Page 5 of His Best Friend's Baby

‘All you want from this donor is his genetic contribution?’ he said, after the waiter had departed. ‘Will he have any kind of ongoing relationship with the kid he’s fathered?’

‘No, I don’t think that’s necessary.’ Polly had fallen in love with the idea of having a baby of her own, a baby she didn’t have to share with anyone. It had worked brilliantly for herself and her dad. Sure, she would have loved a mother as well, but she’d never had that opportunity. Nevertheless, she’d loved being her father’s one and only, the apple of his eye. The two of them had got along just fine. Until he’d married Mariah.

Seth wasn’t looking happy, though. He hadn’t touched his perfectly seared steak. ‘What if this donor, this theoreticalguywants to see his son or daughter?’ he asked now. ‘What if he wants to be more than just a genetic contributor?’

An anxious little sigh broke from Polly. ‘I thought you’d understand.’ As Seth continued to look stubborn, she said, ‘I’ve always remembered you as relaxed and easygoing.’

‘An easy target in other words?’

‘No.’ That wasn’t what she’d meant, surely?

Seth’s frown was close to a scowl now and Polly wondered how she’d ever convinced herself that he might be flattered to be chosen out of all possible males. Had she exaggerated her memories of their friendship, which had always seemed so comfortable and uncomplicated?

Mind you, Polly had also enjoyed the benefit of Seth’s protection back then. She’d always been a bit ‘different’, a bit prickly and not a great mixer. But the other kids hadn’t rubbished her as much as they might have, because she’d been good mates with Seth Ramsay. Seth’s eternal popularity was yet another reason she wanted her child to inherit his genes.

Polly had assumed Seth would value his independence now, and she’d been quite sure he’d be pleased with her plan, especially as there would be no ongoing responsibility.

Now, less confidently, she tried to explain. ‘I thought you’d like to be free, Seth. To get on with your own life, with your loads of girlfriends, or your own family.’

‘Except that any potential family that I might have would be half-brothers or -sisters to your kid.’

‘Technically speaking—yes. But we’re talking test tubes. It’s not really—’

Abruptly, Seth cut her off. ‘I always thought you were smart, Polly. But sorry, kiddo, you might be clever with computers and stats or whatever, but when it comes to the real world, you’re still totally clueless.’ He was glaring at her now. ‘How the hell can you turn up here after all this time, ask me to father your child and then have the gall to suggest I’d want no further contact?’

Before Polly could even try to answer, Seth launched to his feet, almost knocking over his chair in his haste. ‘In case you haven’t guessed, my answer is a big fat no.’

With that, he turned on his heel and marched out of the restaurant, abandoning a full glass of shiraz, a perfectly pan-fried steak and an utterly distraught Polly.

Chapter Two

Twelve months later…

It was aSaturday evening and Seth, satisfied that he’d done enough work for one day, poured the last of the coffee from his thermos into a mug and took it to the back steps where he sat, looking out into the night. He heard the hoot of an owl from one of the huge wattle trees down by the creek and then the scampering of a small bush creature taking off, no doubt fearful.

Seth flexed his shoulders, easing tired muscles. He loved being out in the bush almost as much as he had loved building this house. Mind you, the building project had been a long, drawn-out process. Three years he’d been working on it now, fitting it around the demands of running the service station and garage in town. There was still plenty to do, but at last the kitchen was almost finished.

Seth had laid the timber flooring, had fitted the cupboards and the island bench, and today he’d begun tiling the splashbacks. Now his tradie mates, Nick and Scotty, were lined up to finish the lighting, power and plumbing, and then he would at least have a useable hub, more or less at lock-up stage.

Perhaps it was time to take a breather, though, even to think about getting away for a few days, leaving the service station in the capable hands of his offsider, Vince, his apprentice, Rory, and LeeAnne, who very capably ran the store. It was at least eighteen months since Seth had taken a proper break. Back then, he’d assumed he’d be moving into this house with his girlfriend.

Sarah had been teaching at the Wirralong primary school and they’d been dating for ages. But she’d informed Seth that moving in with him wasn’t such a great idea. When he’d tried to protest, she’d pressed her fingers to his lips to silence him.

‘Look, I know you fancy me,’ Sarah had said with a sad smile. ‘And we get on really,reallywell, but—’ She’d paused then and tears had shone in her eyes. Actually, she’d been sitting right here on these back steps—looking blonde and lovely, with long legs that went on forever. ‘But I don’t think you need me, Seth.’

Of course, he’d protested.

Sarah had given a sad shake of her head. ‘I always feel like you’re holding something back. I don’t know what it is, but I sense that you don’t need me with the all-or-nothing, can’t-live-without-you kind of loving that I want from my life partner.’

Seth had been gutted, sure, but after searching his soul, he’d known Sarah was right. A month or so later, she’d applied for a transfer and within a year, he’d heard she was engaged to a teacher in Ballarat.

In the meantime, Seth had drifted on to other relationships, none of which had been particularly serious. But now, this evening, reflecting on this recent history and his apparent inability to fall head over heels, Seth consoled himself that at least he’d never been as pragmatic and detached as Polly Martin had been when she’d turned up in Wirralong last year with her crazy IVF proposition.

Problem was, as soon as Seth thought about Polly, he was also visited by concern for her, a disquiet that had been haunting him for months, if he was honest.

The way he’d charged out of that restaurant a year ago had not been his most noble moment. But he’d been so furious with Polly for assuming she could just turn up and make her outlandish proposal, without any consideration for his feelings. As if she could carry a child that he’d fathered, give birth to it and raise it and expect him to have no interest in it what-so-bloody-ever.

Of course, he’d calmed down to a certain extent by the next morning and he’d tried to phone Polly to apologise for his hasty exit, but she hadn’t answered. She’d also ignored his text messages and by the time he’d tracked down the motel where she’d been staying, she’d already checked out and left town.

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