Liverpool

Ok apologises for this one taking a bit of time, it was all written and ready to go, I just needed to be sure I was going in the right direction with the next chapter before I commited myself with this one. Once again, huge ty to my editor sdbnnc for all her help with this story and with general stuff. And big hugs to my own Sir for His wisdom. Enjoy the story x

<><><><><>

The next thing I knew, there were bright lights over me. I was flat on my back and someone was pressing their knuckles really hard on the middle of my chest. I tried to push the hand away, and opened my eyes.

"Hello. Can you hear me?"

I rolled my eyes over to the person speaking to me. My head felt like it was splitting in two, and my top jaw was killing me. I tried to say, "My head hurts," but I think it came out more like, "My 'ed 'uurrts."

"Are you hurt anywhere else?" There was a man in bright green clothes standing over me with a stethoscope hanging round his neck.

I stopped and thought about it for a minute. Now that he mentioned it, my right leg was sending me all sorts of "ouch" messages. "My right leg is bloody killing, and I don't half feel heavy."

"Your right leg, yeah, we'd expect that to hurt a bit; you've broken it in three places. The heavy feeling is from the drugs we've given you for the pain."

"They're not bloody working then, are they? Oww, where's Sir?"

"Who's sir?"

I pushed my eyelids up, and looked at the doctor. "Sir is on here," I said, as I tried to find my collar. The tag on it had Sir's name and mobile number, but the only collar was the thick plastic one that was supporting my neck.

"Where's my collar gone?"

"The black dog collar you were wearing? It's here with the rest of your stuff."

"Sir is on there."

"And he's your next of kin is he?"

"Yes; He's my everything. What time is it?"

"Just got ten pm. You've been out for a couple of hours."

"Oh, my head hurts."

"Yep, it will do." He turned away to give my collar to one of the nurses. I didn't hear what she said but the tone was horrible.

"What's wrong?"

"With you?"

"No, with her."

The doctor looked around for a minute, and leaned in close to me. "Megan, is there anyone forcing you to wear that collar or hurting you in anyway? You're quite safe here; no one can get at you."

"Sir doesn't hurt me. If I do something wrong, I stand in the corner for ten minutes, and that's only if I keep ap – apllo – saying 'sorry' too much."

"So there's no one hurting you?"

"No, not any more."

"Did someone hurt you before?"

"Yes, but I don't live with her now. I live with Sir. My face hurts."

"Where about's? Here in London?"

"No, hang on. Why am I in London?"

"You don't remember? We think you were going to a party. You had a very nice dress on."

I had to think hard about this, it was like wading through cotton wool though. What the hell was I doing in London? Sir was in London; was I coming down to see Him? A tiny scrap of memory floated up, something about the Dorchester hotel. I held my finger up and smiled a little.

"The Dorchester. Sir's having dinner with some very -- oww, very dull people. Least He's got a good excuse to get out of it now."

"Were you going to meet him there?"

"Yes, but, ssshhh, don't tell Him that. It's a surprise, ok?"

"I think he'll be getting enough of a surprise as it is. We were going to take you up for an CAT scan of your head; you weren't awake to ask so we did a pregnancy test to make sure you could go for it. Now I have to tell you it came back positive; do you understand?"

"I'm pregnant? Yep, Sir's definitely going to get a surprise."

"I take it you didn't know then?"

"Nope. So now what?"

"Well, we're going to do an ultrasound scan of your belly, see how far along you are, and how the little one's doing and at the same time, we're . . . " He was interrupted by Sir barging through the doors, still dressed in His white dress shirt with His very dark blue bow-tie hanging loose around His neck. He looked oh, so very handsome right then.

"Megan, pet, oh, little one, are you ok?" He was at my side in a flash, holding onto my hand and stroking it softly.

"I feel like I got hit by a bus."

"It was only a transit van, pet."

"It was?"

"Yes. Don't you remember? You were overtaking it when it blew out a tire, and toppled over on top of your car. That's what the nurse told me anyway."

"Oh. Is the driver ok?"

"The driver? Oh, you mean the van driver. I assume so -- Doctor?"

"Yes?"

"Is the other driver ok?"

"Yes, cuts and bruises mainly. He broke his arm, but other than that he'll be fine."

"Oh, that's good. Sir, guess what?"

"What?"

"I've got your baby in me," I said shyly, pointing at my lower belly. It took Him a minute to understand my garbled speech, but He got there in the end.

"Oh my God, you mean my baby? You're pregnant?"

"Yes," and I smiled at Him, quite pleased with His shocked expression. "Are you happy?"

"Happy? Oh, pet, I'm over the fucking moon!" He let out a wild whoop that made me giggle then cradle my head. "Oh, pet, I'm sorry. Am I making too much noise?"

"No, it's ok."

"Oh, pet. Ok, Doc, what happens next?"

"As I was just explaining, we're going to scan all Megan's internal organs; make sure everything there is as it should be as well as the foetus. We've had the x-rays back; her left cheek has caved in and she's got a hairline crack in the orbit, the eye socket, so the max-fax people will be coming to see you shortly. Other than her right leg, which shouldn't need surgery, there are no other broken bones. She was very lucky."

"The who people?"

"The maxillary facial people; they're doctors who specialise in faces, sort of like plastic surgeons."

"Oh, ok, so no back or neck problems then?"

"'No, the x-rays were all clear. We were going to take the collar off when Megan woke up and we'd had a chance to see if she was sore anywhere."

"So are you doing the scan before or after you've checked on her back?"

"We'll do her back first. It'll take about ten minutes or so, why don't you wait outside?"

"Ok, Doc. Listen pet, I'm just going to go call Ross, let him know what's happened and tell him the good news, ok?"

"Ok. Say, 'Hi' to Suzi for me."

"Of course. Where's Magpie?" He looked panicked for a minute, then relaxed when I explained.

"She's at Suzi's. I dropped her off before I came down. I didn't think they'd let her in at the hotel."

"No, quite right. You stay right there, and I'll be back in a few minutes, ok?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Good girl," He dropped a kiss on my forehead, and left me wiggling with pleasure at His words and surrounded by doctors and nurses.

"Right, Megan, let's see if your back hurts anywhere. If you feel any pain you tell me, ok? You don't nod or shake your head, you say something, got it?"

"Yes, I got it."

"Ok, everybody. On my count, three, two, one, roll."

I was pulled up onto my left side, my head supported by warm hands. I realised I was naked under the gown they'd put on top of me, and while that would have seriously freaked me out a few weeks ago, I was used to having my naked body touched and looked at by different people by now so it wasn't that big a deal. I frowned when the docter got about midway between my shoulder blades.

"Hang on."

"Does that hurt?"

"Go up a bit . . . no, not up my back, like up my ribs. Yes, there, that hurts."

"That's in your ribs; they're not broken, just a bit bruised. It'll make breathing harder for a couple of weeks, that's all. But it doesn't hurt in your spine?"

"No."

"Ok, then; off we go again," and he carried on poking and prodding down my back. "And that doesn't hurt at all anywhere?"

"No, it's fine."

"Ok, then. I'm just going to poke a finger up your back passage, make sure you're ok down there."

I giggled slightly and said, "Ok, but anything more, and you'll have to ask Sir."

"No, nothing more. Can you squeeze in for me?"

"Yes."

"Ok, that's fine. Now we're going to lay you flat again, so everybody ready, on my count, three, two, one and back. There we go, Megan, all done and we can get this collar off now."

"Can I get my collar back on now?"

"Your leather one?"

"Yes."

"I don't see why not."

I tried to smile, but my cheek was really starting to hurt now. "Thank you, doctor."

"You're very welcome. Will I tell Clive he can come back in?"

"Yes, please."

"Ok, the max-fax people shouldn't be long; obs and gynie said they were sending someone down straight away. Speaking of which, Megan, this is Sally, she's one of the obstetric nurses here in the hospital. Sally, I'll just fill you in on Miss Swann here." He took the pretty nurse over to one side as Sir came back in.

"You all done then?"

"Yes. You're just in time for the scan."

"Great. I spoke to Suzi; she is more than happy to keep taking care of Magpie for us, and she sends big hugs and kisses and says congratulations. And Ross is going to go over to the house tomorrow, and pick up some clean clothes for you and then they'll come down tomorrow night with your stuff."

"That's cool, thank you." I was getting really tired. "Oww."

"What's wrong, pet?"

"It hurts to yawn, and I'm sleepy."

"Hey, you've got to stay awake to see our baby."

"Ok, but then can I go to sleep?"

"I should think that'd be ok. Hiya, Doc."

"You're back just in time."

"Yep, Megan was saying that. Poor little one, you're a tired girl, ain't you?"

"Yes."

The doctor came over, and looked at the screen above my head. "All her obs are stable. Does she normally sleep after a shock?"

"Yeah, she had the flu in February, and I think she slept for a week."

"We'll keep an eye on her, but I think she'll be fine. Everything's been fairly normal since the paramedics got to her. I'll leave you in Sally's capable hands."

I saw Sir thank the doctor and turn to look at the brunette nurse. He turned back and raised His eyebrows at me, asking with His eyes if I liked her. I pursed my lips and shrugged my shoulders. If I was fit and in one piece I might have been tempted to play along with Him; as it was, I just smiled and shook my head. I knew fine well He wasn't actively chasing her, just enjoying the scenery.

Sally was very efficient, placing the gown and towels where she needed to, nudging Sir in the belly with her elbow when He got too close to me.

"Really, Mr. Anders, you are going to have to give me some room to work here. I'm not going to hurt your girlfriend. Look, why don't you go and sit by her head, and I'll turn the screen round when I've found the baby."

I held my hand out for Him, and He came up to stroke my hair away from my bashed-in face. Sally spread the cold gel onto my stomach, apologising quickly when I squeaked and wiggled away from it.

"Hold still, pet. How's this poor lass ever supposed to find our little girl when you're jumping around all over the place?"

"Oh, so it's a girl is it?" It was getting harder to talk as my face swelled up.

"Yes, it's a girl. I just know these things."

"And how do you know is a girl?"

"'Coz only a daughter of yours would hide herself away until she couldn't help being noticed."

"That's true. A son of yours would have been pushing his way to the front of the queue to be seen."

"Here you go then," Sally said, swinging the monitor round so we could see. "There's your baby. You can see the heart pumping away there, nice and strong. Do you have any idea about the conception date?"

"No, sorry. We've only just found out that Megan is pregnant."

"Ok, well, let's see now," Sally began pushing buttons and making notes. "From the length of baby, I'd say you were about twelve to thirteen weeks gone, so end of February, beginning of March I'd say."

"That's the first time we met up, Sir, the second of March," I turned to Him, all excited then stopped when I saw the complacent grin on His face. "You don't need to look so smug about it."

"What can I say, I'm a potent man."

"And what? I just lay there?"

"No, you're a potent woman too," He really couldn't keep the smile off His face and I knew, I just knew, the first chance He'd got, He'd brag about how He'd gotten me pregnant on our first night together.

"So did you not suspect anything was out with your periods?"

"No, they're all over the place. I went six months without a drop once; I just figured it was the same."

"Ok, well, we'll need to test you for rubella antibodies. I take it you had your MMR? And we'll need to get you on some folic acid supplements, things like that but I can come back later, once you've seen the surgeons if you like."

"Yes, please. Men -- look at Him. You'd think no one ever gotten someone pregnant before."

"Would you like to know the sex?"

"Yes, please."

"Ok, if we can just get baby to move this leg out the way, . . . and . . . there we go, you were right, it's a girl."

"Told you so, pet."

"Yeah, yeah. So not only are you a sex god and all round stud, but you're psychic as well."

"Is that anyway to talk to your sex god, all round stud, psychic Master?"

I sat and thought about it for a minute, "Yes?"

"You cheeky little slut."

The nurse looked horrified, but I grinned back up at Him and said, "Yes, but I'm your cheeky little slut. You got a problem with that?"

"None whatsoever, my pet," He kissed my hand and shook His head at me wincing. "Stop yawning if it's painful."

"I can't; I'm sleepy."

"I tell you what, you go to sleep and I'll wake you up if anyone wants to see you."

"Ok, Sir. Night-night."

And that was it. I shut my eyes and was out like a light. Sir told me the next day that I'd slept through everything, from getting my leg put in plaster, to moving from A&E up onto a ward. The nurses checked in on me every half hour or so. Sir didn't leave my bedside until Ross came in the next afternoon with Suzi and a bag of clothes for me. My head was still throbbing with my pulse whenever I moved too quickly, though it was settling, and my leg hardly hurt at all now that it had been plastered.

Suzi's lips twitched with every mangled sound I made. She joked it was a good thing she had worked with battered lassies before; it was the only way she could understand me. We soon settled in and did the girly thing about babies, names, outfits, colour schemes for the bedroom. Sir and Ross heard the word "baby" and left, going off to talk about the male things about babies -- the sleepless nights, the lack of sex, and I'm fairly sure I heard the word "cost" too.

I knew Sir was only kidding. That Tarzan whoop in A&E meant more to me than He would ever know. It meant He wanted me, and not just me, He wanted my babies too. He wanted me to be the mother of His children. I knew we were going to be having a large family, just from the sheer amount of sex we had, and that was fine by me too. I'd hated being an only child, all that pressure on me to be perfect, coz there wasn't anyone else around to fix things if I screwed up.

The face doctors had come round earlier. The surgeon taking care of me was a very lush chap, Mr Pinto, a Spanish man with deep brown eyes you could just drown in. He began to tell how they would fix my cheek. I think I got as far as, "Lift the upper lip on the left side, and cut in through there," before I started to feel sick.

"I don't want to know, ok? Really, no."

"You're squeamish?"

"No, I just hate anything medical to do with my mouth. I have a wisdom tooth on the upper right side that's more hole than tooth, and I won't go to the dentist, no matter how bad it hurts. Actually, that's a thought, you wouldn't like to take that out for me while I'm asleep, would you?"

"Let me see it then." I opened my mouth as wide as I could and let him poke in there as long as I could stand it. "Yeah, that needs to come out. We'll do it while you're under the anaesthetic. And I hear congratulations are in order."

"Yeah, we only found out last night. The operation won't hurt her will it?"

"You know the sex already?"

"Yeah. I'm about three months gone."

"Then everything should be fine. I'll book you in for first thing tomorrow morning; the anaesthetist should be round and all I need now is your autograph on the consent form."

I was just telling Suzi all about Mr. Pinto when Sir put His head round the door in to my ward, and told me my Dad was here, asking if I was up to seeing him.

"Yeah, of course. Send him in," I sat up a little straighter and smoothed my hair as best I could. It was still in the plaits from last night so it didn't look too horrendous.

"Meggie, what have you been doing to yourself, girl?" Dad's worried face appeared round the door to my room.

"A transit van fell on top of my car, Daddy. Sorry, I think it a write off"

"I don't care about the car, I need to know that you're ok?"

"Well, I broke my leg and my cheek bone's been caved in, which is getting fixed tomorrow morning. Other than that I'm fine."

"I am so glad to hear it. Clive, how are you?" Dad turned to see Sir as He came in.

"I'm brilliant. Suzi, Ross is wanting to go."

"My daughter is lying in a hospital bed and you're brilliant?'" Dad's voice couldn't have gotten any frostier. Suzi gave my arm a quick squeeze and slipped out the line of fire.

"You haven't told him?" Sir came and stood beside me. There was only one chair in the room, and Dad was sitting on it at the minute.

"He only just got here."

"Told me what?"

"Now, Daddy, I don't want you getting all upset." I took a deep breath; there was no way of telling how this would go. "I'm pregnant. I'm having a baby in six months."

His jaw dropped and his shoulders slumped; he looked totally crestfallen. "Your mother is going to kill you. Oh, Meggie, how did this happen?"

"Well when a Mummy and a Daddy love each other very much . . . "

"Not funny, Megan, I'm serious here. I suppose this is as good a time as any to explain, did you ever wonder why your Mother and I got married?"

"Frequently."

"It's like this. Your mother got pregnant before we were really together. It was her twenty-first birthday party, and we'd been going out on and off for about six months. We got quite drunk that night and, well, one thing led to another. She kicked me out of bed right afterwards, and I could tell she regretted it, so I left her alone for a few weeks to see if she would calm down. I got a call six weeks later, asking me to go round to see her. I thought she'd changed her mind, wanted me back. Instead she told me she was pregnant with you, and that we'd have to get married so her parents wouldn't get upset."

"So, did they know, Grandmother and Grandpa, I mean?"

"Oh yes, they knew, and they completely disapproved of the whole thing. You know what they're like though, they couldn't let a bastard grandchild into the family. It would have ruined their reputation at the church. We were married by the next weekend, and they bought us the house. Well, they bought Elaine the house. I was allowed to live there, that's about all, and even then it was under sufferance."

"Is that why she hated me so much?"

"I don't know, Meggie. It might have had something to do with it. I'm sorry, I didn't know what was happening."

"It's ok, Dad. You've given me a little insight into her world and it explains a lot. The difference here is I love Sir and He loves me."

For some reason I knew everything was going to be alright. The knowledge that I was carrying a child made me feel stronger, more confident. I also knew how I had been raised was wrong, pushed away, shut out. I was determined that this child and any others who might join her would never be treated the way I had been. I looked up at Sir, standing beside my bed, and smiled at Him. The pride in His eyes, how He stood tall and strong only made me love Him more. The bell rang for the end of visiting hours; dinner would be coming round soon. Dad got up and hugged me gently, kissing my good cheek and whispering, "I'm glad you're ok, Meggie," before he left. Sir stayed by my bed, moving into the seat recently vacated by Dad and held on my hand.