In Omnia Paratus (AU) - Book 2

Maisie

We went back to the lounge to sit down and rest after dinner. Then suddenly this little girl with blonde curled hair, about 3 or 4 runs into the room giggling away calling out for "mummy." She was adorable and it made me think of-- well you know.

"Mummy and I have guests sweetie, and you missy should be in bed." Harry joked around with the toddler tickling her playfully.

"Hi nice to meet you." Richard smiled as the little girl spotted him and stared at him. He loves kids, I never really noticed that much but he does.

When ever we are out he'll make funny faces with children. He was so good with maisie and he's amazing with violet, even though she's all grown up now and not 4 years old anymore.

"You're pretty." She said stepping close to my face. My head was resting on my fist and she just came up gently stroked my eyebrows and the forehead and then all my cheeks. "Pretty." She giggled to herself. "You're like mummy."

"Oh sorry we didn't introduce you, this is our daughter. Maisie." Harry said gently. And the girl crawled into his arms and sat there. Did I just hear him right?

My heart sank, and when I say that I literally mean I felt my heart fall from my chest to the very bottom of my stomach and stay there, churning over and over until I felt like I was going to hurl.

"She's almost 3 aren't you?" Alicia said lifting the blonde toddler onto her lap.

I glanced at Richard and panicked. He was sweating on his forehead and he looked nervous as he grabbed for my hand and held it tight.

"Sorry could you just excuse us for a minute, I'm afraid I'm not feeling particularly well and I just need to ask Richard something quick." I said suddenly because I needed to get out of here.

"Of course come on darling." Alicia took the child away with Harry and they went into another room briefly.

"Okay before you panic I just want to say I did not know about this at all. Otherwise I would have told you I promise!" Richard said the minute the door was closed.

"You didn't know the name of his child?" I rolled my eyes. "This is silly. Is it silly? I mean yes it is but she's called Ma-m-m-" I started to cry but it was pretty calm I was blubbering.

"It is alright calm down." Richard took my. "Do you want to go?"

"I need to go but it's rude."

"Go to the car then." He nodded. "I'll tell them you really weren't feeling well and we'll going to go home. Please don't panic or cry. I'll be out in a minute." Richard said handing me the keys to his car.

"I can't." I moaned knowing how embarrassing that is.

"Well I'll tell them the truth but I can't have you sitting here like this." He whined. "You're going to break if you see or hear of that girl again and I know you don't want to go back into Kate next week and explain to her why you're back to square one because you've come so far."

I sat there just trying my hardest to block out the giggling coming from the next room and the "maisie stop that!" From Harry's mouth. Tears were already falling and I just ended up hugging Richard quickly giving him a reassuring smile and taking his car keys from him.

- - - - -

I understood that these people were important to him and he didn't want to make a fuss so that why he wasn't super comforting inside. It also hit him like a tonne of bricks as well and he wasn't thinking straight.

When he got in the car I just gave him a sympathetic stare and then looked down guilty as I played with my nails. "I'm sorry I know how important those people were."

"I lied to them Jen, I feel awful." He came out with.

Hearing that just made me burst into tears because it was like I should have just continued like that name meant nothing to me when it clearly did. It was my fault he had to lie because I'm too emotional.

"Hey it's alright." Richard said just wrapping his arms around me as I sobbed into his chest. "It was a lot and it was really unexpected."

"I'd heard the name around. I go shopping and I hear it, I go to lectures and here it but a little girl, about the age Maisie would be now... it really hurts." I cried.

"Sometimes I think we are just tested a little bit. We think everything's all alright and then we get a reminder about all the shit that's happened." Richard comforted.

I just continued to cry because I had nothing to say. I sobbed and sobbed and just completely let myself go.

"Did you get that heart stopping moment as well?" He asked me gently as he was stroking my arm.

"Yeah." I cried. "Sometimes I just forget about that part of my life and then things like this come along a wreck it. I remember all that pain we went through. That poor kid!" I just sobbed more.

"Maisie was a lucky little girl, she had a lovely mum and dad. We cared for her as much as we could and in the end some infection took over." Richard assured me. "There was nothing to be done and I know we miss her."

"Things are better though, a baby would be really complicated." I nodded sniffling away.

"Yeah I know." He muttered kissing my forehead and then just comforting me as we sat in a car, in a random road I'd never even heard of in a fancy estate.

Oh how things had changed.

I still had this feeling of guilt, he had to leave a really good business contact and lie to them because of me.