Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Marta isn’t sure what you wear to a meeting with a potential sperm donor but the denim skirt and white tank seem casual enough without her looking like she doesn’t care at all. Her cute yellow canvas tote has a manila folder with a few important bullet points about his health and work. No pictures. She knows he’s white, a Boston native and under the employment category he’d typed out “books”. So, she’s guessing he’s this cute little nerd who owns a bookstore or something.

“Donor 5673,” Helene the fertility counsellor at the exclusive clinic had told her. “He’s open to co-parenting the same as you. Steady job, no criminal record and he passed the two mandatory psych evals.”

She’d taken the manila folder from her and glanced inside. “You think he’d be a good father?”

Helene’s smile was cryptic, “I think he’s a good sperm donor. The same way you’d be a good egg donor. It’s up to you to decide if you’d be good parents together.”

“Has he said anything about me?”

“He’d like to meet. He has a similar amount of information on you. He liked that you were a medical professional.”

Marta had nodded. Scanning through the information on the two pages she was given. No other children. Never married. Under quotes he’d written. “I’ve been kind of a selfish guy most my life but this baby whoever they are will always be my first priority.” Not a particularly poetic quote for a guy who worked with books but something about that had struck her.

The Hestian Family Clinic had put together this little ‘meet cute’. They were a cutting-edge fertility clinic that helped couples and women get pregnant but also encouraged unconventional family situations like the one Marta wanted. She was done waiting for the perfect guy. Acknowledging that he may never come along but she wasn’t against co-parenting with someone who had similar goals and could maintain a cordial relationship. She had no problem being a single mom but her child having another parent out there was just good planning in case the worst ever happened. And anyway, this would be an IVF procedure so that ruled out a messy physical relationship.

Donor 5673 was meeting her on a Friday morning at a cute little brunch place by the river. His fertility clinic mandated email said he’d be wearing glasses, a blue flannel shirt and jeans and sitting at a table on the patio. She was about twenty feet from the place when she spotted him chatting with a waiter. Something about his minimal profile had made her think of someone more youthful but he was older, a little more rugged than expected, with a full beard and dark hair. He smiled when he stood to greet her approaching revealing a row of even white teeth that Marta kind of wanted to touch.

Oh great, she was nervous now. She’d been expecting someone wildly different who did not give off ‘hot English teacher’ vibes.

“Hi,” she breathed extending a hand for him to shake. “I’m- I’m Marta. From Hestian.”

“Ransom,” he said then cringed at the surprised face she made. “Actually Hugh. Ransom is my middle name. My grandad was a murder mystery buff and I think he thought it would be funny but it just stuck. No one calls me Hugh. Jeez, I’m shaking your hand for way too long.”

“O-okay,” Marta smiled nervously, taking the seat opposite him. “I’m glad we could meet.”

“Yes,” he said across from her blue eyes very wide. “Me too. This whole process has been surreal. It’s not where I expected to find myself to be honest.”

“Oh? What were you expecting then?”

He looked embarrassed, “I turned 40 a few months ago and I guess I just thought- “

“That you’d have been with someone by now and had children by now.” Marta finished with a commiserating smile.

“Yeah.” He smiled back the corners of his eyes crinkling. “I’m guessing you’re in a similar situation.”

“People keep saying it’ll happen when you least expect it,” Marta rolled her eyes and Ransom let out a soft laugh. “Well, I’m not expecting it anymore for sure. And I don’t think I’m very good at the apps either.”

“You never know,” he said softly. “Life can surprise you.”

“I don’t want surprises,” Marta said leaning forward on the little table. “I want a baby.”

Ransom grinned at her leaning forward to match her stance, “So do I.”

It was a very small table and Marta found herself noticing the little flecks of green in his eyes. If she moved slightly her arm would brush his. He was very pretty. With nice lips and great cheekbones. Any baby of his would be nothing less than a gorgeous little cherub. Lucky her.

Marta broke the intense staring with a cough, “So…your job description just said you work with books?”

“Oh,” he leaned back and reached into his pocket for a small business card. “Technically I own a publishing company that I just pulled out of bankruptcy.”

He handed her the small card that said H.R Drysdale. President of ‘Clock & Dagger’. “Luckily. People are reading again so we’ve had a really good quarter.”

Marta smiled, “So you’re…rich?”

“I prefer to think of myself as ‘comfortable’.”

“Sounds like something rich people say.” Marta said waving his card around a little.

The gleam in his eyes turned mischievous, “What about you? What kind of nurse are you?”

“NICU,” Marta said and Ransom made a small hum of approval. “Every time one of those babies goes home, I feel so proud. But I also think I’m going to kidnap one of them.” That admission made him laugh.

“Well maybe we keep that as a plan B.”

The hour they spent chatting went well. Marta found out he didn’t have much family. His parents had both passed in his 20s and he wasn’t close with his cousins and aunts. Ransom’s best friend from college who also worked at the company had had a baby the past year and he was the godfather to a 9-month-old little boy named Declan. They traded phone numbers and some more contact information.

“Would you want to meet for a pizza or something?” Marta found herself asking when he wrestled the cheque out of her hands.

“Need a little more convincing that I’d be a good baby daddy?” He joked sliding a black AmEx into the little book.

“Maybe.” She said as they stood to leave.

“I’ve got a better idea than pizza though. If you’re interested.” He spoke. “There’s a carnival in town. We could get hotdogs and maybe win a few stuffed animals. Plus, I feel like the activity would keep conversations from getting awkward.”

Marta agreed. She walked back to her car with a hopeful feeling about Ransom. When she told her sister about the plan Alice almost choked to death on the takeout they were sharing.

“You want to have a baby with this guy?”

“He passed the clinic’s psych evals.” She said wrapping her shrug tighter around herself. “He seems nice.”

“Dios mio, Marta.” Alice looked more surprised. “You don’t even want to match with guys on Bumble.”

“It’s not like that. He was a 97% match for a compatible donor. We have similar goals.”

“Romantic,” Alice said drily. Then a sly look came onto her face. “What’s he look like?”

“That’s not the most important thing.” Marta said trying to keep her face neutral but her sister could unfortunately see right through her.

“Uh huh. Sure.” Alice snatched the little business card off the table and was googling him before Marta could protest. She must’ve found something because Alice’s mouth opened slightly in shock. “Are you sure you want to do IVF?”

“He’s not that good-looking.” She tried hiding behind her mug of tea. “Besides we haven’t decided on anything definitively. We’re still getting to know one another.”

Alice had been nodding along with a slight grimace this whole time. “I think this is the worst idea you’ve ever had.” Marta rolled her eyes. “No! No! This is a disaster. Plus, he’s more than good looking, okay? I mean I guess that baby would be really cute but at what cost.”

“We’re not going to be a couple.” Marta said reassuringly. “We’ll just be co-parents.”

“Co-parents who fuck,” Alice said simply causing her sister to make a face. “I’d bet my left tit that baby’s getting here the old-fashioned way.”

Marta tried to ignore the ominous feeling she got at those words.

Chapter Text

Helene wasn’t one to show too much overt emotions but Marta thought she seemed pleased with the way things were going between her and Ransom over the past month.

“So, you’ve met most weekends over the past four weeks?”

“Yes,” Marta smiled. “After coffee he suggested we go to a local carnival. Then the aquarium a few weeks later.” He’d also offered her his jacket when she got cold but Marta kept that to herself.

“So, it’s been a positive association overall?” A few notes scratched themselves onto her pad.

“Yes. He seems excited to be a dad,” Marta said. “He’s also seeing a therapist to prepare so he’s in the best place emotionally to be a father and I found that reassuring.”

“I agree. Men so rarely take initiative with their own mental health it’s refreshing when they do.” Helene smiled. “Is there anything else you’d like to share?”

“We traded photos of each other as babies a few nights ago,” Marta said. “He was a big one. Almost 10 pounds.”

Helene actually laughed, “I think we’ve found the downside.”

“I don’t know,” Marta responded wistfully. “I’ve always liked chunky babies. And I’m a nurse so I also know all the good drugs.”

Not to mention Ransom’s pretty blue eyes and toothy smile. The thought of him holding a little newborn (maybe a girl in a frilly dress) against his chest was making her feel a lot more than just baby fever.

“Marta this seems to be going really well,” Helene nodded. “And with your permission I’d like to start talking to both of you about timelines and IVF cycles.”

When she got out the office, she found herself calling Ransom without really thinking. They texted from time to time to make plans but usually only called each other just before meeting somewhere but she’d never just called him directly this way.

He picked up on the second ring. “Hi,” he said smile obvious in his voice. “I was just thinking about you.” It was so stupid the way her stomach did a little flip.

She wanted to tell him about Helene but what came out was, “I know this is kind of last minute but do you want to get lunch?”

“Marta I’d really love that but I’ve got Dec for the afternoon.” She could hear excited shrieking in the background, followed by a slightly worrying cough.

“Is he okay?”

“He’s recovering from a cold,” Ransom sighed. “I’ve been trying give him his cough syrup but he just keeps fighting me and pursing his lips. I could really use your help if I’m being honest.”

It took her fifteen minutes to drive to the house on Deerborn drive. She’d been there once before because Ransom had wanted her to meet Declan’s parents, Alex and Mia. When she rang the doorbell Ransom answered looking harried with a pouty baby Dec cradled in one arm.

“He’s really p-i-s-s-e-d,” Ransom said leading her into the living room set up with a play pen and strewn with toys. “Mia’s mom had a minor car accident and the two of them had to just drop everything. And Dec’s at this phase where he just picks a fight if someone looks at him wrong.”

“Poor guy,” Marta said reaching out to brush a hand over Dec’s tiny one. His little face turned mutinous and he immediately buried his face in Ransom’s neck making her laugh.

“Buddy, come on,” Ransom rubbed a hand over his back. “You remember Marta, don’t you? You almost ripped off her earlobe because you liked her earrings.”

“Where’s his cough syrup?” Marta asked fishing the new syringe out of her bag. “Let’s try this one more time.”

It was a team effort for Ransom to hold both of his hands and Marta’s combination of efficiently pinching both of his cheeks so he couldn’t close his mouth. Declan was still in a bad mood because his godfather had betrayed him so he retaliated by screaming for a hot minute then burying his face in his shoulder and sobbing. It didn’t take long for him to just drop off to sleep though because he was snoring by the time Marta had made them both a cup of coffee.

He put Declan down and tucked him in looking a little worse for wear when he joined Marta on the couch. “He was in a mood today. Nothing I did was making him happy.” He sighed gratefully when he took the cup from Marta.

“Second thoughts about having one yourself,” Marta said, only half joking.

He appeared to consider that for a moment looking briefly at sleeping Dec then back at Marta, “No. I think we’ll be okay.” His smile was so wide Marta felt her stomach do something shivery and nervous. “You were a champ with that cough medicine.”

“Thank you.” She grinned back. “And for the record. Declan really loves you. He’s just unhappy because he’s sick.”

Ransom’s face turned suddenly nervous, “Have you talked to Helene?”

“Yeah,” she curled her legs under her so she could scoot closer. “She wants to talk to us about timelines.”

Ransom laid one arm along the back of the couch and the position made her feel like they were sharing a secret. “I’ve been reading up on the egg harvesting stuff and I really feel like you’re drawing the short straw here.”

Marta shrugged, “I think I’d be okay with giving myself a few shots from time to time. We need to increase our chances for me to produce viable eggs.”

He took a long sip of his coffee and then blurted, “I went in for the second semen evaluation the other day. It didn’t go well.”

Marta almost choked on her own coffee, “Is everything okay?”

He looked ashen as he put the coffee cup down and for some reason appeared unable to look at her. “I couldn’t do it. I was standing there with those magazines and I just couldn’t do it.”

Oh. Oh!

“It’s okay.” Marta said reaching out and gently touching his shoulder. “You were probably overthinking it.”

“Alex says I should talk to you about it but I’m not sure how much this is helping.”

Marta pulled her hand away like she’d been burned. “Do you not want to have a baby with me anymore?”

“No of course not,” He turned to face her, expression stricken but faint traces of pink on his cheekbones. “It’s just- well-I absolutely want to have a baby with you. You’d be the perfect mom. Heck, it’s like you’re the perfect girl- I mean, woman. I’m going to stop talking, okay. Marta, please tell me to shut up.”

Marta stared at him mouth agape. “Ransom what’re you saying exactly?”

He looked down at the cushions with an embarrassed look. “God, it’s like being a fucking teenager. Please don’t make me spell it out for you.”

“No. No you need to spell it out for me,” she said hands tucked under her knees. “Please, okay?”

“Marta,” he looked up, cheeks still pink but he looked resigned. “I have such a raging crush on you it’s not even funny.”

Marta felt her mouth drop open further.

“I know this isn’t appropriate.” He said blue eyes apologetic. “And I totally understand if you don’t want this with me anymore. You wanted to raise a baby with someone without drama and I’m just fucking up all your plans.”

He watched her eyes bug out slightly.

“Marta, please say something. You’re scaring me.”

He wasn’t sure what he was expecting but it wasn’t for her to giggle with a hand over her mouth.

“Ransom having a baby with someone is about as complicated as it’s going to get,” she said smiling. “And the way we’ve been hanging out it’s like we’ve been – “

“Dating,” Ransom smiled back. “I didn’t intend for this to happen, Marta. But I want a lot more than just a baby. I want a family. I want to tell my kids how I met their mom.”

There was really no reason for him to be this cute. Which was probably why Marta found herself lunging across the space between and kissing him squarely on the mouth. His initial surprise was immediately overcome by him wrapping his arms around her and kissing her back.

Possessively.

His hands slid down from her back to her waist, fingers digging into her hip. She tilted her head to the side and Ransom slid his open mouth down her chin, to her neck and then her collarbones. There was tongue and teeth and heat.

At least until Declan woke with a sudden cry and ruined the mood.

Ransom pulled away with obvious reluctance. “Just give me a sec, Marta.” He pecked her quickly one last time. “Please don’t leave. He won’t stop crying unless someone holds him.”

She watched, amused as he stalked over to a half sleeping, half sobbing Dec and picked him up. The baby’s eyes were tightly shut but his lower lip stuck out unhappily. He cradled him gently against one shoulder and patted him lightly. Declan’s little face immediately relaxed.

He smiled apologetically at Marta over his tiny shoulder and something in her chest felt warm and gooey…probably her heart. She wanted a baby with this big softie.

“You’re very good with him,” She blurted suddenly.

“Mia says we can practise as much as we want with him,” he said bringing Declan with him to sit across from her again. “I think I’m just convenient babysitting.”

Marta reached out and gently touched one of his little socked feet. She loved babies and their little toes so much 9 months and some change seemed a long time to wait. Her gaze caught Ransom’s and she could tell he was thinking the same.  

“Have dinner with me.” He said suddenly. “Tomorrow night?”

“Okay,” Marta nodded. “Do you want to meet at that Chinese place in town we both like?”

“I was hoping we could have dinner at my apartment,” he said, surprising her. “You haven’t seen the place before. I’ll cook. Don’t make that face. I’m an okay cook.”

A few weeks ago Marta would have said this was a bad idea but that was before she’d gotten to know him.

“Okay,” she said with finality. “Dinner it is.”