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Emma wasn't really nervous about talking to Josh, she was just a little uncertain about how he would feel about what she wanted to do. There could be enough potential issues in the whole thing to keep Dr Phil busy for a month, but she figured a lot of it wouldn't be relevent. Ever since she had seen Aiden with RJ the day Tara fell ill, she had just had this urge in her gut that had done nothing but get stronger and more determined. She was a little anxious about it, but there was no sense that she couldn't talk to him about it. Josh might be a bit unique in general, but she had never had issues leaning on him or talking to him. In fact, surprisingly, he had been amazing when things were tough.
She knew they had touched on the whole thing the night he was online and drunk, but she also knew he didn't remember anything about it. He really had been sloshed that night and she did need him to hear this sober. Not horny was just an added disclaimer because she knew how distracted he could get when he had a hard on. This was serious, and important to her, she needed him to understand because there was no way she would even begin any of the process unless she had his 100% support. He was going to be the one to help her through it all, and that was huge. He needed to be completely okay with it. Andrew was also another big factor in her choice. Seeing how amazing he was with Jamie and not her biological father just made Emma realise that some people just should have the chance to be parents if they yearned for it so badly. It was painful to watch a couple not even let themselves yearn for it because they didn't think they had a hope in hell of it. It wasn't fair. Life shouldn't be so tough when there were solutions out there. She just hoped she could be a viable one.
She was sitting on the sofa with a half-spent cup of coffee waiting for Josh to get home from his shift at the bar. He had been really tied up with the band preparing for their big gig on the horizon, and she was fine with that. She had taken a few extra shifts, so it was all good. She did miss him when she was home and he wasn't, though. He wasn't the sort of guy she ever thought she would fall in love with, but she had. She really would consider settling down with him and marrying him... if he was into any of that. But he wasn't, so she just rolled with it.
Josh had managed to have the quickest wank of his life, and still clock off on time. There had been nothing especially arousing about his sojourn in the mens' room. He had just done it because he knew Emma was right. If he didn't take care of himself, he probably would wind up distracted by her body. That wasn't to say he still wouldn't, but thankfully his dick would stay out of things for a while.
It was only when he was letting himself in that Josh started to think about what was so important. It wasn't him quitting smoking, and he assumed it wasn't a break up talk. You didn't break up with someone you just told to wank, and that you loved them... right? He'd certainly never had a break up like that before. For a brief moment his gut twisted, and he worried that maybe that really was it. He couldn't offer her marriage, so what if she figured he wasn't worth the time? He knew proposing to her just to keep her from breaking up with him was mental thinking, so he had no idea how he would convince her not to leave him.
By the time he'd entered the living room he really had it set in his mind that she was breaking up with him. He gave her an awkward smile, and a peck on the top of the head, his usual affectionate greeting gone when he realised he probably shouldn't greet a girl about to break up with him like her tonsils were the greatest thing invented since porn. He sat down stiffly beside her, trying not to let his shoulders slump, or a look of defeat cross his face. "Well, I, erm... I'm all yours."
Emma blinked in surprise, getting a vibe off him that something was wrong. She wasn't sure how he got from cheery online to looking like someone just told him they were going to snip the end of his dick off with gardening sheers. "You did jerk off, right?" she asked him nervously, realising his demeanour was enough to kick her nerves in full force. What if he really wanted to just shoot the idea down in flames? She wouldn't really blame him, but he had known Patrick for years. He wouldn't just automatically hate the idea, right? He might. She realised now that he really might.
Josh nodded, and raised his eyebrows a little as he looked at her. "Are you going to break up with me?" he blurted out.
Before Emma could stop it, a laugh escaped her and she put a hand over her mouth to catch it. "What? No! Why would- what the hell?" she laughed again and then put a hand on her chest, relieved that was where his mind had been and not elsewhere. "No... no. Of course I don't want to break up with you. Don't you think I would have a lot sooner than now if I was going to? You haven't suddenly done anything weird. No, I'm not breaking up with you. But I do need to talk to you about something that's going to affect you... and maybe affect us."
Josh wasn't finding it very funny right then, but he let out a rush of air in relief and sunk back against the sofa as he rest his hand against her back. "Okay, well... good. Because I didn't think I had, but then I wasn't sure. And you were talking about it being important, and I guess I get worried that any conversation that's important might be a bad one. If it affects us though, it still might not be that bad... Maybe. What is it? Are you okay?"
Emma nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. Perfectly healthy and all good," she assured him and gave his head a small kiss as she took his hand. She soon found herself playing with his fingers anxiously, threading and unthreading her own through them. "I spoke to you a bit about this that night you were really drunk, but I know you don't remember it. And that's fine, but it's why I wanted to touch on it again with you now. There's no rush it in all or anything, and you don't have to just... go along with it if you don't like it. I've just been thinking seriously lately about helping someone with something. Two someones..."
"You mean Christmas?" Josh asked, still looking at her a little like he wasn't quite sure he was really in the clear. He watched her play with his fingers while he listened. "I'm trying to remember, I really am. It's just a blur. I'm sorry I can't remember. Hey, why wouldn't I go along with you helping two someones? Are you planning on robbing a bank with them? Because if you are, I'd help hide you. Plus fugitive sex could be hot." He smirked. "But I'm not horny. Promise."
"Um, I can't remember if it was Christmas. Whenever it was you managed to get online with a bottle of scotch in your hand," Emma told him in amusement and then shook her head. "Nothing illegal, so you'll have to live out your fugitive fantasies watching Law & Order." She paused and cleared her throat, her grip on his hand tightening just a little. "The people I want to help are Pat and Aiden."
Josh scrunched up his nose as he tried to remember. That could have been a couple nights, but for some reason he just assumed it was closer to Christmas. "There aren't any hot chicks in it any more. Not even in the Brit one. I'd rather stick with my sexy paramedic fantasies." He pulled his mouth to the side. "Pat and Aiden? Okay... How are you going to help them?"
Emma bit down on her lip and her nose scrunched up a little sheepishly. "Have a baby for them," she told him, and braced herself for his response. "Or, I'm going to offer, at least..."
Josh was nodding, but then he had to stop, and just stared at her. "A baby? For them? With them? Like, a surrogate?So you'll be, erm, fully pregnant. With their baby inside."
He hadn't bolted. That was a good start. She was still biting on her lip and nodded. "Yeah, for them. Well, it would be one of theirs. It's impossible to be both of theirs. But yes, it would be inside. Inside me. For nine months, kind of like a safety deposit box. Then it's all up to them."
Josh cleared his throat as he pointed at her stomach. "But what about... erm, us? I mean, I can't... with a baby in there. What if they think I'm tainting their kid? I'm not saying you shouldn't!" he quickly added as he gave her hand a squeeze. "I really think you should because Pat and Aiden deserve to be parents so badly, and if you can help them, then yeah, do it. I just don't want to get in the way."
"I want you to get in the way!" Emma jumped in quickly. "I want you to be right there with me. I don't think I can do it without you. It'll more be us helping them, because you know, you're just as much a part of this as me. I just... well... I don't think you and I are ready to breed yet. I'm pretty sure I'm not. I'm happy with how things are right now. I'm happier than I've been in a long time, but like I said, I'm healthy and it would only be nine months. I don't think you can taint a baby just having sex with me."
Josh gave her a crooked smile, but he was still looking at her nervously. She was going to get pregnant. He understood the whys, and really didn't have an issue with it. It was still just the technicalities. "What if I poke it in the head with my dick? I might traumatise it..." He blinked and reached up to tuck some of her hair behind her ear. "Are you really happy?"
"Baby, your dick is beautiful and huge, but it's not that huge. You couldn't reach my uterus if we fucked standing on our heads," Emma had to laugh, patting his cheek affectionately. "I'm very happy, and if I wasn't, I don't think I would be content enough to even think about this, so in a way, you're the reason I think I can. But I'm just a little scared it won't be easy. I mean, technically, the baby probably won't even be mine. They will probably prefer to get a donor egg from someone else so it's just easier. I'll just be babysitting for a little while. They might not even say yes. But I saw how important it was to Aiden that day we got the call out on Tara and RJ. Aiden was amazing, and they can't just always be everyones godfathers, even if they are brilliant at it. They deserve to experience that on their own and not just watch everyone else explode in baby happiness."
Josh puffed out his chest and let his ego inflate a little before smirking. He would never get sick of her complimenting his penis. He was also relieved to hear it wouldn't hurt the baby. He scooped her up to pull her into his lap and wrapped his arms around her as he kissed her shoulder. "You'll be a wonderful babysitter, love. The bairn will be well taken care of, and I'll help any way I can. I also hear that pregnancy sex can be pretty awesome. Assuming you'd even be horny while knocked up. You're a good woman, Emma Hamilton."
Emma was smirking down at him and kissed him, letting it linger for a few moments. "I hear it can also be really crappy. Sure you can deal with the mood swings and the morning sickness and me being a huge bitch? I was talking to Evie about it. She's got two in there, though, so it's harder, but she said there has definitely been some shitty times. She can't even have sex now, it's too awkward. Well, she could, but it's not that much fun. Riley has a complex about it, too. I just thought that nine months isn't long, then things will be back to normal."
Josh rubbed his hand against her back and sniggered a little. "Yeah, but she's also having Browne twins. They're taking their sweet time. She'll have them out soon, then Riley can start having a heart attack for new reasons. I'm sure I can deal with it. I reserve the right to a few freak outs, but if it's Pat and Aiden's kid, and it's you, then I'll look after you both. Have you actually spoken to them?"
"I saw Riley on shift in the ER yesterday and he was sort of wavering between bitchy and helpless. He seems really nervous," Emma noted and then shook her head. "No, I needed to know you would be okay with it first. I wouldn't have done it if you weren't. It wouldn't be easy for any guy to deal with his girlfriend being pregnant with another guy's kid. But I thought if Andrew could manage somewhere along those lines, you might be alright with it."
"Understandably so, love. He's got two kids on the way. He was nervous enough, now they're late." He kissed the soft skin of her throat and chuckled quietly. "Also a difference between helping out a woman you love who's carrying someone else's baby you need to raise as your own, and helping out a woman you love who's carrying a baby for someone else. I never would have shot it down, Em. I love Pat, and by extension his husband. They deserve a family, and if you can give it to them, then I'll be proud to be a part of it. You should talk to them as soon as you can. It might also help them to know you're willing. It's still a topic they can't really broach without pain."
Emma nodded, biting on the corner of her lip in thought. "I know they might shoot me down in flames... or that Pat probably will, most like. I know there are issues there. But it might be a different if they know there is a means to an end. Pat does a good job of concealing how he feels about children, a really good job. Aiden's not as savvy. Especially now with Campbell, you can see what he's thinking some of the time. Plus, Tara and Lachlan offered, but Pat told them no when Tara was sick. He knew Lachlan couldn't deal with seeing Tara pregnant again, and it not his child, without it hurting him beyond belief. I haven't been part of your whole family for very long, and they might be weird about it, but all I can do is offer."
"Doesn't matter how long, love, you're a part of it. This family is your family. They'll appreciate the offer, and it might take them a little while to give you an answer either way. Don't think they won't appreciate it." His hand slipped over her hip and he pushed up her top a little as he splayed his fingers over her stomach and imagined a bump there. For a brief moment Josh entertained the idea of the bump being because of him. He'd never thought about kids before, but Emma had him thinking about a lot of things he'd never wanted before. He could do it with her. Eventually. If she did become a surrogate for Pat and Aiden it would give him a practice run. "You'd be a fucking sexy pregnant woman."
Emma looked down at her stomach, which was flat and pale. It never saw much sunlight. She pressed her lips together, giving it a small poke. "It's weird to think about. I wasn't sure I'd ever have kids of my own, and being a surrogate never crossed my mind before. I kept putting myself in their shoes. Not so much trendy gay guy shoes, but if it was us who wanted a kid and couldn't have any. It would be a huge gift if someone offered to help us out." She pushed her hips forward a little and tried to imagine being pregnant, but it was near impossible. "I became a paramedic to help people, so I just thought this wasn't much more of a jump in the same direction. Even if I'm scared."
Josh smiled up at her, and gave her stomach a rub when she tried to push it out. Truth was he could actually picture her pregnant, and she really would be sexy, and beautiful. "It really would be a gift, and I'm glad you're in a position to give it to them. It might mean taking it easy on the paramedic thing eventually. Not sure you'll be up for much running around even if you'll still want to save lives."
Emma nodded, humming in agreement. She looped her arms around his neck. "So, you're okay? You're not going to freak out on me or anything? This isn't just the calm before the storm?" She paused and smirked at him. "Because I'm so horny right now. I want to get you in the bath with bubbles and ride you hard."
Josh's eyebrows went up as he held her gaze. "If I was going to freak out, it would definitely be averted with the promise of bubbles, and you riding me hard." Josh tugged on a lock of her hair, and pulled her in for a kiss. "I'm okay, love. Promise. And just as horny as all fuck. It has been an hour, right?"
"It's been long enough," Emma murmured and melted into the kiss. Whatever happened, she just knew she needed to thank him for understanding somehow, and it was just a bonus she got to be on the other side of her gift.
Word Count | 3,147