The Surrogate Proposal

Chapter Sixteen

They sat around the table, chatting and reliving their past.
Fr. Ray sat up to leave,
"You're leaving already?", Maria asked,
"Yea, I have to say mass tomorrow morning",
"Do you need me to drop you off?", Frank asked,
"Nah, you two need to catch up",
They smiled at each other and he left.

"So", Frank said,
"So", she said too and smiled taking another sip from the shot.

"You know, you need to give her some time", he said running his finger around the tip of his shot, Maria found it attractive.
"I mean our daughter",
Maria stared at him as tears welled up her eyes. It downed on her that they actually have something together,a daughter.
Frank went and sat beside her and held her face,
"Oh Frank", she whispered as he wiped her tears with his thumb.
He brought his lips to her forehead, then her cheeks,
"Am so sorry", she whispered again as Frank kissed her lips,
"I've missed you so much", she said and kissed him back.

Fr. Ray who was watching from afar smiled and started his way down the lonely road.

«««»»»

"I have a daughter", Faith said while sitting before her mirror. She has been fighting to tell her husband about it but couldn't get herself to.
She felt pain from her palm and stopped twisting her hands.

"I have a daughter", she said again and looked at her husband through the mirror, her heart beating against her chest.

Her husband dropped the newspaper he was holding to look at her, after awhile he replied, " I know",
Faith jumped around in her stool to face her husband,
He knew?

"Your mother told me years ago",
Faith covered her mouth with her tiny hands and sobbed. She felt ashamed and disappointed in herself.
Her husband went to her and tried to touch her but she stood up and walked to the window, still crying. He held her from the back and tried to console her.
"Am so sorry, oh..John am so sorry", she said and buried her face in his chest and cried more.

«««»»»

Stephanie opened the window to welcome in the air of New York. She stared at the busy streets while her mind wandered off.

She had gone home after a long while but couldn't get herself to tell them why she came.

She's in deep trouble. Real trouble.

She had been tricked.

She was told she could earn seventy percent out of a business that was introduced to her by two men who had introduced themselves as business developers. She earned once and then foolishly and out of greediness, took almost half of her family's shares into the business. She had called and texted and even went to the business centre.
But it was all fraud!
She felt cold sweat run down her spine.
She had kept it a secret and she knows it won't take long before they find out. They'll burn her alive.
Not only the shares.
Her mother's house is at stake too.
She bit her thumb at the thought of how foolish she had been.

But then, she had gone home and God answered her prayers, through Regina.

She had told her she got a job but the money she's sending home over that short period of time is extremely much. She's a help from God.
Whatever she's doing, she better keep doing it.
But first of all she needs to find her.
A knock from the door brought her back and she went to answer it.

«««»»»

Gina opened her eyes and saw someone looking forward at her and it was Lucy. She tried to sit up,
"Slowly, there", Lucy said as she helped her sit up.
"Oohh, see who's almost due",
Gina noticed she's all happy and chatty but couldn't figure out why, not that she cared, she has her own problem to deal with.