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“No, you can put your feet up. We haven’t spent all this time finding the best donor and paying a fancy clinic to impregnate you, for you to be shifting furniture.” She took Grace’s hand and led her over to the sofa. “Sit, feet up, I’ll get you a nice hot chocolate made. How does that sound?”

“Sound’s perfect. And you’re right. I know we don’t even know yet if it’s worked, but I do need to remember to not…” Her words drifted away. It was difficult not knowing one way or theother and they still had almost a week to go before she could do a test to see if it worked. “It might not have worked anyway.”

“It’s going to work,” Caz said emphatically.

Grace nodded. “If it doesn’t—”

“It will,” Caz repeated, sitting down beside her. “And if it doesn’t, then we’ll try again. Try not to think about it.”

Grace’s laugh had an edge of sarcasm to it. “I potentially have another human growing in me, that’s hard not to think about.”

“I know. It’s all kind of crazy, isn’t it? Just a couple of months have passed and now we might have—” Her hand tentatively reached to touch Grace’s tummy and then stopped, hovering above it, unsure.

Grace took her hand and it pulled it down until Caz’s palm flattened out over her bellybutton. “You can touch.”

“Have you thought about whether you’d want a boy or a girl?”

Grace shook her head. “I don’t mind.”

“Me either. Mind, I mean. I thought about it and came up with positives and negatives to both, so figured whatever it was, it’s going to be fun…and trouble.”

Curling into Caz’s side, Grace chuckled.

“It will have you for a parent—of course it’s going to be trouble.”

“Itwillknow how to change a tyre.”

Grace pinched her playfully. “Hey, you said to call you whenever there was a problem with the car.” Still chuckling, shesaid, “They will know how to protect those they love, and how to fight their own battles, and what love looks like.”

“Yeah.” Caz sighed. “What are they going to get from you?”

Pinching her again, Grace laughed. “You’re horrible.”

The week passed in a blur. So much needed to be done to get ready for Christmas, which was fast upon them. Work was manic for Caz, with people wanting their cars checked over, or tyres changed in preparation for long drives to see family or go away for the holidays.

Not that she complained; the overtime meant she could buy things for the nursery and get Grace something extra for Christmas. Afterall, wasn’t Grace giving her the biggest gift any human could give another?

It would be their first, and probably their last, opportunity to spend Christmas together, just the two of them, before their family blossomed.

With Ron and Lila heading to Grace’s brother’s family for Christmas in Norfolk, and Caz not having any family to worry about, it was an easy decision to stay home. They hadn’t told anyone about the potential family addition yet, either, so Caz was going all out to make it the best.

Fatigued, she staggered in through the front door, already pulling her jacket off wearily and ready to kick her boots into the cupboard under the stairs.

Exhaustion had hit two hours ago.

“I’m home,” she called out. Finally, pushing the second boot from her foot, she ran her hands through her hair and caught herself in the hall mirror. “Attractive, Caz.” She yawned and tried to wipe the smear of oil that had managed to evade her quick face wash before she’d left the garage. “Grace?”

Checking her watch, it was gone eight. Grace didn’t have any plans this evening that Caz could remember. Wandering into the kitchen, the lights were off and nothing was cooking. She frowned. Caz crossed the room to the calendar on the wall and checked to see if Grace had any appointments she’d forgotten about, but there were none.

“Grace?” she tried again, and walked through the dining room and into the lounge.

No sign.

A surge of panic began to rise, adrenaline coursing and winding its way into her system. She should be home from work by now.

Back in the hallway, she listened for signs telling her anyone was home and heard nothing, just sounds from cars and people passing by outside. She looked outside; Grace’s car was definitely on the drive.

And then she stopped.