Beautiful Perfection (Beautifully Unbroken Book 2) (30 page)

“I think no,” Blake said bluntly with a smirk. “We will find a name don’t you worry, it will be something special, I know it will. Anyway, now we’re all here and mom is going to be okay, I have an announcement to make.”

“You do?” Julia asked looking up at Blake expectantly.

“Yes Blake, you do?” I asked confused.

“Yeah,” he smiled. “I was thinking about it while we were in the waiting room, I want to throw a party at our place in the next couple of weeks, hopefully before the babies arrive.”

“A party for what?” Julia asked.

“Well you for a start,” he placed his lips to Julia’s head and gave her a quick kiss. “I want to celebrate the fact that you are going to be okay.”

“We don’t need a party for that darling, it’s too much pressure too when the babies could arrive at any given second.”

“I want to do this, please. Jo what do you think?”

“Sure,” I nodded happily. “It will give me a reason to abuse the three ovens before we move over to London,” I teased.

“Really Blake, it isn’t necessary,” Julia added.

“I want to, who knows when we will all be together to do it again? Jo’s mom is coming over soon too so it’s perfect, we can ask Casey and Alex, Sam, maybe Marcus and a couple of other close friends? We can make it a celebration for you, the babies….. Jo’s court win yesterday and maybe as a farewell.” His voice quietened towards the end as he mentioned our leaving New York for our new life in London.

“Maybe a baby shower too, for Jo?” Jasmine added.

“Yes,” Blake said excitedly. “One last big family get together with a bunch of reasons to celebrate all thrown in together before Jo and I move to London, what do you all say?”

“I’m in, I love a good party,” Marti announced first.

“Me too,” Jasmine nodded. “And I shall take full control of the baby shower, eekk I am so excited!” she squealed.

“Yep count me in,” Robert said simply. “But Jasmine? Don’t go getting broody, not for a couple of months yet anyway,” he winked playfully.

“Mom?” Blake asked as he turned his attention back to Julia.

“I am looking forward to it already,” she replied with a tired smile. “Now all of you go and get off home, you all need to eat and rest; I’ll see you all in the morning.”

“I’m gonna stay, I’ll snooze in the seat while you rest,” Marti said as he dropped down into the chair next to Julia’s bedside and opened up his newspaper.

“If you insist,” Julia smiled happily. “I’ll see the rest of you in the morning.”

“Call us the minute the doctor says you can leave, we will be right back here to fetch you, I love you so much Mom.” Blake held Julia gently in his arms as he kissed her goodbye, Jasmine then followed before Robert and I said our goodbyes too. We all left the room shortly after and it soon became clear to see that each of us were feeling drained but happy that two days running, two of the battles that had faced us, had both been won.

*~*~*

“Well isn’t this nice?” Casey sat back in her seat and smiled happily over at me as we had lunch together for the first time in months; we sat outside on the decking at our favorite bistro overlooking the Hudson River with no worry of being hounded or pestered by anyone. Spring was now in full bloom and a welcome warm breeze blew gently around us. “Feels like forever since we spent some quality time together and soon you are going to be abandoning me for good old London,” she said with a hint of sarcasm, which made me laugh.

“Remember what my dad used to tell me? It’s only seven hours away, and you will come and visit us as will we come and visit you.” I took a long drink from my non-alcoholic cocktail and relaxed back in my seat.

“It won’t be the same without you around all of the time,” she whined. “But I am happy for you, I really am, but you know…”

“I know,” I agreed. “I feel the same. New York has been amazing, definitely the best decision I ever made was to move here, I will miss it, and I will miss you so much but starting a new life with Blake and the babies is going to be the best dream ever to come true. Twelve months ago I would have laughed in disbelief if you had told me that now, you would be married to Alex and trying for a baby, I would be married to Blake and about to give birth to twins.” We both laughed.

“Twelve months ago, I would have probably predicted that you would end up a lonely old spinster with a house full of cats.”

“That probably would have happened had I stayed in London,” I agreed with a smile.

We sat in silence for a moment as we both watched the world around us. Since Sara’s sentencing I had been free to do as I wanted in public without the constant flash of lights and shouting of questions towards me, there was still the occasional photographer who would take a quick snap of whatever Blake and I were doing, but instead of hounding us they would simply shout a quick ‘thank you’ and leave us in peace, that was more than acceptable.

“So, how are you and Alex doing now? Are you still stressing over getting pregnant?” I asked carefully.

“Alex and I are just….” Casey paused as she lowered her head shaking it like an embarrassed teenager, “we’re good,” she nodded. “Better than good in fact, we’re great.” She looked up at me and I could see the sparkle in her eyes that told me she wasn’t lying.

“Good,” I replied with a smile.

“Blake? How is he doing now?”

“Much better,” I admitted happily. “I can still see that he worries about me being pregnant and what labor will bring, but he is coping, he seems to be anyway.”

“I’m glad,” Casey smiled. “So after lunch, do you fancy a bit of shopping? I could do with a new dress for your leaving party.”

“It’s not a leaving party,” I laughed. “It’s a celebrate everything party.”

“Celebrate everything party,” she laughed in disbelief.

“Yes, celebrate everything,” I confirmed. “If it’s worth celebrating, then Friday night is the night to celebrate.” My smile dropped as I realized that this was probably the last time that Casey and I would be sat here before the babies arrived. “But one thing that I don’t want to celebrate is the fact that we won’t be just living upstairs from you anymore, seven hours or not, I am really going to miss you. I have so much to thank you for.”

“Stop it,” Casey waved me off. “You are gonna make me cry.” Her eyes began to fill with tears as she smiled across the table at me.

“I am serious, you and Alex in fact, you put up with me when I was being a stubborn cow over Blake, and you lied to my mum when I was too ashamed to speak to her because I felt like I had failed again. You have been like a sister to me; more than a sister actually if that is possible, I will miss you so much.” Casey stood and rounded the table to where I sat and placed her arms around me.

“I will miss you too.” She whispered in my ear, “sister.”

After lunch Casey and I moved from shop to shop desperate to find an appropriate dress for Friday’s celebration party, for Casey of course it was simple, Casey could get away with wearing a bin bag because she looked amazing in anything she wore, so Casey had her dress picked and purchased by the third shop. I, on the other hand, being almost full term with twins and preferring black to any other color, struggled to find what I wanted until there were no more shops left to browse. I had finally managed to find the perfect dress which complemented my bump beautifully. As I stood and looked at myself in the mirror of the changing room it was hard to believe how much my body had changed over the past nine months but not only that, also how much my life had changed too. I had arrived in New York timid, alone and full of fear, I had been desperate to get my life back on track after living inside a nightmare for the four years previous. I then found the perfect job, a new best friend and my soul mate who was now my husband. I had become the person that I had always envied; I was stronger, happier and in control of my life and my future, I had a husband who would die for me and two babies on the way who were going to need me for the rest of their lives and I could not wait. No longer fearing the future was the best feeling in the world and I wasn’t prepared to ever let it go; there was just one thing that I wish I could go back and change; having my dad here today to see how far I had come would have meant the world to him, but believing that he was with me in spirit helped me to deal with the fact that even though I couldn’t see him anymore, he could see me and had taken every step with me along the way.

“Are you okay in their Jo? You have been in there for like half an hour, are you feeling okay? Don’t tell me you have gone into labor,” Casey gasped in horror. “I don’t think I could handle that.” Casey’s voice pulled me from my thoughts as she knocked on the changing room door.

“Sorry,” I replied as I opened the door quickly to a worried Casey. “I was just thinking about stuff. I didn’t realize I had been in there that long.”

Casey’s eyes roamed the length of my dress as a smile spread across her face.

“You look beautiful,” She said. “I hope I look like that when I have a big bump.”

“You will probably still look four weeks pregnant when you give birth,” I teased.

“I hope not, I want a big huge bump so people can look at me and see that I am going to be a mommy, so I can feel proud and amazing.”

“And tired, uncomfortable, sore oh and sex becomes an issue towards the end too, remember that when you are willing your stomach to grow; I swear Blake thinks I’m made of paper lately,” I smirked.

“Okay so maybe not too big then, I like it more when Alex is like a caged animal marking his territory.” Casey winked at me playfully before turning and heading back to the sofa where she waited for me to change.

“Too much information there Casey, I had only just managed to clear my mind from what I witnessed on my wedding day, you just brought it all flowing back.” I shook my head in amusement as I closed the door to the changing room, “that’s the first thing on my list that I am not going to miss; you and your inability to filter what comes out of your mouth.” I could hear Casey giggling to herself and I stripped out of the dress and changed back into my normal clothes.

On the way home we stopped off at one last shop; the baby boutique. I purchased even more things which I couldn’t resist for the babies while Casey also purchased a couple of baby items and told me not to tell Alex as he would think she was being too premature, but seeing her in her element in the baby boutique made me close my eyes and pray to God that he would help them to conceive as soon as possible, they deserved the happiness that I knew a baby was going to bring them both.

As I entered the apartment I could hear Blake’s voice as he chatted happily to someone in the lounge. I dropped my bags in the hallway and headed through the apartment to find my mum sat on the sofa opposite Blake.

“Mum!” I ran towards her as she stood from the sofa and opened her arms out to welcome me.

“Josephine darling, come here.”

I wrapped my arms around her so tight, I had missed her so much but hadn’t realized just how much until she was stood here now holding onto me.

“I thought you weren’t getting here until tomorrow,” I said as her arms tightened around me.

“I got an earlier flight; I couldn’t wait any longer to see you both.” I lifted my head from my mum’s shoulder and kissed her cheek.

“I have missed you so much,” I smiled.

“I have missed you too dear, and look at you.” Mum released me for a moment as her eyes focused on my bump, “You look amazing.”

“So do you,” I replied before kissing her once more. “Have you unpacked?”

“Yes, I am unpacked and about to head off out actually.” Mum looked at her watch before smiling at me.

“You just got here to New York, you have never been here before yet you are off
out
somewhere?”

Mum laughed before picking up her handbag from the sofa, “Look at you getting all motherly.” She took my cheek between her fingers playfully like she use to when I was a child, which made me smile. “Do you remember Derek, your father’s friend from law school?

“Yes,” I replied confused.

“He and his wife Angela were on the same flight as me coming over here, small world when I haven’t seen them for about fifteen years. Anyway do you remember their son Joshua?”

“Vaguely.”

“Of course you do dear, you use to tell me that you were going to marry him even though you were only a little girl at the time though,” she laughed as I felt my cheeks blush with embarrassment. Blake was hiding his smile behind his fist that was resting against his lips. “Well, it turns out that Joshua is living over here too, he is in a show on Broadway so they invited me along this evening to watch with them.”

“Oh, okay. Do you want us to come too? You don’t know New York and it’s a big place for a woman on her own, tell her Blake.”

Blake opened his mouth to speak but my mum spoke first, “You seemed to manage okay dear, and look at you now,” she smiled.

“Yes,” I nodded firmly. “Look at me now,” I said as I held onto my bump and we all laughed.

“Seriously though, have a good night and be careful, don’t do anything stupid, keep your phone on at all times and call us when it is finished, we will come and pick you up.”

“That won’t be necessary,
mother
.” My mum mocked. “I’ll be fine, I’ll see you both later.” Mum kissed us both before heading through the apartment and out of the door as I watched in disbelief.

“I can’t believe she is here,” I said shaking my head. “Not only that, but she’s just gone out, just like that, like she is just popping to the corner shop or something.”

Blake placed his arms around my waist and pulled me to him. “Well as she got here early, that means we won’t have the apartment to ourselves now until after the babies are born.” Blake’s warm lips began trailing kisses along my neckline until he reached my ear; his tongue slowly licked the lobe before he pushed it inside sending shockwaves down below. My head fell back as my eyes began to roll with pleasure.

“Do something for me?” I panted.

“Anything,” Blake replied as his tongue left my ear and made its way back down my neck towards my collarbone.