Jane Harvey-Berrick's Blog: Jane Harvey-Berrick
June 30, 2024
Free short story: 'THE LETTERS'
Your free short story for July is 'THE LETTERS' - a story of hope from despair.
When Emma's husband dies before completing the renovation of a crumbling hotel, Emma feels she must take on the job, even though she knows nothing about such an ambitious project. But help comes from a surprising place, and the old hotel is finally ready to reveal a secret that has lasted for more than a lifetime.
To read THE LETTERS for free, sign up to my newsletter
www.janeharveyberrick.com
When Emma's husband dies before completing the renovation of a crumbling hotel, Emma feels she must take on the job, even though she knows nothing about such an ambitious project. But help comes from a surprising place, and the old hotel is finally ready to reveal a secret that has lasted for more than a lifetime.
To read THE LETTERS for free, sign up to my newsletter
www.janeharveyberrick.com
June 4, 2024
Byron - FREE short s tory
If you read my short story for March, you'll know that I fell in love with the character of Byron, a disabled veteran with a wanderlust, and his tentative friendship with a shy librarian.
You can read all my short stories for FREE on my website, and sign up on the Home page
www.janeharveyberrick.com
* * * * *
She wasn’t coming. I knew she wasn’t coming. Why would she come here? I was a fool to think that she would. We’d barely had a proper conversation over the three months I’d known her as the girl behind the desk at Kensington Central Library. Why would I think that someone I hardly knew would travel two thousand miles on a whim, because of an off-the-cuff comment I’d made in the first sunny days of Spring?
I was also a little hazy on whether ‘meet me in three months’ really mean yesterday or today … possibly even tomorrow. As it was, I’d already wasted a whole day sitting here in the shade of a dusty olive tree waiting for her.
The burning sun that had darkened my skin and lightened my hair had turned the dusty, rolling hills into a scorched and barren land. Any softness had been stripped away, leaving the carcass of dried bushes twisted into wind-blasted sculptures. But its rawness had a beauty of its own, too, the bones of this mythical land showing through the layers of later centuries.
For a thousand years before the Greek gods made Olympus their home and the miniature island became the birthplace of Apollo and Artemis, Delos was a sanctuary.
Behind dark sunglasses, my eyes strain against the bleached earth and the violence of the harsh blue sky. The sea, the Aegean, is a softer, darker blue, promising cool currents in its quiet depths.
The Terrace of the Lions guard this ancient place, seven silent, snarling beasts glow in the sunlight, the brilliant white marble impossible to stare at for long.
The original guardians are long gone, tamed and caged in a museum, only the replicas remain.
I sit with my back to the pride, staring instead toward the slowly setting sun.
She didn’t come. I knew she wouldn’t. But learning has not taken place and I know that I will be here again tomorrow, waiting one more day. Waiting for a woman who won’t come.
As the sky fills with pink and peach-coloured clouds, I keep watch for a short, brown-haired woman with glasses – which describes most of the women I’ve met in Greece. But none of them have Mary’s bright blue eyes and her shy smile.
I don’t know why I’m here.
But somewhere, somehow, over the last three months as I slowly made my way from Thessaloniki to Peraia to Katerini, Lamia and Athens, she was no longer just ‘my little librarian’, she’d become ‘Mary, my friend’. The shift was subtle, intangible, but I thought about her more each day, wondering what she was doing, what books she was reading, the joy flickering on her face like a stuttering candle when she found another bookaholic, and on those nights I didn’t wake up screaming and sweating, seeing the accusing eyes of the dead, the friends I’d loved and lost; on the nights I thought of Mary’s quiet sense of calm, of knowing her worth in the world, on those nights, I slept with the innocence of a child.
I found myself looking forward to seeing her again, needing to see her again.
And finally, I yearned for her.
SUBSCRIBE TO MY NEWSLETTER to find out what happens next ...Jane Harvey-Berrick
You can read all my short stories for FREE on my website, and sign up on the Home page
www.janeharveyberrick.com
* * * * *
She wasn’t coming. I knew she wasn’t coming. Why would she come here? I was a fool to think that she would. We’d barely had a proper conversation over the three months I’d known her as the girl behind the desk at Kensington Central Library. Why would I think that someone I hardly knew would travel two thousand miles on a whim, because of an off-the-cuff comment I’d made in the first sunny days of Spring?
I was also a little hazy on whether ‘meet me in three months’ really mean yesterday or today … possibly even tomorrow. As it was, I’d already wasted a whole day sitting here in the shade of a dusty olive tree waiting for her.
The burning sun that had darkened my skin and lightened my hair had turned the dusty, rolling hills into a scorched and barren land. Any softness had been stripped away, leaving the carcass of dried bushes twisted into wind-blasted sculptures. But its rawness had a beauty of its own, too, the bones of this mythical land showing through the layers of later centuries.
For a thousand years before the Greek gods made Olympus their home and the miniature island became the birthplace of Apollo and Artemis, Delos was a sanctuary.
Behind dark sunglasses, my eyes strain against the bleached earth and the violence of the harsh blue sky. The sea, the Aegean, is a softer, darker blue, promising cool currents in its quiet depths.
The Terrace of the Lions guard this ancient place, seven silent, snarling beasts glow in the sunlight, the brilliant white marble impossible to stare at for long.
The original guardians are long gone, tamed and caged in a museum, only the replicas remain.
I sit with my back to the pride, staring instead toward the slowly setting sun.
She didn’t come. I knew she wouldn’t. But learning has not taken place and I know that I will be here again tomorrow, waiting one more day. Waiting for a woman who won’t come.
As the sky fills with pink and peach-coloured clouds, I keep watch for a short, brown-haired woman with glasses – which describes most of the women I’ve met in Greece. But none of them have Mary’s bright blue eyes and her shy smile.
I don’t know why I’m here.
But somewhere, somehow, over the last three months as I slowly made my way from Thessaloniki to Peraia to Katerini, Lamia and Athens, she was no longer just ‘my little librarian’, she’d become ‘Mary, my friend’. The shift was subtle, intangible, but I thought about her more each day, wondering what she was doing, what books she was reading, the joy flickering on her face like a stuttering candle when she found another bookaholic, and on those nights I didn’t wake up screaming and sweating, seeing the accusing eyes of the dead, the friends I’d loved and lost; on the nights I thought of Mary’s quiet sense of calm, of knowing her worth in the world, on those nights, I slept with the innocence of a child.
I found myself looking forward to seeing her again, needing to see her again.
And finally, I yearned for her.
SUBSCRIBE TO MY NEWSLETTER to find out what happens next ...Jane Harvey-Berrick
May 13, 2024
FREE short story
Every month, I write a free short story for my newsletter readers. You can sign up on my website: www.janeharveyberrick.com
This month's story is about a woman approaching her 40th birthday who decides to give dating apps one last try: PLENTY OF FISH is out on 18th May.
Enjoy!
Jane x
This month's story is about a woman approaching her 40th birthday who decides to give dating apps one last try: PLENTY OF FISH is out on 18th May.
Enjoy!
Jane x
October 18, 2023
new romcom SURVIVOR LOVE ISLAND
If you love reality TV shows, you'll LOVE this book...
AND...
If you hate reality TV shows, you'll LOVE this book!
Paige is looking forward to a free vacation on a tropical island, thanks to a new reality TV show.
Oz has an ex-military background and is playing to win.
But the other contestants aren’t going to make it easy … or pleasant. In fact, these game-players can be downright deadly.
With bizarre accidents, dodgy food, and a grumbling volcano, who’s hoping to survive, who’s going to thrive, and who’s going to fall in love?
And will anyone be going home with the prize money of $10 million? Not if the double-dealing, dastardly producers have anything to do with it.
The winner takes it all – but who wrote the rules?
September 13, 2023
All the Things I Wish I'd Said - new SHORT STORY (free)
You can read this new short story for FREE by signing up to my monthly newsletter...
Ella is in her last year of college. If she doesn't grow a backbone now, she never will...
"I was trapped in an Olivia Rodrigo song—in fact I think she wrote Bad Idea about me. My little sister, Katie, is totally into her music. I wouldn’t admit it to her, but it’s got a certain singalong-ability, especially after slamming tequila shots."
Out on 15th September
www.janeharveyberrick.com
Ella is in her last year of college. If she doesn't grow a backbone now, she never will...
"I was trapped in an Olivia Rodrigo song—in fact I think she wrote Bad Idea about me. My little sister, Katie, is totally into her music. I wouldn’t admit it to her, but it’s got a certain singalong-ability, especially after slamming tequila shots."
Out on 15th September
www.janeharveyberrick.com
May 19, 2022
🔮She can see the future...
GYPSY
OUT TODAY!
Born into a family of travelers, Gypsy leaves Ireland to meet her cousin who works in a traveling carnival, 3,000 miles away across the Atlantic.
She has a special gift for healing wounded hearts, and hopes to heal her own.
As she travels through America, she meets people on the journey who need her special help – a lovelorn waitress, a runaway boy, and a brooding mechanic who’s as lost and lonely as Gypsy.
Against the carnival’s backdrop of sawdust and stardust, they travel west, searching for love, and a family that they can build for themselves.
***
EXTRACT
A couple of teenaged girls came to my booth to have their fortunes told, each prodding the other to go first. Eventually, the taller one named Shelby went first, and her friend, Annemarie, waited outside.
“What do you want to know, Shelby?”
“Do you have a limit on questions?” she asked anxiously.
“Nope, ask away. You want to know if a certain boy likes you.”
Her mouth dropped open. “Oh, my God, yes! Can you read my mind?”
I smiled at her, “Not in the way you mean.” I took her hands in mine, studying them carefully. “He likes you but he’s not very sure of himself. He’s hoping you’ll make the first move.”
“Wow! Really?”
“Yes, but he’s nervous about what his friends will say.”
“He has sucky friends,” she frowned.
And then I saw with great clarity that the girl she was with was not a true friend, and was after the guy Shelby was interested in. This happened occasionally and was always tricky to deal with.
“There’s someone in your life who isn’t the friend you think they are,” I said delicately. “Stay true to yourself and don’t be swayed by the opinion of others—the truth will come out.”
She leaned forward, her eyes darting to the entrance.
“Can you see who it is?” she whispered.
“Someone close,” I repeated.
She chewed her lip for a while.
“Will I ever live abroad?”
I closed my eyes, following the threads of her life.
“Hmm, I don’t think so, Shelby. But I do see a lot of traveling. Looks fun!”
She smiled brightly. “Am I going to have kids?”
“I see you surrounded by little kids—wow, there’s a lot of them. Maybe you’re thinking about becoming an elementary school teacher?”
Her eyes widened and her mouth made a little O shape of surprise.
“I was going to, but Annemarie said that was lame.”
“I’m sure you can make your own choices,” I smiled at her, pleased when she nodded decisively.
She stood up to leave, then suddenly asked, “Am I going to pass my math test next week.”
I pretended to look into the crystal ball.
“I’m afraid not, Shelby.”
“Oh my God! My mom will kill me!”
“Wait, the mists are clearing! I see you studying very hard, very hard indeed. I think you could pass. You are master of your own destiny, Shelby.”
As she left, I couldn’t resist smiling to myself. I totally made up that part about studying because I had no idea about her test, but I figured it couldn’t hurt. I’d left school at 11 and I’d often wondered if I’d missed out. I was brought up to be a wife and mother—nothing else mattered. But these girls, their futures were very different.
And I couldn’t help thinking that my life had taken a very different turn since I’d arrived in the New World.
Shelby’s friend, Annemarie, asked similar sorts of questions, and I was fairly certain that the boy they were both into wasn’t worth their time, but that was for them to figure out. She certainly didn’t have Shelby’s best interests at heart, but I could see that she was very insecure, so she put down others to make herself feel better. I told her that she was very artistic and that it was something she should pursue.
“You mean like my makeup tips on TikTok?”
“Could be,” I said, and was pleased when she walked out with a smile on her face.
🔮Amazon https://geni.us/Gypsy
OUT TODAY!
Born into a family of travelers, Gypsy leaves Ireland to meet her cousin who works in a traveling carnival, 3,000 miles away across the Atlantic.
She has a special gift for healing wounded hearts, and hopes to heal her own.
As she travels through America, she meets people on the journey who need her special help – a lovelorn waitress, a runaway boy, and a brooding mechanic who’s as lost and lonely as Gypsy.
Against the carnival’s backdrop of sawdust and stardust, they travel west, searching for love, and a family that they can build for themselves.
***
EXTRACT
A couple of teenaged girls came to my booth to have their fortunes told, each prodding the other to go first. Eventually, the taller one named Shelby went first, and her friend, Annemarie, waited outside.
“What do you want to know, Shelby?”
“Do you have a limit on questions?” she asked anxiously.
“Nope, ask away. You want to know if a certain boy likes you.”
Her mouth dropped open. “Oh, my God, yes! Can you read my mind?”
I smiled at her, “Not in the way you mean.” I took her hands in mine, studying them carefully. “He likes you but he’s not very sure of himself. He’s hoping you’ll make the first move.”
“Wow! Really?”
“Yes, but he’s nervous about what his friends will say.”
“He has sucky friends,” she frowned.
And then I saw with great clarity that the girl she was with was not a true friend, and was after the guy Shelby was interested in. This happened occasionally and was always tricky to deal with.
“There’s someone in your life who isn’t the friend you think they are,” I said delicately. “Stay true to yourself and don’t be swayed by the opinion of others—the truth will come out.”
She leaned forward, her eyes darting to the entrance.
“Can you see who it is?” she whispered.
“Someone close,” I repeated.
She chewed her lip for a while.
“Will I ever live abroad?”
I closed my eyes, following the threads of her life.
“Hmm, I don’t think so, Shelby. But I do see a lot of traveling. Looks fun!”
She smiled brightly. “Am I going to have kids?”
“I see you surrounded by little kids—wow, there’s a lot of them. Maybe you’re thinking about becoming an elementary school teacher?”
Her eyes widened and her mouth made a little O shape of surprise.
“I was going to, but Annemarie said that was lame.”
“I’m sure you can make your own choices,” I smiled at her, pleased when she nodded decisively.
She stood up to leave, then suddenly asked, “Am I going to pass my math test next week.”
I pretended to look into the crystal ball.
“I’m afraid not, Shelby.”
“Oh my God! My mom will kill me!”
“Wait, the mists are clearing! I see you studying very hard, very hard indeed. I think you could pass. You are master of your own destiny, Shelby.”
As she left, I couldn’t resist smiling to myself. I totally made up that part about studying because I had no idea about her test, but I figured it couldn’t hurt. I’d left school at 11 and I’d often wondered if I’d missed out. I was brought up to be a wife and mother—nothing else mattered. But these girls, their futures were very different.
And I couldn’t help thinking that my life had taken a very different turn since I’d arrived in the New World.
Shelby’s friend, Annemarie, asked similar sorts of questions, and I was fairly certain that the boy they were both into wasn’t worth their time, but that was for them to figure out. She certainly didn’t have Shelby’s best interests at heart, but I could see that she was very insecure, so she put down others to make herself feel better. I told her that she was very artistic and that it was something she should pursue.
“You mean like my makeup tips on TikTok?”
“Could be,” I said, and was pleased when she walked out with a smile on her face.
🔮Amazon https://geni.us/Gypsy
May 16, 2022
THE VISION OF RUDI GAMBATTO
Brought up in a brutal word of the Mafia Mobster, Rudi Gambatto’s soul is mired in darkness. But a stranger brings a flicker of hope into his twilight life...
My new free short story will be going out in ten days on May 26. Sign up to receive my new short story each monthJane Harvey-Berrick
💜http://janeharveyberrick.co.uk/shorts...
My new free short story will be going out in ten days on May 26. Sign up to receive my new short story each monthJane Harvey-Berrick
💜http://janeharveyberrick.co.uk/shorts...
January 11, 2022
Gemma is about to become NOTORIOUS!
I'll be sending out my new short story this weekend. You can sign up to receive a new story each month completely free!
Readers told be that they loved receiving a new story each month last year, especially because I wrote in different genres: contemporary, new adult, romcom, paranormal, historical romance, drama, and it was fun for me, too.
Sign up here
http://janeharveyberrick.co.uk/shorts...
with no obligation - and you can cancel at any time.
This month:
Gemma is the victim of a case of mistaken identity and is about to become NOTORIOUS!
www.janeharveyberrick.com
Readers told be that they loved receiving a new story each month last year, especially because I wrote in different genres: contemporary, new adult, romcom, paranormal, historical romance, drama, and it was fun for me, too.
Sign up here
http://janeharveyberrick.co.uk/shorts...
with no obligation - and you can cancel at any time.
This month:
Gemma is the victim of a case of mistaken identity and is about to become NOTORIOUS!
www.janeharveyberrick.com
December 20, 2021
A Winter Gift - short story
If you'd like to read my heart-warming short story, it will be in my newsletter on December 23rd - definitely one for dog lovers!
http://janeharveyberrick.co.uk/newsle...One Careful Owner
http://janeharveyberrick.co.uk/newsle...One Careful Owner
November 27, 2021
A baby son and a special baby
𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗕𝗔𝗕𝗬 𝗚𝗔𝗠𝗘 (Gym or Chocolate #3), a laugh-out-loud romcom about the joys and perils of parenthood by Stuart Reardon & Jane Harvey-Berrick is available now!
Download 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗕𝗔𝗕𝗬 𝗚𝗔𝗠𝗘 for ONLY $3.99 or read in Kindle Unlimited now!
FREE in Amazon KUThe Baby Game https://geni.us/BabyGame
EXTRACT
I’d played rugby in front of thousands of people, been vilified on social media when an ex spun a load of lies about me, and I’ve been shown kissing my wife on national television when she’d finished running the New York marathon … but leaving the hospital with my newborn son was the most petrifying moment of my life.
When the nurse said, “You can take your son home now, Mr. Roberts,” I froze to the spot, then turned to Cady, who looked equally horrified.
“Are you sure?” I asked.
“Unless you’re planning on moving in,” she said drily. “I’ll give you a moment.”
She left the room, and Cady and I stared at each other, then down at Phoenix who was sleeping in my arms.
“I feel like we’re being evicted,” Cady whispered. “Should we offer to pay more rent and stay for a few days longer?”
I desperately wanted to say yes. I’d read every book and online article; I watched videos on YouTube and re-read my notes from the Lamaze class, and I still felt wholly unprepared for this moment.
“I can’t believe they’re just going to let us leave,” Cady said, her eyes huge. “Shouldn’t there be a test or something? Or maybe a certificate? How does she know we’re competent parents?”
Because we’re not.
But one of us needed to break the deadlock. Phoenix was 8.75lb—how much trouble could he really be?
Cady bent her face towards him. “Hi, beautiful! Do you want to come home with Mommy and Dadd— oh boy!” she said, pulling back. “He’s a bit stinky. I think he pooped. He has poopy pants.”
I held him gingerly, as if he was a ticking time-bomb.
“I used to think it was weird when Vin’s dogs sniffed each other’s butts, but seeing you do it takes on a whole new level of weirdness.”
“I don’t sniff dogs’ butts,” she objected. “And you have to change him.”
“Me? Why do I have to change him?”
“Because I’m recovering from a C-section, dufus!”
“That doesn’t stop you changing a nappy.”
“You’re in the good ole US of A now, sport, and we call it a diaper.”
“Whatever, we’ll change it together.”
We laid him on Cady’s hospital bed on top of a towel, then gingerly unfastened Phoenix’s diaper.
“Wow,” said Cady, awestruck. “His poop is bright green. Is it supposed to be that color? It looks kind of like pureed spinach.”
I felt vomit start to rise in my throat, and I had to swallow quickly or risk hurling over my son. I would never eat spinach again.
Phoenix waved his arms and kicked his legs, managing to smear green poop across his stomach, back and legs.
We both took a step back, afraid that the radioactive poop was coming our way.
At that moment, the nurse came back with an exasperated expression, followed closely behind by Becca and the film crew. I cursed softly and Cady glared at them.
“Try to look competent!” she hissed.
“How?” I hissed back.
“Here,” she said, handing me a pack of baby wipes while she dug into the diaper bag for a fresh one.
“Oh dear!” said the nurse in a no-nonsense voice. “Someone’s made a bit of a mess,” and mommy … or is it daddy? Is going to clean you up.”
She turned to me, and I saw Cady pointing in my direction.
“Uh, we’re doing it together,” I said, sounding decidedly shifty.
“Is his poop supposed to be bright green?” Cady asked warily.
“It’s completely normal for a baby to have green poop,” the nurse explained. “But that looks a little frothy—it probably means he’s not staying on the breast long enough.”
Tears formed in Cady’s eyes. “I’m doing my best!”
“It’ll come,” the nurse said kindly. “Very few moms managed it on the first go-round. Now, who’s going to clean up little Phoenix?”
Cady pointed at me again. “He is. My stitches hurt,” and she threw me a triumphant smile.
Aware that Felix’s camera was poking through the doorway, I had no choice but to head into the breech. Armed with a whole pack of baby wipes when I really wanted a biohazard suit and breathing apparatus, I managed to clean him up, but just as I was about to put him into a fresh nappy, um, diaper, the little sod peed in my face. I was hit in the eye by a jet of warm piss.
“Ugh! Fu— fudge!” I grimaced.
Cady was killing herself laughing, and I saw Felix’s shoulders shake as he filmed me wiping wee off my face with the baby wipes.
I staggered to the basin to rinse my eyeball, wondering what eye infections I could get from being hit by a geyser of baby wee.
Then Phoenix threw up down my t-shirt. He was leaking from both ends and I had no idea what to do.
Download 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗕𝗔𝗕𝗬 𝗚𝗔𝗠𝗘 for ONLY $3.99 or read in Kindle Unlimited now!
FREE in Amazon KUThe Baby Game https://geni.us/BabyGame
EXTRACT
I’d played rugby in front of thousands of people, been vilified on social media when an ex spun a load of lies about me, and I’ve been shown kissing my wife on national television when she’d finished running the New York marathon … but leaving the hospital with my newborn son was the most petrifying moment of my life.
When the nurse said, “You can take your son home now, Mr. Roberts,” I froze to the spot, then turned to Cady, who looked equally horrified.
“Are you sure?” I asked.
“Unless you’re planning on moving in,” she said drily. “I’ll give you a moment.”
She left the room, and Cady and I stared at each other, then down at Phoenix who was sleeping in my arms.
“I feel like we’re being evicted,” Cady whispered. “Should we offer to pay more rent and stay for a few days longer?”
I desperately wanted to say yes. I’d read every book and online article; I watched videos on YouTube and re-read my notes from the Lamaze class, and I still felt wholly unprepared for this moment.
“I can’t believe they’re just going to let us leave,” Cady said, her eyes huge. “Shouldn’t there be a test or something? Or maybe a certificate? How does she know we’re competent parents?”
Because we’re not.
But one of us needed to break the deadlock. Phoenix was 8.75lb—how much trouble could he really be?
Cady bent her face towards him. “Hi, beautiful! Do you want to come home with Mommy and Dadd— oh boy!” she said, pulling back. “He’s a bit stinky. I think he pooped. He has poopy pants.”
I held him gingerly, as if he was a ticking time-bomb.
“I used to think it was weird when Vin’s dogs sniffed each other’s butts, but seeing you do it takes on a whole new level of weirdness.”
“I don’t sniff dogs’ butts,” she objected. “And you have to change him.”
“Me? Why do I have to change him?”
“Because I’m recovering from a C-section, dufus!”
“That doesn’t stop you changing a nappy.”
“You’re in the good ole US of A now, sport, and we call it a diaper.”
“Whatever, we’ll change it together.”
We laid him on Cady’s hospital bed on top of a towel, then gingerly unfastened Phoenix’s diaper.
“Wow,” said Cady, awestruck. “His poop is bright green. Is it supposed to be that color? It looks kind of like pureed spinach.”
I felt vomit start to rise in my throat, and I had to swallow quickly or risk hurling over my son. I would never eat spinach again.
Phoenix waved his arms and kicked his legs, managing to smear green poop across his stomach, back and legs.
We both took a step back, afraid that the radioactive poop was coming our way.
At that moment, the nurse came back with an exasperated expression, followed closely behind by Becca and the film crew. I cursed softly and Cady glared at them.
“Try to look competent!” she hissed.
“How?” I hissed back.
“Here,” she said, handing me a pack of baby wipes while she dug into the diaper bag for a fresh one.
“Oh dear!” said the nurse in a no-nonsense voice. “Someone’s made a bit of a mess,” and mommy … or is it daddy? Is going to clean you up.”
She turned to me, and I saw Cady pointing in my direction.
“Uh, we’re doing it together,” I said, sounding decidedly shifty.
“Is his poop supposed to be bright green?” Cady asked warily.
“It’s completely normal for a baby to have green poop,” the nurse explained. “But that looks a little frothy—it probably means he’s not staying on the breast long enough.”
Tears formed in Cady’s eyes. “I’m doing my best!”
“It’ll come,” the nurse said kindly. “Very few moms managed it on the first go-round. Now, who’s going to clean up little Phoenix?”
Cady pointed at me again. “He is. My stitches hurt,” and she threw me a triumphant smile.
Aware that Felix’s camera was poking through the doorway, I had no choice but to head into the breech. Armed with a whole pack of baby wipes when I really wanted a biohazard suit and breathing apparatus, I managed to clean him up, but just as I was about to put him into a fresh nappy, um, diaper, the little sod peed in my face. I was hit in the eye by a jet of warm piss.
“Ugh! Fu— fudge!” I grimaced.
Cady was killing herself laughing, and I saw Felix’s shoulders shake as he filmed me wiping wee off my face with the baby wipes.
I staggered to the basin to rinse my eyeball, wondering what eye infections I could get from being hit by a geyser of baby wee.
Then Phoenix threw up down my t-shirt. He was leaking from both ends and I had no idea what to do.
Jane Harvey-Berrick
Find out more about my upcoming books, as well as free one-shots / new povs from published books.
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