Accidental Surrogate for Alpha

Ella

“I’m sorry Ella.” My physician says gently. “I’m afraid you have very few viable eggs remaining. Frankly,

I normally see these numbers in women ten or fifteen years your senior.”

“What?” I murmur, not believing my ears. I’ve been trying to get pregnant for years. I’m only 30, I

should have plenty of eggs left.

“In terms of fertility, you have very little time left.” She continues. “If you want to conceive, you need to

do so before your next cycle begins.”

“My next cycle?” I repeat, my mouth hanging open in shock. I love kids more than anything, and though

it might not be everyone’s ambition, I want nothing more than to be a mother.

I have to get home and tell my boyfriend this news, and there’s not a moment to waste.

I make it home in record time, bursting through the door and opening my mouth to call for Mike, but

stopping dead in my tracks. As soon as I walk inside I see a pair of high heels and a handbag by the

door – neither of which belong to me.

I cock my ears towards the bedroom, and my stomach churns when I hear the unmistakable sound of

moaning, accompanied by a steady thump thump thump, as the bed collides with the wall. Worse even

than realizing that Mike is clearly in there with another woman, is realizing who he’s with. I know that

handbag, and I know those shoes – they belong to my best friend, Kate.

“Fuck, Ella is so stupid.” Mike laughs, “can you believe she actually expects me to have a baby with

her?”

Kate snorts, “she’s delusional. I don’t know how you put up with her for so long in the first place.”

“If she wasn’t so beautiful I never would have given her the time of day.” Mike scoffs. “Thankfully daily

doses of plan B kept her from ever conceiving.”

“The morning after pill?” Kate asks, “how did you manage to give it to her without her realizing?”

“I put it in her morning coffee.” Mike chortles, sounding far too proud of himself.

My vision goes completely red as everything finally falls into place. Suddenly it’s clear why I’ve never

been able to get pregnant, despite having unprotected sex multiple times a week for years. It’s even

clear how I could have the eggs of a 45-year-old, if my despicable partner has been secretly feeding

me emergency contraceptives every day – there’s no telling what other damage that might have done

to my reproductive system.

Before I can think better of it, I pull the smoke alarm on the wall, wanting to frighten and punish the pair

in the bedroom so fiercely that I fear I might attack them when they emerge. Water immediately sprays

down from the sprinkler system mounted to the ceiling as a shrill siren fills the air, and I hear Mike and

Kate cry out in surprise.

A few moments later they come rushing out of the bedroom, stopping in their tracks when they see me

looming in the doorway. Mike’s eyes go comically wide, “What are you doing home so early?” The

snake has the nerve to sound affronted that I surprised him, when he’s the one who’s been sneaking

around behind my back for God knows how long. He seems to realize how suspicious it looks that he

and Kate are standing there in their underwear and quickly adds, “Kate came to see me so we could

plan a surprise for your birthday, but then we spilled coffee all over our clothes so we had to change.”

Fire blazes in my veins, he must truly believe I’m an idiot if he expects me to buy such a feeble excuse.

It’s a testament to their horrifically low opinion of me that they buy my act, and I vow to get my revenge

one way or another. I can’t believe I wasted so many years – my best years – on this scumbag. And

now he may have cost me my future too. As soon as the thought enters my head, I know I can’t afford

to waste another moment on Mike, I have more important things to take care of.

I make my excuses and rush across town for the second time that afternoon, running to the comforting

arms of my surrogate sister, Cora. Not only did we grow up together in the orphanage, but she became

an OBGYN and now works for the most exclusive sperm bank in the city. I’ve never gone to her before

because I always imagined Mike and I would eventually conceive the natural way, but that clearly isn’t

an option anymore.

Even if I could find a man willing to have a baby with me in time, I’m not eager to trust anyone after

Mike’s betrayal. I’m going to have to do this on my own, and I know Cora can help me. I don’t have

much money, but I have enough savings to pay for the insemination, especially since I basically have

one shot and one shot only.

When I arrive, all my plans to lay out my situation for Cora clearly and concisely go out the window,

because the moment I see my sister I fall to pieces. She hugs and kisses me until my tears subside,

slowly extracting the story from me piece by piece. When she hears about Mike and Kate she swears

up a storm, but that’s nothing compared to her reaction when I explain about my fertility.

“That little shit! I’ll kill him!” She fumes, studying me with a worried expression. “Ella, if your doctor was

right this means you only have one chance to conceive.”

“I know.” I sniffle. “And if this is going to be my only baby, I don’t want to take any chances. I want the

best donor we can find.”

“Don’t you worry about that.” Cora assures me, “We’ve got donations from actors, models, scientists –

it’s only the creme de la creme here.” She glances at the door and lowers her voice. “You didn’t hear it

from me, but even Dominic Sinclair sent his samples here for testing.”

“Dominic Sinclair? I repeat, “the billionaire?” I’ve seen the man around town, but we don’t exactly run in

the same circles. He lives in the same neighborhood as my wealthy employer and often says hello to

the children I nanny, but he’s always surrounded by bodyguards and is so intimidating I get

goosebumps just thinking about him.

“Oh my god!.” Cora slaps her hand over her mouth. “I wasn’t supposed to tell you that! I don’t know

what I was thinking. Apparently he’s no stranger to fertility issues himself, and he trusted us to handle

his swimmers over every other lab in the country. I’ve got his sperm in the other room at this very

moment.” She frets, “But Ella you can’t tell anyone, you have to promise me.”

“Of course!” I agree immediately. “I know how important confidentiality is here.”

“Thank you,” Cora breathes. “Now, I’m going to give you a dossier of our clients so you can pick a

donor, and once you’ve chosen we’ll get you knocked up before you can even blink.”

It’s not an easy decision, but eventually I choose a handsome surgeon whose photo practically makes

me swoon. Cora leaves the room only long enough to prepare the sample, and though she looks a bit

flustered when she returns, she quickly and professionally completes the insemination, holding my

hand when the procedure is finished. “It’s all take care of now, Ella.” She promises, “You can come

back in ten days to see if it worked.”

Ten days. I think dazedly. Ten days to decide my entire future.

If only I’d known that by the time those ten days were up, my future would no longer belong to me – but

to Dominic Sinclair himself.

Ella

Six days to go. I think, staring at the date circled on my calendar. Six days until I find out if my dreams

are finally going to come true… or if I have to figure out an entirely different plan for my life.

I’ve thought about nothing else since Cora inseminated me last week, I’m so anxious to find out if I’m

pregnant I haven’t even begun to process Mike’s betrayal.

I’m trying to keep a level head, yet I can’t help but imagine my future with this new baby. Try as I might,

I catch myself daydreaming about it constantly. I even find myself humming as I get ready for work in

the morning.

When I arrive at my employer’s estate in the most exclusive neighborhood in Moon Valley – which

basically makes it the most exclusive neighborhood in the world, since Moon Valley is one of the most

expensive cities on the planet – I’m immediately greeted by two little voices shouting my name in

excitement. “Ella!”

The next thing I know, 3-year-old Millie is hugging my legs while her older brother, Jake, wraps his

arms around my middle. “Good morning love puddles!” I exclaim, returning their hugs. “Are you ready

for the museum?”

“Yeah!” They cheer, racing out the door without even stopping to put on coats. It takes a bit of

wrangling to get them back inside and bundled up for the cold winter day, but before long we set out

into the snow.

Jake races ahead of Millie and I, impatient to get to the science museum and not seeming to notice that

his sister’s tiny legs simply don’t move that fast. Chuckling, I lift Millie into my arms and settle her on

my hip. “Goodness, you’re getting too big for this, munchkin.”

“Nuh-uh,” Millie grins, “You’re justs too little.”

She might have a point. At five foot one, I don’t exactly have the kind of build suited to heavy lifting. I’m

in great shape, but I’ve never been particularly strong. “Smarty pants.” I tease, laughing with the little

girl.

When I look back towards Jake, I realize he’s stopped a few feet ahead of us. My heart skips a beat

when I realize why. We’re in front of the Sinclair mansion, and its owner is currently standing in the

middle of the sidewalk, his gaze searing me like a firebrand as I approach with Millie. Dominic Sinclair

is just about the most handsome man I’ve ever seen, but he’s also one of the most terrifying.

With dark hair and piercing green eyes, chiseled features and a body so muscular I could swoon, it

doesn’t seem fair he gets to look so good and also be so rich. If I didn’t know better I might think it was

his wealth or imposing height that makes him so intimidating, after all he’s at least six foot four, which

means he towers over me and everyone else around him. However it’s neither of those things, there’s

simply an indefinable quality about the man that I can’t put my finger on, one which screams danger.

He gives off this energy that’s so raw and animalistic one forgets there’s anyone else in the room.

Taking a steadying breath, I close the distance between us so Millie can say hello. When she greets

him, Dominic drags his attention from me and offers her a smile so genuine that it tugs at my

heartstrings. As I watch him talk to my two young charges, I remember what Cora told me about his

infertility struggles. He clearly loves children, and I feel a wave of empathy for him. If anyone knows

what it’s like to yearn for a family of their own, it’s me.

Jake is currently showing Dominic his new toy airplane, pulling the matchbox model from his pocket

and demonstrating how far it can fly. With a great heave, he sends the toy gliding through the air, only

to land in the middle of the street. Before any of us can say a word, Jake races after it, right into the

busy road.

“Jake no, be careful!” I cry, watching him dart out into the path of an oncoming car but feeling frozen by

my fear. Before I can contemplate putting Millie down to go after him, a blur of movement whirrs past

my vision. I’ve never seen anyone move so fast in my life. Dominic became little more than a hazy

outline of himself, chasing after Jake and pulling him out of the way just before the car slams into them.

The vehicle’s tires are still screeching when Dominic sets Jake down beside me, his expression

suddenly very stern.

“That was very dangerous.” He scolds gently. “You should never go into the street without looking both

ways first.”

Jake hangs his head. “I’m sorry, I didn’t want my plane to get runned over.”

“You are a million times more important than a toy.” Dominic tells him firmly, “and you scared your

nanny half to death.”

“I’m sorry, Ella.” Jake sniffles, looking up at me with wide eyes.

“I know sweetheart, just don’t ever do that again.” I breathe, cuddling him against my side. “Thank you

so much.” I say to Dominic, feeling more grateful than I can express. “I have no idea how you moved so

fast! It was like something out of a superhero film.”

“Must have been the adrenaline.” Dominic shrugs, giving Millie another smile before taking his leave.

“Enjoy the rest of your day, and stay out of the road young man!”

“Yes sir!” Jake calls after him, pocketing his airplane. “I really am sorry.” He adds to me.

“It’s forgotten.” I tell him softly, though I take his hand so that he can’t run off again.

“It all happened so fast.” I tell Cora later that night. “I mean the more I think about it, the more amazing

it seems. One moment he was there, and the next he was gone. It was like magic.”

“Thank goodness Jake is alright.” She replies, but rather than looking relieved, her face is twisted into a

deep grimace.

Studying my sister’s expression, I realize her grim demeanor is not just about Jake’s near miss.

Something else is wrong, and I actually feel guilty for not noticing sooner. “Is everything okay?”

Cora frowns, “Not really. But you’ve got so much going on right now, it’s not important.”

“Cora, don’t be ridiculous.” I admonish. “What’s going on?”

“Well, speaking of Dominic Sinclair,” She begins cryptically, “you know that sperm he sent to us for

testing?”

“Yeah,” I confirm, wondering where on earth this was going.

“It’s gone missing… and I’m the last person who saw it, not to mention it was in my custody.” She

explains, her voice becoming thick with emotion. “Ella, I think… I think I’m going to be fired. And if

there’s an investigation I could lose my medical license.”

“What?” I exclaim. “What do you mean it’s missing? A vial of sperm can’t just get up and walk away.”

“I know, I think someone had to steal it, but there’s no way of knowing who’s responsible. And it looks

like I’m going to have to take the blame.” She shares, her eyes shining with tears.

“Cora, I can’t believe you didn’t tell me this sooner!” I lament, “They can’t fire you, it isn’t fair.”

“You don’t understand, Dominic is one of our biggest donors.” Cora explains. “And he’s furious, he

basically wants my head on a platter.”

A week ago I might have believed there was no hope for Cora, but seeing how kind and understanding

Dominic was with the kids today makes me wonder if he could really be so heartless. Surely if he

understood that Cora would never be so irresponsible he’d show some leniency? I have to try and help

her, I would do anything for my sister – even begging a ruthless billionaire for mercy.