I looked up to who spoke, and for a second, I got a fright. The man was a burn victim—half of his face was just one big scar. I tried my very best not to stare at it.
I glanced at my phone for the time and when I got it, I looked back to the man and said, “Just after nine, sir.”
“Thank you.” He winked.
I smiled. “You’re welcome.”
He glanced at my stomach. “Good luck.”
Huh?
I looked down to my stomach and laughed.
He meant good luck with my pregnancy.
I think.
“Oh, thank you. I’m only twenty weeks away. It’s not long now.”
The man stared at me for a moment. “Yeah, not long at all.”
What?
I was about to say what I was thinking to him, but he turned and walked away without waiting for my reply or saying goodbye. He didn’t look back, just walked out of the cafe and towards the exit of the hospital.
That was weird.
I thought about it for a minute, but then my stomach grumbled and I forgot about everything except about how hungry I was.
When Kane came back, I wanted to burst into song. He put food items on the table and pushed them towards me. I blinked down at the items and looked up to Kane, who was staring at me like he was willing me to open up a sandwich and eat it.
I chuckled, “This can’t all be for just me?”
Kane shrugged. “I don’t want you to be hungry, we might be here for a while.”
“Kane,” I laughed and pushed a sandwich towards him, “eat this. I can’t eat with you just sat there starin’ at me like I’m a doll on display in a museum.”
Kane grinned. “You are a doll though. You’re my babydoll.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “Stop being cute and eat the bloody sandwich.”
He did as I asked with a ghost of a smile on his face. I finished a double chicken and stuffing sandwich within five minutes. Kane was only halfway through his BLT sandwich by the time I was done.
I groaned, “I feel so much better after that.”
“The girls were right; you do eat like Bear Grylls.”
Oh, for the love of God.
“Get over it. It’s your child that is the cause of it.”
Kane snorted, “I know, he’s gonna be an awesome kid.”
I growled.
“Do you want to sit here for a bit or go back to the waiting area?” Kane asked, grinning at me.
“The waitin’ area,” I replied. “I don’t wanna miss me name being called.”
We got up and went back to the waiting area and found all the seats were taken. This irritated Kane.
“I’m telling one of the husbands of those women over there to get up.”
I grabbed his arm. “You’ll do no such thing.”
“You aren’t standing around for God knows how long—”
“Aideen Collins?”
I looked from Kane to a nurse I recognised. It was the nurse I met in the emergency room eight weeks ago. She had a pink folder in her hand that I assumed was mine.
“I’m here.” I smiled and walked over to her with Kane in tow.
“That was just lucky,” he mumbled.
I ignored him and smiled to the nurse. “Hello again.”
The nurse smiled then flicked her eyes past me and tensed up a little. It caused me to frown so I looked back to Kane then to the nurse.
What was her problem?
“Is everythin’ okay?” I asked.
She nodded her head and kept her eyes on me. “Everything is fine. I’d like you to follow me up to the second floor so I can carry out your appointment.”
“Lead the way.”
The nurse smiled, turned and began to walk. Kane and myself followed her, but I was no longer smiling. I was scowling.
“Hey,” Kane murmured, “what’s that face for?”
“I don’t like how she looked at you,” I replied lowly to him.
“What way did she look at me?” he asked.
I set my jaw. “Like she was frightened.”
Kane sighed, “I get that a lot, darling. I don’t blame her though—I do look scary.”
Hearing him say that made me really mad.
“No. You. Don’t,” I hissed. “You look perfectly fuckin’ fine, and fuck anyone who thinks differently.”
Kane grabbed hold of my arm and brought us to a stop. He rounded on me and looked down at my face. “Babydoll.”
I shook my head. “I’m fine. I... I just don’t like people thinkin’ you’re somethin’ to fear. You aren’t. They don’t know you like I do.”
Kane smiled at me. “Have I ever told you how amazing you are?”
I flushed. “No, but it’d be nice to hear it often.”
Kane laughed and wrapped his arms around me. “I love that you want to defend me, but you really don’t have to. I’m a big boy, I can handle myself.”
“You shouldn’t have to,” I mumbled.
Kane put his arm around my shoulder and smiled with glee. “Come on, gorgeous. Let’s go see our baby.”
If our nurse hadn’t annoyed me enough, the teenage girl that was openly drooling over Kane as we waited in the new waiting room on the second floor, brought me to boiling point. I was fuming mad and this kid wasn’t helping simmer my rage.
“What is your name?” the girl asked Kane after minutes of uninterrupted staring in his direction.
He glanced at her and said, “Kane.”
“Kane,” she repeated. “I love that. It sounds dangerous.”
Oh, please.
“Are you waitin’ on someone, Kane? Your sister perhaps?”
Was she blind?
Kane had a ghost of a smile on his face when he glanced at me and saw me openly glare at the girl.
“No, I’m here with—”
“His girlfriend. That’d be me,” I finished for him.
I saw Kane look at me, and I was just as surprised as him that I said it, but I couldn’t go back and unsay it, so I just went with the flow.
“Oh, I didn’t realise,” the girl murmured.
Didn’t realise my arse.
“It’s okay, harmless mistake,” I said and leaned into Kane who was smiling a little too wide for my liking.
He put his arm around me and dropped it down to my hip and began rubbing my side.
“Are you expectin’?” I asked the girl and glanced at her stomach, which was tanned, toned, and on display for everyone in the waiting room to see.