“Pleasure to meet you, Maxwell.” Jack holds out his hand for the little guy to shake, then his smile turns to shock when Alex passes the child over.
“And this is the beautiful Alice.” He leans over the sofa where his wife is sitting, and kisses the top of her head, before lifting their daughter from her arms.
“She really is beautiful.” I smile across at the elated, but exhausted-looking duchess.
“How rude of me, I haven’t introduced the two of you. Olivia, this is Gracie. Gracie, this is my incredible, indestructible wife, Olivia.”
“Pleased to meet you.” I’m careful to avoid the toys on the floor as I step over to shake her hand, and when I see Jack standing awkwardly still holding her son, I try my best not to laugh.
“He’s right, you did a great job.” Jack peers over Alex’s arm to check out the new arrival. “How are you?”
“I’m fine, just grateful we managed to actually make it to the hospital this time.” Olivia looks at her husband.
“I may have broken a few speed limits, but we got there.” He shrugs proudly.
“I’m sure you boys have a lot to talk about. Why don’t you leave me and Gracie to gossip?” Olivia suggests.
“Excellent idea.” Jack quickly offloads the small boy into my arms, while Alex carefully places his little girl back with her mother.
“I’ll have someone bring you some tea,” he promises, before whisking Jack off and leaving me holding the cute, but rather heavy, child.
“You can put him down.” Olivia laughs, clearly seeing how uncomfortable I am. “He’s quite a weight. Here, take a seat.” She taps the space beside her.
“Alex has explained about your situation.” She gets straight to the point, smiling understandingly.
“Jack told me a little about yours, too,” I admit, already feeling comfortable around her; she has such a naturally friendly face and doesn’t seem at all judgy.
“I’m sure you have plenty of questions for me, but I do have one for you.” She rearranges the baby in her arms so she’s facing me.
“After nine months of carrying your child, feeling them move inside you, and wondering what they will look like, are you really going to be able to leave it behind?” she questions with concern.
I look down at the little girl sleeping so peacefully, and smile.
“Without question. Kids have never been part of my plan; my life is far too chaotic for that. As a mother, I don’t expect you to understand me. But I’m strong, I’ve been through a lot. I can sure as hell get through this. Besides, people become surrogates all the time.”
“And surrogates usually receive a lot of counselling before they go through with anything. This is all very sudden. I know that Jack is Alex’s friend, but I want you to be sure before youagree to give something this precious away.” She looks down lovingly at her daughter.
“I’m sure, and I’m going into this with the right mindset. The baby I carry is for Jack; it will never be mine.”
“You don’t have to tell me what you're running away from, but it must be scary. Pregnancy is a hard thing to put your body through, especially when you don’t get the reward at the end.”
“But I will be getting a reward. I’ll have freedom, for me and my girls,” I tell her, taking the block that little Maxwell hands me and smiling at him. I’m not expecting this next year to be easy, but I’ll find a way…. I have to.
“I guess if you're sure, there's nothing more for me to say. No one could have convinced me not to do what I did to save my brother.” Her eyes fill with tears. “I may not have got the results I wanted, but I did get a beautiful family.” She smiles bravely.
“Alex killed your brother,” I blurt out untactfully.
“No, someone else did, but I don’t want to talk about that now, not while I’m feeling so happy and grateful.” She takes her little boy’s hand and kisses it as he climbs up and wriggles himself between us. “I want to help you in any way I can. This is a dog-eat-dog world, Gracie, and trust me, I was not prepared for it.”
“You would never think that, you look like a pro,” I assure her.
“I was a mess to start with. I trusted all the wrong people.
“But you do love him, right?” I check.
“Yes, very much. I think I loved him right from the start,” she admits with a huge smile on her face. “Who knows, the same could happen for you and Ja–”
“That won’t be happening.” I cut her off before she can finish. “But I do appreciate any help you can offer me.”
