Surprise of a Lifetime (Sequel to Poison Rose)

Two

Over the next month, the first thing that both couples took care of was the legal side of Aerin being the Purdys' surrogate. That wasn't exactly complicated, 'cuz it wasn't like she wanted money outta the couple, or anything of the sort–she just wanted to grant their current biggest Wish. And it wasn't like she wanted to keep the baby after it was born, should even their first attempt work, since she already had two kids of her own and wasn't entirely sure of having more outside surrogacy.

        Since that part was pretty much taken care of within the Space of an hour, rather than Days or weeks, the next step was the actual Fertility part. Normally, she and Aidan both'd be put on Fertility drugs–she to help with making sure any transferred embryos actually implanted, the ginger for egg retrieval. Given that her friend had already undergone an egg retrieval, she didn't need the Fertility drugs at this point and vetoed being put on them. As a Witch who preferred au Natural when and where she could get it, the younger woman refused to be put on them, herself. She was more willing to move in with her friends–or let her friend move in with her–to let their Cycles sync up Naturally, versus be drugged to do it.

        It was the tail End of August, the Beginning of September, before the womens' Cycles'd synced up so that they started their periods only a Day apart. With them synced up that closely, it was the prime Time to transfer any embryos that were deemed viable by the lab staff that went so far as to triple-check them. Since mid-June, they'd managed to get Ash corralled into the Fertility clinic to undergo his sperm retrieval, which he certainly hadn't been happy about. He'd been crabby for a full week after quite literally taking a needle to both his nuts, which was the least invasive procedure and most agreeable to him.

        Considering how intimate the transfer process was, Aerin barred both the couple and each of her husbands from the procedure room. She didn't mind them waiting in the waiting room, but she was trying to be as fair as she could under the circumstances. If she wouldn't allow the actual parents in there during the procedure, she wasn't letting either of her husbands in, even for moral support.

        "All right–Lights off," the fertility specialist the two women now shared said.

        Aerin veritably forced herself into a meditative trance so she could ignore the worst of what was being done to her.

        "Sorry about that," said specialist–Dr. Hill–said sympathetically when she gasped sharply at the ultrasound gel that got squirted on her lower belly.

        "Just get it over with–preferably without ripping me outta my trance again," the young woman grumbled. "'Cuz it ain't the gel or needing to piss that's bothering me."

        "Ya gotta lemme know what's wrong, if anything is," she told her with a frown.

        "Nothing you're gonna be able to fix till ya get that damned speculum outta my crotch," Aerin grumbled. She wasn't about to tell her that it felt like said medical instrument was actually a knife to some very intimate parts, or this process'd never get done–and she did mean never.

        "All right, Mrs. Dall–just take some deep breaths," the specialist told her.

        Already back in her meditative trance, there wasn't any real need to tell her to take deep breaths, 'cuz she'd already Returned to doing that. It was the only way she could ignore the pain in her pelvis and lower belly, which she knew would go away once the speculum was removed. Unfortunately for her, it was a problem she'd suffered from since adolescence, which was why she avoided even a pelvic exam whenever she could. In fact, there'd been a few Times that she'd even avoid sex just so she wouldn't have to deal with it, but that was rare after coming to the realization that she'd a magnesium deficiency.