The Tragic Life

Chapter 17

WARNING: CHAPTERS 32 - 36 OF THIS BOOK CAN ONLY BE READ ON INKITT! LINK IN MY BIO ♥️
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How did she get so big?" Robbie says as Emily climbs all over him with her beloved soft book in her hand.

I smile. "Oh, yeah. I swear she gets heavier every time I pick her up."

Lewis' brother grabs her by the sides of her waist to lift her up in front of him to get a better look. "Who's a chubster, huh?"

I lean over the table to slap his arm on a laugh, knowing he doesn't mean anything by it. "Hey."

The corners of Emily's mouth turn up which causes him to kiss the dimples. "I'm only kidding, ey, Emmy?"

"No," she says, going again with the serious frowning.

"I think she understood you," I say, laughing when she starts to blow raspberries over his cheeks.

Robbie gobbles up her affections like he's been starved of them, and guilt eats at me. I could invite him over more. "Oh, I miss this little love bug."

I take the book from her hands when she throws it over. "How's the boys doing?"

He slants his eyes over to me. "They're good. Maxwell is enjoying school, and Benny just started an under-seven's football club, so they're occupied for the time being."

"I'll bet they're looking forward to America. What is it? Only six weeks now?" I reply, remembering the little boys gushing to me over the phone about meeting Donald Duck.

"Yeah," he says, switching her around in his arms to try get her to settle down. "It's crazy that we booked the vila and everything two years ago, and now it's almost here. I bet you'll be happy to get rid of mum for a few weeks."

I open my mouth to close it, before telling him the truth. "I won't lie to you. I'm looking forward to the peace. She's one of the reasons that I wanted to meet up."

He pinches his eyebrows together. "What's she done now?"

I know that Cheryl drives him crazy at times with her insistent need for control, and like a lot of us, he gives in for an easy life, but if she pushes too hard, she can expect an ambush of unpleasant words.

"It's pretty bad. You know my best friend, Yasmin?" He nodded, so I carried on. "Well, she's been flooding her with nasty messages on social media because she put a picture of Emily up there. And, she came around to my house to scream at me for letting somebody else look after Emmy."

"Not this again. For Christ sake, I'll sort it," he replies, taking the dummy from my finger when Emily starts to fidget for it.

I wince. "I'm sorry, Rob. You don't need this right now."

A workaholic, he spends more time on building sites than he does at home sometimes, contractors hiring him all over the country for his innovative ideas on articultyral structures and clean energy.

"It's fine," he says, swiping Emily's soft curl back when she stares up at him with interested eyes. "Quite honestly, I get embarrassed from always having to tidy up her mess."

I reach out to rub his hand. "You're a good son."

He laughs. "I'm a pushover, Moll, especially when it comes to my mother."

"You have a kind heart. She's lucky to have you," I reply, not wanting to step over the mark.

I notice that his clipped hairstyle is growing through longer than it usually does when he dips his head. "Cheers. It still going ok with that guy?"