Chapter 169: Perfect Eggs

Alexander had developed a new appreciation for Giovanni’s ability to turn a random thought into an appointment at a fertility clinic.

Because apparently, once someone convinced you to freeze your sperm for children who didn’t even exist yet, it became surprisingly difficult to stop thinking about the next step.

That’s how Alexander found himself sitting in front of his laptop late one evening, searching for eggs.

Human ones.

That distinction became necessary after his first search somehow produced an advertisement for organic free-range eggs.

Alexander stared at the screen.

"No."

He revised his search.

How to choose an egg donor for IVF.

Much better.

They’d already preserved their sperm. Alexander saw little reason not to understand what came next.

Several hours of research later, his desk looked considerably more organized than his thoughts.

Egg donation was more complicated than he’d expected.

The donor would undergo medical screening, genetic and family-history assessment, infectious-disease testing, and psychological evaluation. Once accepted into a donor program, she’d undergo ovarian stimulation before the eggs were retrieved.

Then came IVF.

The retrieved eggs could be fertilized in the laboratory using either Alexander’s or Giovanni’s sperm. If fertilization succeeded, they would develop into embryos over the following days and could eventually be frozen until they were ready for the next step.

The gestational carrier.

Alexander paused.

Gestational carrier versus traditional surrogate.

He clicked.

Several minutes later, he understood the distinction. A traditional surrogate provided her own egg, while a gestational carrier carried an embryo created from someone else’s egg and sperm.

Alexander immediately wrote:

GESTATIONAL CARRIER.

Then underlined it.

That was what he wanted. Hopefully, Giovanni chooses the same option.

More interestingly, if they used the same egg donor for embryos created with sperm from both of them, their biological children would share the same biological mother.

Alexander stopped typing.

He hadn’t thought about that.

They would be siblings regardless, obviously, but something about giving them that additional biological connection felt unexpectedly appealing.

By the time Alexander had three donor programs open, a notebook beside his laptop, and enough information to become mildly dangerous, he decided it was probably time to involve the other future father.

He picked up his phone and called Giovanni.

Giovanni answered after a few rings.

"Alex?"

"Are you busy?"

"A little."

Alexander smiled.

Apparently, they had both developed the habit of asking that question immediately before discussing something, regardless of the answer.

"I’ve been looking at women."

Silence.

Alexander waited.

"What kind of women?"

The careful neutrality in Giovanni’s voice nearly made him laugh.

"Egg donors."

A pause.

Then, "I see."

"Were you jealous?"

"No."

"You took a while to answer."

"I was trying to understand why my fiancé was calling to tell me he’d been looking at women."

Alexander leaned back in his chair.

"Well, you called me at three in the morning to ask if I wanted to freeze my sperm. I think we’re even."

"Fair enough."

Alexander turned back to his laptop.

"I found three possible donor programs."

"Women?"

"Programs, Gio."

"Continue."

The first option was the in-house donor program through the fertility center they’d already used. Their records were already there, and the donors underwent the medical, genetic, and psychological screening Alexander had been reading about.

The second was a much larger donor bank with considerably more profiles and information available, including education, interests, physical characteristics, medical histories, and sometimes childhood photographs.

"Childhood photographs?" Giovanni asked.

"Apparently."

"That feels strange."

"It gets stranger."

The third offered personalized matching. They could tell the agency what mattered to them, and the agency would shortlist suitable donors.

"What matters to us?" Giovanni asked.

"That’s what I’ve been trying to determine."

"Health."

"Obviously."

"Genetic history."

"Already on my list."

They could consider dozens of other characteristics, but the longer they discussed them, the less important most seemed.

"Height?" Giovanni suggested.

Alexander frowned.

"Why?"

"We’re both tall."

"So?"

"Consistency."

"We’re making a child, Gio, not maintaining brand standards."

Giovanni laughed softly.

"What about education?"

"I care more about health and genetic compatibility."

"So do I."

That simplified matters considerably.

Alexander looked down at the notes he’d already made.

"There is one thing I think we should do."

"What?"

"If possible, I’d like us to use the same egg donor."

Giovanni was quiet for a moment.

Alexander continued.

"If enough mature eggs are retrieved, some could potentially be fertilized with your sperm and some with mine. We’d have separate embryos, but if we eventually had one biological child from each of us, they’d share the same biological mother."

"I like that."

The answer came quickly enough that Alexander smiled.

"So do I."

Their children would be siblings regardless. Neither of them needed genetics to establish that. Still, Alexander liked the idea that if they eventually had biological children through both of them, they could have another connection.

"Then we look for one donor suitable for both of us," Giovanni said.

"Exactly."

"And neither of us chooses based on appearance."

"Agreed."

"I’ll choose based on who seems most genetically efficient."

Alexander slowly lowered his pen.

"What the hell does genetically efficient mean?"

"I don’t know. It sounded appropriate."

"Please don’t say that at the clinic."

"I’ll try."

Alexander could hear the amusement in his voice.

He closed several unnecessary tabs and returned to the fertility center they’d already used.

"I think we should start here. They have an in-house donor program, our records are already with them, and if we don’t find a suitable match, we can look elsewhere."

"Agreed."

"I’ll call them tomorrow and set up an appointment."

"Tomorrow?"

Alexander raised an eyebrow even though Giovanni couldn’t see him.

"You’re the one who started all this."

"I suggested preserving our sperm."

"And now I’m suggesting we find out what comes next."

Giovanni was silent for a moment.

Then his voice softened.

"Make the appointment, Alex."

Alexander looked at the pages of notes scattered across his desk.

For once, Giovanni wasn’t the one dragging them toward the next step before Alexander had properly caught up.

This one was his.

"I will."