ISABELLE.
I was so happy, I could feel the little strong flutters of our baby moving around followed with kicks. Ash looked beyond a happiness I had ever seen, as he still knelt down on the sand. His hands pressing firmly against the skin of my stomach. If I could capture this moment, I would. For now, it will be forever etched into my mind.
"It feels strange." He looked up, with excitement in his eyes. "Don't get me wrong, it's incredible, but terrifying also."
"That's what happens when your pull out game sucks." I smirked a little.
He scoffed, "I haven't pulled out in years. Well unless it's going in your mouth."
"Ashton." I glanced around, hoping nobody was walking by to hear him.
With a laugh, he stood and pulled me against his chest. "Oh sorry, I forgot that your mum thinks you're a good girl."
"I am."
"If you say so." He grinned. "But I've seen different. Remember that night when-"
I slapped a hand across his mouth, not wanting to hear anything whatever it was he was going to tell me. "Alright, I get your point. Come on, lets go back to the house."
We walked up to the house, and that's when I noticed mum and Parker standing on the balcony watching us. Mum had the camera out and I could only hope she had taken a photo of the two of us earlier when Ashton was on his knees kissing and touching my stomach.
"It's definitely a boy." Ashton announced.
"Oh really? I think she's a girl."
"Yes, call it a fatherly instinct." Ash placed another hand over my stomach. "He's moving again."
"It must be from your voice, he knows who his daddy is. Or well, she does." I corrected.
He laughed, "ha! I told you, a boy!"
I knew he missed all of this with Jenna, and I could tell he was incredibly excited. I just never expected that we would ever have this. I wondered what would be happening if I hadn't left for Parker's that evening, and if I stayed without saying anything. Well, I was still pregnant so he would have found out but I just wish it was something we had purposely tried for, that baby love making. I was just really loving this different side to him, the much more doting side.
"Well I will have to go and buy some blue clothes since Ashton is certain it's a boy." Mum followed us inside saying. "A little boy would be nice, and you were only saying how you believed the baby to be a boy last week."
I groaned, not needing this right now. "Thanks mum." I grumbled as Ashton smiled in triumph.
Parker walked over, kneeling in front of me. "Hey, it's Uncle Parker, the fun guy in your life and the better looking one. When your dad gets too close to mummy, make sure you give him a kick in the-ahhh." I had gripped his hair before he could even finish talking.
"Keep talking and I will have hold of something, ready to twist it off." I promised. "And anyway, it's the only tool of his that I know how to use."
"Isabelle." Mum scolded, shaking her head. "I don't want to hear that."
Ash laughed, giving me a wink. "That's true. You should see her with a drill. Christ, the day I walked in when she was trying to hang up a frame on the wall, jesus it was a mess."
"I wanted to surprise you"
"Trust me, I was surprised."
When mum and I were alone, she was showing me the photographs she had taken, and I was loving that she got some beautiful snaps. "Ashton seems excited." She pointed out.
"He is." I nodded.
Hands around my waist, he drew me close. "Excited doesn't come close to how I feel right now." His lips against the nape of my neck. "I couldn't be happier, to get to see my beautiful girl grow with our child inside her."
Oh, the feels.
Mum helped load up the car, she added in a couple extra things, but they were for once we were back home. A surprise. Parker left before us, he was going home and then coming over for lunch. I was feeling good, but Ashton kept yawning which worried me since he had a big night last night.
"Babe, pull over and get a coffee. You look tired." I squeezed his thigh. "Otherwise I am driving regardless of what you say."
"Yes dear." He smirked.
We drove for another hour, and my emotions were coming undone. But, it was something that usually happened when I stayed at mums, and then came back home. This time, it was much worse, only because I had stayed with her for so long. "I hate leaving her." I choked out, willing myself not to cry.
"I know you do." He reached for my hand and soothingly held it. "We'll be back soon ok, whenever you want to come back we will. "I promise." And he kissed my hand. "but, for now, we need to go home and fix some issues."
Issues? Jenna was the issue, and he was the issue. This is where things were going to get hard again, I knew it. I knew Jenna knew nothing about her dad and I being back together and once she knew about the baby, she was going to make it known that she wasn't happy.
Hell would freeze over before Jenna admitted she was excited to be a big sister.
I could almost hear my heart racing as we got closer to his parent's place. My palms were getting clammy, my mind raced of the unknown about to come.
"Stop worrying."
"How can I not? After how everything was left off, we both know what's going to happen." I was already getting my guard up.
"Belle, stop." He said, with more authority. "I won't let what happened last time, happen again ok?"
"I walked out of you, I'm sure your parents are mad that I left you both." I pulled my hand back, feeling like I was going to have a panic attack.
Too caught up in my own feelings and emotions to notice he had pulled over and turned the ignition off. My door opened and he was leaning over to undo my belt and spinning me around to face him. He looked mad. Sexy, but mad. "I pushed you away."
"You-"
"I was the one to made you leave." His voice spoke over the top of mine cutting me off sharply. "I was the one who pushed you away and made you leave. I don't ever want you to feel bad about walking out, because like I said before, I cannot blame you for that." The words came out pained, as if they hurt to say. "If my parents are mad at anyone, it's me they're pissed with. Mum came the night you left and when I told her what had happened... I've honestly never seen her look more disappointed in my life. She was gutted." A faint smile appeared, and he lean in resting his forehead to mine. "So, we're going back home, and I will tell them we're having a child, and that we're to be married before this baby arrives. We will be a family, a proper family."
The nerves eased away as his lips touched mine, and he kissed with a rough tenderness that took every ounce of doubt that was to come away.
His parent's home was surrounded by a beautiful flower garden, always a welcoming feeling when I had come previously, and as I walked up the brick pathway, it still felt that way. His hand on the lower of my back as I took the three steps up to the front door as if I would have fallen over without his guidance. I couldn't help notice the small things like that, being pregnant he was being careful with me. Even when we had made love last night, he had asked if I was ok, if anything hurt and then spent a few minutes rubbing my stomach and making sure I was comfortable.
I leant in to whisper, getting a hint of his Joop aftershave as I spoke. "I love this side of you."
"I love you. Both of you." His eyes never leaving mine, which melted me.
His mum had flung the door open before he could knock on it, and her eyes were tearing up as her arms flew around me. "I'm so glad he brought you back home, this is where you belong." Her words choked up. "We have missed you so incredibly much."
"I've missed you as well." I said truthfully, squeezing tighter before letting go. I was always grateful for the wonderful relationship I had with his parents.
"Where's Jenna?" Ashton asked as we sat down, his eyes searching the room for her.
She let out a sigh, and joined us. "We need to talk about Jenna. Isabelle, would you like a coffee? I have the ones you like."
Coffee. Just the mention, and I was already standing up to run for the bathroom. "Sorry!" I called out. They were religious coffee lovers. As was I, but this damn baby didn't like it.
I felt Ashton's hand on my back, rubbing as I threw up the water I'd drank on the drive here. Ashton sure, had drank one on the way to keep him awake, but had it outside the car and then chewed a packed of mints before he returned to the car where I stayed.
"Are you ok? What do you need?" he asked.
"Umm, a time machine. How embarrassing." I cringed.
He laughed softly, sitting down beside me on the floor. "Hey, if I remember correctly, you've helped me a few times when I've spewed from a big night out." Yes, that was true.
"Isabelle, are you sick?" it wasn't half obvious as his mum asked that before we managed to sit again. That, and plus she was smiling broadly.
"Not really, just Ashton's baby makes me sick around coffee." I grinned back, placing hand over my stomach as I lifted up the baggy jumper of his I was wearing.
She stood with a scream. "Oh my god about time!!" she ran over, and took my hand, noticing the engagement ring also. "A baby and a wedding!" Her tears ran in streams down her cheeks.
I looked up at him, biting my lip. "Yes, a wedding soon, and a baby shortly after. It's very exciting. I can't wait."
"You'll be an incredible mother dear, I just know you're meant to have a lot of children together. Pregnancy looks wonderful on you." She smiled, and kissed my cheek again.
One could only hope. I hoped he didn't want to wait too long to have another baby.
"So, since you can't stomach caffeine, what about tea?"
"Oh yes, mum had me on the herbal teas each morning." I laughed. "It seemed to help with morning sickness."
She made my hot tea, and brought out a plate of biscuits and chocolate cake which I didn't hesitate to indulge in. We chatted for around five minutes about how things were and how Ashton proposed, I filled her in with a smile on my face remembering him on one knee at the beach. Then she dropped the bomb. "I'm beyond happy for you both, it is such wonderful news but unfortunately, I'm about to make it worse." Her posture changed, and she looked serious. "Jenna tried to sneak out last night."
I didn't say anything, unsure if I would be overstepping my boundaries so soon. I kept quiet because this was for Ashton to deal with. "She what?" he asked, shock was evident. "Why didn't you call me?"
"Because I didn't want to interrupt. You two have been through so much, I wanted you to have some calm before the storm." She reached in her pocket and pulled out the white iphone. "I took her phone as punishment."
"Where is she?" I asked quietly.
"She's gone for a drive with your dad, she wasn't handling having no phone very well."
She passed Ashton the phone when he stood to take it. "Have dad drop her at home. We'll take her bags and go to the house. She's about to learn things will be changing."
Big time. They definitely needed to.
In the car, Ashton had given me the phone. "Search it. Find out what the fuck she's been doing and what she was getting up to last night."
"Ash I don't feel comfortable going through her personal things." I felt uneasy about it. Was this right to do?
"It's not hers when she doesn't pay for it." He pointed out and gripped the wheel tighter. "I hope the neighbors aren't home."
I looked up, unlocking the phone. "Why?"
Through gritted teeth, he stared straight out the window ahead. "Because they'll hear just what I think about my daughter trying to sneak off in the middle of the fucking night, and I won't be able to look at her without wanting to raise my hand and give her a good wake up call."
It was safe to say, things would be interesting when we arrived him. "The baby is kicking." I needed to distract him, and if I couldn't fuck him, then this was next best.
Pulling his hand from the wheel, I placed it to the side of my stomach. Three firm kicks, and he glanced over, his posture relaxed as he rubbed. "I may just have you pregnant every year if that's possible."
"Umm, yeah not happening." I laughed. "It's a nice thought though."
He laughed with me, shaking his head. "Yeah a man can dream. I dream of you, even when we're together. I dream of everything I will give you."
"I have what I need." I reminded, I have him. "You, and our children. That's all I need to be happy."
"Even Jenna?"
I could have said no and banged on about how much she annoys me, agitates me and drives me crazy but that wouldn't be fair because he was a package deal with her, and I knew what I was getting into all those years ago. "I'll admit it's been tough, but I still love her like my own. She's been hard work yes, but that doesn't make me hate her. It just means we have to try harder to be a family, and for you and I to show her that even though we're having a child of our own, it won't make her any less loved."
"And that's why I love you, you're fucking incredible."
"Oh baby, tell me something I don't know."