It’s only Bailey, Rylee and Colton who know thus far. It was important to both of us that his family were the next to find out that there was going to be a new arrival.
“It’s this stop,” Corey says, looking out at the underground sign.
I allow him to pull me from the seat and off the train.
It took quite a bit of convincing, because he is a man of pride and stubborn as hell, but eventually he conceded and allowed me to help out his family.
I invested in a nice house in a decent part of the city, and his mom and sisters moved in soon after. I knew it was the right decision the second they did, because the tension that had been pulling at his shoulders since the first night I met him began to loosen.
Without the stress of his family to worry about, Corey is like a new man. He gives me his incredible smile so much more often. It’s amazing to see. And although I still miss my family with every day that passes, I’m grateful that they were able to help him and those he loves. It means everything to me to make their lives so much easier after they’ve been thrown into chaos.
“Fucking hell,” Corey mutters the second we emerge from the underground station.
I’m about to ask what’s wrong when a loud squeal hits my ears and three familiar women come racing at us.
They engulf us in a group hug as laughter rumbles up my throat.
It’s one hell of a welcome.
“I thought you were waiting at home?” Corey asks his emotional mom when she eventually pulls away from holding him tight.
“We couldn’t wait any longer.” She turns her eyes from her son and to me. “Harlow,” she breathes, holding her arms out for me.
I immediately step into them and follow her lead. I’ve been hugged by Bailey’s mom countless times in the past, but there’s something about this hug that just reminds me of my own mom.
“Oh sweetie,” Helen breathes when she pulls back and finds my cheeks wet with tears. Lifting her hands, she wipes them away.
I sniffle. “It’s so good to meet you in person at last.”
“You too. It’s been a long time coming.”
“As fun as this is, I didn’t intend to spend the day on the path catching up. Shall we?” Corey says, pointing down the street with amusement dancing in his eyes. He might be acting cooler about this right now, but I see the emotion he’s trying hard to cover at seeing his family again.
“We thought we could go for breakfast—if you’re not too tired, that is.”
“Fry-up?” Corey asks.
“Whatever you want.”
“Lead the way.”
Helen chuckles as Sadie and Natalie flank Corey’s sides, taking an arm each. Love and adoration for their big brother oozes from both of them.
“They’ve really missed him,” Helen muses, coming to stand beside me as we head down the street.
“He misses you all terribly.”
“I know. It was the right thing for him to do though. I know he’s felt guilty about leaving us, but he needed the new start. He needed to find you.”
Emotion clogs my throat once again. Damn pregnancy hormones.
“It’s so good to be here. I’ve always wanted to visit.”
“Well, we can do all the sights while you’re here. It’s been years since I did all the tourist things.”
“Sounds perfect.”
We turn into an English-looking pub and find an empty table.
“So, what’s good here?”
“Leave it with me, baby.” Corey winks and I push the menu away, trusting him wholeheartedly. He’s made me a few full English breakfasts since living together, but each time he tells me that it’s not quite the real thing.
He orders for us all, and we sit chatting about everything we’ve been up to before Corey places his hand on my thigh.
Racing to pull our scan photo from my purse, I hand it to him under the table.
“We’ve actually got something to tell you,” Corey says, causing all conversation to immediately halt. Helen’s eyes sparkle with hope as they drop to my ring finger. She quickly covers her disappointment when she finds it sans ring.
“Well, go on. Don’t keep us waiting.”
A wide smile splits Corey’s face a beat before he reveals our secret by sliding the picture toward her. He’s been excited to tell his mom that she’s going to have a second chance at being a grandmother. She hardly spent any time with Layla, seeing as she was almost always abroad with his dad.
“Oh my God,” Helen cries, her hand flying up to cover her mouth. “Really?” Tears fill her eyes, as do mine at her happiness.
“Really. Sixteen weeks in.”
She quickly takes the scan and stares down at our little fuzzy baby.
Helen jumps up as if her chair just bit her ass and lunges for me. I manage to stand just in time for her to pull me into her arms.
“Thank you, Harlow. Thank you so much. You brought him back to life,” she whispers in a shaky voice. “Thank you so much.”
I don’t respond, I can’t. I couldn’t get any words past the lump in my throat if I tried.
Once I’ve eaten the biggest breakfast I’ve ever seen in my life, we head back to their house so that I can have a nap.
Corey has agreed to go out with his friends tonight. Now he’s got over his apprehension of me meeting his family, he wants to introduce me to everyone.
“Are you nearly ready? The Uber will be here in two minutes,” he calls as he walks through to the guest room at his mom’s house. “Whoa,” he says, stopping in the doorway, his eyes locked on my chest. “Second thoughts, we’ll just get a hotel for the night.”
“So yeah, my dress doesn’t really fit anymore,” I sulk. It’s one of my favorites, but seeing as my breasts have practically quadrupled in size in the past few
