by Holly Martin
He knew there was no threat of that, but he wanted to lay it on as thick as possible. He needed to pull on Sadie’s heart strings and he was going to do everything he could to get the result he wanted, including lie and beg.
And it seemed to be working, her face had softened. There was a heart beating inside this ice queen.
‘Isla doesn’t care about the house,’ Leo went on. ‘I mean, of course it has sentimental attachments for her and Elliot. It was Matthew’s home, it was where Elliot has his only memories of his dad. But Isla just wants to keep Elliot safe, she doesn’t care about the money. If you want the money, then let’s go to court, let’s do this fairly. Let a judge decide how much your claim is worth, we’ll pay you whatever the judge decides. But please, I beg you, leave Elliot out of this.’
Sadie sighed and sat down on the bed. She was silent for the longest time.
‘I was a terrible mum to Elliot. I often wondered if that was because I didn’t have any good role models myself growing up. I was a kid lost to the foster system too. I had twenty-three different foster homes. Safe to say, I was a difficult child. When I had Elliot, I didn’t have a clue what I was doing. All these other mums that had children around the same time as me seemed to be absolute naturals at it. I was rubbish. I didn’t feel this huge surge of love for him that other mums said they did. Did you know I dropped him?’
Leo did know. ‘That wasn’t your fault, it was an accident.’
‘Of course it was, I didn’t do it deliberately, but I felt awful. What kind of mum actually drops their baby?’
‘I’d imagine a lot more than you’d think,’ Leo said.
Sadie took another swig of her gin. ‘When I left, I honestly thought it was the best thing for Elliot. He didn’t need me screwing up his life.’
‘I don’t know if it was the best thing for him, he probably missed out a lot on having a mum there. But you can do the best thing for him now. He has a mum now, a wonderful one who loves him very much. Don’t take that away from him. Sign the consent form, giving Isla permission to adopt your son, give Elliot the family he deserves to have.’
Sadie considered this for a moment. ‘My life in foster care was crap, I’m not going to condemn my son to that. I’ll sign the form. I’ll give Karie a call now and tell her.’
Leo let out a huge sigh of relief, ‘Thank you.’
‘I still want my money,’ Sadie said, her shutters going back up.
He smiled, slightly. ‘Then we’ll see you in court.’
She nodded.
He moved to the door and she followed him.
‘Thank you for this. It’s the right thing to do.’
She nodded. ‘I know.’
He left the room and closed the door behind him. As soon as he was out in the corridor he sagged against the wall in relief. It was over.
Isla smiled as she watched Elliot carefully trying to pipe a scary face onto the last pumpkin cupcake on the tray. He had more icing round his face than on the cakes, and somehow Luke had got pretty covered too, but it didn’t matter, Elliot was enjoying himself.
She had needed something to distract her from this mess that Sadie had made and cupcake-making seemed to be just the thing. Karie had phoned three times that night, but she hadn’t been able to face speaking to her. She definitely didn’t want to do so in front of Elliot because it was very likely she would cry and she didn’t want to upset him.
‘What are we doing tomorrow?’ Elliot yawned sleepily as he put the piping bag down.
It was a little later than his normal bedtime, but as he was on holiday it didn’t really matter. He wanted to wait up until Leo got home, so he could say goodnight to him. She smiled and shook her head, fondly. She wasn’t sure how they had got to the stage of playing happy families but she liked it. She checked her watch; Leo had told her he was going to work straight after the pumpkin-carving competition, but he had been gone a while now. They had already eaten their dinner as Leo had texted telling them not to wait.
‘You’re going to be with Leo tomorrow, for the morning at least. I have to be measured up for my bridesmaid dress for Tori’s wedding,’ Isla said.
‘Yay, I get to spend the day with Leo. I love Leo.’
‘I know you do and he loves you too, very much,’ Isla said.
‘It’s true, I do,’ Leo said, appearing in the kitchen door right on cue.
‘Leo!’ Elliot said, getting down from his stool and running towards him as if he had been parted from him for days, not just a few hours.
Leo swung him up onto his hip and hugged him tight. He moved towards Isla and as he held onto Elliot he leaned down and kissed her cheek.
‘Shall I put you to bed?’ Leo said.
‘Will you read me a story?’ Elliot said.
‘Of course, which one would you like?’
‘The one about the Gruffalo’s Child,’ Elliot said.
‘That’s one of my favourites.’ He winked at Isla. ‘I’ll be down in a few minutes, and then we can talk,’ he said meaningfully.
Her heart leapt. She had no idea what Leo wanted to say but, after the day she’d had, it had better be good.
Leo passed her Elliot so she could say goodnight and she hugged him tight. ‘Love you, beautiful boy.’
‘Love you too,’ Elliot said.
She smiled and then passed him back to Leo.
‘We might need to wash your face before we get you into your pyjamas, you have a teeny tiny bit of icing on your cheeks,’ Leo said, as he carried Elliot out of the room.
‘That’s because I kept licking the icing,’ Elliot whispered.
‘Luke will probably need a wash too,’ Isla called as the puppy followed them out of the room.
Leo gasped in mock shock as he spotted the dog. ‘How did Luke get so covered in icing?’
‘Because he kept eating the icing too,’ Elliot laughed and their voices faded away as they went upstairs.
Isla smiled and started tidying away all the cake bowls and stowing them in the dishwasher. She put all the cupcakes inside cake tins. That made her smile – that in Leo’s kitchen there were cake tins and other cake-making tools and ingredients. The Leo Jackson she had met five years ago would never have had cake-making stuff in his house. He also wouldn’t have converted one of his bedrooms into a little boy’s room and painted planets and stars all over the walls. A lot had changed over the last five years. But, quite honestly, she couldn’t imagine her life without Leo in it.
When everything was tidied away, Isla sat down at the kitchen table and decided to give Karie a call. Although what was there left to say? Karie had said it all in her text.
Karie answered after the first ring. ‘Jesus, Isla, I’ve been trying to get hold of you all night.’
‘I know, sorry, I was busy,’ Isla said, quietly, not wanting to admit she had been avoiding her.
‘Listen, I have news, bloody brilliant news,’ Karie said. ‘Sadie called me this afternoon and said she was happy to give consent for the adoption to go ahead. She came in and signed all the paperwork.’
Isla didn’t say anything for a moment, her heart roaring in her chest.
‘Isla, did you hear me? Elliot’s officially yours. Well, it will all be official once the adoption hearing is out the way. But now Sadie has given her consent, it will just be a case of going before the judge to put the official stamp on it. It’s over.’
‘Oh my god,’ Isla breathed. ‘I can’t believe it.’
‘No, I couldn’t either. I mean, in that first meeting she made it clear that she wasn’t interested in Elliot at all but she was dragging her heels over signing him over and I didn’t know why.’
‘She wanted more money,’ Isla said.
‘Yeah, I figured as much. This was a very sudden about-turn,’ Karie said.
‘Why the sudden change of heart?’ Isla asked.
‘I have no idea, she just said this was the right thing to do.’
‘So that’s it, she can’t change her mind ag
ain?’ Isla said, barely daring to believe it was really over.
‘No, that’s it. The court hearing will go ahead as planned and then he’ll be yours, but you can definitely celebrate tonight.’
‘Oh, thank god,’ Isla said and felt the tears welling in her eyes.
Karie promised to be in touch to go over the court case and then Isla said her goodbyes and disconnected the call with shaky fingers.
Tears fell down her cheeks. Elliot was hers.
She had to tell Leo.
She pushed the chair back and ran upstairs, just stopping herself from shouting out his name. She didn’t want to wake Elliot up if he was already in bed.
Leo came out of his bedroom and stopped when he saw her crying. He quickly moved towards her, his hands on her shoulders.
‘What’s the matter, what’s wrong?’
She could barely speak, she was crying so much. ‘It’s over.’
‘What is?’ Leo said.
‘Sadie came in to see Karie this afternoon and signed the consent form allowing the adoption to go ahead. Elliot’s now ours.’
Leo hesitated, no doubt processing all of this. ‘Are you serious?’
Isla nodded. She had never felt relief like it.
Leo hugged her tight and she felt him laugh with relief. ‘Oh god, that is wonderful news. I can’t believe it.’
‘The adoption hearing will go ahead but now it will just be a case of crossing the T’s and dotting the I’s. Karie didn’t mention the house or the money, but I imagine that Sadie will still want her cash, but I don’t care about any of that. Elliot is the only thing I care about.’
Leo pulled back slightly and wiped the tears from her face. ‘You have no idea how happy this makes me.’
He bent his head and kissed her and she laughed and cried against him.
He pulled back. ‘Listen, we need to talk.’
She nodded, because whatever he wanted to say now, nothing was going to wipe the smile from her face.
He took her hand, tugging her into his bedroom where she was surprised to see candles dotting the surfaces.
‘I wish I’d had time to plan this properly but you kind of surprised me with your declaration this morning. I never thought a man like me would ever have someone like you fall in love with me. You see something in me that I’ve never seen in myself. This morning, when you told me, I wanted to find the right words to tell you how I felt but really I just needed to say the words that I’ve never said to anyone, the words that have been in my heart for the last four years. I love you Isla Rosewood. You will never know how completely and utterly happy you and Elliot have made me but I’m going to work every day for the rest of our lives to make you just as happy as you make me.’
Isla stared at him in shock, her heart thundering in her chest.
‘I’m going to ask you one more time, and not because of Sadie or because I want to take care of you, but because you and Elliot belong here with me, because I love you both so much, you fill my heart.’ He dropped to one knee and offered out a ring box, opening it. She stared at the yellow stone that sparkled in the candlelight. ‘It’s a yellow sapphire, which is rare and unusual, just like you. I saw this and was instantly reminded of the sunshine and light you have brought into my life. Will you marry me?’
Isla dropped to her knees in front of him, new tears falling down her cheeks now. The lump of emotion in her throat was so big she could barely breathe. She nodded because she couldn’t talk and he smiled and took the ring from the box, sliding it onto her finger. Oh god, she was so happy right now she thought her heart would burst.
She leaned over and kissed him, hard.
‘I love you,’ she whispered against his lips. ‘I love you so much.’
He kissed her as if he couldn’t take enough, his hands spanning her back, and without taking his mouth from hers, he eased her back onto the floor.
The kiss continued, his hands caressing everywhere, his tongue in her mouth, his body against hers. Clothes were removed, his, hers, until they were both naked, his wonderful, warm body pinning her to the floor. He kissed her throat, her shoulder, and then slipped her breast inside his mouth, driving her to the very edge as she writhed on the floor desperate for that release.
He paused long enough to tear open a condom and then he was inside her. He stilled as she wrapped her legs around him, stroking her hands down his back and shoulders as he simply stared at her.
‘You’re going to be my wife,’ he whispered, staring at her in awe.
She smiled and nodded.
He kissed her and started to move against her and that feeling started to build inside her, just there but out of reach.
‘I promise to love and cherish you.’ He kissed her. ‘I will be there for the good times and bad, for better and worse, I will love, honour and respect you.’ He kissed her again and she ran her fingers into the hair at the back of his neck. ‘I promise to help you raise our children together, to be your best friend for as long as we both shall live.’
She kissed him and it was the thought of forever with this wonderful man that sent her roaring over the edge.
Chapter Twenty-One
Isla woke to the sound of laughter and hushed whispers and she opened one eye to see Elliot sitting on Leo’s lap as they chatted happily, Elliot showing Leo some toy and how to use it. Luke was also on the bed, chewing happily on one of his dog toys.
God, her heart felt so full with love for her boys and now they were going to be together as a proper family.
‘Hey beautiful boy,’ Isla said, stroking a finger down Elliot’s arm.
He grinned when he saw she was awake and Leo immediately leaned over and kissed her on the lips. Just a brief kiss but she wondered idly what Elliot would make of it. But Elliot didn’t even blink, just carried on playing with his toy as if it was the most normal thing in the world.
‘Morning,’ Elliot said. ‘That’s a nice ring.’
She smiled; he was so observant.
She sat up and Elliot scrambled over onto her lap for a cuddle.
‘This is an engagement ring,’ Isla said, turning her hand so the ring sparkled. She checked with Leo that she was doing the right thing in telling him, but Leo was smiling. ‘It means me and Leo are going to get married.’
‘Yay!’ Elliot said, wriggling around on her lap in excitement. ‘When are we getting married?’
‘Soon,’ Leo said, before Isla could speak. ‘Probably before Christmas.’
Isla smiled at Leo and shook her head at him fondly.
He grinned. ‘There’s no point hanging around.’
‘No, I think we’ve done enough of that over the last few years,’ Isla said. She checked her watch. ‘I better get ready. What are your plans today?’
‘I thought we’d dig out the old go-kart, see if it still works, and yes we’ll make sure Elliot wears his helmet,’ Leo said, instinctively.
Isla smiled. ‘I know he’s in very safe hands.’
She leaned over and kissed Leo and then shifted Elliot back onto his lap. She watched them chatting for a moment. As much as she was looking forward to spending the day with Tori and Melody, getting all excited about Tori’s wedding and telling them her own exciting news, she would much rather stay here with her own little family. She placed another kiss on Leo’s shoulder, dropped one on Elliot’s head, and then slipped from the bed and padded off to the bathroom, knowing she would have a huge smile on her face all day. Nothing was going to ruin her mood today. Right now she was happier than she’d ever been.
‘OK, are we ready to go?’ Leo said.
‘Yay!!’ Elliot danced up and down on the spot.
‘OK, let’s run through our checklist. Is the go-kart ready?’
‘Yes!’
Leo knew it was, they’d spent the morning cleaning it and Leo had meticulously checked the wheels, the brakes, the steering. Although it hadn’t been used for several months, it was in tip-top condition.
‘Helmet on securely?’
Leo checked the straps and could see that it was.
‘Yes!’ Elliot said, giving it a little tap.
‘Super-grip racing gloves?’ Leo asked.
Elliot giggled as he wiggled his fingers to show that he had his gloves on.
‘Then I think we’re ready.’
Elliot quickly moved round to the seat, climbed in and put his hands on the steering wheel.
‘Seatbelt,’ Leo reminded him. Elliot quickly did his seatbelt up.
Leo moved round the back and started rocking the car back and forth. ‘Three, two, one...’ He pushed the car down the curving driveway and Elliot steered it. Leo had a good hold of the back of the seat and used his weight to give a bit of guidance to the direction of travel. Elliot whooped and laughed all the way down to the bottom where Leo let the car come to a stop.
‘That was brilliant!’ Elliot said. ‘We went so fast.’
Leo smiled, knowing that he had barely picked up speed at all.
‘Want to go again?’
‘Yes!’
‘Out you hop then.’
Elliot undid his seatbelt and climbed out and Leo picked the go-kart up and started carrying it up the hill.
‘Are you OK about me and Isla getting married? Leo asked.
‘Yes, it’s very exciting. Me and Marigold have been practising.’
