CHAPTER 1

It wasn't out of the ordinary for Jean-Luc Picard to ask Beverly Crusher out for dinner. However, Beverly had noticed the change in Jean-Luc's demeanor. He was charming, a little flirtatious, and he said all the right things that made her heart skip a little. Of course, her curiosity got the best of her as she accepted his invitation to have a 'more intimate' dinner in his quarters.

Dinner was lovely, romantic, something she was not expecting from her commanding officer. When she pressed him on it, he began to talk about growing closer and how their positions stood in the way. She was afraid of where this was going but didn't know if it was because it is what she always wanted or was afraid of disappointment if it turns out it wasn't. He asks her to dance and she happily accepts, which leads to a very slow, intimate kiss. She is taken aback, unsure of who is standing before her.

"Jean-Luc, if I didn't know any better, I think you were playing games with me" she said in a nervous tone.

"Are you sorry you came tonight?" he asks in almost a whisper.

"I didn't say that" she responds, with a small smile that crept up in the corner of her mouth.

"Good. Because I'm delighted you did" he smiled and placed his hand on her cheek. She stared into those fiery hazel eyes of his, the ones that melts her heart every time she sees him. She swallowed hard due to the anticipation of what was going to happen next.

What surprised her next was that it wasn't Jean-Luc leaning in for a kiss, but she was. The kiss was light and sweet but deepened as the seconds passed. She should have realized something was going on with him, but her desire for him from all these years took over and all her inhibition faded.

As the night turned into the morning, she woke up alone in his bed. Her heart dropped in her stomach, unsure if Jean-Luc was playing games with her or if there was something seriously wrong. She quickly dressed and snuck out like a teenager hiding from their parents. Hoping no one, especially her staff, saw her leaving.

The surprise she had days later was that the man she was with that night was not Jean-Luc Picard but an imposter who wanted to learn about the human species. This doppelgänger got more than they bargained for in the arts of romance and lovemaking, which made Beverly sick to her stomach.

How could I be so foolish? she thought, angry at herself for falling for such a horrible deception. When the captain returned to the Enterprise, she avoided him at first until she couldn't no longer. She put on that winning smile and made him think everything was fine. The oblivious Captain never pressed her on what had happened while he was gone; he didn't have any reason to. He trusted her and usually trusted her word more so than everyone else. Beverly made a promise to herself that she would take this secret to her grave. No one needed to know what happened with that imposter, especially the Captain, and the more she denied it the more it would just go away. Unfortunately for Beverly, 3 1/2 months later, her secret would be exposed.

A lot happened on the Enterprise over the last few months. The captain's assimilation was the hardest to handle. Seeing someone she loved in such a horrific state was almost too much for Beverly to handle. Her determination in saving Jean-Luc is the only thing that kept her going, and to be strong for Wesley, who took the Borg attack and Wolf 359 the hardest.

It wasn't until Wesley left for Starfleet Academy that Beverly began to not feel herself. Maybe the stress of Wesley and Jean-Luc's disappearance took more of a toll than she thought. Even though everyone was safe, Beverly couldn't shake this nauseous feeling in the pit of her stomach. She self-medicated just to get through the day but it was far worse at night. This particular night, she couldn't sleep and the nausea was getting worse. When she felt she couldn't handle the dinner she had hours earlier, she knew something was wrong.

Maybe I picked up some viral infection on the moon? She thought to herself.

After her urgent visit to the bathroom, she replicated some cold water and sat down with her tricorder. She hovered the instrument from her head and moved slowly down her body, keeping a close eye on her tricorder for anything that might pop up. After a few seconds of no sign of any problems, she notices the red lights flashing on her tricorder once she goes over her stomach. Beverly slowly looked away, letting the information sink in.

"This can't be right" She said to no one but herself. She began to pace in her quarters, letting the anxiety take over as the minutes began to pass by. As her eyes stung with tears that wanted to fall, she knew she needed answers quickly.

"Computer, time?" she asked with a shaky voice.

"It is 0400 hours" the computer complied.

Without thinking of how early it was, she grabbed her combadge and activated it. "Dr. Crusher to Dr. Selar"

Dr. Selar didn't respond right away. Beverly knew she was probably asleep as she was off duty this particular day. Beverly closed her eyes and prayed to anyone that would listen, that Selar would answer. She trusted a lot of people on her staff but no more than Dr. Selar. After a few moments passed, she heard her voice.

"Selar here" The Vulcan doctor responded in a sleepy yet professional manner.

"I'm sorry to wake you Doctor, but can you meet me in sickbay in room 3" Beverly asked with concern, something Selar picked up quickly.

"Of course, doctor. I will see you soon. Selar Out" The Vulcan ended the transmission quickly. Beverly dropped the tricorder on the coffee table before quickly grabbing a robe, slipping on some shoes, and rushing out to sickbay. Her walk is usually a few minutes from her quarters but this felt like an eternity. She slipped through the back entrance that was closest to the private room and met the stone-faced Vulcan there.

"Dr. Crusher. What is the nature of this emergency?" Selar didn't wait to beat around the bush or even noticed the blood that drained from Beverly's face.

"I need a second opinion" Beverly said with a lump in her throat. Selar raised a brow, noticing her anxiety and how Beverly was gripping her robe tightly around her stomach.

"of what, Doctor?" Selar asked curiously.

"To see if I'm pregnant"