owen
Silence filledthe truck as we drove back home, my mind spinning from the weird run-in with her ex. I wasn’t concerned that there were lingering feelings there. I was confident enough in our relationship not to feel like I had to compete with someone who didn’t just break up with her but shattered her heart in the process.
There was no love lost there, of that, I was sure.
What I was reeling over was her telling him the babies were mine. From what I understood, she’d done IVF with her husband up until their divorce, and after the divorce, she’d used their remaining embryos to get pregnant.
There wasn’t a chance in hell that you and I could ever create something this perfect and magical together.
Carolina’s words lingered in my mind. She was so adamant—so convinced that her pregnancy had nothing to do with her ex-husband.
I took the exit for Sage River, knowing that our time together was coming to an end. If I was going to ask about what she’d said, I needed to do it now before we got back to her apartment.
“Why did you tell your ex that the babies were mine?”
I startled her when I broke the silence, and she turned to look at me, considering what to say. There was a long enough pause that I realized maybe my question wasn’t clear enough.
“I get you were trying to hurt him, but wouldn’t being with me and being happier than you’ve ever been—your words, by the way—be enough? Why lie and tell him the babies weren’t his?”
She shifted uncomfortably in her seat, playing with her lap belt for a moment before she took a deep breath and looked up at me. I saw the words on her face before she even said them. “It wasn’t a lie.”
I shook my head quickly. “It’s not possible. We didn’t hook up until after you were pregnant.”
“There was a mix-up at the fertility clinic. I’m not sure how but they said they mixed up your donation with my husband’s and …”
My donation.
My fingers tightened around the steering wheel. It’d been long enough now that I’d forgotten about that—a simple donation in exchange for some fast cash. I hadn’t really thought much about it since, but then I remembered I’d written on the form that my information could be disclosed to anyone who used the donation.
“You’ve known it was me for a while.”
Carolina grimaced, giving herself away.
I looked away from her, unbridled anger rushing through me.
“I’m sorry, Owen. I’ve been trying to figure out how to tell you, but I was scared.”
“Of what?” My tone was sharp as I turned to her, watching her flinch as she moved away from me. “I told you I wanted to be a father, that I was excited for those babies even if they weren’t mine. I told you I loved you regardless of everything. That wasn’t enough for you to tell me? Was this all some kind of test?” I shook my head, turning sharply into the apartment complex, rolling to a stop by the entrance. “I need time to think, Carolina. I need to process all of this and figure my shit out.”
I couldn’t look at her because I was hurt and because I knew that looking at her would make me cave. And I couldn’t cave right now. I just wanted to be angry.
“I’m so sorry, Owen. Please, believe me.” She touched my shoulder before pulling her hand away and pushing the door open. She slid out of the cab, and I didn’t bother to watch her walk inside. I just pulled away because I needed to be anywhere but here.
I found myself rolling along Main Street, back and forth aimlessly. I could go home, but I didn’t want to because I knew I’d just be surrounded by her and the promise of our future. I pulled off Main and found somewhere to idle while I considered what I would do.
We needed to talk, but I was still hurting and couldn’t trust myself to say what I needed to without hurting her back.
“Damn it.” I slapped my hand on the steering wheel before resting my forehead against it. I sat like that for a while, letting my mind run as I gave into angry thoughts, even if I knew in my heart, they weren’t true.
Someone knocked on the window, startling me. Twisting quickly, I found myself staring down the beam of a flashlight.
“Owen?” The light dropped away, and I blinked, trying to see clearly as I rolled down the window.
“Sheriff Butler.” I sounded formal, but he was in uniform, so this didn’t feel like a casual call.
“I got a call about a loiterer behind Elsie’s.” I looked around and noted I’d pulled into the parking lot behind the bakery before giving him a sheepish grin.
“Sorry, I was distracted and needed to stop driving. I can move.”