Page 164 of Unspoken Words
I’ve always loved the wordyes. ‘Yes, Connor, you can have that guitar for Christmas. Yes, Connor, we’ll produce your music. Yes, Connor, of course I’ll marry you.’
“I can’t believe you hid it inside my pizza. What if I’d eaten it and then choked?”
The sun had lowered on the horizon but was still bright and radiating warmth. Ellie and I hadn’t moved from the picnic rug, her head in my lap, her green eyes red-rimmed with happy tears.
“Your cravings have been nuts, but eating metal and diamond … surely you wouldn’t have?”
She whacked my chest then held her hand up for the gazillionth time, rotating her wrist and admiring her new accessory. “Looks good enough to eat …”
“Youlook good enough to eat.”
“No, I don’t,” she grouched. “I look good enough to roll down a sandbank and back into the water so that I can join the rest of my pod.”
I laughed; she was such an adorable, cranky, baby-mumma. “Youdolook good enough to eat.”
Trailing my finger down the side of her face, I took in every freckle, dip, groove, and eyelash. “You are the most edible woman I have ever laid eyes on. I mean, look at that carrot top: yum. And those apple eyes: delicious. And those cherry lips.” I licked mine and waggled my eyebrows.
She glared, playfully. “Cannibal.”
Max plonked himself down on the picnic rug beside us. “What’s a cannibal?”
“Someone who eats another—”
“It’s a big, heavy, steel ball,” Ellie replied, interrupting me while glaring. “You fire them at pirate ships.”
“Don’t you mean cannon—”
“Shut up!” she whispered. “Close enough.”
“Pirate ships? Cool!” Max jumped up and latched onto the back of my shoulders, suspending his legs and pulling me back.
“Careful, Ellie is on my lap. We don’t want to hurt her or your baby sister.”
Max let go and stomped his foot. “Where is my baby sister?”
“In Ellie’s tummy.”
“But you didn’t eat her?”
“No. She didn’t. Actually … now I’m not so sure—”
Ellie whacked my chest. “No,” she said through gritted teeth and that beautiful smile I loved so much. “I did not eat your baby sister. I’m growing her. But she’s still too small. We have to wait a little longer until she’s big enough to come out.”
Max nodded then scratched his head. “Why is my baby sister not in Mummy’s tummy?”
The question caught me off guard, and I opened my mouth to speak but then closed it again.
“Maybe one day another baby sister will be in your mummy’s tummy,” Ellie said. “Or even a baby brother.”
His eyes widened. “A baby brother?”
“Maybe. One day.”
“I want a baby brother too.” He ran off and pretended to fight pirates.
“Nice save.” I leaned back and enjoyed the sun.
“Don’t speak too soon. You may want to prepare yourself for a conversation with Lilah when she comes to you asking why Max thinks she has a baby growing in her belly.”
