Page 8 of A Found Family at the Cornish Country Hospital

‘Lucky I’ve got a thing for a man in plaid then.’ Jase raised his eyebrows.

‘Oh, have you now?’

‘Yes, but only when that man is you.’ The way Jase was looking at him, Aidan knew without a trace of doubt that he meant it. He could be wearing an old potato sack and Jase would still find a way of making him feel good about himself. Back home in Ireland, when he’d realised that the attraction he had to other boys wasn’t something that was ever going to change, he’d wondered if he’d ever feel that way. Neither of his parents had accepted it easily when he’d eventually come out, but his mother had come round fairly quickly in the end. It was his father, Sean, who still behaved like he’d time-travelled from the 1950s, and still couldn’t bear to acknowledge that his son had married another man, despite the fact Jase made Aidan happier than he’d ever been. His father’s catholic faith made the idea of having a gay son unthinkable, and when it had become increasingly obvious to everyone that’s who Aidan was, long before he’d come out, Sean had used the most derogatory terms possible to describe same-sex couples. It had made a little part of Aidan curl up and die every time the words had come out of his father’s mouth. It was a big part of the reason why – when Aidan had been turned down by the art college – he’d hopped on a Ryanair flight to Stansted and eventually drifted into studying nursing instead.

Even though his father hadn’t completely rejected him after he’d come out, their relationship was incredibly strained, and Aidan still couldn’t look at the group photos from his wedding without feeling sad. His father had claimed to come down with a sickness bug the day before his parents were due to fly over for the wedding and had said the last thing he wanted to do was to spoil their big day by risking it and becoming the centre of attention for all the wrong reasons. After a few glasses of champagne, Aidan’s mother, Anne, had confided that it was all for the best, because his father would have had a face ‘like a slapped arse’ in all the photographs, if he’d decided to come. But the truth was, there was a painfully obvious gap in the pictures from the wedding, every bit as noticeable as a missing tooth in the middle of a smile.

Aidan didn’t want to think about any of that now, though, or what his father’s reaction to the idea of him and Jase having a baby might be. There was something he needed to talk to his husband about. Something he’d been trying to find the perfect words to say, ever since they’d left The Cookie Jar, three hours before. But there were no perfect words, no way to phrase this that would guarantee Jase would be delighted by the news. He just had to put it out there and hope for the best.

‘I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you to rein in your appreciation for a man in plaid for a little while, and not just because I don’t want to get creases in my plus fours before tomorrow’s fundraiser.’ Taking hold of Jase’s hand, Aidan pulled him down to sit side by side with him on the bed. ‘There’s something I need to talk to you about.’

‘You know conversations that start with lines like that terrify me.’ Jase widened his eyes. ‘You’re not about to tell me you’re running off with your caddy, are you?’

‘Sorry, but there’s no way you’re getting rid of me that easily. Or ever, in fact.’ Aidan curled his fingers around his husband’s,feeling the smoothness of the wedding band that Jase hadn’t taken off since the moment Aidan had put it there.

‘I’m glad to hear it, because I could never let you go. But I knew there was something big on your mind, you’ve got that look you always get.’

‘The gormless one?’

‘No, the one I know is about to change my life in one way or another.’ Jase held his gaze and Aidan couldn’t put it off any longer.

‘I think I’ve found the perfect egg donor. She’s bright, kind, with a similar kind of colouring to you, and most of all she understands what it’s like for a child who’s been born as a result of a donor’s kindness, because her parents had her with the help of a sperm donor.’

‘She sounds amazing.’ The smile on Jase’s face mirrored his words. ‘Did the clinic put you in touch with someone? I didn’t think anything would happen until after the interview.’

‘No, I know her in real life, we both do.’

‘Who is it?’ The smile on Jase’s face had only wavered slightly, but the wide-eyed concern was back too.

‘Isla.’

‘From work?’ Jase had adopted an unreadable expression as Aidan nodded. ‘She’s great, but she’s so young. Are you sure she knows what she’s getting herself into?’

‘I am, because of what her parents did, and because she was already going through the process of having the checks and undergoing counselling, before she even knew we were looking for a donor.’

‘Oh my God, really? She’d be great, wouldn’t she?’ Excitement definitely seemed to be winning the battle now. ‘But what are the clinic going to say, if we want to use our own egg donor? Do you think it might affect how hard it is to get a match with a surrogate?’

‘I’ve got no idea and that’s why I didn’t know whether to tell you at first, but also because having a known donor comes with its pros and cons. Although I don’t think I’d have any issue with Isla being a part of our lives for the long haul, if she wants to have some kind of relationship with the baby. As long as we get the right balance. I’d be a lot more nervous about doing that if I didn’t know her history, but I really think she understands and that this could be the best of both worlds for the baby as a result, knowing where they came from and being able to reach out if they want to, but understanding that their parents are the people who’ve raised them.’

‘I’ve discovered so many things I love even more about you since we started this process, and the fact you always talk about our baby like it’s a certainty is one of them.’ Jase pressed his lips against Aidan’s for a couple of seconds.

‘That’s because I know it’s going to happen. Just like I was certain, the night we met, that we were going to end up getting married. I knew we were going to be a family from that moment, I just didn’t know exactly what that would look like.’ Aidan might have had his doubts in the past that they’d ever get their dream, but he wasn’t just saying those things to reassure Jase anymore, he was really beginning to believe it.

‘I’m kind of glad you didn’t admit all of that straight away, or I might have headed for the hills!’

‘Yeah, yeah, of course you would.’ Aidan pulled a face. ‘You know you’re the luckiest man alive and you have done since that night too.’

‘I have.’ Jase nodded, and Aidan felt it again, that overwhelming sense of love and acceptance he got every time his husband looked at him the way he did. Whatever happened, they were already a family, and even if he didn’t want to contemplate the idea of them not having a child, he knew they’d make it through if it came to it. They’d just have to get more pets, andtake up hobbies like golf for real. As long as he had Jase, Aidan would even be willing to wear matching plaid plus fours. And if that wasn’t the definition of love, he had no idea what was.

Isla was beginning to think she’d misunderstood the brief Gwen had given for ‘whacky golf outfits’. She looked more like a clown, with her oversized bow tie and baggy tartan trousers with braces. She should just have gone through Grandpa Bill’s wardrobe. He and her nan loved golf, and played most weekends, and she knew for a fact that he had his fair share of garish outfits. Normally she wouldn’t have dreamt of wearing anything like that and, unlike Gwen, she didn’t enjoy being the centre of attention. But she was happy to do almost anything for a good cause, even if it meant making a fool of herself in front of her colleagues. It was just as well that her crush on Zahir, one of the doctors she worked with, seemed to have petered out, or she might have worried that she was blowing her chances. It wasn’t because of anything he’d done that her feelings had changed, but it would be too complicated to explain to anyone she might date that her top priority right now was becoming an egg donor. Not everyone would be on board with the idea, and the thought of telling someone she’d just started dating wasn’t remotely appealing.

She was no expert on dating at the best of times. Seeing how much it had hurt her mother to lose the man she loved had made Isla wary. Even if all the stars aligned, and she somehow found her soulmate in this great big world, there was a chance she could still lose them far too soon. That fear had settled somewhere deep inside her, and the thought of actively seeking out something that had the potential to hurt her somuch seemed like madness. So she’d decided to leave it to fate. If she was ever going to take that chance, it would be because fate had put someone worthy of that kind of risk in her path. She wouldn’t go searching for him in a bar, or on a dating app. It meant she’d been single since her father’s death, with just a handful of dates that had ended up going nowhere at all.

‘Does your bow tie revolve?’ Esther laughed as Isla made her way over to where the team representing the A&E department were standing. Gwen headed up the Friends of St Piran’s Hospital, a group which organised a series of fundraising events throughout the year. The spring event was going to be the biggest so far and Gwen had persuaded the management of the Three Ports Golf Club to host a charity golf tournament on their beautiful links course, which stretched along the coast just outside Port Tremellien.

She’d also got permission to use the practice area, which didn’t need to be treated as carefully as the rest of the course, and the Friends had set up a sports day track, with lanes marked by small cones and an inflatable finishing line and start posts. Although the hospital teams had all been asked to wear the most garish golf attire they could find, most of them were taking part in the sports day rather than the golf competition. The tournament itself was open to both hospital staff and supporters, with all the entry fees going to the Friends’ fundraising efforts. Participants had also been encouraged to get sponsorship to wear the most tasteless golfing-related outfits they could find, and Gwen had promised a prize for the person she deemed to be worst dressed. Looking around, Isla realised she had no chance of winning a prize, but Aidan was definitely in with a shot. Joe had gone all out too, and was dressed from head to toe in bright orange.

‘Unfortunately, the bow tie is very boring.’ Isla turned towards Joe. ‘Although I’m not sure I could ever have hoped to compete with an outfit that can be seen from space.’

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