The first pain didn’t announce itself like a dramatic moment.
It came like a quiet betrayal.
Eve was standing at the kitchen counter, one hand resting on the curve of her belly while she watched Marlene set out tea the way she always did, careful, neat, gentle, when Eve felt a sudden warmth that was not nausea, not sweat, not fear.
For a second, she just froze.
Because her body had been through too many surprises lately for her to trust anything that felt unfamiliar.
Then the warmth spread, downward, undeniable, and Eve’s breath caught.
Marlene looked up. “Madam?”
Eve’s fingers tightened around the edge of the counter. “I think… I think my water just broke.”
Marlene’s face changed instantly, shock, excitement, alarm, all colliding at once. “Oh my God. Oh my God!”
Eve’s heart slamm
