Chapter 27
Lacey
It’s the last day of our babymoon, and I feel the sadness start to seep in at the prospect of going home. I’m looking forward to seeing everyone, but at the same time, I have loved it being Cole and me. I’ve loved it even more being in the same home as him.
My apartment is great, but it’s not big enough for the both of us, not really, and I dread to think what it’s going to be like with a newborn. The house Cole is building isn’t complete yet and won’t be until after the baby is born, but I guess it will be worth it in the end.
“Lacey, are you ready to hit the road? We don’t want to get stuck in traffic,” Cole shouts from downstairs as I take one last look at the beautiful room we have been staying in.
Trudging down the stairs, every step feels heavy.
I don’t know what is going to be waiting for us when we get back home, and that thought scares me.
I kiss Cole on the cheek when I reach the bottom step, and he holds his arm out for me to grab onto.
And then we’re in the truck, driving away from the beautiful, whimsical cottage we have called home for the past week.
I’m sure a little piece of my heart has been left behind with it.
**********
Great, traffic.
I click out of the e-reader app on my phone and open up my messages. I haven’t spoken to Emmy, Hayleigh and Daisy in a few days now, and I miss them.
Me
Aloha ladies! Do you want to meet for an early dinner today? We’re on the way back and have hit some traffic but we shouldn’t be much longer *eye roll emoji*
I keep the message open for a few minutes, but none of them message me back. Stupid tears pool in my eyes. I open the group chat instead.
Me
Hey everyone. We’re on our way home! Has anyone seen the girls?
Again, I wait…and nothing. I know my messages have been delivered because they show two ticks, and Cole’s phone beeped. So why is everyone ignoring me? Cole’s voice snaps me out of my pity party for one.
“Everything okay? You’re kind of quiet.”
Sighing, I look out of the window, watching the hills go by slowly as the traffic starts to move. “Yeah…I just really enjoyed this week and being with you every day.” I hold off saying what I really want to say.
“Go on, something is bugging you.” He grabs hold of my hand and raises it to his lips, softly kissing me. “I know you, Lacey. Spit it out. You never usually have any issues in saying what you want to say.”
“I don’t want to sound stupid…” He levels me with a look that says ‘get on with it’.
Throwing my hands up, I snap, “Fine. You want to know what’s wrong with me, Cole?
You really want to know what’s wrong? Well, I will tell you.
I have enjoyed this week so much that I don’t want to go home, not that there is any point in going home anyway, because everyone is ignoring me.
Maybe they’ve realised I’m not good enough.
I texted my dad two days ago, Cole, two!
Nothing, zip, nada! I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop.
” The last words are said in a whisper. It’s the first time I’ve voiced my fears out loud.
“Baby, your dad hasn’t left. He’s working for me, and he’s busy on a project.
You also don’t need to worry about the shoe dropping because I’ll be there to pick it up.
Now have a nap or read your fairy porn book and stop worrying.
” He refocuses back on the road, and I take his advice and get back to my fairy love story.
Pfft porn. Men!
**********
The truck rumbles to a stop, and Cole gently shakes my shoulder, but I’m too damn comfortable to get up.
“Why hasn’t she woken up yet?” I swear that is Archie, but maybe my mind is playing tricks on me. “Lacey…Lacey…” Yes, that is Archie.
I crack open one eye to find Archie's face mere centimetres from mine. “Aaaarrrgggghhhh!” I watch in slow-motion horror as my hand connects with his face.
He rubs it gingerly. “Ouch, Lacey, shit! That fucking hurt!”
“Sorry, Arch. But maybe next time don’t have your big head in my face when I wake up?” I pat his cheek lovingly.
Suddenly, a hand clips the back of his head, and May tuts at him.
“Language!” She turns her motherly gaze on me and wraps her arms around me, albeit awkwardly, considering I’m still in the truck.
“Ooh, I’ve missed you, little Lacey. You too, little Peanut.
” She places a loving hand on my stomach and smiles at me.
“We’ve been waiting a while for you. Come on. ”
I unbuckle myself from the truck, and Cole is there, helping me climb down. This past week I have become acutely aware of how big my stomach is getting. Even bending down to put my shoes on is a task in itself. I think from here on out, I am going to have to start wearing flip flops.
“I’m sorry I kept this from you,” he whispers to me and I pull my head back in confusion. My stomach flips as I wonder if this is that shitting shoe that’s going to drop or not.
But then I peek round him and my eyes widen at the scene in front of me. Our whole family stands outside of our home, our very beautiful and very finished home. They all stand here, each of them smiling so hard at us, and for a moment I am at a loss for words.
Cole ushers me forward as he wraps his arm around my side. “Do you want to see inside?” I look up to him in awe.
“You mean the inside is finished too?” He nods, smiling, and that’s all I need before I run – okay, waddle – towards the house.
I catch sight of my dad, waiting to one side. It’s only now that I notice how unsure of himself he is. He walks over to me, wringing his hands, his brow furrowed. “Hi, sweet pea.” He wraps his arms around me and holds me tight.
“Is this the project you were working on for Cole?” I whisper in his ear and, when I pull back, he nods with a twinkle in his eye.
Turning back to our home, I walk a little shakily to the door, a beautiful, dark, varnished wooden door with a mesmerising square stained-glass window set in the middle. I look closer and see that the stained glass is a bunch of yellow flowers. Daffodil, Dahlia, Iris, Tulip and Sunflowers.
I push the door open gently, Cole’s quiet but strong presence behind me. The entryway is open and airy, the colours plain.
“I asked them to keep it plain, that way you can put your stamp on it with colours.” Cole’s voice echoes in the vast space, and I feel my heart balloon inside my chest.
Ahead of us are the stairs. They travel on either side of an empty space, as Cole says, “I know how much you love Christmas; I remembered you said that if you ever had the chance, you would have a Christmas tree in your hallway. Now we can.” I smile up at him, grateful for the little things he remembered over the years.
To our left is the living room, which is currently unfurnished, but the space is amazing.
The floor is sunken in the middle of the room, big enough to seat a sofa in front of a beautiful log-style fireplace.
A natural wood surround is fixed to the chimney.
Suddenly, I can see us living here, at Christmas time, the decorations up and little Peanut playing happily, our entire family around us.
It’s everything I have ever wanted and more.
We exit the room and walk across the hallway to the dining room.
There is a window to our right, which shows the beautiful view of what will be the driveway.
The wall ahead of us, the longest one that runs the length of the room, has two square windows on either side of a round window.
They let in streams of beautiful, natural light that dance and sparkle across the floor.
I can imagine a long family table, similar to the one we all sit around at May’s house, only now we have one, and May can have a rest while we host. I can finally start to pay her back for all the times she fed me and kept me warm since I was a little girl.
“Is this room okay? We can change anything you don’t like.” Cole is mistaking my silence for upset, but it couldn’t be further from the truth. I spin around and throw my arms around him, trying to get as close as I can with Peanut front and centre.
“I have never been happier with my life than I am now. I can never begin to explain what this means to me. I’m so lucky I have you.”
“So am I.” He kisses me softly as a throat clears behind us.
I turn to find our whole family silently, and a little creepy, watching us. Archie bounces on his feet like an impatient toddler.
“Has she seen the room yet?” He clasps his hands in front of him as he gets a dreamy look in his eyes.
My brow raises. “The room? Which one?” I laugh.
Cole grabs my hand and interlinks our fingers as he pulls me along, everyone else following slowly behind.
We go through the hallway and up one side of the stairs to the landing. The corridor is wide with another beautiful, flowery stained glass window at the end. On either side of the corridor, I count six doors in total, three on each side.
“Ooh, mysterious.” I waggle my fingers at Cole, and he rolls his eyes.
“Two bathrooms, one on each side and four bedrooms. Ours is the last on the right, and Peanut’s is the last on the left, for when she’s ready to be in her own, of course. Do…uhm…do you wanna…” He trails off, the nerves getting the better of him. I squeeze his hand tightly and nod.
We walk to her door, and my heart starts to beat wildly. I feel her squirm in my tummy. Placing a hand on my belly, I rub small circles, though I don’t know if I am trying to calm myself or her. When Cole pushes the door open and gently nudges me forward, I’m completely lost for words.
My heart swells inside my chest, and I feel like something is lodged in my throat. Tears prick at my eyes as I take in the sight before me.
The ceiling has been painted as if a thousand clouds of all colours fill the room, with spotlights dotted around in various places.
The walls are painted a beautiful blue to represent the sky, and a mural on each wall depicts different fairy tales from my childhood.
It isn’t all of this that has me choking up; it’s the painting of a little blonde girl, caught mid-twirl, in the centre of the main wall. The likeness is astounding — it’s me.
My eyes fall to the only piece of furniture in the room.
It’s a wooden crib, but it isn’t just any run-of-the-mill crib; this one has been handmade.
It’s a rectangular crib. The front has beautiful carved spindles, with a latch to slide it down for ease of getting Peanut in and out.
Underneath, there is a shelf for storage, holding four grey wicker baskets already.
The back panel of the crib is solid wood with a raised headboard, shaped like a heart.
I step closer to it, and it’s only then that I notice that the theme of the room continues. Nate’s talents shine through in the small woodland creatures and vines carved all over the crib. The crib is a beautiful light grey, and the creatures and vines have been hand-painted white.
The room is silent as I slowly turn around and realise this family, my family, has been busy getting all of this finished whilst we’ve been away on our babymoon, and suddenly I feel selfish.
My stomach sinks as I feel like I have taken too much from them, especially after everything they have already done for me.
My dad steps forward and takes hold of my hands. “It’s okay. You deserve this.”
“Did…” I gesture around the room because words are failing me, and he simply nods. Throwing my arms around him, I break down. All the years of feeling unloved and unwanted, all the heartache and sadness come pouring out of me.
He doesn’t shy away from my tears. He doesn’t offer feeble apologies. Instead, he holds me strong and lets me break as he rubs circles on my back and tells me he’s here and he isn’t going anywhere ever again.
**********
Everyone else left us in the room whilst I had my mini breakdown.
As I finally pull away from my dad, I notice him rubbing his eyes, and I smile softly at him.
There is no point in dwelling on the past; what happened cannot be changed.
I can either spend the rest of my days hateful and wishing things had been different, or I can accept they happened and be thankful that fate has given us another chance to make things right.
We walk downstairs to find everyone standing together in the kitchen. Cole notices me first, somehow he always does, and comes over to me. With one hand on my stomach, cradling Peanut, he kisses the top of my head before murmuring, “Is everything okay?”
I smile up at him and nod.
“It’s perfect.” Then I remember the crib and look around for Nate. “Where’s Nate gone?”
“Uh, he was here a minute ago.” Cole trails off when he looks towards the back sliding doors. Just outside, Nate and Hayleigh are engaged in what looks to be a heated discussion.
“HOUSE WARMING!” Emmy shouts across from the other side of the kitchen, and our attention is dragged away from the scene outside. She gives me a look that tells me to play along; clearly, whatever Nate and Hayleigh are going through is between them only.
“Yes! House warming! That’s a great aarrggghh…” I trail off as my stomach tightens. The feeling isn’t painful but surprising.
Everyone stops what they’re doing and stares wide-eyed before all hell breaks loose. All the men start talking over one another, buzzing around.
Archie stands right in front of me, flapping his hands up and down. “Okay. Okay, okay. Just stay calm, it’s all okay! MUM, GET SOME TOWELS AND HOT WATER!”
If I weren’t so stunned, I’d be laughing my backside off. I feel Cole’s presence behind me, calming and strong. He wraps his arms around me and lifts my stomach, allowing me a moment to breathe and much-needed rest for my poor back.
He growls down the side of my ear, “Archie, calm the fuck down. It’s just Braxton Hicks. Perfectly normal for twenty-eight weeks.”
At his words, everyone calms instantly, and I roll my eyes. “God help you lot when I actually do go into labour. We need some test runs if this is how you all react.”
The only ones unfazed by all of this are May and Emmy; they watch on in silent amusement as Archie rubs his sweaty hands down his top.
Family. I love them all so much. I just hope the other shoe doesn’t drop.