Mating Rituals Ch. 10

Several days later Karen phoned Cherie to tell her that Ryan had been born and was doing well. She also had no complications, but hadn't had to resort to Cherie's induction method, he simply popped out about a day late. "A punctual little poppet," she called him. They were now able to arrange their transport so said they'd be arriving in a few days' time.

Cherie found herself counting time once again, hours before Karen and Frank's arrival this time. Finally the waiting was over and they arrived, moving their possessions into the newly finished three bedroom, self-contained wing of the house. Cherie and Karen goo-ed and gaa-ed over each other's baby and sat breastfeeding them, exchanging stories of their births, pregnancies and conception. Cherie hadn't told Karen about her initial difficulties on the phone, so she told her now.

"You mean Al's not the father? He can't have kids?" asked Karen after listening to Cherie's story.

"Yes, that's right," affirmed Cherie.

"So who's the father?"

"Al is. For everyone except a very few people, Al is Sophie's father. We're keeping the number of people who know the identity of the biological father to an absolute minimum for many reasons."

Karen thought about this for a few moments. "So you don't trust me to know and to not spread it further?" she asked, saddened that her best friend showed this lack of trust in her.

Cherie thought for a few minutes. Karen was her closest friend, lover, confidante; they had been bridesmaid and matron-of-honor at each other's wedding; they had shared secrets before and both had maintained confidences for the other; they had shared lovers. "Ok, I'm sorry. It's just that really it's illegal because the biological father is my dad, Lance. So Sophie is both his daughter and granddaughter."

Karen's jaw dropped and she was silent for a long time, completely lost for words. Eventually she composed herself.

"That's wonderful," she said, adding, "I think. What a great solution."

Cherie then let everything out, the fact that she and her father had been lovers since he took her virginity at 18, how she had discussed the issue of a sperm donor with the ob-gyn specialist and had chosen not to have an anonymous donor and fuck a straw to become pregnant. She described in detail the impregnation and the joy at finding she was carrying her father's baby. Karen listened in silence with amazement. Finally after Cherie had finished, she asked: "So will you have any more babies?"

"Oh yes, I just loved being pregnant. I want at least one more of my own, but I'm also aware that there are many women out there who cannot become pregnant for a wide variety of reasons and who desperately want to be a mother to a child. So I've joined a surrogacy website and am looking at carrying babies for other women. The only thing is that I will not use a straw as a sperm donor."

"So you'd need to make love with the woman's partner then?"

"Sure looks like that. Now that, I'm sure, would be fun and I'm looking forward to doing this in another few months. You enjoyed being pregnant, didn't you?"

"Yes, very much."

"So why don't you join me? Let's both become surrogates. Think of the joy we could bring people by allowing them to have a child when they had suffered the trauma of finding that they could not conceive. I know that pain; I suffered that when Al was found to be infertile. Other couples also suffer that pain when the female partner is infertile. Why don't we lessen this pain for them by providing them with an option to at least raise a child, even if they cannot carry one?"

"I agree. Count me in. Does Al know you intend to do this?"

"Oh yes, he's really happy that we can help others in this way."

"I'm sure Frank will be as well."

To be continued.