"Wait, so his ex-girlfriend showed up and said he got her pregnant?"

I slurped the rest of my margarita through my straw. After the 'incident' this morning, I hauled ass home in a cab, changed clothes, then met Abby for lunch. And drinks. Lots of drinks.

"Yep."

"What did she look like?"

A fucking hag. "She was tall, blonde, and gorgeous." I scrunched my nose as I thought about my first impression of Jules. "She was super...I don't know. Fake. She's clearly had work done. She talks to you like you're worth less than the gum on her shoe."

"Wow," Abby replied with a shake of her head. "What a bitch. Do you think it's his?"

Dear God, I hoped not. If that baby was his, I didn't know what I was going to do. Could I stay with him if he had a child with another woman? With that woman? Ugh, what am I thinking...we aren't even together and I'm considering 'staying' wit him.

"I have no idea, Abby. Whether or not she's lying, why wait so long to tell him?" I believed him when he said he hadn't been with anyone for over eight months. Maybe she really was lying.

Abby sat up in her chair and had a solemn look on her face. "Karma, what if it is his and he did know?"

I was already shaking my head before she finished her sentence. "No. No, absolutely not. He wouldn't hide something like that from me."

The Nathan Jenkins I knew wouldn't lie to me. Not about something as important as a child.

"I know you want to believe that, but, sweetie, he left you alone in a hotel room without an explanation. Then you haven't seen each other in over a decade. People change. You have. Maybe he has, too."

It pained me to admit that she might be right. We both have changed over the past thirteen years. We weren't the same people we used to be. Even so, deep down I knew that I wasn't wrong about this.

"No, Abby. It doesn't matter how long it's been. I know Nathan. He didn't know."

Her expression told me she didn't share the same belief. "I hope so, Karma."

I pulled my phone out of my purse and turned it on. When I left Nathan's house this morning in a rush, I turned it off. I knew he was going to call me, but I needed time to think.

Once my phone rebooted, I winced. I had seven missed calls. All from Nathan.

I got up from my seat. "I'll be right back, Abby."

I walked to the front of the restaurant and stepped outside for a little privacy. I pushed one to call my voicemail and waited anxiously.

"Karma, if you get this, please call me back. I'm on my way to your place right now. Look, baby, I know what you must be thinking right now, but it's not true. I haven't been with anyone but you in almost a year. Please. We need to talk about this. I—fuck. Look, we have a lot to talk about. Call me. Or I'll see you in a few minutes."

According to the message details, this was over two hours old. Shit. I listened to the second message.

"Karma, I'm at your place but your car isn't here. Please tell me you didn't...leave." He sighed heavily through the receiver. I could picture him pacing on my porch while running a hand through his hair when he left this message. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm going to wait here for you. I don't care how long it takes."

There was an odd note to his voice when he was pleading for me to tell him that I haven't left. A feeling deep inside told me he meant that he was praying I didn't leave him the same way he left me. I could understand why he would think that. This time it was him leaving the voicemails on my phone. It was him driving to my house looking for me. Funny, even though the circumstances are upside down and backwards, it was almost like history was repeating itself.

I wasn't sure if I was ready to talk to him yet; but I didn't want him worrying like that. I dialed his number and he picked up on the first ring.

"Karma? Christ. I've been worried about you. Where are you?"

I nervously cleared my throat. "I'm with Abby."

His words were rushed and panicky. "I've been waiting here all morning. Are you okay, baby?"

I ignored the endearment and scoffed at his question. "Define 'okay', Nathan."

"Come home. Please? So we can talk about this."

My eyes slid closed briefly before I answered. "Okay. There's a key under the mat in the back. You can wait for me inside. I'm—I'm on my way."

"See you when you get here."

Without saying anything else to him, I hung up the phone and tried to get a grip. I took a few moments and sat on the small bench outside of the doors of the restaurant. Nathan was waiting at my house for me. I wanted to figure this out and talk about it; but at the same time, I was so confused.

Less than five hours ago, I was blissfully happy. I was the happiest I've been in a long time. Yes, the note and the ring I found did raise more questions that I needed answered. Why did he leave if he wanted a future with me? It didn't make sense. One thing at a time, Karma.

When I finally got up from the bench, I walked back inside and told Abby I was going to go home. I didn't mention that Nathan was there. This was the one time I didn't need her objective opinion. I knew she wanted the best for me, but that was the problem—I knew that Nathan was the best for me. I knew it with every fiber of my being.

It wasn't very long before I turned on my block. I blew air between my lips when I saw Nathan's black BMW parked on the side of the street. I pulled into my driveway, turned off my car, and headed to my front door. I didn't bother trying to unlock it. I knew he already did.

I stepped inside my house and threw the keys on the little table by the door. I heard noise in the living room and walked towards it. I stopped when I got to the archway. Nathan shot up from the couch and ran his gaze over me. There was worry in his eyes. He opened and closed his fists.

I knew Nathan a little too well—and I knew what he wanted. "It's okay, Nathan."

As if he was released from a cage, he came at me and gathered me in his arms. I wrapped mine around him and he buried his face in my neck.

"I'm sorry," he said against my skin. My heart ached at the pain in his voice.

"I know." I ran my hands over his back before he pulled away from me. I tucked my hair behind my ear. "We have a lot to talk about, don't we?"

He slipped his hands in his pockets and nodded. "Where do you want me to begin?"

The words slipped out quickly. "Did you know she was pregnant?" If he had known all along that she was pregnant, I didn't think I would be able to get past that.

I saw the truth in his eyes before he even answered. "No, I didn't."

"When were you last...um, I mean—I couldn't even finish the damn question.

"Around Lanie's birthday."

Wait..."What? Lanie's birthday? Her birthday is in February."

"I know," he replied, holding my stare.

"It's January now."

"I know."

It felt like a weight had been lifted off of my chest. "It's not yours." Not unless Jules was going for the longest pregnancy awards in the Guinness Book of World Records.

He shook his head slowly. "No, Karma. I told you I haven't been with anyone since before I got injured. I would never lie to you about something like that. She's trying to cause problems for me and my family."

I waved my arms. "Why? Why is she doing this to you?"

"I don't know. I'm supposed to go see her when I leave here. I needed to see you first. I needed to make sure you were okay before I—"

"You're going to see her? If the baby isn't yours, then why?" I knew I sounded like the jealous girlfriend, but who the fuck cared. I didn't want him around her.

Nathan reached out and took my hand. I let him lead me to the couch and we both took a seat. To be honest, it felt nice to be close to him. I needed that right now.

He looked me in the eye when he spoke again. "I'm going to tell you everything, but I need to start at the beginning." He took a deep breath and cleared his throat. I knew this was going to be hard for him. "I first met Jules three years ago. We met at a bar and hooked up."

My chest tightened. As much as I tried, I couldn't stop picturing Nathan and that woman in bed together. "And then what?" I coaxed him to continue.

"We slept together on and off ever since. Usually when I was on leave."

I grabbed one of the throw pillows on the couch and clutched it to my chest. "Did you love her?"

"No," he sneered. "Hell no. Look at me, Karma."

When I kept my eyes averted, he placed his fingers under my chin and forced my eyes to meet his.

"Karma, I want you to listen to me, and listen good. I've only been in love with one person—and she's sitting right in front of me."

My eyes watered at the sincerity in his voice. He was telling the truth. When a tear fell down my cheek, he wiped it away with his thumb.

"It's only been you, Karma. No one else."

I nodded and took a shuttering breath. As much as that made me happy to hear, I still needed to know the rest of the story. "How did it end with her?"

He dropped his hand and sat back against the couch. "The last time I was with her was Lanie's birthday. I spent a lot of time with her because I was trying to give Ayden and Lanie some alone time. They still didn't know that I was trying to get them together."

That reminder made me smile.

"When I was in a coma," he continued quietly, "there were times that I could hear the stuff going on around me. I could hear Ayden and Lanie talking to me. Lanie would threaten to kill me if I never woke up. She would tell me about her pregnancy."

I reached out and took his hand in mine. I may be confused and a little upset about everything, but I hated when Nathan was hurting-and right now, remembering his time in a coma...he was really hurting.

"Nathan, you don't have to tell me."

He shook his head. "It's okay. I want to." He scooted closer to me on the couch so his leg was brushed up agaisnt mine. He was seeking comfort. "Lanie was in the room with me. Jules found out I was in the hospital and she showed up. They've always hated each other. They got into it and Jules caused Lanie to have a panic attack. Her pregnancy was high risk and it almost...Yeah. After I woke up and found out what happened, I called Jules and told her to come by. We got into a screaming match in my room. I told her we were through and that I never wanted to see her again."

He exhaled a heavy breath. "She made threats. She said she was going to get revenge and make my life and Lanie's a living hell. With everything with the baby, we took out a restraining order. I haven't seen her since. Not until this morning."

Wow. She really was a crazy bitch. Even though we both knew this baby wasn't his—thank God—and I still had so many things we needed to work out. But I owed him an apology, too.

"I'm sorry I took off this morning," I said quietly. "After the night we had, I thought maybe things could be, I don't know, different between us. Then she showed up and I just needed to clear my head. I didn't mean to worry you."

"You don't have anything to apologize for."

I got up from the couch and he followed me as I walked towards the kitchen. "So, what now?"

"Now, I need to go talk to her and tell her to stay the fuck away or I'm calling the cops. I'm going to tell her that I know the baby isn't mine."

I worried my bottom lip. "And after?"

He walked up to me and cupped the side of my face. "After, I'm going to come back here and we are going to talk. About us. If you want to."

"Yes," I breathed and placed my hands on his chest. "We need to talk about us."

He smiled and it made me melt. "I'll bring some food."

"And wine."

He chuckled. "And wine."

I sighed against him when he kissed me. It was soft and short. A little too short. He traced his thumb over my bottom lip before he dropped his hand and headed for the door. He stopped and turned towards me before leaving.

"I'll be back soon, gorgeous."

Then he was gone.