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He bows his head in acknowledgement before opening the door and leaving.
Gabriel in the office and Gabriel at home are two very different people. One thing I’m sure of having met his mother and his brother, he will, if this works out, make a wonderful father.
I call Nat and let her know I have the document, arranging to meet her at lunch to pass it over.
“Thank you for doing this,” I say as I hand her the envelope. “I know I don’t need to say it, but this must remain confidential.”
Nat rolls her eyes.
“Give me five pounds,” she says, smiling.
I reach into my purse and pull out the note. I tilt my head as she grins, accepting it.
“You’ve now hired my services. Neither I nor anyone who looks at this within the company I work for can divulge the details of this document to anyone. Client, attorney privilege.”
“Thank you,” I say, pulling her in for a hug. “I look forward to hearing from you.”
I make my way back to the office, my mind racing. I haven’t told Gabriel yet, but I’ve already come off the pill. The night I decided we were going to try, I put them at the bottom of my drawer. In for a penny, in for a pound, as they say. Excitement bubbles in my stomach every time I think about what I’m about to do. There is no way this can be wrong. I was prepared to do this alone. But this is so much better. My child…our child will have the love of both parents. A mother and a father. Gabriel and my relationship may be unconventional, but we will work to ensure that any children we have is unaffected. We can attend birthday parties together, school events, and even parents’ evenings.
Who knew four months ago, when Vince walked out, my life was going to take this turn?
A week later, Nat calls me at work.
“Hold on,” I say, before I get up and close my office door. “It’s okay, I can talk.”
“Angela, the solicitor looking into your contract, would like to speak to you,” Nat says.
“Oh shit,” I say, surely this can’t be good. I half expected her to come back via Nat. But then again, maybe she’s not allowed.
“Don’t worry,” Nat laughs. “I’ll put you through.”
“Hi, is that Leah?” A new voice comes over the phone.
“Yes,” I squeak. “Is this Angela?”
“It is,” she says. “I want to speak to you about the contract you asked me to look over.”
“Is there a problem?” I ask, crossing my fingers and hoping she’s not going to find a major roadblock.
“Far from it,” she says. “It looks like Mr Frazer has made this contract to be more favourable towards you, the mother of his child, than himself.”
“Oh,” I say, wondering what she must be thinking. Yet, not really wanting to know.
“I want to let you know that everything appears in order. You can come in and talk to me if you have any questions, but I can’t see anything that raises any red flags. I will put together a breakdown of the terms and email them to you.”
“Thank you. That would be amazing,” I say. Lawyer speak is all well and good, but it’s a headache to interpret.
“Oh, before I go. Are you aware Mr Frazer’s solicitor contacted me? Added another clause,” she says.
My heart sinks, although she has just said all is okay. What else has Gabriel added?
“Leah?”
“I’m here,” I say.
“Mr Frazer has added a clause stating that if artificial insemination is unsuccessful, providing you are in agreement, he will fund as many rounds of IVF as required.”
My hand shakes as it moves to my mouth, smothering the sob that is threatening to escape. “Gabriel really does want a child,” I whisper.
