Thanks for reviewing, everyone! I will try and reply to them when I can but if it's about spoilers, I'll keep quiet. Remember, this is chapter two of three chapters being uploaded at the same time. Chapters 5, 6 and 7 have been uploaded.
"This won't hinder my chances at getting pregnant, Francis," Mary says as Francis worries over the phone at how bad she sounds. She caught the flu from her uncle when she and her mother went to look after the man two weeks ago and it's the bane of her life, restricting her from leaving her bed and working. "Stop worrying."
"You sound like shit. I'm calling Kenna to stop by with some soup. Can you keep anything down?"
"I can't eat squat, Francis," Mary says. "It comes back up again. And I think I've got a fucking fever. It's awful."
"I know, babe," Francis says quietly. "Are you well enough to take some news in?"
Mary groans before turning onto her side with her phone lodged between her ear and pillow. "Go ahead."
He takes a deep breath in before saying, "You were right."
"I told you so," is her quick reply before she pauses. "Wait, about what?"
Francis tuts then he sighs heavily and curses under his breath. "Shit, Josie spilt my hot chocolate all over my lap. I've told her not to jump on the bloody dining table but she keeps doing that and I can't train it out of her-"
"Francis, I am right about what?"
"The baby isn't mine," Francis croaks sadly.
Mary feels guilty and she sighs heavily. "I'm sorry. I know how much you want kids and well, Olivia was going to get you there before I could... I'm so sorry."
"I think I knew it deep down but I'm the only guy willing to put up with her shit, you know?" He replies, sniffling. "I feel like an idiot! And my mother's been on my case about that. Even Dad was disappointed. It's not my fault that Olivia's a snake and a horrible bitch and I wish she'd just die and leave me alone..."
Mary sits up as best as she can and drags her phone to her ear. "You don't mean that..."
"No," he sobs. "I don't. I don't wish her death nor her baby. And now I'm mourning two kids. The one that didn't work with you and the one I could have had with her. The universe hates me."
Mary sighs and licks her chapped lips. She ought to find her vaseline lip therapy. "You're the best guy I've ever known. You've been there through so much with me, I'm surprised you're still there."
He laughs wryly. "I'll never stop being there for you."
"Why don't you move to England?"
"Bash told you?" He asks knowingly. "I don't know why we bother keeping secrets from each other, we'll always find out naturally."
Mary chuckles before feeling icky and reaching out to grab a Kleenex to blow out her nose with. "Okay, I'm back."
"Yeah, you tooted all over in my ear, I can feel your snot from France," Francis jests, making her smile at how quickly she can get him from feeling sad to making jokes.
"Fuck off," she replies lightly. "It is disgusting though and since it hurts to leave the bed, I'll give Kenna a call. Anyway, Bash did tell me and now that you have nothing holding you back in France, why not rent out a place here or better yet... move in? With me, I mean. I don't think Bash will appreciate another eavesdropper on his and Kenna's sex life."
Francis swallows hard. "Can I think about it?"
"You've got two weeks until the next cycle," Mary replies. "Think about it."
"I will," he promises. "I love you."
Mary tests the waters. "Do you mean that friendly or romantically?"
"What do you think, Mary?"
Mary feels her head shoot with pain and now, a dull ache is pressing against her temples. "I've got to go. My head's splitting... Let's take this slowly, yeah?"
"Okay," Francis whispers. "Talk later?"
"Definitely," she replies before hanging up and crying out in pain. Her painkillers are in her bag but she can't be arsed to grab them so she texts Kenna and heads to bed.
...
Mary sighs in pleasure, a long moan leaving her mouth. "That feels so good."
Kenna playfully rolls her eyes as she continues to massage Mary's head. "You're lucky I got the flu last week from Robin so I'm immune now. Bash and Raven locked us in his bedroom until we weren't contagious anymore."
"How does a baby lock people in a room?"
"Oh, she gives her daddy this little glare and he does her bidding," Kenna replies. "Trust me, you'll love having a daughter. I hope you have a daughter, mine is a complete mini-me. Ruining guys' lives since birth."
Mary chortles before opening her eyes. "I think Francis and I could be a thing..."
Kenna stops massaging Mary's head and looks down at her, blocking the view of the ceiling. "Tell me you're not joking."
"I have no reason to joke about this," Mary replies.
"Oh my God!"
"Could being the keyword, Kenna," Mary says softly. "He's ended things with Olivia for good after she tried to pass her kid off as his and now, he could move in with me and could be my kind of-boyfriend as well as my-"
"Baby daddy."
"I hate that term," Mary laughs.
Kenna snorts and grins. "But isn't that the term for one who is not in a relationship with the baby mama?"
"Stop," Mary says, laughing softly. "He will be the father of my child."
"Ever so formal," Kenna chides, pecking Mary's head and getting up to retrieve the flu medicine. "I call Sebastian a 'dilf' all the time in public."
"Because you guys are so horny, you don't care about PDA," Mary says. "Not all of us are willing to put our sex lives out there."
"It's impossible to do it at home so why not?" Kenna replies teasingly. "No, we don't have sex in public, we're not that crazy. Anyway, back to you and Francis... How will you refer to him when your baby's here or not?"
Mary sits up and glares at her once she realises what Kenna is trying to imply. "I am not calling him 'daddy' in a sexual tone, Kenna!"
"You said it, I didn't," Kenna cackles. "How are you feeling now?"
Mary sighs. "Better. I hope I can get rid of it before the next cycle. I don't think a shitty immune system is a good thing."
"You'll be fine," Kenna tells her before disappearing for a bit and returning. "And you can afford how many cycles?"
Mary shrugs. "I can maybe get two or three more goes with what I have now from my savings," she replies. "And when my paycheck comes at the end of the month and I've taken the bills, mortgage and whatever else from it, I can get another round. But my doctor said my chances increase by 20% each time so I might not even need two or three more goes."
Kenna smiles warmly. "Yeah, because you're fit and healthy-"
"I currently feel like death right now-"
"Healthy on a good day," Kenna drawls with a roll of her eyes. "It will work."
Mary bites her lip nervously as Kenna takes a seat again. "My mother said she struggled to have kids. She lost four pregnancies and Jim was through a surrogate. I was the miracle baby and she was almost a geriatric mother by the time she had me... What if it doesn't work for me, Kenna? What if I'm waiting for another ten years to have a kid like she did?"
Kenna sighs heavily and places the medicine on the coffee table before taking Mary's hands in hers. "You wouldn't have been approved for the process if you had fertility struggles."
"Before now, I've never tried to have a baby though. I've never got pregnant since I'd been on the pill in my relationships and only stopped when I broke up with that prick. What if we don't actually know of any issues until now?"
"Mary-"
"I just..." And she gets tearful so she closes her eyes and wills her tears to go. She can cry in front of her friends but she doesn't want to feel more awful than she does already. "It's terrifying. I have hope, don't get me wrong but there's that nagging part of my brain that is making fun of that hope. I've not exactly been blessed with a relationship stable enough to have kids..."
Kenna scoffs loudly. "Do you think all of those single parents needed other people helping them to raise their wonderful kids? It doesn't matter what your household looks like, as long as the child is happy. I'd rather you be single and a mother than have a kid with a domestic abuser or a cheating prick."
Mary rests her chin on the top edge of the sofa. "I guess..."
"You're going to be okay. Everything will work out and you will hold your baby in our arms in due time," Kenna tells her. "Now, have your medicine and rest."
...
"Kenna said you were sick. You look so much better now!" Lola says to Mary as they take a stroll in the park, Lola's daughter, Bella, in the buggy.
Mary smiles. "Yeah. I felt like death..."
"You don't look like it," Lola says. "Sorry that I've not been around. I decided to go back to work."
Mary raises her brows and pointedly glances down at Lola's baby. "Seriously? Isn't she almost seven months?"
Lola tuts. "I know but Stephane's been made redundant at work," she explains. "So, we decided he'll stay home with Bella. It's great that my parents didn't pressure me enough into becoming a housewife because what if we were only surviving on one income?"
Mary blinks in surprise as they continue to walk. Yeah, that's... true. Her job isn't the most stable job out there, she is a data analyst for some tech company. She could transfer to a medical company as they pay better and well, she most likely won't be made jobless for another ten years as medicine relies on humans as opposed to computers but even if the pay rise is there, she will be raising this child on a single income which is not reliable.
But Francis will support us, she thinks and she immediately relaxes and smiles to herself at the idea of not only Francis supporting them but being a part of their family. Her, their baby and him... She really wants that.
She really wants him to move to England, move in with her.
"Yeah, that was a smart choice. We can't predict the future," Mary replies.
"So, how's the process going?" Lola asks her.
Mary tilts her head either way. "So-so," she says. "The first cycle failed but I'm not worried."
"Will the sperm donor be the same then? Those things are frozen for months, apparently. I read up on a lot after you told us," Lola tells her.
"Don't be mad that I'm telling you this last but technically you aren't the last person to know..."
"Yeah...?"
Mary stops them and turns to Lola. "Francis is the donor."
A smile grows on Lola's face as she starts laughing and squealing and Mary stares at her in shock and confusion. It even gets weirder when Lola brings her in for a bone-crashing hug.
"I knew you guys were secretly together! No one in their right mind will stay with a bitch like Olivia and you've been single for way too long-"
"We're not together-"
"But why are you doing an IUI? Can't you just have sex and be done-wait, you're not together?" Lola asks, confused. "But you guys... The flirty texts, the sleeping in the same bed, the embraces and kisses..."
Mary sighs. "We're just closer than most girl-guy best friends," she replies.
Lola tuts. "Well, at least you're going to have a cute baby."
Mary chuckles wryly. "Yeah."
"When is the next cycle?" Lola asks as they continue to walk on.
"Next week."
"I hope it's successful. You're going to be a great mum, Mary," Lola replies. "And I'm sure Francis will be a great dad to them too. I wish you all the best."
Mary smiles fondly, blushing. "Thank you."
With her best friends now knowing who the father of her baby will be, Mary remembers that she still has to let his family in on it as well as her over-protective older brother, James. James who threatens to fight any guys that even looks her way following her awful long-term relationships but she hopes he won't mind Francis. They've known Francis since they were kids so that should score some points with her brother.
But first, she needs to tell him.
...
"Mum said you were sick," Jim says, feeling her forehead the second she steps into his home. "How are you now?"
Swatting his hand away, Mary gives him a wry smile. "Miles better. I have something to tell you."
Jim narrows his eyes slightly but gestures for her to follow him into the playroom where his baby son is on the playmat on the floor. He takes a seat beside Harold and Mary joins them, pulling faces at the baby before deciding to quickly go and wash her hands before carrying him.
They're taking precautions so he doesn't get sick as babies are susceptible to getting sick easily and Mary's got to start picking those habits up in time for her baby to arrive. Whenever that is.
"Now, talk," Jim says once Harold is cooing in her arms.
Mary meets her brother's eyes and bites her bottom lip, looks down at Harold and then back at Jim. "I'm trying for a baby, James."
Jim opens and closes his mouth like a fish for a few times before letting out a soft breath of air. "God, wow! Just springing it on me like that? When did you even get into another relationship?"
"I'm single."
"How does that work-"
"IUI," Mary replies. "I've got a sperm donor."
Jim sighs and nods. "Okay. So you'll be a single parent?"
"Yeah."
He then smiles and brushes his son's hair back. "I'm happy for you. I mean, if a guy won't give you a kid, then you'll get one yourself."
She chuckles softly and nods. "Yeah. Uh, that's not the only thing. I had a cycle last month and it failed so I'm obviously having another cycle. That's next week and Francis is the donor so he'll father my baby and-"
"No, you can't just drop that bit about Francis Valois so casually and glaze over it!" Jim cries out. "Mary, isn't Francis your best friend? Haven't you eaten dirt together when we were kids?"
Mary snorts. "In our defence, dirt is healthy," she jokes. "And yes, he is my best friend. What's wrong with that?"
"Lines will be blurred and crossed. How can he just stand by and not be involved in this kid's life? Isn't that how donating sperm works? They're not the father, just some distant uncle who is actually a family friend and-"
"James, Francis and I will raise the baby together. As a mother and a father."
Jim raises his brows. "Oh."
"He wants kids too," she explains. "So, we decided to have a kid together."
Jim then narrows his eyes again, taking his son from her arms when the baby starts to wail. "Mary... didn't you say you were in love with him once?"
Mary sighs and remembers the time she and her brother got drunk at their mother's second wedding ten years ago. They had headed up to the roof with a bottle of wine, bitching about how much of a bridezilla Marie was and how kind their new stepfather was despite having reservations about the new man in their mother's life ten years after their father's death when they were 10 and 17 years old. On that roof was when Mary let slip that she's always been in love with Francis Valois and how she wanted to stick the cocktail sticks from the sausages in Olivia's eyes who had come to the wedding as Francis's date.
"I'm in love with him still," Mary admits.
"But isn't he with the blonde whose... front page is everywhere for people to see?" Jim asks, blushing slightly as he shivers.
Mary lets out a burst of giggles. "Such a prude!"
"Says you!"
She sobers up with a sigh. "No, they're over, for good."
"Then what are you waiting for? If you're already trying for a baby, why not start a relationship with him?"
Mary shakes her head. "We've got a while to go until that happens," she replies. "But I think we're getting somewhere."
"Right."
"I don't want to scare him off."
Jim squeezes her forearm and gives her a comforting smile before saying, "Sometimes, you've got to jump in the deep end, little sister."
Chapters 5, 6 and 7 have been uploaded at the same time.