It could have been a while longer before I figured it out on my own.

What now?

It was the thought that ran through my mind once the doctor handed me the piece of paper that said without a doubt I was carrying a child in my belly. At first, all I’d felt was numb. I was about to turn nineteen, and already I was going to have a baby. It was all so fucking surreal I almost pinched myself to wake up.

Then it hit me again, that I was going to have a baby. I felt a little panicked then, and the doctor had made me sit down for several minutes, sipping down a glass of water and controlling my breathing. After the panic came a little bit of excitement and uncertainty.

Seeing Ryan’s reaction to the news killed some of the uncertainty and raised up the excitement. I couldn’t help the peals of laughter as we ran out of his office with his colleagues whopping and clapping in excitement for us. Ryan practically vibrated the whole trip down the elevator, holding me close to his side. Then there was the trip in the car.

The moment we got home, he had the maids prepare a feast as he went around calling family and friends, letting them know he would be having a baby. I didn’t know what they knew about his surrogacy deals, but I knew from listening in that most of them were surprised because they hadn't known he was trying. He’d tried to get me to talk to some of them with him, but I’d turned him down flat, feeling insecure.

His friends, his family, none of them knew me. Now that he’d made this news so public, some of them would probably come asking for details, and they would find me there. I didn’t know what to make of his actions.

When they came calling, what would he tell them? Would he mention the contract? Was I still going to disappear from his life after I gave birth to the baby?

Those, and so many other questions rose up in my mind, but I didn’t voice any of them at the moment. We sat down to eat with Edward, and though he didn’t say anything when Ryan told him he would be getting a little brother or sister, I could see his eyes light up with excitement.

Later, we went to his bedroom and took separate showers, with me going first as he talked to one of his friends on the big screen with Edward. It had been a while since I’d gone back to my room to sleep since it was pretty much a given now we’d be sharing a bed. I waited until the call was done, and he’d left the room before I left the bathroom.

I found some of his clothes to put on to sleep in. Ever since that one time he caught me wearing them, he’d insisted I put on his clothes when we were going to bed. I didn’t know what the appeal was because I thought I looked ridiculous in them. But some nights, he’d tear them off me almost as soon as I had them on, and he’d tackle me to the bed and ravish me. I went to bed and got under the covers to wait for Ryan to show up.

My eyes were just starting to slip closed when the door opened, and Ryan walked in. He threw a warm smile at me when he saw me snuggled under the covers, holding up a hand when he saw me try to move.

“Just stay still, I’ll be back, okay?”

I nodded and lay back down, watching him as he went toward the bathroom. He was out in five minutes, and he dried himself quickly then pulled on some sleep clothes. My face warmed a little in the short moment I saw him fully naked. He wasn’t exactly shy around me. But by the time he came to join me in the bed, the spurt of desire had died down because I was still worrying.

Ryan climbed under the covers and sidled up to me, wrapping his arms around me and tugging me until we were spooning. I placed one of my hands over his with a small squeeze.

“I’d like to make love to you tonight,” he said with a chuckle. “But I’m feeling a little tired from all the excitement. It reminded me of the commotion when Edward was about to be born. I can't believe I almost forgot this feeling.”

I bit down on my lip as he nuzzled my neck, keeping still in his arms.

“You practically announced it to the whole world then, too?” I asked, only a little sarcastic.

He chuckled, and I shivered when his breath fanned over my neck. “Of course. There was a big celebration with the whole family, and there’ll probably be one here this time, too. Mom must already be planning it, calling out all the friends and relatives…”

“Is this okay?” I asked, trembling a little in fear.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I didn’t know how you were going to go about this, but I figured I’d be a pretty big secret because I was supposed to leave eventually. But, you can't exactly do that now that you’ve told everyone already. So do you have a plan, or… what exactly does this mean?”

I held my breath, waiting for his reply. I wanted him to say something that would be good to hear. Like, the contract was null and void, like he would keep me even after the contract. I would be a part of his life. But I didn’t want to get my hopes up, so I steeled myself for disappointment.

“Would you like to stick around afterward?” he asked cautiously.

I blinked, stunned for a moment at the reply. It was abrupt and out of nowhere because while we’d been getting along pretty well together, neither of us had outright mentioned me staying. It was also a different tune to what he’d said to me the last time we talked about the contract.

“Really?” I blurted out, incredulous.

He hummed. “We did get closer than I’d thought to in the beginning. It wasn’t intentional, it just… happened that way. And I realized I want you around, Edward wants you around… so there’s no reason you have to leave. Unless you don’t want to stay?”

His words were cautious, and I wanted to smack him. As if I would want to leave if he would have me! I tugged on his arms so he would release me, and I felt him go still against my back. I ignored it, pushing his arms off so I could turn around to face him, then tug the arm back around my waist so I could look up at him. His expression was closed off and careful.

“I want to stay,” I said honestly. “Or at least, I don’t think I want to leave anymore.”

His expression cleared to one of relief; then a furrow appeared in his brow.

“Why didn’t you just ask me then? I didn’t say anything because I wanted to respect your boundaries. Although we really should have talked all this shit through way earlier.”

I smiled, then bit down on my lip.

“Would it… be okay, though?” I asked hesitantly.

“Definitely,” he reassured. “Everything is going to be just fine, you’ll see.”

“What do we do when people have questions?” They would assume we were in a relationship, so they’d ask the usual questions, like how we met, what happened after that…

Ryan grinned, not looking at all worried. “Don’t worry about that. We can come up with something to say. As for the contract, no one needs to know about it. In fact, I could rip it up if you want.”

My eyes widened at the proposition. It was too tempting to resist.

“Rip it.”

His grin widened, then he pulled me closer, leaving a peck on my forehead as he held me.

“I already did,” he admitted, voice soft.

We fell asleep holding each other, and I had the biggest smile as I drifted off, dreaming of our future together.

Epilogue

Lexi

I sat in the living room with Ryan at the other end of the couch from me, my feet resting on his thighs. Edward was a short distance from us with his coloring book, occasionally looking up at the TV, but it didn’t hold as much interest as his coloring book did.

“Are you comfortable?”

I looked over at Ryan with a smile, my heart fluttering at his fretting, even after months of it. The best part of it was that I’d never had someone be so worried about me, though I’d snapped at him for it a few times, it only ever made me happy.

“I’m just fine,” I told him, only to shift and wince a bit. He caught it, but I arranged my expression into something reassuring. “I’m okay.”

It was getting pretty close to my due date, and for the past week, Ryan hadn't even pretended to be focusing on work. When he had something he needed to be done, he spoke to the people at his office on the phone while keeping an eye on me the entire time. It was a little annoying to be watched like a hawk, but I interpreted it as loving and didn’t get mad too often.

He had a reason to feel worried, though. I’d given him the reason. Being pregnant was new to me, and the changes that were happening to my body were all so strange I didn’t know how to react to them sometimes. The increased appetite and trips to the bathroom were expected, but I got tired much quicker, and my body ached in the worst places, where I couldn’t do a thing to help myself because my stomach had swollen to the size of a beach ball.

At that moment, though I was trying to act like nothing was wrong, my whole body felt achy, especially my back. I’d feel a sting in my stomach now and then, and I tried not to show my worry. But then I felt pressure below my stomach and wrinkled my nose. Ryan caught that, too.

“Bathroom?” he guessed.

I gave a tiny, embarrassed nod because he’d been helping me go to the bathroom the entire week after I let it slip that I was having a hard time. He didn’t even seem to care, carefully setting my feet down and jumping up, then reaching out to help me. I waved his hands off.

“I can do this much by myself,” I mumbled.

I planted my hand on the seat to push myself up, only to pause when I felt something warm on my palm where there shouldn’t be. I shifted, frowning, and realized I was wet, too.

“Ryan?” I asked. “I didn’t have any water with me, right? And I didn’t happen to pour it on the seat, right? So, why is it wet?”

He arched an eyebrow and looked down where my palm was touching. “Is the couch wet?”

I nodded, giving him a guilty look. “I’m so sorry. I don’t know what happened.”

“It’s fine. Here, let me help you up.”

I allowed it this time, and he patted the space where I’d been sitting while I patted my backside and felt my face warming up in a blush. Inside, I was panicking that maybe I’d lost control of my bladder and peed on the couch.

Ryan, though, was quicker, and his panic was very visible when he turned back to me.

“Lexi, your water broke. The baby’s coming.”

It took some time for it to sink in for me. Because I’d been told I’d know if the baby was nearly coming when I started feeling labor pains, but there was none of that, just a lot of embarrassment. Especially with Edward here, now looking up at me with his wide eyes that looked so much like his dad.

As I stood here, non-comprehending, Ryan was moving around, making calls and running up the stairs to come down with the bag we’d pre-packed for my stay at the hospital, for as long as I would need to be there, thrown over his shoulder. I was still a little confused by the time he got back to my side, and I noticed he was shaking in his anxiety.

“I called mom, and she said she'd meet us at the hospital,” he said as he gently led me by the hand. “Go out to the car, Edward. Lexi and I will be right behind you, all right?”

“Okay, daddy,” he said, jumping up and running for the door.

Ryan led me to the bathroom where he helped me change into something dry. Then he led me out to the car. On the way to the hospital, I felt the first wave of labor, and I started panicking. Finally, Ryan found his purpose, and he set to work calming me down.

Everything after that was a whirlwind. We got to the hospital, and I was set up in an operating room. I was in too much pain to make much sense of anything, but before long, Ryan had come to join me, and he stayed with me and held my hand the whole time.

The first thing that registered to me after the pain was gone was the loud baby’s cry. I was exhausted to the bone, and I wanted nothing more than to fall asleep. But hearing that cry, it was like I was suddenly energized. I forced my eyes to keep open just long enough until the nurse brought our child to me.

“Congratulations,” she said, handing over the heavily wrapped bundle. “You have a beautiful, healthy daughter.”

The first thing I thought was how tiny she was. Ryan and I cooed over her. She had her eyes closed and her hands folded into cute little fists. They’d only wiped her down because apparently the fluid she came out of me with—besides the blood—was healthy enough for them to leave her covered in it for a while.

We didn’t get that long with her before they had to take her away to take care of her, and I had to be moved to a room. I was sad to say goodbye to my baby, and Ryan, but I was asleep pretty much as soon as I closed my eyes.

I woke up who knows how long later, and Ryan was seated in a chair by my bedside with his head lying on the bed close to my hand. I smiled at him and ran a hand through his hair. He jerked awake, his eyes widening, and he grinned up at me.

“Hey there,” he said, leaning over me to peck my forehead. “You finally woke up.”

I yawned. “How long was I out?”

“Long enough that Edward was taken home and brought back. He’s already seen his baby sister.”

“He has? How did he react?”

Ryan chuckled. “Oh, he was overjoyed. He’s been waiting for this just as much as we were, you know. He was a little bummed that she’s a girl, but overall, he’s happy.” Then his smile went soft. “He told me when we were waiting for you that he’s glad to have a sister, and a mom, too.”

I gasped, and I could feel my eyes sting a little as a smile grew on my face.

“Really?” I asked in a small voice.

He nodded. “Don’t be surprised if he comes in here calling you mom.”

Over the past several months, Edward and I had gotten closer, and I could say we were friends. He spoke to me as much as he did his dad, but when he called to me, he called me by name. Now that I’d seen my little girl, the thought of Edward calling me mom was suddenly so much more important.

The door opened, and the little boy in question walked inside with a big grin on his face, practically vibrating in place.

“Hey there, little guy,” Ryan called out. “Where’s grandma?”

“She’s outside; she said she wanted to give us some time with the baby.” He hopped over to the bed, grinning at me. “Mom, mom! Little sister is coming! The nurse is bringing her right now.”

I let out another gasp actually hearing him calling me mom, and Ryan sent a knowing look at me.

“Come over here,” Ryan said, opening his arms, and Edward ran into them.

Just as he’d settled down, the nurse walked inside, carrying the baby, just as he’d said. She sent all three of us a smile as I held my arms out for my baby. Then she left us alone, and I watched the boys as they marveled at the baby in my arms.

“Do you think I could carry her?” Edward asked me.

Ryan and I shared a look, and he turned to Edward.

“She’s a little too small right now, kiddo, so we have to be careful with her. Give it time, and we’ll let you carry her later, as long as we’re both with you, all right?”

He pouted but didn’t complain, and all I could do was laugh at myself as I marveled at my own beautiful little family.

THE END