Chapter 7
MILES
Afterward, Miles would be in shock at how fast everything had moved from that lunch. But while it was happening, it still felt slow. There was such a sense of urgency around it all that he couldn’t get through it quickly enough.
They went back to the clinic that very afternoon.
Chelsea was giggly with nerves, a fact that Miles did his best to overlook.
This was going to be much more invasive for her than it was for him, after all.
Dr. Barroway narrowed his eyes when Miles told him that he had found a surrogate himself, but he didn’t ask questions.
He guided Miles through the next steps and what he needed to do, while Chelsea visited with her own doctor.
As they left the facility with instructions to return for Chelsea’s appointments, and the insemination scheduled for around two weeks’ time, Miles glanced over at her.
“You know,” he said, thinking of his conversation with Dr. Barroway, “I would feel better about all this if you moved into my place for a while.”
She turned to stare at him. “This is the strangest first date anyone has ever been on.”
“It wasn’t a date.”
She rolled her eyes. “Sure. Because that’s what’s important here. You want me to move into your house? I hardly know you!”
“You’re going to be the mother of my child,” he pointed out. “We’re a little way past I hardly know you.”
“That’s different.”
“I don’t see how. Think about it, Chelsea. When we do this, you and I are going to be tied together for the rest of our lives. It’ll be like a business merger.”
“Like a business merger?”
How could he explain this? “When two companies merge, the leaders of those companies have to find a way to work together,” he said.
“It’s a matter of balance and harmony, figuring out a way to work together for the common good.
And it isn’t always easy, because everyone has their own ideas about the way things are supposed to go. ”
“I’m sure that’s true, but this isn’t a business merger,” she said. “We’re having a child.”
“It’s the same in a lot of ways. We’re going to have to agree on all kinds of things about the way we want to handle it, so it’ll help us to be in close proximity, and you’ll be able to have the best support for your health and well-being,” he said.
“Also, since our official story is going to be that you’re my girlfriend, it just makes sense for you to be living in the house.
If you’re not, there might be questions we don’t want to answer. ”
“Who do you think is going to ask questions? Your father?”
“Maybe him. Maybe the press,” Miles shrugged.
Her eyes widened, “The press?”
“I do get my picture taken from time to time.”
“But I won’t, will I?”
“We’ll try not to let that happen. A good way to protect you will be to keep you inside as much as possible,” he said.
“My staff will make sure you have everything you need, of course. You’ll be able to exercise, and so on.
My driver will take you wherever you might need to go, but generally, you should avoid coming and going too much. ”
“You don’t think we could save ourselves a lot of trouble if I just stuck to my own house? No one would take my picture coming and going from there.”
“Maybe they wouldn’t. Or maybe the press would piece together what was going on,” Miles said. “It’s not as if you and I are going to be able to avoid seeing each other, and if all those meetings have to happen in public places, people might find out about them. It’s much better to keep you secure.”
“What about work?” she asked.
He paused. “I don’t suppose you could take maternity leave?”
“What, for the whole year?”
“You won’t need the income. I’ll be covering all your expenses.”
“Okay, but how could I expect my job to be there for me when I went back? The school would have to hire someone else.”
“Maybe you don’t have to go back,” he said. “Could you retire? Do you really need your teacher’s salary now that I’ll be providing for you and our child?”
She hesitated for a moment. “My job means a lot to me.”
“Wouldn’t you want to stay with your baby full-time, if you could? At least for the first couple of years? Once the kid starts school, you could go back to work, but…”
Chelsea looked as if she was pondering. “You’re not saying I have to do that, are you?”
“I’d like you to. I guess I can’t force you,” he said. “But I did assume you’d want some time as a full-time parent.” It was his second time using that phrase.
He wondered what she might be tempted to ask him in return — would he be quitting his job to be a full-time dad? It would be a fair question. Did he just expect her to take that on because she was the woman in this situation?
I don’t. I just can’t give up my job. It’s the most important thing to me. And besides, she can get a job teaching at another school in a few years, but I can’t replace Gold Standard. I’ve got to stick to what I’m doing.
Summer had just started. That should give her a few months to sort out the particulars with the school district. Maybe she had come to the same conclusion. She nodded slowly. “I could do that,” she said. “I suppose that wouldn’t be too bad.”
He smiled. Everything was working out perfectly. “That’s great,” he said. “We can get you moved in on the weekend, if it isn’t too soon.”
The troubled look was back on her face — but she didn’t object, and a sense of satisfaction filled Miles. I knew there was a way for me to get everything I wanted.
“This is where you live?” Chelsea asked, mouth agape as she stared at Miles’s house.
“Is there something wrong with it?” He’d sent a car to pick her up this morning. Her things would be delivered later. Now the two of them stood in the driveway. He’d been ready to take her inside and show her to the part of the house that would be hers while she lived here, but she seemed frozen.
“It’s… huge,” she said. “Who lives here with you?”
“Nobody.” He was mystified. “I told you I wasn’t married.”
“But this house is too big for one person,” she said. “You couldn’t get through every room in this place if you had a year. What do you do with all the space?”
He shrugged. “I find uses for it,” he said. “I can give you a tour, if you’d like. You’ll probably need one, actually.”
“Yeah, just to find my way around,” she agreed. “I might have to leave a trail of breadcrumbs… I knew you were going to have a nice house, but this is… I didn’t even know houses like this existed. I mean, on TV maybe.”
He laughed. “Come on,” he said. “I’ll show you to your wing.”
“I get my own wing?”
“I thought you’d want some privacy. Was I right?”
She nodded. “I don’t want to impose, though,” she said. “You don’t have to give me a wing.”
“I don’t use it. It’s no trouble.”
“I knew you couldn’t possibly use this whole house.”
He led her inside. She turned a slow circle in the foyer, and he gave her a moment to take it in. Miles had never experienced a feeling of awe in this house — it was smaller than the one he had grown up in — but he did know it was nice. It was newer than his father’s home, and he took pride in it.
When she’d had ample time to look around, he gestured to the marble staircase that swept upward to the second floor. She followed him up, then down the hall that led to the guest wing.
“This is your private sitting room,” he said, opening the door. “I’m sorry it’s a little small.”
She stared. “I have a private sitting room?”
“The furniture is new — well, it’s a few years old, but it hasn’t really been used,” he said. “The TV gets every streaming service, but if you need help with it, you can talk to Trudy.”
“Trudy?”
“She’ll be by to introduce herself. She usually does basic cleaning for me, but I’ve assigned her to be your personal attendant while you’re here.
I’ll give you the number to her work cell phone, and you can call her for anything you might need.
She’ll also handle your laundry and anything else you need while you’re here. ”
“It’s like staying at a five-star hotel,” Chelsea marveled.
He hoped she’d find the experience better than that.
His last stay at a hotel had been disappointing.
“Your bedroom and bathroom are through those doors,” he said.
“If there’s anything in particular you’d like, let me know.
You should put down a list of specific toiletries you want, and I’ll have them sent in for you, but in the meantime the bathroom is stocked with the basics. ”
She nodded. “You really don’t have to do all this,” she said.
“It’s the right thing to do,” he countered.
“Besides, I want you to be as comfortable as possible here. I did tell you I would fully support you, both during and after this pregnancy, after all. That extends to providing for all your needs. Speaking of which, why don’t you come and see the rest of the house? ”
He took her to the kitchen next. He had intended for that to be a brief stop, but she lingered, examining all the appliances. “How many kinds of coffee does this make?” she asked, bending over to look at the combination coffee/espresso machine.
“It makes whatever you want,” he said. “I usually use it for cappuccinos — see the setting there? But you can change it to prepare your coffee any way you like it. Trudy can show you how to do that, too.”
He took her to see the movie-screening room — she sat down in one of the front-row chairs and reclined — and the indoor pool, where she bent down and trailed her fingers in the water. “It’s all right for me to swim here?” she asked.
“Sure. Whenever you want,” he said.
“All right. You’ve convinced me.”
“Convinced you of what?”
“I’m moving in for good,” she said, flashing him a grin. “You’re never getting rid of me, not even when the baby is born.”
He laughed. “I’m glad you agreed to stay here. I really do think it’s going to make all this a lot easier, especially when it comes to convincing my father of the legitimacy of what we’re doing.”
She straightened up, looking hard at him. “Do you think he’s going to believe our story?”
“We’ll find out soon enough. I’d like you to come to the hospital with me to meet him tomorrow.”
Chelsea’s face turned serious. “Are you sure it’s time for that? I think it’s going to be difficult.”
“It will be. But time is the one thing that’s working against us. You need to meet him as soon as possible. Will you come to the hospital with me tomorrow?”
Chelsea nodded. “We’ve come this far,” she said resolutely. “I’ll do it.”