Jade’s eyes opened, and her hand flew to her mouth as she took everything in. Two walls were painted a pastel pink, with white clouds floating here and there. The two adjoining walls were painted a light grey, with matching curtains draped alongside the window. In the corner sat a large rocking chair with a matching ottoman, and next to that stood a Cherrywood changing table. On the other side stood a large Cherrywood dresser and a four-in-one convertible crib with ‘Daniela Sofia’ in block lettering above it.

The room was perfect, and I’d spent the last two weeks with our mothers getting it ready for when Jade came home. I’d done the lettering for our daughter’s name last because we’d decided to keep her name secret until she was born.

I knew Jade wanted to do it herself, but after being away from home for so long, I didn’t want her to worry about it.

“Well?” I asked. I was growing more and more anxious the longer Jade stayed quiet. “Do you like it?”

She stepped just out of my grasp, and turned to see it all. Her watery eyes landed back on me, and then she was throwing her arms around my neck.

“It’s beautiful, and everything I told my mom I wanted,” she cried. “And I really want to hit you for making me cry.”

I rubbed my hands up and down her back, feeling relieved, and also proud. The room had turned out better than I had expected, but also everything I could have wanted for my little girl.

She sniffled, and lifted her head to look at me. “It’s perfect, Reid. I love it.”

“Our mom’s helped,” I told her, wiping her cheeks. “So it wasn’t just me. I also had some baby clothes delivered; they’re all in the drawers. Pretty sure I got everything, including whatever you’ll need in your overnight bag for when our Princess decides to make her appearance.”

“You thought of everything,” she whispered. “How did I get so lucky?”

I shook my head, cupping Jade’s face in my hands. “No, baby. You’ve got that all wrong. I’m the lucky one.”

I placed feather light kisses around Jade’s mouth, tasting the saltiness of her tears, and felt my chest expand. This was what life was all about – moments that took your breath away, no matter how small, and the way Jade looked at me right then, not only stole the air from my lungs, but also made me believe I could hang the damn moon if she asked me to.

“Can I look around?” She asked quietly. “This stuff is all so beautiful...” Her words trailed off, and I gave a brief nod of my head.

“You can, but I have one more surprise for you,” I said. I threaded our fingers together, and walked out into the hallway. We had two other bedrooms, but I’d decided to convert one of them into a studio for Jade. She was an incredibly gifted designer, and I wanted to give her a space she could call her own.

I pushed the door open and ushered Jade inside. Her eyes widened at the sight of the hardwood flooring, a workstation for her designing, another workstation for her sewing, and lastly a mannequin she could use for fittings. The walls were painted a pastel green on one side, closest to the window overlooking the backyard, and on the other side it was white, covered with boards that had all Jade’s fabric swatches stuck to them.

“So you can stay busy before you go back to school,” I told her, squeezing her hand. “I wanted you to have a place that was yours, and only yours. A place where you can make your dreams come true.”

Jade swallowed, her face red, and a little splotchy. “This is too much,” she said quietly. “Why did you do this?”

Her question wasn’t accusatory, but I didn’t like the way she asked me.

“I want to give you everything,” I said. “This is my way of helping you make those big dreams of yours come true.”

I wanted her to know that even though our lives had changed, and we were going to be parents, she could still have her career, and realize her aspirations. She didn’t have to be just a ‘mom’, she could also be a designer, and hopefully later she’d become a wife. My wife.

“I love it,” said Jade, stepping into my embrace. “And I love you for doing this for me. But you and our daughter are my dreams now, and you’ve already made that come true. The rest will come when the time is right, but for right now I’m happy to live this dream a little longer.”

“Sounds good to me,” I replied. “You want to have a nap or something? It’s been a busy morning.”

“Can we watch a movie on the sofa instead?”

“Anything you want.” I kissed her forehead, and we walked into the bedroom so that Jade could change into something more comfortable. She slipped into a pair of cotton shorts, and one of my t-shirts, and piled her hair on top of her head.

“What are we watching?” I asked her as we sat down on the sofa. “Romance, comedy, or action?”

“Hmmm.” Jade tapped her chin. “‘Life As We Know It’, the one with Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel.”

I flicked through our movie playlist, and hit “play” as I settled with Jade’s head on my lap. I had one hand in her hair, and the other entwined with hers on her stomach. I looked down at her, and thought if this was what the rest of my life looked like, I would die a happy man.

Chapter 22

Reid

I was doing this for her, and for the safety of our unborn child.

Jade was asleep, hugging her maternity pillow with her leg bent. I leaned forward and laid a kiss on the slither of exposed skin of her stomach and climbed out of bed. It was late, but I couldn’t sleep so I quietly left the room, and headed towards the kitchen. I rolled the tension from my shoulders, frowning at the eerie feeling that filled the darkness in our house.

My phone rang on the kitchen counter, and I grabbed it quickly before it woke Jade. My father’s name flashed on the screen, and my frown deepened. He never called me this late unless something was wrong.

“Hello?”

“Reid,” my father sighed, sounding cautious. “Thank God you answered.”

“What’s wrong, Dad?”

“It’s Stella,” he replied hesitantly. My blood froze in my veins, and I instinctively looked towards the bedroom where the light of my bedside lamp illuminated Jade’s sleeping form. “She managed to escape the mental hospital she was sent to, and they can’t find her.”

I immediately went about checking the doors, making sure they were all locked. “What do you mean she escaped? How did she get past security?”

“I don’t know,” replied my father. “The cops are out looking for her, but I wanted to warn you incase - ”

His words were cut off by a shrill scream, and I ran towards the bedroom. I told my Dad to call the cops and hung up before I swung the bedroom door open. It hit the wall with a bang, but the sound was drowned out when I came to abrupt halt.

Jade was leaning against the headboard, her face contorted in fear, and at the end of our bed stood Stella. She was dressed in a white uniform, and I surmised that’s how she’d escaped the hospital she was sent to after her arrest. I hadn’t told Jade anything about Stella, afraid that it would upset her, but I realized too late that it was a mistake. Stella had been evaluated by a psychologist and sent to a mental facility rather than being detained in jail. I thought after that, we’d be able to stop worrying about her, but clearly I was wrong on that count too.

She turned her head towards me, and that’s when I noticed the firearm in her trembling hand. Her eyes were wide, vacant, but I saw something change when her empty gaze fell on me.

“Stella.” I lifted my hands, and approached her like she was a rabid animal. In my mind she was, and all I could think about was getting her the fuck away from Jade. I was hoping my father had called the cops, but I still had to get her attention away from Jade, and whatever she’d planned on doing until they showed up.