CHAPTER402
“I like it, it’s pretty. A pretty name for another pretty child. Your kids are always beautiful, Emma.” I genuinely mean it; both her children are gorgeous.
“Pretty kids come from pretty men.” Emma beams back out at Jake, I roll my eyes, but I can’t argue. The Carreros definitely own the market in good DNA. Even Giovanni, in his fifties, is still a handsome man, and Sylvana, Jake’s mother, is a beauty to behold. I don’t think I have met a single Carrero relative, at any of their family parties, that wasn’t above a seven on the attractive scale.
“I don’t know if I ever want kids.” I shrug, turning to watch Mia squealing with delight as her father hangs her by the ankles and spins her around at an alarming rate. Emma doesn’t even blink at it. Lucah is quite happy to follow in his little Ferrari and beeps his horn behind them.
“I used to say the same thing, but then Mia happened, and well, it changed everything.” Emma watches me for a moment. “You’re only twenty, Sophs, so young still, and so much ahead of you before you need to decide if you want kids.”
“I don’t have any happy memories of childhood, and with my track record of douchebag men, I would never inflict that on an innocent baby.” I pick up some stems of grass, abandoning my sewing lesson, and avoid Emma’s gaze.
“Sophs.” Emma breathes sympathetically, but I only shake my head.
“I’m over it ... I don’t want to go back there.... What we having for dinner?” I deflect quickly, seeing Emma back down and relieved that she hasn’t been pushing me the last few days. It’s like she senses that I just need a little time to act normally, and not focus my life on this ‘thing’.
“Whatever Maria makes. She’s been a godsend in the kitchen lately. I’m just too tired to do much anymore, except count down the days to a bumpless existence.”
“Oh, and how I look forward to having my bumpless sexy wife back, so I can maneuver her into ...” Jake cuts in and is halted with me slapping his leg in disgust.
“Aww noooo. NO, NO, NO.” Jake only laughs and flops down on the grass beside me, tugging my hair like a child.
“Stop traumatizing the children.” Emma chides, and I wrinkle up my nose at him.
“You’re vile ... I don’t know why I ever thought you were charming.” I screw my face up at him.
“I am charming, and sexy, and hot, and pretty much a lothario in the bedroom.” He winks at his wife, who can only shake her head at him. “See, she can’t even deny any of the above.” Jake rolls on his back, propping his hands behind his head, and then crumples with an ‘oooft’ noise as Lucah launches himself on top of Jake’s abdomen.
“That’s what you get!” I laugh as he sits up to recover and hauls his son into a cuddle, kissing him on top of the head and scooping him into man muscles that make Lucah seem tiny.
“Dadda, kisses.” Lucah smiles sweetly and is met with what he desires in the form of daddy kisses all over his face before Jake then pretends to eat him, roaring like a dinosaur, and making the kid scream and wriggle to be free, through hysterical giggling.
“You’re next!” Jake warns me as I roll out of reach from poky fingers and jabs. Mia comes and sits on my lower back gently and lifts my ponytail up with such tender dainty little hands. She pulls my face to the side, so I feel her little soft wispy breath, those wide innocent blue eyes so endearingly close to mine, with a serious look on her little beautiful face. She just melts me to goo so effortlessly. My angelic little princess.
“Be my horsey.” She smiles down at the side of my face, before almost killing me by bouncing down hard on my spine."
