Now she was pregnant once more and this time she wasn’t telling anyone – especially not her husband. This time, when the child they had created was expelled from her womb, she would carry the burden alone. She couldn’t bear to look at his face again, first seeing the hope for her pregnancy then, eventually, witnessing his disappointment when it ended prematurely, seeing his pity for her, because she couldn’t do the one thing that came naturally to every other woman in the world. It was the pity in his eyes that she found the hardest to endure.

No, she would carry this baby alone, with no doctors, no family involvement whatsoever. She would just wait and see, and accept the outcome alone. The days of crying for hours on end were gone and she was not going to let Michael be hurt any more. She would shoulder this all herself. It was the least she could do. She couldn’t get his hopes up again. It was cruel enough for her – she would protect him from it this time.

Chapter Thirty

Chapter Thirty

Patrick Costello had been up half the night fighting with Carmel, and he was tired out. These days he was really feeling his age. His Carmel could keep a row going for fucking hours – she relished every second of it. Years ago he had too – the passionate fighting, followed by the even more passionate making up. Then it had been about making love for hours on end, picnics together in bed, champagne cocktails he would make for them, followed by more sexual gymnastics, and protestations of their undying love for one another. It was another lifetime.