“What are your plans until you give birth?”

“I plan to continue working until the baby is born in August. Then I hope to do some traveling before I return to Europe at the end of the year.”

“Are you two living together?”

“We are subletting a place together for the next six months. As you know I am leaving in four. rancesca will live there until she goes back to Italy.”

“So the baby is due in August and you have been seeing your doctor regularly? No health concerns or anticipated complications?”

“No. I have been very diligent about taking care of myself and the baby. I have followed all of my doctor’s advice. I had my last check up just a week ago and we are both doing fine. Marcus will be here when the baby is born and we will have a month together before he leaves for his tour.”

“I want to be with her when the baby is born. I will make sure that she’s OK before I leave.”

“Well it appears that you two have talked this through and your minds are made up.”

”They are.”

This is a lot to take in so unexpectedly. I need to talk to Peggy and I need to give this a lot of thought.”

“Peggy wants us to come to the penthouse tomorrow to talk to Bruce Cohen.”

“I think that’s a good idea. It will be good for you both to be clear on the legalities and to make sure that you fully understand what you are giving up.”

“We do Bette. That is the reason we have chosen to go this route instead of using an adoption agency. We are doing this for the love and well-being of this child that we have chosen to bring into this world. We made a mistake and we regret it but we don’t want to compound it by making bad choices. We trust you and Peggy to help us to make the right decisions for this baby.”

“Thank you Marcus. It means a lot that you have such faith in me and that you would trust me to raise your baby as my own. I promise you that I don’t take this lightly. I know how important it is for a child to be raised in a loving nurturing environment. I have to be sure that I can provide that before I make a commitment to parenthood.”