Page 75

“I could put on a dance show, if you think that’d help.”
“Off you go then. Although I’m not sure we’d want to inflict that on all the sick people here.”
“You’re probably right.”
She laughed and finally, some of the tension seemed to be seeping out of her shoulders. Fucking excellent, because that was what I was hoping for. “Okay, so tell me the kids' names again.”
“Right, so oldest to youngest, Grace, Lily, Oliver and Mia. I think. Fuck, what if I get it wrong? The least I could do was remember their damn names. We talked about them for ages yesterday. No, I’m sure that’s right.”
Okay, fuck, my attempt to get her looking forward to the meeting just backfired catastrophically and now she was more nervous than ever. Well done me, I guess. “I’ll make sure I ask, just in case, but I bet you got it all right.”
“I hope so.”
We sat in silence for a few minutes; me popping grapes into my mouth while Scarlett sipped her tea. Just as I was about to make another lame attempt at small talk, she suddenly froze, her gaze locked on something over my shoulder.
“Oh fuck,” she breathed, so low I could barely hear her.
I twisted around, my eyes landing on a small group entering the cafeteria. Laura, with a tall, sandy-haired man. Obviously, that was Ethan. And of course, the four people with them were the kids.
The older one, hopefully Grace, if Scarlett was right, had long brown hair and soulful brown eyes. She looked about twenty years old. The girl next to her looked a bit younger, but not by much, so that was probably Lily. She was blond with big blue eyes. The guy, obviously Oliver, you couldn’t get that wrong, had Laura’s coloring. And so did the youngest, who looked about fifteen, so that was Mia.
Laura spotted Scarlett. Her face broke into a tremulous smile and she gave a little wave, her free hand automatically reaching for Ethan’s arm.
Beside me, Scarlett went utterly still, like a deer caught in the headlights. Before I could say or do anything to reassure her, Laura began leading the family straight towards our table.
“Oh god, what if they don’t like me?” Scarlett’s voice was barely more than a whisper but holy fuck, her words almost broke my heart.
“Don’t be dumb. They’ll love you. You’re adorable.” I stood up, dragging Scarlett with me, keeping my hand on her back to give her as much reassurance as I could.
I wasn’t sure it worked. Her entire body was tense, like a coiled spring about to snap.
“Hey, relax,” I murmured in her ear. “I’ve got you. Just breathe.”
She gave a tiny nod, but I could feel the tremors running through her. Laura was the first to reach us, her smile warm but a little uncertain.
“Hi.” And there was that lip biting thing again. “I’m so glad you could meet us.”
Scarlett seemed frozen, so I gave her back a reassuring rub. “Laura, it’s great to see you again. Scarlett’s just a little overwhelmed at the moment.”
“Oh honey, of course you are,” Laura’s eyes were shining with sympathy. “This must be so strange for you. But we’re all here, and everyone’s so excited to meet you at long last.”
She turned and gestured to the others crowding behind her. “This is my husband, Ethan. And our children - Grace, Lily, Oliver and Mia.”
Each of them gave a little wave or nod, as their name was called.
“It’s wonderful to meet you all,” I said, squeezing Scarlett’s hip. “Please, have a seat.”
They quickly claimed the empty chairs around the table, a few of the kids throwing curious glances at Scarlett. An awkward silence fell as we all studied each other.
“So...” Ethan began, his deep voice seeming to shake Scarlett from her stupor. She blinked rapidly, then straightened her shoulders.
“I’m sorry, this is just... a lot to take in,” she said, her fingers twisting together nervously. “I never imagined I’d have this whole other family out there.”
“We understand, honey,” Laura said, reaching across to pat Scarlett’s hand. “We’ve had over thirty years to get used to the idea of you. This must be so overwhelming.”
Scarlett’s eyes slid to mine, and I gave her an encouraging smile. She drew in a shaky breath. “I want you to know how grateful I am that you all agreed to help with... everything,” she said, her hand drifting to her belly. “I can’t tell you what it means, knowing my babies will be okay because of you guys.”
“We’re... we’re so glad you reached out,” Ethan said, his voice thick with emotion. “Having the chance to meet you, to try to make up for all the lost time...” He trailed off, his jaw working as he visibly swallowed back his feelings.