Part 2

Stephanie awoke the next morning with a immense smile upon her face and feeling better and more content with herself than she had in years. She had at long last been able to acknowledge openly her true feelings for Kurt, feelings that she had clandestinely concealed since she had first met him. She rolled over and realised that she was alone in the bed, that Kurt was gone. She quickly got up and threw on her silk robe and stepped out of the bedroom into the living area of the hotel room.

"Kurt?" she called.

There was no reply and Stephanie wandered over to the couch, sinking down in shock and rejection. She just couldn't believe that he would tell her he loved her, make love with her and then get up and leave without saying goodbye. Kurt just wasn't like that. As the tears began to fall over her monumental stupidity, she spotted something out of the corner of her eye. It was a piece of paper and sniffling she grabbed it.

My Dearest Stephanie,

I'm sorry I left without telling you goodbye, but you so peaceful that I didn't have the heart to do so. Plus the fact I wouldn't have been able to leave you if you managed to shed even one tear.

Remember that I love you and that I'll be back before you even realise I'm gone.

If you need me your dad has the number to reach me by.

Love always

Kurt

Stephanie hugged the note close to her heart for a few moments, before she got up and putting it in with her most personal belongings. Then she simply went along with her regular routine, getting ready and going straight to work. However it was now not only her career, it was also a way for to fill up her lonely days until Kurt returned and she could move on with her life.


Two Months Later

"What?!" Stephanie McMahon yelled in surprise. "That's not funny. Plus it is totally impossible. You have got it wrong... it's just the *flu*."

Dr. Richard Aston - the McMahon's personal physician - just shook his head at her. "Stephanie, I've been your doctor since before you could talk. It's not the flu, you are pregnant."

"Oh My God!"

"There are of course options," Dr. Aston told her.

Stephanie put her hand protectively over where her and Kurt's child lay, "Not for me there isn't."

He patted Stephanie's hand sympathetically, "I'm sure everything will be fine. Why don't you make an appointment for next week and then we'll discuss finding you a good OBGYN."

"Okay," Stephanie whispered getting up.

As if she was on autopilot, Stephanie paid the bill and made herself another appointment. Then she simply walked out of the doctor's office and climbed into the brand new sports car that her daddy had just bought her. Then she sat there shaking in shock. She just couldn't believe that this had happened and that it was happening all out of order. Kurt was supposed to come back, marry her and then they'd start the family she had always wanted. Now she was about to become the Billion Dollar unmarried mommy.

The worst part wasn't that Kurt was gone, she knew he'd be back soon enough and plus she was going to call and tell him. The worst part was that she was going to have to tell her family - her daddy - that she was pregnant and the father wasn't going to be around for awhile.


For the next few weeks Stephanie managed to avoid all phone calls and visits from various family members, paranoid that they would know just by looking at her. She of course logically knew that it was impossible - she was no where near showing yet - but she wasn't quite ready to share her secret yet. Not until she had told Kurt and she couldn't reach him. She had tried and tried to get a hold of him, but couldn't. She had tried the number he'd left with her daddy, Kurt's siblings and hell she'd even tried to get the number of Kurt's freakin' coach - all without success. Now the only choice she had was to call Kurt's mother and beg for his number - not exactly what she wanted to because Kurt's mom didn't exactly seem to like her.

Finally pushing her nerves aside she called Kurt's mother and was told that she hadn't heard from Kurt since he'd left. Stephanie couldn't come right out and call her a liar and there was just no way she was going to use the baby to get her own way. Finally extracting a probably false promise from Kurt's mother to tell Kurt to call her when she heard from him, she hung up. Knowing that sooner or later he would most probably call her, she relaxed slightly. Knowing that the next step was that she needed get the worst over with and tell her family about the baby. She left her office with an impending sense of doom lingering over her head.


Deciding that getting her parents and Shane and his wife in the one location at the one time was an impossible task at the best of times, she simply chose to tell her parents first. So she drove out to her parents home and parked out front. Climbing from the car was one of the hardest things she had ever had to do - not because she had trouble climbing out of the car or anything - but because she knew she was about to disappoint her daddy. Plus she also hadn't quite yet figured out how to break the news to them or to handle them when they did know.

Using her key she let herself inside and was greeted by the unusual sound of her parents laughter. Not that Vince and Linda were unhappy with each other - despite their television image - it was just that they were rarely home together these days to do so. Stephanie walked towards the sound with a smile playing across the corners of her mouth. She thanked God that they were in a good mood, she wandered into the room, clearing her throat loudly and causing Vince and Linda to break apart like guilty school kids.

"Hi," Stephanie said nervously.

"Hi Princess," Vince replied. "What are you doing here?"

Linda stood up and hugged her only daughter, "Never mind him. You know you're always welcome here."

"I know," Stephanie answered as she returned her mother's hug. "I... uh... just needed to talk to you both about something."

Vince looked at his little princess in surprise, "What is it?"

Stephanie looked at both of her parents in turn and then said to her mother, "Maybe you should sit back down."

Linda sat, "Honey... are you sick?"

"No mom, I'm fine. Totally healthy," she replied.

"Then what is it?" Vince demanded as his brow wrinkled further in concern.

"Uh... well... you see..."

"Stephanie, whatever it is it can't be that bad," Linda told her encouragingly.

Stephanie sat down in the leather armchair across from her parents and sighed. "I'm pregnant."

Vince's face contorted in shock, mirroring Linda's own facial expression. Then he broke into laughter, "Funny. Now what's really wrong?"

"I just told you daddy," Stephanie responded as she felt the panic begin to rise in her body. "I'm pregnant."

"You and Hunter?" Linda asked hopefully. After all she had always liked her daughter's ex-husband.

"No, the baby's not Hunter's."

Vince snapped out of his stupor, "Then who the hell put his hands on you?" When Stephanie was silent a feeling of dread spread through him, "It wasn't Jericho was it?"

"Daddy, don't be ridiculous," Stephanie told him. "Chris and I had a purely *business* relationship."

"Sure, sure," Vince mocked. "Just like you and Kurt were just *business* partners." Something on Stephanie's face must have given away her feelings about Kurt because the expression of Vince's face went from bad to worse. "Kurt is the father!"

Stephanie knew it was a statement and not a question, but she answered it anyway, "Yeah."

Vince was visibly shocked, though Stephanie wasn't sure if it was due to becoming a grandfather or the fact that the father of the future grandchild was a trusted family friend. She had a feeling it was both.

"Daddy?" she said nervously, tears forming in her eyes. She just knew that she was about to be drummed out of the family and have to do this all alone.

Vince looked at his princess' sad face and the bitter words faded from his tongue. He stood up and pulled her into his arms offering her comfort.

"It'll be okay princess," he cooed soothingly. "I'll make sure of it."


TBC...