Bound By Her Bump novel Chapter 35

"Babe you look different, you're glowing" Ella exclaimed as she hugged Annie once more.

Annie chuckled. "I guess that's what happens when you take a vacation."

"I need to warn Eric not to take you away for that long. Gosh, Annie, three weeks without me talking to you. Damn, I almost died." Ella said which made Annie chuckle.

Annie and Eric just came back from their three weeks' vacation the day before. It was a beautiful one. No cell phones, no internet, no third party, Just the two of them enjoying themselves and loving themselves more on his private island.

"I missed you too, Boo" Annie confessed.

"I don't need to ask you how the trip was because I can see it all over you. You look happier, your eyes are shining, you're glowing, if I'm not mistaken it seems you've added a little bit of weight. Eric must have pampered you so much. I'm sure you did not want to come back." Ella said.

"Calm down Ella." She chuckled. "Even though we wanted to stay one more week, we had to come back. Remember Eric has a business to run and so do I."

"I'm sure you guys had lots of hot sex." She teased and Annie's face turned red. She tried to look everywhere else except Ella's face.

"No need to be shy about that, my love, in a couple of weeks he's going to be your husband. Anyway, have you guys finalized the date?"

"No we haven't, but we're looking at two to three months."

"Not bad," Ella said then stood up to go get two cups of coffee for her and her friend.

Annie and Eric came back from their vacation yesterday afternoon. So she decided to spend the whole Sunday with Ella. Eric would be picking her up later.

Annie felt ill as soon as she inhaled the smell of coffee. She felt like throwing up. Ella noticed her going pale for a while then she rushed to her side.

"I feel like throwing up. The coffee's smell is making me uneasy."

Ella nodded and went back to the kitchen with the two mugs of coffee. She emptied them and came back with two glasses of freshly squeezed orange juice.

"Thank you," Annie accepted the juice and drank half of it.

"Better?" Ella asked and she nodded.

"Are you sure you're okay Annie?" Ella asked curiously as she took a seat beside Annie on the Sofa. "Coffee is like your favourite thing in the world and you're reacting badly to it."

"Not only the smell of coffee but the smell of meat too, Eric said when you take something a lot, there are times you react negatively to it. I think that's the phase I'm going through."

"Anyway, I bought something for you." Annie changed the topic as she handed Ella a surprise bag.

Ella wasted no time in digging into the bag. The bag contained a pair of red heels with a matching purse and Jewellery.

"These are beautiful. Thanks, Sis." She hugged Annie.

"I'm sure they are very expensive." She said, pulling away from the hug.

Annie shrugged. "I believe my best friend deserves the best."

"Also, Thank Eric when you see him. He paid for them while I chose them."

"Sure. But I believe Eric owes me more than this. But I'll discuss it with him when I see him. What do you want for Brunch? Spaghetti and my favourite sauce?"

"Yeah. Anything will do." She replied.

Annie and Ella spent their day doing what they loved most. They watched movies; Ella helped Annie edit her latest YouTube video which she filmed during their vacation. Annie helped Ella select her work outfit for the week, they discussed some of Annie's new lip kit collection and they ended up making dinner for four because Eric and Dylan would be joining them soon.

Soon enough, the doorbell rang and Ella excused herself to go open the door.

"Hey, Babe." Eric greeted as he walked towards Annie. He kissed her forehead then gave her a long kiss on her lips.

"Aren't they cute?" Ella giggled in Dylan's arms.

"Of course they are." He kissed her cheek.

Dylan unwrapped himself from Ella and went to hug Annie.

"You look different." He said and Annie gave him a questioning look.

"I mean beautifully different." He corrected. "The vacation did well to you and Eric."

"I told her the same. Can't you see how she's glowing? It shows this man over here." She pointed to Eric. "Is taking very good care of my best friend."

"Don't mind them, honey; they are just jealous" Eric said.

"Anyway, dinner is served, everyone to the dining table," Ella announced and they found their way to the dining room.

As soon as Annie set her eyes on the food, she lost her appetite and was suddenly craving for something different. She was craving for pizza. But she couldn't voice it out. Ella had spent so much energy in making the food and she didn't want to upset her best friend by not eating it.

"That Lucia was not in a good state and that she's deeply sorry for what she did to you. She's sorry for not helping you to the hospital on-time and she feels guilty for what happened to our baby."

"Mom said Lucia explained the reason for her behaviour. Lucia said mom and dad never showered her with so much love the way they loved Laura, Elaina and I. She turned wayward thinking mom and dad would notice her that way. And now Mom and Dad feel guilty about everything. They feel like they've failed as parents."

"Honestly, when I think about things now. I realized I don't have many memories with Lucia as I do with Laura and Elaina. I only stepped in when Lucia was in trouble or so. We were never really close, neither was she close to Elaina. Laura is even the worst, I don't think she regards Lucia as her sister at all."

"All these while, her actions were as a result of hatred and Jealousy. She got more furious when you came into our lives and my family loved and accepted you even more than her."

"After what happened to you, I cut all ties with her. I stopped sending her money and I told her not to regard me as her brother anymore. Dad too said he stopped sending her money. He only paid for her tuition and house rent. Only mom sends her money once in a while."

"Now my Parents feel so guilty that I cannot even begin to explain how to you. They feel they've created some sort of enmity among their children."

"I know mom and dad do love us equally but Lucia was just hard to deal with. She never shares anything with anyone; She was always on her own."

"See for instance, on our way back from our vacation, we branched to a mall to get something for our loved ones and I didn't even put Lucia's name on the list."

"I noticed but I picked up a few things for her too." Annie voiced out.

"You did?" Eric looked into her eyes.

She nodded.

"Aren't you meant to be mad at her?" he arched a surprised brow.

Annie sighed "Eric. It's all in the past and I've moved on. The most important thing is that she's sorry for what she did. The Lucia I know will never miss her test or exam for anything in the world. Now, look at what she has gone through. She's been depressed all her life, feeling like the lesser one."

Eric sighed as he buried his face in his hands.

"Honestly I feel guilty too. I felt I should have known she felt that way. I felt I should have spent more time with her the way I did with my other siblings. We never took her birthday seriously to celebrate her and neither did we celebrate any of her achievements."

"It's not too late. You all can still make amends. You don't have to wait until her birthday before you throw her a party. Surprise her anytime you want but most importantly let her know you love her and you will always be there for her."

"She might show up at your workplace tomorrow to apologize."

"She's welcome. Perhaps she might get a free Makeover from me." Annie smiled.

"Your heart is so pure and kind. A woman like you is rare to find. Thank you for everything." He smiled and placed a long kiss on her forehead.