After two days, I finally get inundated with calls and messages from Ethan. I ignore them all. Quite frankly, there’s nothing he can say. He’s made his choice. I hope he’s happy with it. Once I feel less murderous, I will be able to talk to him about custody and so forth, but right now, all I want to do is rip his head off.

As I come home from work and pull into my driveway, I realise I have no other choice but to talk to him. Despite the fact it’s nearly below freezing, he looks as though he’s been waiting by my door for hours. He’s visibly freezing, and also looks visibly miserable. A part of me feels elation for both, then I realise just how childish that is.

Once I place the car in park and turn off the ignition, I get out and walk toward my door. Immediately, he walks up to me. “Alice, I’m so sorry I didn’t make the appointment, but I have very good reason. I need to speak with you.”

Without saying anything, I open my door, knowing Ethan will follow. Once he shuts the door, he places his hands together and blows in them.

“You don’t need to explain anything to me. Sarah did that for you,” I say, placing my jacket on the hanger and bag on the counter. When I look up at him, he’s frowning.

“What do you mean?”

“The day we were supposed to go to the scan, I decided—stupidly—that it was a good idea to grab your favourite doughnuts and come over early. When I got there, Sarah opened the door wearing nothing but your shirt. You were in the shower and she was going to join you.” I look away, the tears starting to sting my eyes.

Ethan walks closer. “Alice, I didn’t know she had done this. When I got out of the shower, she was standing in my living room, visibly pregnant. I had no idea she was there or how she had gotten in. It turns out my landlord had been around. When he left, he bumped into Sarah. She told him she was my pregnant wife, so he let her in. Believe me, once she left, I had words with him about that.

I frown. “You’re not back together?”

“Fuck no! Not after everything she’s done. Even if she is pregnant with my baby, there’s no way I would want her back.” He places his hand on my cheek. “Not after finding you.” I lean into his hand, then remember.

“But you missed the appointment. No word. No nothing.”

Ethan looks pained as he edges closer. “I know, and I’m so sorry. When I saw Sarah standing there and she told me she was pregnant with my baby, I couldn’t think straight. I sat with her and we talked. Well, she mainly talked. I just stared at the wall in shock.” He shakes his head. “When I realised it was past your appointment time, I felt like a failure. After the fifth time I told Sarah we weren’t getting back together, she left. It was dark by then and I was exhausted. I tried ringing your mobile, but it went straight to voicemail. I knew that if I came around, you would be mad at me. I did come by this morning, but you had already left for work. I kept calling your phone and coming around, but you didn’t answer. I just thought it was because you were mad at me for missing the appointment. I never knew it was because Sarah had told you lies.” He pulls me closer. “What else did she say?”

“She said she was pregnant with your baby and you were getting back together.”

He shakes his head. “She isn’t the one I love anymore. How can I go back to that when I have everything I need and want right in front of me?”

I sigh. “This is huge, Ethan. What about the baby?”

Dropping his head, he takes my hand and leads me to the sofa. Once we sit, he strokes my arm tenderly. “I don’t even know if it’s my baby. I’ve demanded a paternity test, but she refuses to take one. She actually got angry that I would dare question who the father was.”

I bite my lip. “Well, considering how far gone she is, it’s highly probable. According to Kyle, they were only having an affair for a month before we split up.”

“I know, but I’m not taking any chances. This baby is probably mine, but I won’t know until the results are in. I’ll keep trying, but I think she’s going to make me wait until the baby is born.”

“Why do they keep doing this to us?” I sigh in exasperation. I know Kyle has gone quiet, but it still doesn’t take away from the fact that he made my life miserable. Sarah’s also been doing her best to that end. All this after what they did. It just doesn’t seem fair.

“I know. They cheat on us, but it’s somehow become our fault.” He laughs sadly. “Alice, I’m so sorry I missed the appointment. I feel terrible about it.”

I see the sincerity in his eyes and smile. “I have some pictures.”

His eyes light up. “Well, don’t keep me waiting.”

Getting up, I walk over to my drawer and take out a baby photo album I couldn’t resist getting in the store yesterday. I hand it to him, sitting down again.

“My First Pictures,” Ethan says, reading the front of the album. It has heart with a little teddy bear holding a baby in the middle.

“I saw it yesterday and just had to get it.”

He opens it up and studies the pictures. “She’s going to be beautiful.”

I frown. “She?”

He glances toward me. “A hunch.”

I scrutinise him, wondering if he means that or if he can actually tell we’re having a girl. “Well, whatever the baby is, we certainly can’t call it Kumquat.”

He starts laughing. “I don’t know. I quite like the name.”

I elbow him playfully. “You have got to be kidding me,” I snort in laughter, making Ethan give me a “what on earth was that” face.

“The baby’s healthy, but I think I need to take you to see someone about those piggy noises you keep making.”

“Piggy noises?” I screech. “How about you and your Mutley laugh?”

He frowns again. “Mutley laugh?”

“Yeah, from Wacky Races. Remember that?”

He shakes his head, but I can tell he knows who I mean. “That’s just mean.”

“Coming from the man who says I sound like a pig.”

He winks at me. “A very cute, sexy pig, though.”

My laughter vanishes, but I keep the smile on my face. “Thank you.” We stare at each other. I know if we continue, I won’t be able to control myself. For now, I’m too concerned about Sarah. “I can’t believe she’s pregnant,” I say, breaking the spell.

His face turns sad. “I know. All these years and nothing. Then we break up and she shows up like that.”

“Yeah, and the irony is she would have conceived just before we started trying for this baby.”

He looks into the distance, shaking his head. “Yep, that’s definitely irony for you.”

“How will you feel if you’re the father?”

“If I’m the father, I will be there for him or her. I will provide financial and fatherly support, but it won’t go beyond that. I’m a hundred percent certain I want to be here with you.” Scooting closer, he takes my hand. “If I’m the father, I will love her child as much as I love ours.” He places his hand on my belly, stirring up raw emotions inside me. One half wants to cry, and the other half wants to make sweet love to this man. “My home is wherever you are.” He swallows hard. “The only thing that concerns me is you won’t want me if I’m the father to another child.”

I gasp. “God no. I wouldn’t break up with you because of that. You didn’t know this would happen. None of us did. If we find out the baby is yours, I will support you one hundred percent. The only thing I can’t do is play ‘happy family’ with Sarah. I will be civil to her, of course, but I can never get back what we used to have.” Looking down, my shoulders sag. I just wish she hadn’t ruined everything between us. I really thought we were closer than that.

Ethan places his hand under my chin and lifts my face. “I know she hurt you. She hurt both of us. I wouldn’t expect you to make friends with her again. As long as you say you’re by my side, that’s all that really matters.”

He leans in, kissing me. I’m immediately swept away by his raw magnetism. It doesn’t matter that I found Sarah half-naked in his flat a couple days ago. I believe what he says. Unlike Kyle, I’m sure I can trust Ethan.

When he breaks the kiss and gets up, holding out his hand, I grasp it, letting him lead me to the bedroom. He undresses me, kissing my neck the whole time. I watch as he takes his clothes off before leading me to the bed. I’m desperately falling for this man, but I know he’ll be there to catch me.

After making love, Ethan utters three of the sweetest words I have ever heard. And it’s then I tell him how I feel.

“I love you, too.”