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We never made it to dinner.
My husband undressed me with fierce urgency and made love to me against the bookshelves while promising me the stars, the moon, and the entire universe.
It was still in the early stages, but we announced my pregnancy to our immediate family. Céline cried and smothered me with hugs. Yves congratulated us and good-naturedly ribbed his son. Ben and Éva pledged to be the best babysitters ever. And Dacia teared up while playfully saying, “Well, I guess this confirms you’re not divorcing your sugar daddy.”
Their reactions warmed my heart. Our baby would be surrounded by so much love.
My mother called me when Dacia told her I was pregnant. The conversation involved lots of crying on her end. She apologized profusely and said she regretted her actions over the last few years.
“I’ve missed you,” she had bawled. “I’ve missed you so much, Darla.”
Sometimes you needed to forgive people. Not because they deserved it, but for your own peace of mind. Forgive and move on so they could stop occupying space in your thoughts and allow karma to punish them as it saw fit.
I told my mother I forgave her and she promised to do better if I was willing to give her one more chance. The De la Croixes were throwing a fundraising event in the upcoming week and I extended the invite to her as an olive branch.
Diane Hill would be on her best behaviour.
Because she knew failure to do so meant never seeing the face of my child.
The fundraising gala was held at a banquet hall downtown. The event was in full swing and crawling with criminals and the elite society of Montardor.
My friends were all here, signing their names on checks with hefty donations. When Cade and Shaun started discussing business, Ella and I pulled Hera to the side.
“Are you”—Ella lowered her voice conspiratorially—“fucking Shaun?”
Hera choked on her water. “Excuse me?”
“She’s turning red,” I accused. “Oh my God. You slept with him, didn’t you?”
“I knew it.” Ella jabbed a finger in Hera’s shoulder. “You’ve been with him a lot lately.”
“H-He’s just a friend.” Hera never stammered. “Idris and I are finalizing our divorce and Shaun is helping me find a new home.”
“Where? On his dick?” Ella supplied.
“No! Stop being disgusting!” Hera swatted Ella, blushing.
I saw Shaun’s social media posts with Hera over the last few weeks. Going on coffee dates. Eating her mom’s famous biryani. Watching movies in his home theatre. Shaun had it bad with a capital B. Either Hera was truly clueless or she was pretending to be.
“And did you find one?” I hedged.
Hera smoothed a hand down her black gown and Shaun’s eyes, even from metres away, drew to her ass like a moth to a flame. “Yeah, he owns this condo building downtown. Says there’s something available.”
Ella and I exchanged a deadpan.
That was literally the building where Shaun lived.
Before I said anything else, a small presence loomed beside me. Ella and Hera paled. I turned and found my mother staring at me with a guilt-ridden expression.
My best friends had manners, so they hugged my mother and engaged in small talk for under a minute. Then they skirted away to give us privacy.
“Hi,” Mother said. She was put together in her usual pantsuit, but the dark circles under her eyes highlighted her sadness.
“Hi,” I replied.
“You look good, Darla.” She assessed my red gown, lingering longer than necessary on the thigh-high slit.
There were no snappy comments.
