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Pride glowed in Xavier’s expression. From the moment Ellie had told him about her aspirations to finish her degree, he’d known he would help her find a way to do just that. But the hard work and study was all her.
“Have José bring you to my office and we’ll go from there.”
She hid a smile behind her tea cup. Her husband spoke in orders, but she wouldn’t have him any other way.
He was her perfect other half – her destiny.
Only towards the end of their lunch, Xavier was struck by a rare headache. He ignored it at first, but by the end, it speared through his brain like a drill, and then another, so that – worried and concerned, Ellie paid the bill and had José bring the car to the restaurant to take Xavier straight home.
It was the third such instance she’d witnessed, and she knew what to do. She helped him into bed and prepared a glass of water and some aspirin on the bedside table, and then she left him to sleep, checking on him every hour, making sure he hadn’t been ill.
But hours and hours later, after Joshua had returned from school, eaten dinner and been dispatched to Bedfordshire for the evening’s repose, Ellie went to check on Xavier and found him sitting up, propped against the pillows, a bemused expression on his face.
Concerned, Ellie closed the distance and pressed a hand to his forehead, but he caught it and squeezed her fingers in his. “You love strawberry ice cream,” he said thickly. “You think it is a food group, all on its own.”
She stared at him and then, as the significance of what he was saying came back to her, tears cloyed at her throat. She lifted a hand to her mouth and nodded. “Yes.”
“I went to see Les Miserables, and you were wearing your hair in a bun and I fell in love with you as soon as you looked at me. I called you Ellie and you slept with your head on my chest and when I left the hotel that day, Ellie, it was to fly to my parents and tell them about Arabella so that I could propose to you. Because I met the woman I wanted to spend the rest of my life with and nothing on earth could keep me from her…”
Ellie fell into the bed beside him, holding him tight, kissing him, whispering to him in Spanish, the phrases he’d taught her to express her love in his native tongue, and he kissed her back as the very last piece of their puzzle slid firmly into place.
“I remember you,” he groaned into her mouth. “All of you.”
She sobbed, because it was too utterly perfect.
Four months later, just after Joshua’s Christmas concert at school, the family of three was heading to their favourite Italian restaurant for dinner when Ellie’s waters broke and an intense contraction set upon her.
Already driving with his trademark confidence, Xavier sped up, cutting through the streets of London and finding his way to the hospital in record time.
“Have you called Arabella?” Ellie asked, as she gripped her stomach.
Xavier supported her with one arm and his other hand clutched Joshua’s.
“I texted when your waters broke. She’s on her way.”
Arabella, far from being a figure Ellie envied, had become one of her closest friends. It was hard to hate a woman who’d long ago stopped loving your husband, but who’d cared for him enough to marry him, just to stop him from hurting. And Arabella adored Joshua, and had taken on the post of honorary Aunt to him.
They arrived at the hospital in record time – heaven help anyone that got in their way! Xavier found a wheelchair and seated Ellie in it, despite her insistence that she was fine to walk. But as the elevator took her upwards, she had to admit she was grateful for the support. She’d heard that second babies could be born much faster than firsts and it felt like this one was rushing out of her.
“We need a doctor!” She called.
“Ellie! Xave!” Arabella was already in the maternity ward, and at the sight of them, she ran quickly through the hallway. “Are you okay?” She directed the question at Ellie but it was Joshua who answered.
“I’m great. I was a Wise Man.”
Arabella giggled. “I know. I’m sorry I missed it.”
“We’re fine. We just need to find a doctor,” Ellie said.
“This way!” Arabella gestured towards a central nursing station. And as they approached it, Ellie did a double take. The nurse’s hair was pink now, but it was unmistakably, unforgettably, the same nurse who’d helped her all those years ago, when Xavier had been injured.
“It’s you!” The nurse exclaimed. “And you!” Her eyes lifted to Xavier and then slid to Arabella and she blushed. “It’s the whole gang.”
Neither Arabella nor Xavier remembered the nurse and just then Ellie had a severe contraction that meant a walk down memory lane had to wait.
“This way,” the nurse said, her smile wide as she guided the trio of adults down the corridor, Joshua following obliviously in their wake. An enormous birthing suite awaited them, and a doctor was quickly called.
“I’ll take Josh home,” Arabella said, leaning down and pressing a kiss to Ellie’s forehead. “Good luck, mama. Call me as soon as you can.” She winked at Xavier then scooped Josh up. “Well, little man? Ice cream time?”
