Back to normality?

Chapter 25

As she let Peter in ten minutes later, she didn't say a word; seeing her heartbroken and exhausted he shut the door behind him and joined her on the sofa. Carla curled back up the corner with the blanket over her; going into his pocket, he pulled out a familiar item.

"I thought you might want this" he said, handing her the teddy bear.

Holding it close, she rested her chin on its head as she slowly turned to look at Peter.

"Are you cheating on me?" She whispered.

"Why would you ask that?" He asked, kind of shocked at her accusation, given how far they'd come in the last year or so.

"Are you?"

"No I'm not"

"I don't believe you" she argued, her voice breaking. "You've been secretive...whispering into your phone; you haven't said you've been proud of me in days" she cried.

"Carla, love, I promise, hand on heart, I am not having an affair; I'd be a compete idiot to hurt you again" he said, moving closer to her and resting a hand on her her leg. "And yes, I realise I am probably an idiot anyway; I am completely proud of you. You have come so far In the last few months; even with the pregnancy and the engagement, you've still held your head up high. Everyday, you amaze me with how strong you are"

"So why the phone calls? The whispering?" She asked, wiping her eyes.

"I was organising a surprise for you; I've been finalising the details for the last couple of days"

"What surprise?" She whispered, still wary if he was telling the truth.

"I wanted to take you back to the Lake District for a few days; I was gonna tell you tonight at dinner" he said, pulling up the confirmation email on his phone and showing her.

"And then I ruined it with my paranoia" she muttered. "I'm sorry"

"I'm sorry that I worried you" apologised, cupping her cheek with a hand as she nestled into it. "You mean everything to me: you, Simon and our daughter; is that why you've been on edge all day?"

"No" she lied.

"Love, is that the truth?" He asked, tilting his head as he stroked her cheek with his thumb.

"No" she admitted, shaking her head and allowing the tears to fall again.

"Why didn't you say something before? Why let it get this bad?" He asked, finally pulling her into his arms. "You know Scott said you have to talk it out when you have these feelings to stop it manifesting into something more"

"I thought I was imagining things again" she cried. "I didn't want you sending me back and have them take my baby away"

"That's never gonna happen; you're bound to be feeling more emotional than normal. I should have been more careful or been upfront with you; our daughter is stay right where she belongs, with her mom" he said, kissing her hair.

"Promise?" She sniffed.

"On my life, she's not going anywhere; Scott has been assessing you every step of the way and if he had any suspicion she would be in danger, he would've done something about it, wouldn't he?"

"I guess" she whispered.

"Now we've cleared that up, are you coming home with me?" He questioned, lifting her chin and wiping away her tears.

She nodded and pulled the blanket off her; saying bye to Roy, she pulled on her boots and jacket before Peter took her hand and led her home where she headed for the kitchen and opened the cupboards.

"What you looking for love?" He asked, watching her move to the fridge.

"I'm hungry" she pouted.

"I'm not surprised; why don't you go and have a bath and I'll whip something up for you?" He offered.

"I should've ate my meal" she pouted. "I did want it really; I was just upset"

"I know; you go and have a bath and relax and I'll see what I can do" he said, holding her close.

She nodded and headed for the bathroom; he'd just sent Simon to the Bistro to pick up another couple of meals when Carla called him.

"You okay love?" He asked, kneeling next to the bath, resting his arms on the side.

"Feel" she said, taking his hand and resting it on her bubble covered bump.

Feeling their daughters strong kick, he smiled and leant over, kissing Carla lovingly, not caring about getting wet.

"I guess she doesn't like it when I'm mad at you" she smirked. So...when do we go?"

"After Scott's visit on Friday; we go for a week again" he answered, moving to pick up the shower head to wash her hair. "Sit up a little"

As she did, he set the water to the correct temperature before starting on her long brunette locks.

"That's not long to pack" she said, realising she only had a day and half to do so. "And what about our deliveries?"

"All arranged; Michelle is gonna come and wait for it and keep an eye on Simon for us. You have nothing to worry about except for putting a bag together" he replied, swapping the shower head for the shampoo and then swapping again.

"That feels nice" she whispered, feeling his fingers massaging the conditioner into her hair.

"Simon will be back in a minute with the food so we can eat, watch a film and get an early night"

Having rinsed the conditioner out, he stood up and held his hands out to help her up and out; drying her off, he wrapped the fluffy towel around her before holding out the white fluffy robe for her to put on. Hearing the front door shut, he kissed her nose and let her finish up whilst he sorted the food out; when she came out, she saw the two plates of food on the table along with Simons, identical to what they'd ordered just hours before.

"Since when does the Bistro do takeouts?" She asked, taking her seat as he poured her a glass of orange juice.

"Since I asked Michelle for a favour; she's sorry for pushing you as well earlier"

"She sent your favourite for dessert too; it's in the oven" Simon said.

"Thanks Si" Carla smiled at him.

"How did the appointment go?" He asked, looking between the two adults.

"All good; how would you feel having a sister?" She asked.

"Awesome; you sure everything is okay?"

"Everything is fine; all the checks came back clear" Peter confirmed.

With dinner eaten, Simon retreated back to his bedroom whilst Peter and Carla sat on the sofa, snuggled against each other with a film playing while she ate her chocolate dessert.

"Do you want some?" She offered, holding her fork up to hips lips.

"You eat it love" he said, kissing her damp hair.

Happily, she finished the dessert and nestled her head against his chest; with his fingers playing with her hair, she soon drifted off into a peaceful sleep. Turning the tv off, Peter carefully lifted her into his arms and carried her through to the bedroom and settled her into the bed.