‘I was. I am.’ She heaved a sigh. ‘I would be, except now I’m freaking out about money. I mean, how am I going to provide for a child? Babies are expensive. They need nappies and buggies and no end of paraphernalia. And that’s even before school uniforms and dance classes and braces and all sorts.’
‘Well, that’s all a little while in the future,’ Aoife said. ‘You don’t have to worry about school uniforms just yet.’
‘And it’s not going to come out needing braces,’ Mimi said. ‘It won’t even have teeth!’
‘No, but as far as I can make out, newborn babies are the most expensive of all – even worse than schoolkids.’
‘Maybe you should skip the baby stage, then, and just have a schoolkid.’ Mimi’s lips twitched. ‘It might be a difficult delivery, though.’
‘It’s not funny!’
‘Well, it has plenty of clothes already,’ Mimi said.
‘I know, and that’s great. But clothes are the least of it. Babies need car seats – and a car – and a steady income.’
‘There are plenty of babies who don’t have a car,’ Aoife said. ‘Or a salary, for that matter.’
‘I know lots of people with pedestrian babies,’ Mimi said. ‘Not that their babies are dull,’ she added hastily. ‘Just that they don’t have motorised transport.’
‘They’re not even pedestrian for ages,’ Aoife said. ‘They can’t even walk, let alone drive.’
Mimi nodded. ‘Exactly. It won’t need shoes for a year or two at least.’ She wrinkled her forehead. ‘Three? I don’t know when babies turn into toddlers.’
‘We can look it up,’ Aoife said.
‘But the point is, it won’t need much when it’s born and you’ll have plenty of time to save up for all that other stuff. It can get a car when it’s old enough to drive. Make me godmother and I’ll buy it one for its sixteenth birthday.’
‘How will you get the money for a car?’
Mimi shrugged airily. ‘I’ll be rich and famous by then. We all will be. And if I’m not, I’ll make Rocco buy it one. Oh, even better, make Rocco godfather. He’s stupid rich.’
‘And he does have Italian heritage, so he’s perfect for the role,’ Sive mused.
‘Well, I don’t think he’d be that kind of godfather,’ Aoife said. ‘I can’t see him pushing your child into a life of crime.’
‘Isn’t he already godfather to one of his sister’s kids, though?’ Sive asked.
Mimi nodded. ‘Cousins tooanda couple of friends. He’s got oodles of godchildren. He’s always been a popular choice, even before he was rich and famous, to be fair. So he’s got lots of experience and he’s very good at it. And there are no limits – youcan have as many godchildren as you’re offered – or as many as you can afford. Rocco could easily take on another one.’
‘And everyone needs at least one fairy godparent,’ Aoife said.
‘You could always put the baby to work too – make it pay its own way. Sign it up with an agency for commercials and stuff.’
Sive gave them a weak smile. She knew they were just trying to cheer her up, but making light of her concerns only made her worry more. It was completely unrealistic. ‘Seriously, though, what have I got to offer a baby?’
‘Well, there’s us for starters,’ Mimi said, waving a hand between herself and Aoife. ‘Two awesome aunts.’
‘Not to mention an amazing mum,’ Aoife said.
‘And a career on the stage, should its heart desire,’ Mimi said.
‘And why wouldn’t it? It’ll be in their blood.’
‘Well, it’ll also have Ben’s DNA, don’t forget,’ Sive said. ‘Maybe it’ll turn out to be a mountain climber.’
They were all silent for a moment, mulling this over.
‘Nah,’ Mimi said then. ‘Our acting genes go back generations. What’s one mountain climber in the mix against a whole acting dynasty? Your genes will win out.’
