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“Mom said I have a rare blood type, so getting a match won’t be easy.”
His pragmatism makes him sound years older than fourteen, and I nudge him with my shoulder, preferring his carefree exuberance of before. “Don’t worry, Jess. There’s a whole extended family just waiting to be tested. Iguaranteesomeone will be a perfect match.”
* * *
Following a morning in the studio, I side-eye Jesse as we head back to the house. “Fancy a road trip?”
He nods enthusiastically, and within thirty minutes, we’re on the road to London. The boys are having lunch at Mila and Nate’s apartment, and when they’d initially invited me, I’d declined.
Now, it seems like the perfect opportunity for them to meet my son. And I can’t help smirking when Ford pulls up alongside the curb as I anticipate their reactions.
“I’ll call when we’re ready, yeah?”
Ford nods before pulling back out into traffic. Parking in the city is a bitch.
“So let me get this straight. Henry is the CEO guy, right?”
“Correct. And Nate is the writer who’s dating Henry’s sister, Mila.”
He nods, then pins me with a questioning look. “Did he write anything good?”
“Nah. Absolute crap, Jess.”
Jesse purses his lips together and looks at the floor as he tries to hide his smile. It’s not long before we’re pressing the buzzer to gain access to the penthouse floor.
“Hello?” Mila’s voice calls down the line. It’s filled with laughter and a little breathless.
“It’s Cade. Can I come up?”
“It’s your funeral, Joker.”
I shake my head at her reference to my sister’s nickname as the elevator doors open to admit us.
“Why did she call you that?”
I snort and roll my eyes as I step on. “When you meet your Aunt Cass, she’ll definitely tell youallabout it.”
The doors close once Jesse has stepped on, and as the car moves, he begins to shuffle and fidget.
“Nervous?”
He meets my eyes, his mouth twisted in a semblance of a half smile, and he nods slowly. “Yeah. Mom said your friends are more like your family. She had loads of stories about them too.”
I place my hand on his shoulder, squeezing lightly in reassurance. “They’re going to love you.”
He inhales deeply through his nose and blows it out of his mouth just as the elevator doors open with a chime.
We step off into an empty apartment. There is a mountain of dirty dishes piled on the table and evidence of Mila and Nate’s Italian cooking all over the messy kitchen.
“Hello?”
My call is met with laughter, and Nate’s voice sounds out from down the hall leading to the bedrooms. “We’re in here.”
The door to the second bedroom is open wide, and when we arrive at the threshold, I can’t stop a massive grin from splitting my face in half.
Liv and Mila are sat side by side on the spare bed, laughing uproariously at Henry and Nate, who are kneeling on the floor, trying to change little Bash’s nappy. A nappy that looks absolutely toxic if the smell is anything to go by.
“You need to hold his legs, Henry.”
