“Do you need a wheelchair?” she asked, looking a bit flustered.
“Sorry, no, it’s my sister. Victoria Zoric.”
I got Tori’s room number and rushed up to her floor, scanning the halls for my family.
And there they all were! Brooklyn and Luka were in a waiting room around the corner from Tori, along with Tori’s stepmother Michelle. Paper cups of coffee and vending machine snack wrappers littered the table, and Brooklyn had a copy ofVogueopen on her lap.
Before I could even say hello, I was engulfed in a hug from Brooklyn, whose own pregnant belly was even bigger than the last time I’d seen her. It was a reminder of how much time had passed, and how much I had missed them. And also why I was putting myself through this torture of divorcing Ford. I was doing it to save all of us from the Russian mob.
“You’re here!” Brooklyn was saying, rocking me from side to side. I had to extricate myself before my own morning sickness was activated prematurely.
“How is she? Where’s Stefan? What are the doctors saying? Did it happen yet?”
“Slow down, Em,” Luka said.
“She already had the baby,” Michelle said in her southern drawl, grinning.
“She had the baby!” I yelled, punching the air. “I’m an auntie! This is incredible!”
Luka laughed. “Yes you are. Stefan’s with them right now.”
Michelle added, “And don’t worry about Tori. It was a pretty easy labor, the doctor said.”
“I hope I get that lucky,” Brooklyn murmured, stroking her belly. “The nurses have been taking us into the room to visit in shifts. Tori’s tired, but she can’t wait to see you.”
“And the baby?” I asked, looking between them. “She’s…all good? Healthy?”
“She’s perfect,” Luka said. His voice was awed and reverent, as if the baby was his own. I’d never seen him look so tender. “She’s got the Zoric hair, and Tori’s blue eyes.”
“She really is a beautiful baby,” Michelle said. “I still can’t believe I have a granddaughter.”
“The tiniest little thing you’ve ever seen, but with these sweet chubby cheeks,” Brooklyn added. “I swear she smiled right at me.”
I was already blinking back tears, and I hadn’t even met her yet.
When it was finally my turn to be brought back, I practically tiptoed into the room. Stefan looked almost as exhausted as Tori, but both of them were glowing. My brother was sitting on the bed next to Tori, smiling down at a little pink bundle in his arms.
“Is she sleeping?” I whispered.
“Yes,” Stefan said quietly. “Come and see.”
As I crossed the room, the look that Tori was giving him—so full of love and affection—was almost more than my heart could stand.
“Ohmigod,” I said, leaning over Stefan to peek at my niece. Brooklyn was right about the chubby cheeks, and the baby had quite the head full of dark hair, and the sweetest rosebud lips. She looked like a doll. “She’s a wonder.”
It was amazing how tiny this little life was. How small and how precious.
“Isn’t she perfect?” Tori asked.
“She is,” I agreed easily. “Look at those little fists. She’s a fighter.”
Just then, the baby yawned, and then her eyes opened. The second we made eye contact, a wave of emotions washed over me. “Hi there,” I whispered to her.
It was totally overwhelming, having her gaze up at me. I was thrilled and excited and weepy too, my eyes filling with tears. It wasn’t just the baby, though. It was the fact that I was going to be a mother too, in less than a year. The whole thing seemed so surreal and just as Stefan gently placed the baby in my arms, the door opened and Ford walked in.
What the hell?
I shouldn’t have been surprised. He was resourceful, relentless, and rich, and he’d already proven that when he wanted to find me, there was nothing that could stop him. But it was impossible to be truly angry at him with my brand-new niece cradled in my arms.
