I reach into my bag and pull out the folded images, sliding them across the table. Her reaction is immediate, hands flying to her mouth, eyes shining.
“Oh my god,” she breathes. “Eden . . . look at that little nose.”
I smile despite myself, leaning closer. “It yawned,” I say softly.
Her gaze flicks to me then back to the scan. “It’s so clear. How does it feel to finally see your baby?”
“Amazing,” I say, forcing a smile. When she grabs my hand, seeing my hesitation, I add, “It’s just a lot, yah know. Doing this stuff with Kade, stuff we were always meant to do together as a couple. And now, we’re doing them but not really together, if that makes sense.”
She studies me carefully. “It’s an emotional time for you both. When I walked in, he looked upset, like he’d been crying.”
My throat tightens. “He told me how he pictures my future. With someone else. With him watching from the sidelines while another man raises his son.”
Martha’s expression shifts. Still not soft but less sharp.
“At least he’s realising what he’s lost.”
I nod. “Yeah, but it’s not easy to watch.”
She sighs, sitting back. “I spoke with Rabbit earlier. The club is worried about him.”
My head snaps up. “Really?”
“With him stepping down and then not checking in at all since he made the decision. He’s also selling his bike.”
“What?” I cut in, gasping. His bike is his baby, his everything.
She nods. “He asked for one of the prospects to come and get it, and for D to sell it.”
My chest tightens painfully. The bike isn’t just for transport to him. It’s freedom. It’s his identity.
“He didn’t tell me,” I murmur.
Martha reaches across the table, squeezing my hand. “Maybe he didn’t want you to feel pressured.”
I swallow. “He’s really serious about changing.”
She gives a small, reluctant nod. “Looks that way.”
I glance back down at the scan photo, tracing the curve of a tiny face with my fingertip.
“How do you feel?” she asks gently. “About it truly?”
I take a breath. “I don’t want him to change his life for me. It wasn’t the reason I left.”
“Is there a future for you two?”
I hesitate, and she smiles, gripping my hand tighter. “I want you to be happy, Edes. And honest. I won’t be mad whatever you decide.”
I exhale slowly. “I don’t know,” I whisper honestly.
CHAPTER TWELVE
KADE
Two weeks have passed since the 3D scan. Two weeks of quiet.
It’s not the heavy, suffocating silence we lived in before, but something gentler, careful. Like we’re both learning how to breathe in the same room again without flinching.
