Chapter Sixty-Five
Tori
“That’s great, girls. Tori, widen those thighs like a flower opening. Get those hips nice and loose for birth,” Gabby encourages as she weaves in between us.
It’s been a few days since my panic attack, and I pray today is the day I hear something from Noah.
In a bid to keep me busy and get me birth ready, Gabby is teaching a private Pilates class at her studio, and although it was done with the intention of relaxing me, I have done nothing but laugh at the guys’ attempts to be poised and elegant.
“Beautiful, Ria, keep those shoulders back. Ali, lovely frame. Bradley, spread your legs,” she scolds, and I snort a laugh.
My eyes flick over to where Brad is trying to widen his gait, but the man is all tight muscles and no flexibility. Good luck to Gabby trying to get him to do this pose.
“How about I spread your legs?” she hisses as he loses his balance and growls in frustration.
Gabby rolls her eyes and then turns her focus on Harry. “Harry, lower please, you are leaning too far back.”
“Gabs, I am so low my gooch is touching the mat. I can’t get any lower.”
Gabby wrinkles her nose. “Your what?”
Harry grins, and I sigh.
“My Gooch. You know that soft bit of skin between your balls and your ass.”
Ria turns to face Harry. “Do you mean your perineum?” she asks wide eyed.
“Yeah, the Gooch.” He confirms.
“He loves it when I give it a little tickle, don’t you, babe?” Ali says suggestively, giving Harry a wink.
“Sure do,” Harry says, smiling like the cat that got the cream.
“You two are gross.” Jack winces, and I shake my head in hopes of ridding this conversation from my memory.
“Again, I could have gone my whole life without knowing that. Cheers, you two.” I laugh.
Ali’s hand covers her mouth. “Whoops, sorry, Tor.”
“I need a drink after hearing that,” Brad grumbles.
“Gabs, I think Brad needs you to tickle his Gooch. Might loosen him up.” Harry snickers, and with that, Brad lunges for him, but Harry is quick to dive to the side, causing Brad to hit the mat.
Gabby claps and yells like she’s rounding up kids from recess. “That’s enough, back to Pilates.”
I let the hot water soothe my aching muscles.
That class really took it out of me, but Gabby was right, I do feel relaxed, and it was exactly what I needed in this final stretch of my pregnancy.
It's been a good month since I saw my feet.
I live in pajamas unless I have to leave the apartment, and my pregnancy pillow is my new best friend and the only way I am getting any type of rest.
I exit the shower, doing my best to dry my body with the towel and then apply oil to my tight bump. I’m not sure how she could possibly grow any more; my belly is stretched to the max.
I slide on some stretchy pants and one of Noah’s t-shirts that has become my new bedtime attire, except now it doesn’t cover my bump fully. I comb my wet hair, apply my skin care, and then go in search of snacks that I plan to rot in bed with.
As I exit my bedroom and waddle up the corridor towards the kitchen, there’s a chill in the air, and when I am met with the concerned faces of my friends and my twin, I know something is horrifically wrong.
“What’s wrong?” I ask hesitantly as a wave of nausea hits me. Harry rises from the couch, the same haunted expression ghosting his face that I remember from when he told me Trent had died. My blood runs cold, the floor beneath me begins to move, and my world crumbles around me.