Chapter Thirty-Nine
Michael
It only took a few minutes before the limo came around the block and pulled up in front of Paige’s parent’s house, and I turned to Paige.
“Are you ready?” I asked making sure I wasn’t whisking her away while she was in the middle of talking.
“Yes.” She smiled at me. I loved how beautiful her smile was.
We walked outside, her parents following us. But I didn’t mind. I knew they wanted to see their daughter off.
“You’ll take good care of her, I assume,” her dad said to me, holding out his hand. His eyes were kind and inviting. I didn’t feel intimidated by him. It was nice to have that in my life, for once.
I took it in my own, gripped his hand firmly, and pumped twice. “Of course, sir. I’ll take care of both of them.”
“Congratulations,” he said.
“Thank you.” I smiled down at him. I hadn’t really noticed it before, but I towered over her dad quite a bit. And I wondered what that meant for our child. Would he or she be tall or short?
The fact that her family was so supportive made me feel better about the world. It didn’t seem so cold and calculated like my own parents made it seem. Her family seemed genuinely happy for us. After all, she wasn’t a child anymore. She was an adult and capable of making her own decisions.
Her mom reached out for a hug and I wrapped my arms around her small frame. She was the sweetest woman I knew.
“Oh, Michael.” She said in my ear. “I knew from the moment I met you that you’d be perfect for our little girl. Just make sure she takes her prenatal vitamins, so the baby doesn’t come out with two heads.”
I laughed. “I will. You have nothing to worry about.”
She smiled at me and wrapped me up in another hug. It felt good. I had never had a real hug from my mom. At least not one I could remember. If she did hug me, it had been for her own selfish reasons. Because she wanted to look like a good mother and not because she cared about me. But Paige’s mom was wonderful.
“Make sure you call me if you have any questions. I can’t let you go through this pregnancy feeling like you need to research everything. In fact, just make sure you call me before you even look anything up on the internet,” she said to Paige.
Paige laughed. “Of course, mom. You know I’ll do that.”
Her mom looked at me. “And Michael, if she doesn’t call me, and she’s freaking out about something, I expect you to call me or at least make her call me.”
I nodded my head. “I can do that. You have nothing to worry about,” I reassured her.
Paige hugged her dad and then mom goodbye, and we walked to the limo.
“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to this,” she said when we climbed into the limo. I laughed and climbed in behind her. The driver closed the door for us. I sat next to her, and she scooted her body close to me, resting her head on my shoulder.
“How are you feeling?” I asked her. I had asked her probably twenty times already, but it was my growing concern for her well-being. For their well-being.
“I’m okay. A little nauseous.” She paused and then asked me, “How are you feeling? You know, about everything?”
I put an arm around her and squeezed. “I’m feeling really good about it all. I’m happy that your parents are so accepting and happy for us. My family isn’t, but I’m not really concerned.”
She sat up and looked at me. “You’re not?”
I shook my head. “No, why should I be when I never had a good relationship with them. They were never there for me for anything major in my life. Why would they be there for me now?”
She gave me a small smile and then laid her head back on my shoulder. The limo started to move forward, and I wrapped my arm around her again.
I could tell she was still a little bothered by what I said. I mean it had to have seemed strange to her that I didn’t really care what my parents thought or said. But she also had no idea what it was like growing up in a family dynamic where everything you do is wrong, and your parents could care less about you. I knew I needed to try to make her feel better.
I pressed my lips to her head. “Your parents are going to be terrific grandparents.”
She grabbed my other hand with hers and laced our fingers together. I knew I never wanted to spend another day of my life without that feeling. I wanted to spend the rest of our lives with our fingers laced together.
“I agree,” she said. “They were so excited for us. I can’t wait to see all the things they are going to do with this little guy or girl.”
The happiness in her voice was heartwarming.
“You think they’ll babysit for us so we can travel the world?” I asked her.
She laughed. “The baby isn’t even here yet, and you’re already planning on ways to get rid of it?” she said, teasing me.
I laughed. “I’m only kidding. But I do hope they will baby sit so we can have time alone together.”
“Oh, I’m sure they will.”
“You’re going to be the best mom, ever. You know that, don’t you?” I asked her. I held her closer to me, wrapping my arm around her a little tighter. I didn’t want to ever let her go.
“And you’re going to be an amazing father,” she said. I couldn’t’ see her face, but I could hear the smile in her voice. She sounded so happy. Which was exactly how I was feeling.
“I’m going to teach him or her all about sports. I don’t care if it’s a girl, she’s going to learn how football works.” I said and felt her body shake against mine from her laugh. “I’m serious. I want to teach him or her everything. I don’t care if it’s a boy or if it’s a girl. I just want a healthy baby.”
“Me too.” She lifted my hand in hers, and I felt her lips brush my knuckles.
I was lucky to have found Paige. Not only were her parents amazing and everything I had ever wanted my parents to be, but she was also mind blowing. Sexy, smart, confident, independent. She was everything I had ever wanted in a woman and so much more.
I thought about how everything had changed between Paige and me over the last month. She was once just a bartender that I thought was hot but too good for me. I never wanted to hit on her or sleep with her because I was afraid to lose the sort of friendship we had. And then after she agreed to be my surrogate, I found the woman with whom I wanted to spend my entire life with.
“I have to tell you something,” I said, and she shifted so she could look at me. Our fingers unlaced, and I moved my other arm from around her and grabbed her right hand with my left hand, re-lacing our fingers as she looked at me.
“Okay.” She hesitated. “What is it?” She seemed nervous, and those hadn’t been my intentions at all.
“It’s about the contract,” I said and gauged her reaction before continuing.
She cocked her head to the side and looked at me like she was trying to figure out what I was going to tell her before I said anything.
“What about it?” she finally asked.
“Well, when I first found out you were pregnant, I ripped it up.”
Paige’s face quickly changed from confused and worried to surprised and possibly even shocked.
“Why would you do that?” She asked.
I smiled at her. “Because I knew we would work better as a family. I knew you would want to stay in the picture, and I knew the baby would have a better chance if both you and I were in its life.”
Tears sprang up in the corner of her eyes and she tried to use her fingers to wipe them away before they escaped, but one slipped down her cheek. “Damn hormones,” she said.
I laughed and pulled her into me. I kissed her before she had the chance to say anything else. I wanted to feel her lips pressed into mine. I kissed her hard, and she kissed me back just as hard. Our mouths fell into sync as they moved around. Our tongues touched and danced together.
When we pulled apart, she looked me in the eyes and said, “I’m so happy with you.”
“I’m so happy with you, too,” I said as warmth filled my chest. She was everything I wanted in my life and then some. I was beyond lucky that things had turned out as good as they had.
Her lips found mine once again, and we were lost in another passionate kiss. We rode in the back of the limo, making out like two teenagers on prom night. I could feel how much she really loved me as we deepened our kiss, and I hoped she could feel the same coming from me. I wanted her to know how much I loved her. I wanted her to never question how I felt.
We kissed all the way until we pulled up outside of our home. Even then we only pulled apart until we were in the elevator and no one was around. My body hardened and ached for hers, but I could tell she was a little tired. As much as I didn’t want to, I backed off. I’d have her pressed beneath me or wrapped around me soon enough, and we had forever.
When we got into the penthouse, Paige wanted to take a nap. She went into our bedroom and laid down on the bed. I left the room to do some work. But I couldn’t focus I just kept thinking about my child, our child.
Was the baby going to be a boy or a girl? Was he or she going to look more like Paige or me? I wondered what color eyes the baby was going to have. My blue ones, or Paige’s gorgeous green eyes? But most of all I wondered if I was going to measure up. Was I going to be a good father? Or was I going to turn out like my own? Maybe because I know what it’s like, I knew I could stop that from happening.
When I went back into the room an hour later, Paige was still asleep. She was curled up on the bed, completely passed out. I went into the kitchen and whipped up a cup of tea for her. Then, I walked into the room and woke her up.
“Sweetheart,” I said, softly. “It’s time to wake up.”
Her eyes fluttered open, and she smiled at me. “Just five more minutes.”
“If you sleep any longer, you won’t be able to sleep tonight,” I told her and held the cup out to her. She sat up and reached for it.
“Thank you,” she said.
“You’re welcome. I know you get nauseous when you first wake up.” I was proud to know that about her. It made me feel like I was doing something right when I helped take care of her.
She smiled up at me. “You know, you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, right?”
“Yes,” I said. Knowing she was being honest and feeling totally happy with that. I had never been the best thing to happen to anyone before, and this was an amazing feeling. “You are the best thing that’s ever happened to me.” I made sure to put emphasis on the word “ever.” I wanted her to know how much I meant it.
“I love you, Michael,” she said.
“I love you too, Paige,” I responded and took her cup of tea. I placed it on the nightstand beside the bed, got onto the bed and pulled her close to me.