The doors of the rehabilitation unit slide open and Cam comes toward me carrying a small bundle wrapped in a blanket. He stops in front of me, his eyes all over my face.
“Georgia, I’d like you to meet my son.” He looks down at the bundle, whose face I can’t quite see. “Harry Joseph King, I’d like you to meet the love of my life, Georgia Rae Layton.” He passes me the baby. He’s small and has dark hair like Cam’s. I know all of this because I’ve seen so many photos, but actually holding him, here in my arms, he feels so tiny. Looking down into his perfect little face, he looks so much like Cam and I love him instantly.
*
The next few hours are a whirlwind. Cam called Benny on the drive over to pick up the baby and told him to meet us there with a car seat so we could get him home. I call my dad and ask him to go over to our place and set up the cot that we still hadn’t done. We thought we had another week before we would have the baby with us. By the time we arrive home a couple of hours later, my parents, Jimmie, Ash and Sam are all at my house.
Sam is due to give birth to a little girl any day, but despite this, she has helped my mum, dad and sisters-in-law in organising Harry’s nursery. The cot has been put together, but a Moses basket and stand has been set up next to our bed, because my mum and sisters-in-law know me so well, and knew I wouldn’t be happy with the baby not sleeping in our room until he got a bit bigger.
Thanks to a quick shopping trip by Mum and donations from his Aunties, Harry had everything a baby could possibly want, bottles, steriliser, formula, bottle warmer, nappies and so much love and attention it was untrue.
I barely slept a wink Friday night. We were both due at West Ham’s football ground at nine for the first of the charity football games that were going to be played over the next two days.
My mum was an absolute legend and turned up at our house at six, she looked after the baby and let us get ready. Cam didn’t want to let Harry out of his sight as Tamara had apparently gone missing and he was terrified about where she might show up. My mum, being the expert that she was, packed everything that was needed for the baby for the entire day and stayed with Cam and I as we travelled from venue to venue, event to event and from interview to interview. By the time Sunday night came around and the grand finale had ended, we had raised over ninety million pounds. Harry had been held and passed around by no less than five supermodels, two England football captains, an Ashes winning cricket captain, two Oscar winners and about twenty members of rock royalty.
Everyone involved was exhausted, but we still managed to keep awake, running on pure adrenalin. We even attended the after party at one of Cam’s clubs until five Monday morning. Cam had finally allowed my parents to take Harry, or H as he had become known over the weekend, back to our house, where they would stay, along with Benny and Scott.
*
Cam, Jimmie and I sit in a row, all holding hands, all staring at the screen as the doctor glides the ultrasound wand over Ashley’s belly.
Jimmie has just had her twelve week scan and we got to see the healthy heartbeat of our baby and now it’s Ashley’s turn. The all too familiar whoosh and boom, boom, boom cause my heart to ache. This sound, bringing back such bittersweet memories for me.
Jimmie is the first to comment at what appears before us on the screen. All she says is “Oh,” to have both Cam and Ash saying in unison, “What’s wrong?” I look from Cam to Ash, to the Doctor, waiting on him to comment first.
“Well, we always knew this was a possibility,” is all he says. Ashley closes her eyes as she grips my hand.
“George, please tell me what the fuck’s wrong.” I look at the doctor, who simply nods his head.
“Yep, definitely two in there.” Ashley opens her eyes and stares right at me, then at Cam.
“You have got to be fucking kidding me, twins. I’m having your twins. Two of him are growing inside me. How come she gets away with just one and I end up with two. For fuck’s sake, I’m gonna be as big as the 498 to Romford. This is so not fair. King, you can pay for my tummy tuck.” I turn to Cam. He’s staring with his mouth slightly open. I nudge him, and he turns and looks at me.
“Twins?” is all he says. I smile and nod my head. “Fuck, Kitten, four, we had none, now there’s four.” He throws his head back and gives me his big Cam laugh.
Chapter Thirty-One
I wake to the sensation of what I assume are teeth biting into the top of my thigh. I look down at Cam, now sucking on the inside of my leg.
“Happy birthday, Kitten,” he says as he starts to make his way up my body, planting little kisses as he goes. He reaches my mouth and kisses me gently, trying to force his tongue inside.