The Mix-Up

Chapter Two

"Are you serious?" Stephanie huffed out as she followed her husband out of their bedroom, with just barely enough time to pull her robe on to cover herself. "Why do you have to go to her? Can't she come here? She came into the city for that stupid appointment." She didn't see why her husband needed to wake up at the crack of dawn to make a three-hour trip up north.

"We've been over this Steph" Alexander stated grabbing his thermos to fill with coffee. He had been awake nearly all night with a stomach tossing and turning over excitement and nervousness.

After the fateful meeting at the fertility clinic where it was announced that the mix up had occurred Alec had been texting back and forth constantly with the women – Teddy. Who was unexpectedly the mother of his two children? They had finally been able to free up their busy schedules and set aside a day for Alexander to meet the girls. Of course they remained under the agreement that he would meet them as a friend only, and then they will see how things moved forward.

"Teddy would need to come with Joey and Charley, and that's too much to expect from her. For goodness sakes the girls are only three, you cant do that to them. A three-hour car rides there and back? That'll be six hours stuck in a car" Alexander insisted. He gave his head a shake as he went to grab his keys "trust me this is much easier."

"Well it doesn't seem fair" Stephanie sighed and crossed her arms over her chest like a child pouting over not getting a new toy.  She glanced out the floor to ceiling windows of their high-rise apartment peering at the streets bellow.

"You know Steph" Alec walked towards the women and rested a gentle hand on her shoulder. "You're welcome to come too. This is your family now as much as it is mine."

"Not really" Stephanie answered with a low sigh refusing to make eye contact with him.

For a moment Alec was taken back and he realized for the first time how hard this could be for his wife. They had been trying for four years now to have a child with no success – that's why they had gone to the doctors after all. But even after appointments and tests they still hadn't been able to conceived. And now, here walks in women that naturally conceived and birthed not one, but two children. Teddy had been able to do something Stephanie had been trying so hard for. No wonder his wife seemed so upset and distant lately.

"Besides" Stephanie stepped away from his reassuring hand "I have plans, as you should have had too." The women turned on her husband with her icy eyes, "you cancelled on our friends Alexander."

"I think they would understand if they knew the reason," Alec said, trying to be the diplomatic one again. "I can go golfing with the boys any other Saturday, and having another dinner with the same people we see every weekend isn't as major as you think it might be."

"Golfing and those dinners keep us in the loop. It ensures we have strong connections to the right people," Stephanie nearly squealed out in anger.

"And that is exactly what I am planning to do today" Alec flashed a smile. He leaned in and gave his wife a little peck on the lips. "Connect with the people that matter most. Family."

"I'm your family too," Stephanie mumbled. She waved her hand slightly towards him "oh just go. I'll go to the damn dinner alone. Since apparently our social life matters only to me."

Alec sighed softly to himself; he knew there was no fighting with his wife when she got this way. Crossing the floor he went to the door "okay, I'll be back before bed and tell you all about the girls. I love you."

Stephanie glanced his way "love you too."

With a final nod Alexander headed out the door and down to the parking lot. Hopefully he would dodge the cottage traffic if he got out on the road quickly enough. Getting in, he drove off towards the high way.