Page 80 of There Are No Words

Perla was fussing with her hair and looking down at the table.

Real great, sisters. Ignore the reality that Jade is one of us—she’s our sister.

I stood up to see if that would get them to look at me. “Hello! Am I talking to myself? Am I invisible or something? I think it’s at least worth talking about. Jade is Mom’s daughter, which means she’s our sister”—I rolled my eyes—“well, half sister, but still.”

Maria tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she sat back and crossed one leg over the other. “I think you need to give us some time to think about it, okay?”

Perla and Bianca nodded.

“Maria’s right, Allie. It’s not black and white. Once we do that, then this becomes more real, and she’s really part of the fold,” Bianca said.

I exhaled. What weren’t they understanding? Jade was already part of the fold. Sure, she didn’t share the Morelli name, but family came in all shapes and sizes. She was blood, and she was a Morelli sister, for all intents and purposes.

Family was everything to Mom, and it was that way for Dad, too. He wouldn’t think twice about considering her a daughter. I knew it. I just knew it.

“We’ll think about it,” Perla was the last to say.

I nodded, gently rubbing my belly. “I respect that. And it is a big decision, so I’ll give it some more thought, too. I guess, on this one, Bibi’s right. We should all be sure.”

Chapter Twenty-Five

Allegra

I was sittingin my office, looking at the gift someone on my team stopped in to give me a few minutes ago. I was amazed by it. It was the cutest idea—a beginner’s crochet kit to make a small, stuffed dinosaur, hatching from an egg. It was extremely thoughtful and perfect for a baby.

And exactly the type of thing I never thought about getting.

And exactly the type of thing I wouldn’t know where to begin with.

Soon-to-be mothers thought about these things. They thought about everything. Didn’t they?

I’d always thought I’d be a great mom. Remember, a kick-ass mother, to be exact? But I supposed if that were the case I would have thought about soon-to-be mom things. Right?

Right?

So it gave way for doubt to creep in. Maybe I wouldn’t be a good mother.

I was getting closer and closer to my due date, and the nagging concern in the back of my mind wasn’t going anywhere. In fact, it was going to get worse, I just knew it.

Deciding I needed to let someone in, I picked up my phone to text Brady.

Allegra:What are you doing?

Not two seconds later, I had a response.

Brady:Not much. Walking. You?

Allegra:Oh, just sitting in my office having a freak-out.

Brady:Why? Is everything okay?

Allegra:No. I can’t crochet.

Brady:What the hell does that mean?

Allegra:*sends photo of kit*

Brady:That’s nice. Gift from someone at work?

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