Page 87 of You Are Cordially Invited

“Just like their mother.” Colleen reached up to kiss her daughter on the cheek. “Sucked her thumb until she was three.”

“Mum!”

Colleen laughed.

I wanted to hoot and fist pump the air, but I was having enough trouble simply getting the breath to move in and out of my chest, past my heart wedged in my throat, as I watched that tiny little fist shoved up against the sweetest lips there ever were. How was this miracle possible? How fucking amazing. How... everything.

I turned my head and kissed Reuben’s damp cheek, my own eyes swimming with tears. “Holy crap, Ruby. A baby. A whole baby.”

Stella turned her gaze to mine and beamed. “Your baby, boys. Yours.”

“Oh my god, how are you so calm?” I kissed her hand as Reuben’s arms tightened around my waist and I caught another wet sniff on my shoulder. “I’m losing my damn mind here. Look at you, girl. You did all that.” I pointed to the screen. “You are so freaking amazing. I’m in awe of you.”

“This is true.” She laughed and squeezed my hand, and I might’ve melted just a little bit more for her. We’d become close with the whole family in the four weeks since the wedding, but something special had sparked between Stella and me. With our age differences, I really hadn’t known her that well, other than as a cousin I occasionally met at family get togethers.

But far from the quiet, almost timid girl I thought her to be, the Stella we’d come to know more recently, was a sassy, smart, kind young woman, and she fitted into our lives like she’d always belonged there. Maybe it was because Iwas going to be taking the primary on-the-spot parent role that would’ve otherwise been hers, but whatever the reason, Stella and I had a fierce bond, and I knew in my gut that this was going to work.

Reuben popped his head around my shoulder, kissed my wet cheeks, and wiped them with a Kleenex.

I caught another of Colleen’s laughs and turned to find her smiling at us.

“I’m screwed, aren’t I?” I said, shaking my head. “I’m gonna cry for the next thirty years, right?”

She snorted. “And the rest.”

“Good lord. Michael’s gonna have a field day.”

“Um, have you seen him with Sasha?” Reuben reminded me. “He doesn’t have a leg to stand on, babe.”

That was true and the thought sparked an evil warmth in my belly. “Thank you. If he even looks like giving me shit, I’ll remind him how much he freaked out at Sasha’s first movie ‘date’ and then proceeded to spy on them from five rows back for the first twenty minutes of the movie. Josh couldn’t stop laughing for a week. Yeah, I’ve definitely got some wriggle room.”

“And he’s back.” Reuben’s hand covered Stella’s and mine, and Stella gave him a broad smile before turning back to the monitor.

“Okay, family.” Mary-Anne sat back and looked around the room. “Do we want to know about the bits and bobs between the legs?”

“You saw?”

Mary-Anne smiled. “Yes, Charge Nurse Cameron, I saw. The baby has been quite active, and I’ve had a couple of good views. The first I wasn’t so sure about, but the second was nice and clear.”

Everyone looked to Stella.

“Your call, sweetheart,” I said, but she shook her head firmly.

“No, this is your baby. You guys get to decide.”

My gaze darted from Stella to her parents, who simply nodded. “What she said.”

I spun in Reuben’s arms to find an intent look in his eyes. We hadn’t considered it might be solely our decision. I tucked a stray lock of his blond hair behind his ears and cradled his face. “Baby?”

He kissed me softly and shook his head. “I’m up for the surprise if you are. And we talked about not making assumptions, right?” He looked to Stella.

She nodded firmly. “No assumptions.”

I stared at Reuben for a minute, lost in the miracle of this incredible man I’d married. Then I turned to Mary-Anne. “You heard the man. We’re gonna wait.”

She smiled and put the transducer aside. “Gotta say, I love a surprise.”

Reuben slipped from behind to alongside me. “However,” he addressed Stella and her parents. “We have actually decided on a name.”

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