Page 26 of Resolving Rumors

"Funny, but that's not how it looked this morning when I saw the two of your together having a meal with your parents.”

"What were you doing there?" He asked in a clipped tone.

"I had a fucking doctor appointment that I couldn't even go to because I couldn't force myself to get out of the car and be seen by you after watching how happy your whole family was together."

My emotions got the better of me as yelled the accusations at him. I'd like to blame the fact that I hadn't received my shot today, but I think the hormonal issue I was having had more to do with the broken heart than the birth control – or lack thereof.

"It wasn't like that, Vic."

"Wasn't it?" I asked.

"No, I swear. I told my parents the truth about everything. They know about you and what happened with Justice."

"Well, they seemed pretty happy with her and your dad made it very obvious he didn't want you coming after me."

Devin's shoulders slumped. "They're angry that I'm in this situation with a wife I don't want and a baby on the way that isn't mine. My parents blame you for putting me in a place where any of that was possible."

"They blame me? They blame me for your cheating and running off to marry a woman who claimed to be pregnant with your child before you could even ask any questions – like ‘Is it mine?'."

"They blame you for being ashamed of me and making us a secret to begin with. Everything else, they put directly on my shoulders because I'm a fucking adult and I made the idiotic decisions I did all on my own. They blame both of us for the mess I have to make to set it all right.”

"How do you know it's not your baby?"

“Not that I didn’t already suspect, but I saw her ultrasound picture and it confirmed some things for me. Considering we only had sex that once - maybe-”He scrunched his nose up on that last word

“Maybe?” I questioned.

“You know I don’t remember. It still doesn’t sit right with me that my body was able to get onboard when my brain was complete mush. I wish you had just stuck around that day when you first found out, so we could work everything out then.”

"If you'd talked to me before running off to marry another fucking woman, maybe my initial reaction wouldn’t have been to run, Devin! Jesus! How would you have felt if you came to my place and heard me talking to my brand new husband about a baby we made together? How would it make you feel to know that there would only be one way for a baby to be in the mix and that meant I was unfaithful?"

"It would suck," he admitted.

"No! It doesn't just suck. It broke me. You broke me!" I clutched at my heart as tears streamed down my face. He didn’t understand what it felt like and he never would. There was no way I could ever put him in a similar situation. “I’ve been living in this weird bubble with you the past few weeks where I couldn’t even acknowledge that there was a baby that might be yours.After not speaking to you for a few days, it all sunk in again. It’s like a dam breaking after too much rain. It all came back full force this time.”

"You don't think being a secret for two years has broken me?"

"I'm sure it has," I whispered in defeat, knowing it must have been heartbreaking at times to be with me, but never be seen with me. "I was wrong, and now there's no going back from where we are. We literally can't come clean with our secret."

"Why the hell not?"

“You are the one who is trapped in the situation with her and you and your family put the blame for that on my shoulders. It's funny how your parents just accepted her and the situation she's in, but they seem to think I'm the devil."

"They don't know who the father is.” His admission nearly floored me. Why hadn’t he told them that part? Why had he spared the dirty details when it came to her, but not me?

"Well, isn't that rich. I thought you told them the truth.” I laughed and turned my back on the man I once loved. "I guess I'm the whipping boy in this situation, since I created it. I think you should leave now. You made it pretty clear where your loyalties lie and they're not with me."

"You went on a date with another man!” He yelled at me then, as if that one moment in our lives was the defining moment that changed everything. I knew better.

"No, I fucking didn't! My mother arranged a date for me and one of her friend's sons. I said I would go but made myself so sick about it that I ended up throwing up because of the anxiety swirling in my belly over going through with it. I never went on the stupid fucking date. I never kissed another man, never held his hand, never even said more than “Hello” to him. I certainly didn’t wake up naked with anyone. I sure as fuck never had the potential of being pregnant by another man while we weretogether, and damn sure didn't get married to anyone else. You know who did ALL OF THOSE THINGS? You did!”

“I was talking about the other night.”

I rolled my eyes at Devin. “Oh, so now two of my supposed dates are the problem. Never mind that you were cozy with your pregnant wife that night and I didn’t even know about the blind date I’d been set up on until he showed up. And you know what, Dev? Thank fuck he showed up.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean, Vic?”

“Thank fuck he showed up because that strange man showing me kindness was the only reason I made it out of Frederick’s with any dignity, and certainly without spilling all my tears and bleeding out my heartaches all over everyone’s meals. He saved me from the humiliation of watching you eat out of that bitch’s hand. Now, get the hell out of my house and go back to the treacherous whore you married. Have fun figuring out which of your other phone numbers she screwed with. When you don't hear from my brother ever again – you know where to look for answers."

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