Total pages in book: 98
Estimated words: 96833 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 484(@200wpm)___ 387(@250wpm)___ 323(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 96833 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 484(@200wpm)___ 387(@250wpm)___ 323(@300wpm)
My mother reached out to kiss each of my cheeks. “Always good to see you, son. And such a rare treat to be invited to lunch. Hopefully, Lavinia’s not going to offer us Fireball again, though.”
“Your mother won’t stop talking about that one.” My father chuckled as he patted me on the back.
“Hello again,” Lavinia spoke from behind me. “So lovely to see you both.”
“And you.” My mother gave her a once-over, likely horrified by Lavinia’s Birkenstocks with socks. “You’re looking…gorgeous.”
“Ah, you’re a fantastic liar, Rosemary. But I’ll take any compliments I can get these days.”
My father offered Lavinia a hug. “A pleasure to see you again.”
My mother blinked when she finally looked over at the beautiful, young brunette standing behind Lavinia. “Hello.” Her gaze fell to Abby’s round stomach. “And you are?”
“I’m Abby.” Abby swallowed. “Nice to meet you.”
I hated that I was putting her through this. But there was no other way but through the fire at the moment.
“Abby. Very nice to meet you, too, dear.” Mum tilted her head. “Are you a guest here at the inn?”
Abby nodded. “Yes, I am.”
“You’re American. Where did you travel in from?”
“Rhode Island.”
“Is your husband here with you?”
As Abby’s face reddened, I couldn’t take it anymore. “No, she’s not married,” I jumped in. “Abby is not just a guest here, Mother. She’s someone very important to me, and I need you and Dad to sit down so I can explain.”
My mother’s face paled as she connected the dots, likely assuming I’d gotten Abby pregnant the natural way. I wasn’t sure which situation she’d consider worse.
I spent the next several minutes laying it all out—from the moment Phil and Kate had arrived at my apartment that morning to Abby’s recent return from looking after her father in the US. My mother tried to intercept the conversation multiple times, but I insisted she let me speak. Abby and Lavinia sat quietly on either side of me, and when I finally opened the floor to my parents, my mother’s first question came as no surprise.
“How could you not have told us before you decided to do such a thing?”
“Would you have been receptive to the idea?”
“Absolutely not,” she huffed. “But—”
“Then why would you expect me to tell you? It wouldn’t have changed my decision.”
She looked over at Abby a moment. “It was a reckless decision. This child needs a mother. I don’t know what Phil and Kate were thinking, making such a selfish decision.”
“Rosemary,” my father interrupted. “We have no choice but to accept it. You must save your breath and calm yourself.”
“I can’t calm myself when my son has been keeping such a monumental secret from me.” She scowled. “What would your nan have thought, Sigmund?”
I shrugged. “I wouldn’t have had a problem telling Nan. She was always more accepting than you, Mother. Much more open-minded. I’m certain Nan would’ve been overjoyed to be a great-grandmother again.”
My grandmother had passed away several years ago. Leo and I had both considered her our confidante whenever we had a problem. She was also one of the few people who brought me any comfort after Britney passed, despite her already being in poor health at the time.
“I highly doubt your nan would have encouraged such a hasty decision,” Mum countered. “Nor would she have approved of you hiring a complete stranger to carry your child.”
My blood boiled. She could be angry at me, but negativity toward Abby was not acceptable. I needed to stop her before she said anything stupid.
I raised my voice. “Abby is not a stranger anymore, far from it. She and I are very close. And I couldn’t have asked for a better person to carry this child.”
“If you’ll excuse me,” Abby interjected. “I’d like to speak for myself, since I’m sure your mother has many false opinions of me right now.”
A knot formed in my stomach, but I wasn’t going to stop her. Abby had every right to defend herself, to be part of this conversation.
Her eyes fixed firmly on my mother’s. “You don’t know me, and I’m sorry you had to find out about this situation so abruptly. But I’ve known your son for quite some time now, and his decision was far from hasty. He was tormented by it, and nearly backed out in the beginning. But while he had reservations—strong ones—he made this decision out of love for his wife, to honor her wishes. And out of respect for her parents, who lost their only child. With all due respect to you, Mrs. Benedictus, you don’t know what it’s like to lose a child. You’re very fortunate.”
The table remained silent. Abby looked between my parents and continued. “And both of you are very lucky to have each other, to not have lost the love of your life so young, as your son did. You can’t tell someone what they should or should not do when you haven’t walked in their shoes. And perhaps you’re thinking I’m some kind of opportunist out for money. Your son thought that at first, and believe me, he’s learned quite a bit from you about mistrust.” Abby gestured to her belly. “But I can assure you that no one in their right mind would put their body—or their heart—through this just for money. I wanted to help. And while that might be a foreign concept to you, it’s the truth.”