Surrogate and Wife

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Book: Read Surrogate and Wife for Free Online
Authors: Emily McKay
sorry I called. I wouldn’t have done it if I’d known it would upset you.”
    â€œI’m not upset,” she lied.
    â€œIn my defense, it’s not that late.”
    She glanced at her bedside clock. Only 9:23. Dang it, he was right. Most people were still up watching the Sunday night movie.
    â€œBut I guess,” he continued without waiting for her response, “that pregnant women tire easily and go tobed early. These are the kinds of things I’ll have to get used to.”
    Now that was a disconcerting thought. “Why did you call, Jake?”
    â€œI was thinking about our story.”
    In the background she could hear the faint murmur of a TV. “Our story?” she asked.
    The sounds faded, as if he’d just turned down the volume with the remote. “The story of how we met, remember? We need to get our story straight, because when people find out we’re getting married, they’re bound to ask.”
    She could picture him so clearly in her mind. Lounging on that leather sofa, his legs stretched out onto the battered wood coffee table, phone in one hand, remote in the other, football game on ESPN.
    Shaking her head to rid herself of the image, she said, “That’s easy. We met at Beth and Stew’s wedding.”
    â€œWe met at their wedding eight years ago and now—outta nowhere—we’re getting married? Naw, that doesn’t make sense.” He chuckled. “I bet you’re a terrible liar.”
    Lying in the dark, she felt distinctly disadvantaged. So she flipped on the light beside her bed, stacked a couple of spare pillows behind her and sat up. “I’m a judge. We’re not supposed to be good liars.”
    â€œIs that part of the job description?” he teased.
    â€œNo, but it should be,” she said wryly. And then felt annoyed with herself for letting him lure her off the subject. “About this story, we should keep it as simple as possible. And close to the truth, if we can. If you think we really need one.”
    â€œCome on, everybody’s got a story. And when a couple gets married, everyone wants to hear it.”
    â€œI disagree. Not everyone has an interesting story, and surely few people care enough to ask about it.”
    â€œHow did Beth and Stew meet?” he asked.
    â€œI don’t know.” She rubbed her temple as she thought about it. “I guess it was their freshman year at UT. She was working at that little sandwich shop across from campus.” She couldn’t keep from smiling as a few of the details came back to her. “Even though he was vegetarian, he’d always order a Philly cheesesteak, because they took so long to make and that gave him more time to talk to— Wait a second. Surely you’ve heard this all before.”
    Jake chuckled. “Of course I have, but you just proved my point. Everybody has a story.”
    â€œMaybe,” she reluctantly admitted.
    â€œDefinitely. Tell me something. How did your parents meet?”
    Kate chewed lightly on her lip, unsure what to say. Her parents had met in a bar during one of her mother’s frequent bouts of drunkenness. Nine months later, when Kate was born, her mom couldn’t remember her lover’s name. Couldn’t narrow the field of possible fathers down to just one guy, for that matter. The most Kate had ever been able to get out of her mom was, “He was probably either the cop from Austin or the salesman from Dallas. Or the trucker from Ohio.”
    Whichever guy it was, it didn’t make for the kind of story she wanted to share. So she lied.
    â€œThey were high school sweethearts. Their first date was the homecoming dance. They married young.” It wasn’t entirely a lie. More an amalgamation of stories from her adopted parents and her various foster parents.
    Since it would never hold up under questioning, she asked, “What about your parents? How did they

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