Page 59 of Ruin Me Sweetly

“Of course I was. Did you see how big and lusty he was?” I said, flashing our son’s scan picture in her face.

Her face scrunched up further.

“Lusty?”

I shook my head.

“Honestly, Bella, you need to get your head out of the gutter,” I said, dropping to my knees. “Don’t worry, son, I’ll make sure she doesn’t embarrass you in front of all the other babies.”

Patients and staff walked past us. Some ignored us entirely, but most side-eyed us, clearly trying to work out what was happening.

I was busy massaging my son through her belly. He was probably having the time of his life in there. I glanced up to find his irritated mother staring down at me.

“Lusty means strong, fit, or vigorous,” I said, before kissing her belly and rising to my feet.

She grunted and took my outstretched arm.

“Amber told me you’ve got a bromance going on with Zach,” she murmured, taking my baby’s picture from me.

“All lies,” I said, guiding her back toward the main waiting room. Amber was revising, and Zach had gone back to Oxford after the half-term break. I missed having them here for the second scan.

“Won’t it be nice having everyone home for the summer holidays?” she murmured.

Our son would be loved, not only by his parents, but by his siblings too. Yes, Zach and Poppet would be busy with their own lives, but their homecoming would always be welcomed.

“It will, darling. It will,” I said, pressing the button for the lift.

My life had become so much richer, all through one woman and her family.

A woman who’d caught my eye in the bank. Her pleasant demeanour with the teller. The way she’d laughed, at something I couldn’t even remember now, in a way that made me forget I’d ever forgotten how to laugh myself.

The woman I’d followed back to the museum.

Chapter 29

Isabella

Three months later, it was results day for Amber. We all went with her to school to collect her exam results. She wasn’t beside me, fretting—Zach was taking care of her, while Luke just stood, holding my hand.

“She’s all grown up,” I sighed.

I didn’t need to say that I missed her childhood, her dependency on me. It was implied.

“And in one month’s time, you’ll have my son hanging off your breasts for the next eighteen years,” Luke whispered, making me cackle.

“I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. There is something very wrong with you,” I said, rubbing my belly, feeling our child shift beneath my hands.

He wasn’t wrong, though. I was older this time around, but I had Luke, and this baby would have additional support from Amber and Zach too. We were financially secure, and I wouldn’t struggle the way I had with Amber.

Zach had Amber up in the air, spinning her around while she clutched the white sheet of paper above her head. I slid my arm around Luke’s frustratingly slim waist and held him close, watching my children’s happiness unfold in front of us.

“We’ve got great kids,” he whispered.

“Yeah.”

❧ ❧ ❧

We were on our second lap around the garden when I felt the first contraction. Lewis was on his way. I had to school my features—any hint of pain or sudden excitement would arouse Luke’s suspicions.