Ok this is going to be the last chapter. I have really enjoyed writing this story and again I want to thank everyone who took the time to review it. I hope you have all enjoyed reading it and I really hope you will all like the ending.
Mark woke up suddenly. He had been dreaming again, dreaming of the day that had changed his life forever. It had been almost 18 months since that day but in all honesty, to Mark, it seemed like a different lifetime. So much had happened since then that he wasn't sure how they had all got through it relatively unscathed. He sincerely hoped that everyone involved had ended up happy.
As he sat there lost in his thoughts he heard a whimper coming from the nursery. His son was awake and judging from the time of the morning he was probably hungry. Just as he was about to get up and see to him he heard his wife's voice filter through the baby monitor.
"Hey baby boy don't cry, mommy's here, its ok." He heard her soothe him. His wife, he repeated the words in his head, he still couldn't believe that they were married. Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine they would end up married with a child. He knew that deciding to be with her had been the right thing to do.
He got up and slowly walked into the nursery. He stood silently in the doorway watching his wife nurse their son. As she sat on the rocking chair cradling the baby she softly began to sing to him. Mark smiled when he heard the song she was singing; it was one of his favourites, Blackbird by The Beatles. He began to walk over to them.
When she heard him approach she stopped singing and looked up at him. "Have you been standing watching us again? Honestly Mark if you weren't my husband I would think you were some kind of weirdo!"
"What, a guy can't watch his family?" He questioned innocently.
She smiled at him. "Of course you can, I just hate it when you creep up on me!"
She looked down at the baby. "Well it looks like somebody is finally full." She gently sat Matthew up and rubbed his back to break his wind. Once he was finished he settled back into his mother's arms and went back to sleep. She stood slowly and gently placed him back in his crib. Mark bent down and placed a kiss on his son's forehead. He stood back up and wrapped his arms around his wife. "I love you so much Susan." He said before kissing her softly. "I love you too." She replied, returning his kiss. The kiss soon became more passionate. He hesitantly pulled back slightly. "Maybe we should move this into our room." He said breathlessly. "Definitely." She replied as she took his hand and led him to their bedroom.
An hour later he lay with her wrapped in his arms. She had dozed off but he was too wired to sleep. He gently stroked her arm as his mind drifted back to the day she told him she was pregnant. It wasn't long after Elizabeth had found out that her pregnancy was ectopic. After everything that had happened both of them had been a tiny bit relieved because they knew the situation they were in was far from ideal for raising a baby. At the same time, however, they were still mourning the loss of their child. Thankfully Elizabeth had recovered well from the surgery and there was no lasting damage. She had left soon afterwards to return to London and again they parted on good terms, as friends. She had sent a gift basket when Matthew was born and with the card had come an invitation to her wedding. Mark was pleased that she had found someone and was happy.
His reaction to Susan's pregnancy was far different to the reaction he had when Elizabeth told him she was pregnant. When the words left Susan's mouth he thought his heart was going to explode with joy and he had barely stopped grinning since. At the time things between them were still a little strained because of everything that had happened since Susan had returned. They had only spent that one night together but obviously one night was all it took for them to create a new life. He thought about how nervous she was about telling him. She had already known for a couple of weeks before she worked up the courage to tell him.
Flashback
Susan ran as quickly as she could to the ladies room. She made it into one of the stalls just in time to empty the contents of her stomach down the toilet. Once she was finished retching she leaned back against the wall as the tears began to fall again. Mark had seen her rush into the bathroom and decided to go and see if she was ok. They had been avoiding talking about the whole situation and he was sure that the fates had intervened yet again to keep them apart. Even if they couldn't be together he was still her friend and he knew she had been acting strangely for the last few weeks.
As he entered the bathroom he could hear her muffled sobs. He approached the cubicle slowly. "Susan, are you ok?"
As soon as he said the words the stall door opened and she rushed past him wiping her tear stained face. She went over to the wash hand basin and splashed cold water on her face. He stood quietly watching her. She looked at his reflection in the mirror. "I'm fine, just feeling a little bit off today that's all." She replied trying to force a smile.
"That is not all. I know you Susan and I know something is wrong. Talk to me please." He pleaded with her.
She looked at him. "Ok but I don't want you to say anything until I am finished." He nodded signalling for her to continue.
She took a deep breath. "I found out a couple of weeks ago that I am pregnant. I haven't told you before now because I know that you and Elizabeth have been going through a horrible time and, believe me, I am really sorry about that and I hope everything works out for you two." Mark went to speak but Susan held her hand up to stop him. She continued. "When I found out I didn't know what to do but I do know that I want to have this baby more than anything. I am not asking you for anything Mark, I can do this on my own but you are the baby's father and you have a right to know." She looked up at him trying to gage his reaction. Without saying a word he stepped towards her and pulled her into his arms. When he pulled back he looked deeply into her eyes and spoke for the first time. "I know things have been crazy since you got back but none of what has happened changes how I feel about you. I love you and nothing and no-one can ever change that." This time it was Mark's turn to stop Susan from speaking. "I know this means that we won't be able to take things slow but I know that we can make this work. I have wanted to be with you for so long and now we finally can be. We are meant to be together and the fact that in one night together we managed to make a baby just proves it as far as I am concerned." She stood there staring at the man she loved more than anything in the whole world. "Ok, let's give it a go and see what happens." He kissed her forehead and said "Well if we are going to this I want to do it right." He suddenly dropped down on one knee. "Mark what the hell are you doing?!" He looked up at her, his eyes full of love and admiration. "Susan Lewis will you marry me?" She laughed. "I can't believe you are proposing to me in a bathroom! You are crazy!"
"The only thing I'm crazy about is you. So is that a yes?"
"It's a maybe. I think we should deal with one thing at a time so let's get used to the prospect of becoming parents first then we will sort out the rest."
"Whatever you want." He said with a smile.
"Good. Now will you please get up off the floor before someone walks in here and thinks we have lost our minds!"
He smiled at the memory. After a few months of nagging her he had ultimately convinced her that they should get married before the baby was born.
Flashback
They had a small wedding in early summer attended by their families, friends and colleagues. When Doug Ross made his best mans speech he addressed a comment he had heard someone make about how rushed Mark and Susan's relationship had been. "In anticipation of this joyous occasion I had already prepared my speech before Mark even asked me to be his best man. In fact I began preparing for this day many years ago when myself and everyone else who knew them realised that mark and Susan were soul mates. Unfortunately it took them a lot longer than any of us anticipated to get here! I overheard a conversation earlier about what a whirlwind romance they have had. Whirlwind! Are you kidding me?! It's taken them ten years to get to this point in their relationship!" This raised a laugh from all of those who had witnessed all the ups and downs of Mark and Susan's relationship. "Only Mark could be hopelessly in love with someone for years, not realise it in time, lose her for five years, get her back, get her pregnant and marry her all within the space of 6 months!" Again the guests laughed. "There is even still an outstanding bet on this between myself and Carter and I am pleased to announce that I have won. The original bet was $100 so I will calculate the interest for the last 5 years and let you know how much you owe me Carter."
"No problem Doug, I will write you a cheque." Carter replied with a chuckle.
Doug turned to the happy couple. "But seriously guys, nobody deserves to be happy more than you two and I am so glad you finally made it. Oh, and feel free to name the baby Doug if it's a boy." He turned back to the guests. "Now I would like you all to join me in toasting the happy couple. To Mark and Susan."
"What are you thinking about?" Susan's voice startled him. "I was just remembering our wedding day."
"Oh yeah, the day I looked like a beached whale wrapped in silk!" She replied sarcastically.
He looked at her sincerely. "You looked absolutely beautiful."
"Yeah right, you were the one marrying me, you have to say that." She deadpanned.
"You look stunning in anything you wear. Though I do have to admit I much prefer you the way you are right now."
"If I didn't know better I would swear you were trying to seduce me Dr Greene." Susan replied teasingly.
"Now what would make you think that Mrs Greene." He said innocently.
"Hey that's Dr Lewis to you!" She said playfully as their lips met and their hands began caressing each other's bodies.
As they made love for the second time that morning, unbeknown to them, they were creating another chapter in their life together and in 9 months time that new chapter would begin when they welcomed their second child into the world and into their family.
So that's it finished guys. Thanks again to all of you who stuck with me through it. Please hit the review button and let me know what you thought of the ending.