Chapter 25

When she walked in the door, I didn’t know what to expect. I hadn’t interacted with her in ages.

Ray’s mom didn’t exactly look like a mom—but she did look like Ray. Or rather, he looked like her.

“Hi, Mrs. Clarke,” I said, a little awkwardly as I shook her hand. This wasn’t how I’d imagined meeting Ray’s mother. She was supposed to arrive a week before the baby, with Ray there to make the introductions.

Her eyes swept over me—not in judgment, just quiet assessment. I suddenly felt self-conscious, like a teenager again. She probably thought I had tricked her son into marriage by getting pregnant.

But then she let go of her bag and wrapped her arms around me. The hug was firm, real—startling in its warmth. After a beat, I hugged her back, clinging to her like I’d been holding everything in for too long.

“Please, call me Sam, Kara,” she said, pulling back just enough to look at me. She placed her hands on my shoulders, and her eyes softened. “Ray always said you were beautiful, but he forgot to mention you’ve grown into someone absolutely stunning.”

I flushed and tucked my hair behind my ear. “I’m a mess,” I said. “Pretty sure Ray would have something different to say if he saw me right now.”

Sam shook her head with a small smile. “Oh, he’d say, ‘Hey Mum, look at my wife—aren’t I the luckiest guy in the world?’ And you are beautiful. Sitting by his bed, holding his hand, speaking to him like that ... that makes you the most beautiful woman in my eyes.”

“I’m really glad you’re here, Sam.”

“So am I. I just wish we were meeting under better circumstances—like the birth of my first granddaughter.” She glanced at my belly. “May I?”

I nodded, and her hands were on my stomach in an instant.

“Hi there, baby girl. I’m your grandma.”

As if on cue, Little One gave a solid kick. Sam’s mouth dropped open in surprise.

I let out a breath that was part laugh, part sob. Ray was missing this moment. That tore at something inside me.