Page 24 of Big Baby
I was so fucked. Falling in love with my sister’s fiancé with every minute we spent together.
We stayed there, breathing in tandem, enjoying the cold water, just existing in our bubble for as long as we could. Harry needed to leave. Tomorrow we’d tell Victoria everything, and our world would fall into chaos. Tomorrow we would stop being chickens.
So I stroked his hair and lingered there.
The sound of the front door opening jolted me, pulling me from our calm. Harry looked up at me, and with our eyes locked, we listened to the voices.
I could hear Bellamy, who it sounded like was just arriving home from the clatter of their keys on the kitchen counter, but there was someone else.
“Zora!” my fucking sister’s voice called out. “You here?”
“Zora?” Bellamy said next, getting closer to the bathroom, their voice seeking.
My heart stopped at the same moment Harry panicked and jumped up, slamming into the wet walls and almost falling over.
“Oh shit,” he muttered, his eyes wide with fear. “What the hell are we going to do!?”
I wanted to freeze up and do nothing, my flight or fight saying neither, just stand still and hope it’s a joke. “She almost never comes here!” I whispered back, then heard my name called again. “In here! Just wrapping up!” I yelled, my voice cracking. Adrenaline coursed through my veins, panic making my mind fuzzy. This couldn’t be happening.
“Zora,” Harry muttered, catching my chin in his hand to force my eyes on him. “Slow breaths.”
Right, we needed to sort ourselves out, find a path through this mess. Now wasn’t the time. Now, springing naked from the shower, was the worst way to do it. “Stay here. I’ll… I’ll get her out, tell Bellamy something. Shit.”
Harry nodded and watched me wrap a towel around myself, kicking my clothes into the corner. “Get dressed,” I told him, and he snapped into action.
This was bad, real fucking bad.
Taking a deep breath, I turned toward the door.
“Wait!” Harry said, a fraction too loud. We froze, listened for recognition, but heard none.
“What is it?” I asked softly, trying to avoid his eyes. Didn’t want to get lost in those fuckers again.
His hand came to my face, and he cupped my cheek, forcing my head up, forcing me to look him in the eye. “I…” he started, but then stopped, instead dipping down to lay a chaste kiss on my lips. “It’s going to be okay.”
I nodded and slipped from the room, shutting the door behind me and taking the few steps to the living room. There really was no way he’d be able to leave the bathroom and not be seen. I needed to get them both out of here.
“Hey, Vicky,” I said, plodding up to her, trying to calm my heart. Bellamy had her at the kitchen counter, tea brewing as they chattered away.
“Zora!” Vicky replied with a grin. “Sorry for dropping in unannounced, but I have some stuff for you.” She darted over to the door and picked up a handful of colorful shopping bags. “I know it’s still early, but I had some free time and got a bit carried away buying baby stuff…” She smiled. “Walked past a baby care shop and couldn’t resist. Swear I blacked out for a second there…”
My heart pounded in anger at how much of a dick I was. Here Victoria was, buying things for my baby, while its father, her fiancé, hid in the bathroom we’d just fucked in.
“Hey,” Victoria said then, concern in her voice as she dropped the bags and came up to me, her hands landing on my shoulders. “What’s wrong? Is everything okay…?” She looked down at my stomach.
“Oh shit, yeah,” I said, painting on a grin. “Everything’s great. Perfect.” I patted my lower stomach throughthe towel. “We— I had the sonogram today, baby looks healthy.”
“That’s amazing,” Victoria said with a genuine smile. “I’m so excited to be an auntie.”
“Tea’s ready,” Bellamy interrupted, handing Victoria and me a mug each. They were a little tea obsessed, always brewing up something new. We thanked them, and Victoria went to park her ass on the sofas. But fuck, Harry was still in the bathroom, waiting for his out.
Argh, I didn’t know what to do.
“I’m sorry, Vic,” I said then, again wincing at how terrible I was at this, how ungrateful I sounded. “I can’t hang out right now; I have plans.”
“Plans?” she asked, eyebrow raised, turning to face me.
“Work.”
