Chapter 8

Piper

I had let myself go last night. It was not normally like me to go that far, and I think I had one too many drinks. Jules had arranged a bit of a party, and I’d gone with a few friends from work. She had decided to celebrate her first exhibition. Jules had finally completed her final painting, and they were preparing the gallery over the weekend. She was a magnificent artist, and Jules was sure to sell all of her paintings. There had been no end of people asking for commissions after they had seen the work she had done for me on my design projects.

Piper, what did you do?

The way I was, I knew I had gone overboard with the drinking and the partying. I’d been stressed and highly emotional over the past couple of weeks thinking about being a single parent. And the conversation with my mom had basically put the cherry on top. If I’d only considered it before. Actually, she’d helped me make my mind up without actually realizing it.

Once I had started the process of applying with the Baby Maker, my stress levels hit an all-time high. I had become anxious because I had lost a little control. Generally, I could dictate what happened in my life, but now I was seeking help from a third party, and a stranger at that.

I had no intention of drinking that much and usually I always looked after myself. Last night, I got it well and truly wrong. My stress had hit such a level that once I had had a couple of drinks, my brain had slipped into auto pilot. Then it decided a few more drinks would be a short-term solution to let the stress fade away into the background.

It had sort of worked. I did not feel stressed, but my head banged like a drum on the fourth of July. I laid on the bed and decided a few glasses of water and a good shower were the best thing to bring me back into reality. Right back from the zombie-like state I was in. I rolled over and grabbed the phone from the bedside table. I checked to see if I had any text messages. Nothing, and then I noticed the icon at the top of the phone to tell me I had an email.

Please God, let this be him…

I opened the email app and waited for the messages to update.

Sender: Baby Maker

Subject: Personal meeting

The content of the email was just a telephone number and it said, Call me when convenient. You choose the location, and we will meet for further discussion.

Baby Maker.

A man of few words…

I was super stoked. My application had been accepted, and it was evident my picture had been okay, too. Now, I had to choose a location to discuss details further. I guessed the face-to-face meeting would be one of the final stages of the process. If this went well, I could be just a few weeks away from having a small baby growing inside of me.

I slowly dragged myself out of bed and hit the shower. There had to be no sign of the party or the slight hangover left. Especially when the call was made to him. I wanted to be fresh and on top of the conversation.

Where will I meet him, though?

I stepped into the shower, and the cold water washed over me. Then my arms filled with goosebumps, and my breath was cut short. The short icy blast of water refreshed me, and all the signs of the tequila started to fade away. The water warmed, and I continued to wash the effects of the party well and truly off my body.

The bathrobe wrapped around my body and I placed a towel around my head to dry my hair. I walked to the living room and plonked my ass on the couch. I took my regular phone calling position. Then I grabbed a large cushion and curled my legs up underneath my body. I was fresh, and after a couple of deep breaths, I was finally ready.

I slowly dialed the number and waited, my ear firmly pressed against the receiver.

I heard a noise. The call had connected. Someone had picked up, but silence greeted me on the other end.

“Hello there,” I heard a soft, masculine voice say.

“Um, hello, this is Piper, you asked me to call. I got the email this morning.” I tried not to sound seductive. It was a business arrangement. Nothing else. With my luck, the bastard had a pot-belly and three nipples.

There was a slight pause. Then he spoke. “Ah, yes. Well, good morning there, Piper. It’s nice to finally speak to you.”

“Likewise, I suppose,” I said stupidly. My words were followed with a nervous giggle.

I was anxious, like I was on a first date or going to the prom. Laughing seemed like the ideal way to hide how nervous I was feeling.

Come on Piper, you're a grown woman, not a kid anymore.

“Just relax,” he said in a calming voice. “It can feel intimidating for people when they make the first call. So, take some deep breaths, and you will be fine. Now, don’t forget, I'm here to help you, not to sell you anything.”

“It’s a different sort of service than what you would expect to find, so I can understand why some people feel this way. Um, it’s kinda nerve racking.” I placed the phone back onto the side table.

The man’s voice was very calming, and he was very polite and friendly. I could feel myself relax the more I spoke to him. After a few minutes, it was like I’d known him for quite a few years.

“Tell me then, Piper, how did you come to hear about my services?” he asked politely.

“Well, to be honest, I had an old client who wanted some work done. She had mentioned she’d had some assistance getting pregnant. Although she never actually gave me any details. And so, at that point, I was still none the wiser of your existence.” I explained.

“So, then you did what? I mean to say, how did you finally find the website?”

“I went home and was intrigued with what she had said to me. I started to search online. I noticed all the sites were just selling things. Or they were the usual sites that were at the top of the rankings, paid to be there. There was no sign of your site, no matter what I searched for.”

“So, you never found the site from searching?” he asked.

“No, I ended up in a forum and chat room. It was only as I read through the forum topics that I finally saw mention of your site. They commented that they’d been successful in conceiving with your help. They said if anyone else needed assistance, to follow the link they had provided. I nearly gave up when I tried the site. It asked for login details, but there was no place to create a profile or an account. I was close to giving up when I went back to the forum and noticed one of the members had provided details to log in.”

“Yes, I have done it that way to filter out undesirables. But, if someone is really interested, they will find the login information. I’ve set it up that way so people who aren’t serious about my services don’t just sign up and bombard the site with hundreds of applications. Besides that, you wouldn’t believe how many people have gotten the wrong idea about the service I provide. I mean, it’s not for fun, although I ensure it will be enjoyable. I want you to realize it’s to make sure that women can have the best chance of being a mother in the most natural way possible.”

I listened to his voice. He continued to ask why I had wanted to use his services. Wanting to become pregnant and having kids was evident, but why choose him above all the other services that are out there?

He did ask a couple of questions that I thought had little relevance to wanting kids. That’s unless he just created a complete profile of his applicants so he could come to understand their motivation for doing it.

“Piper, have you ever been married?” he asked, his tone professional.

“No, never been married. None of my relationships got that far. I used to think that was what I wanted. But over the past two or three years, I realized marriage wasn’t for me. And if it’s not possible to have the man of my dreams, being a single mother is the best way to go.” I thought about the real man of my dreams. The one man I’d never gotten over. I still missed him.

“How about being engaged? Have any of your relationships gone that far?” His voice maintained the same professional tone as before.

“Same sort of story. One relationship nearly resulted in me becoming engaged, but he ended up cheating on me, so I dumped his ass.”

I thought about what he had asked, and I quickly realized all my relationships had ended because guys had cheated on me. Wow! Was there a reason for this? And was that reason… me?

“I think, with all of these doomed relationships, you have never found real love with anyone?” he asked in the same tone.

How do I explain Evan without giving the whole story? I mean he won’t understand? He’s just an ordinary man.

“I have. Actually, I was in high school. This guy was a couple of years older than me. I was a sophomore and he was a senior. A lot of people said it was only a crush, but I knew it was so much more than that. The problem was, he broke my heart. He ended things between us, and he never explained himself before he went off to college.” I couldn’t hide the sadness in my voice.

“It’s unfortunate when that happens,” he said sympathetically. “It can have a lasting effect on all your relationships from that point forward.”

“That’s very true, and that’s just how I feel. I’m not sure if it was this relationship that affected me so much. Or if all of my relationships after him were just destined for failure.”

“You would be surprised who is actually affected by this sort of situation. And there are more people in the world like this than you actually realize. That one relationship that failed for unknown reasons can affect the rest of your life.”

“Geez, I feel like I’m talking to a lonely-hearts club rather than applying to become pregnant,” I said with a giggle.

“Now, onto the next stage, Piper. Have you thought of a place to meet up so we can discuss the terms of the contract?” He was all business again.

“I have. Do you know Gardenia Tea Rooms and Café?”

“I do,” he said. “They make some tasty coffee, and the food is really healthy, as well.” Now he had an upbeat tone.

“How does one o’clock sound?” I asked excitedly.

“That’s perfect, and don’t forget, if you want to bring someone with you, you can. I have a reputation to maintain. I don’t want anyone to get the wrong impression of me.”

“I have a friend I'll be bringing with me,” I said.

“I look forward to meeting you shortly, then,” he said.

I ended the call with him and immediately dialed Jules’ number. No answer.

Come on Jules, answer your bleeping phone.

I tried a few times, and there was no reply. It appeared Jules was worse for wear after the party and had no intention of waking up this side of lunchtime. If I’d not received an answer in the next couple of hours, I would have no choice.

I would have to go alone.