‘How are you feeling my love?’ he asked, shooting me a look.

‘Okay, mostly tired,’ I replied. ‘It was the right decision to miss The Baby Group today.’

‘Yes, it was probably for the best. You need to conserve your energy now.’

I propped myself up in bed with pillows. ‘What if something is wrong with the baby?’ I said, filling a moment of quiet, as Oscar stood in the en suite gathering his toiletries. The subject had been on my mind, on and off, throughout the pregnancy, but until now I’d kept this distressing thought strictly inside my head, wanting to focus on the positives.

‘Darling, what made you think that?’ he said, dropping his wash kit into his open case. He sat down on the side of the bed.

‘I was just thinking about being older,’ I replied. ‘It wasn’t covered in the textbooks – or by Maggie.’

‘How can she even begin to cover that?’ he said gently. ‘But you mustn’t worry – all your scans have been perfectly normal, the doctors and technology are so good these days, they can tell pretty much everything. You would have been told if there was any cause for concern.’

‘But if anything does go wrong – how will I cope?’ I placed my hand on my stomach.

‘We,’ he took my hand and held it. ‘We will cope. You’re not on your own. I’m here for you.’

‘Really?’

He crouched down now, to my level, so he could look me straight in the eyes. He took my other hand in his and held them tightly. ‘Lucy, I know this pregnancy journey hasn’t been easy for you, but things have changed these past months. You have blossomed – no, rather we have blossomed, into a proper couple. I know I let you down before, but I’m committed to the baby. I love you.’

The tender moment was broken momentarily by the sound of a text appearing on my phone. I wriggled one hand out of his and reached for it on the bedside table. I read the message slowly. Although my heart was hammering in my chest, I tried to keep my face neutral. I would reply later.

‘I love hearing you say that,’ I said, calmly laying the phone back down, overturned on the table, and taking his hand again. Oscar seemed keen to reassure me that he wasn’t going to freak out and desert me when the baby arrived. I should have welcomed this moment, but I was barely able to concentrate.

‘I mean it,’ he said earnestly.

I thought back to when we officially got back together.

Oscar had asked if he could come over one evening after work. It was the first day of my second trimester and I had decided to treat myself to a pizza takeaway for dinner. At least I could relax a little, now I’d passed the three month mark, although I still hadn’t told anyone at work my news. I couldn’t face all of the questions that would come with it.