AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“There’s a room right next door for Jo—”
“No, she can sleep here.” Catherine walked around the fireplace to the carpeted area meant to hold a pair of armchairs or a love seat. “This is perfect for her bassinet.”
“She doesn’t have her own bedroom?”
“She does, but she’s so little I’m not ready for there to be walls between us.”
Catherine had taken Jo out of her car seat and laid her in the center of the bed. Her arms were splayed above her head, and her legs were tucked up against her as she slept. I’d never been around babies, but this one seemed especially small and delicate.
“That makes sense. I don’t think I would be either,” I stated.
Her soft smile was back as she peered up at me. “Would you be able to set up the bassinet before you go back to the office?”
“Of course.”
I brought up their bags and the bassinet from my car. When I walked back into the bedroom, Catherine was on the bed beside Jo, curled up at her side. She watched me carry the bassinet to the spot she’d chosen on the other side of the fireplace, a crease between her brows.
I worked quietly so I didn’t wake the baby. It only took me a few minutes to set up the bassinet and plug it in. When I turned it on, it rocked slowly from side to side.
Seemed like a nice place for a baby to sleep.
Turning it off, I circled to the other side of the fireplace to let Catherine know, but her eyes were closed. She’d fallen asleep fast. With me in the room. That just showed how truly exhausted she was. Catherine had never let her guard down around me. Even on international flights, she remained awake and alert the whole time.
I took a long look at them, Catherine and Josephine peacefully sleeping together. Anyone with half a heart would have been affected by this scene. Some might have said I didn’t possess a quarter of one, but I felt it then, thudding against its cage.
“Bye, girls,” I whispered before turning toward the door.
“Elliot?” Catherine’s croak wasn’t very audible, but I’d heard, glancing back at her over my shoulder.
“Yes?”
She ran her index finger along Jo’s cheek. “It has floors.”
“What does?”
Her tired eyes flicked to mine. “Joey’s room has floors.”
She let her eyes drift closed, and I continued on my way back to the office. Daniel had probably gotten far too comfortable in my absence, and we really couldn’t have that.
Chapter Fifteen
Catherine
Ididnothave “live with my boss” on this year’s Bingo card. Then again, I didn’t have “have a baby” or “go bankrupt,” yet boom—here I was.
My life was full of surprises, even to me.
Seven weeks ago, I never could have imagined being here. I would have laughed at Elliot’s order to come with him. But those seven weeks had been a lifetime of worry, missing sleep, racing thoughts, and gnawing my fingernails to the quick.
I was tired. Tired of fighting a battle I couldn’t win. Tired of being the only one in my village. Just so fucking tired. I’d never known what it was like to feel exhausted to my bones until now. And it wasn’t just from missing sleep. This was a weariness that had started seeping in when Liam left and flooded through me when I understood he was never coming back. Not even for Joey.
The thing was, I’d known I shouldn’t have been living in that house under those conditions, but I’d been so heavy with dread I hadn’t been able to bring myself to take action. All it had taken was Elliot saying “no more” for me to pack my things up and leave.
I had no idea how long we’d be here. His offer might have only been for the night. But even a night in this luxurious home would be like a vacation. Maybe after some rest, my head would be clear enough to plan out my next step.
My foot was aching when I woke up from a much-needed nap, and my breasts were close to exploding. Luckily, Joey was ravenous and took care of one of the problems. Once she was fed and changed, we explored our room a little, but my foot wasn’t happy with me walking too much, so we hung out on my big bed.
“Don’t get used to this, Joey-Girl.” I booped her nose, and she startled, her limbs flailing madly. “It’s nice and all, but this is too fancy for us. We’ll just stay here for a little while until Mommy gets her act together.”
