Chapter 29 Hayley
Hayley
J amie? Are you awake?” Hayley lay in the semidarkness, staring up at the ceiling. She’d insisted that they leave the Christmas tree lights on tonight, because she didn’t want Christmas to end.
Had it been perfect? Technically, no. Between them they’d forgotten to put the potatoes in the oven so lunch had been late, and Jamie’s grandfather had said that given the number of people in the house he didn’t see how at least one of them couldn’t have got the timing right.
Percy had trodden on Rosie’s new boots and left a pawprint on the suede, which Declan spent an hour trying to remove, and Jamie accidently knocked Becky’s phone on the floor and broke the screen.
But they’d also laughed, swapped gifts, played games, shared anecdotes, eaten too much food, walked on the beach, had a snowball fight and then eaten more food. They’d been a family.
And that part really had been perfect.
“I’m awake.” Sleepy, he shifted onto his side so that he could look at her. “Are you all right?”
“I think so.” She paused. She’d been wondering how and when to tell him her news. “Do you think your Granny enjoyed her Christmas?”
“Yes. And I hope she didn’t upset you with all her less-than-subtle mentions of babies. You just have to ignore her. That’s what we do. No one expects you to get pregnant, Hayley.”
“Right.” She looked at the lights twinkling on the Christmas tree and smiled. “About that...”
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