Chapter 5
The story changed something.
It did not fix anything.
That was the hardest part.
I could understand the pain behind the name and still be furious she had hidden the truth.
I could feel compassion and still feel betrayed.
I sat across from Nia while the baby slept between us, and I realized love did not make decisions simpler.
It made every decision bleed.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked.
“Because I thought you would think I still loved him.”
“Did you?”
She looked down.
“Part of me loved what he represented.”
“That is not an answer.”
Her eyes lifted.
“I didn’t want him instead of you.”
“But you kept him.”
She nodded slowly.
“In some ways, yes.”
The honesty hurt.
But it was better than the hospital.
Better than watching her hide behind fear.
I looked at the nursery.
The name on the wall felt less like an attack now.
Still wrong.
Still painful.
But not as simple as I wanted it to be.
“Did you sleep with him after we got back together?”
“No.”
“Did you kiss him?”
“No.”
“Did you tell him he might be the father?”
“Yes.”
My jaw tightened.
“When?”
“Two months after I found out.”
I closed my eyes.
“So he knew before I did.”
“Yes.”
I stood.
Nia reached for me.
“Marcus.”
I stepped back.
“No. Do not touch me right now.”
She pulled her hand away.
The baby stirred, and both of us froze.
He settled again.
Nia whispered, “I know I broke something.”
“You broke the timeline of my life.”
She cried quietly.
“I know.”
“No, you don’t. I was making memories while you were making contingency plans.”
Her face crumpled.
“You think I wanted this?”
“I think you wanted to keep everyone until the truth chose for you.”
That landed.
She looked away.
I grabbed my jacket.
“Where are you going?”
“To breathe.”
“Please don’t disappear.”
I turned at the door.
“I am not disappearing. I am doing what you should have done. Taking space before I make choices that hurt everyone.”
Outside, Jacob was standing near his car.
I stopped.
He looked exhausted.
“What are you doing here?”
“Nia texted me not to come. So I came to the parking lot instead.”
“That makes sense to you?”
“No.”
I stared at him.
He rubbed his hands over his face.
“I know you hate me.”
“I don’t know you well enough to hate you.”
“That’s fair.”
I stepped closer.
“Did you know she was naming him Jacob?”
“No.”
“Did you want her to?”
His answer came too slowly.
My chest tightened.
“Tell the truth.”
He looked toward the apartment window.
“When she told me she was pregnant, I was stupid. I imagined things. I thought maybe fate was giving me back what I lost.”
“What you lost?”
“Nia.”
I looked at him hard.
He nodded.
“I know. I had no right. She chose you.”
“But you stayed close.”
“She was scared.”
“So you became the hero again.”
He flinched.
Good.
“I’m not proud of it.”
“Were you hoping the baby was yours?”
His eyes filled.
“Yes.”
There it was.
No softening it.
No hiding.
I looked away.
At least he had the decency to say it.
“But not like this,” he added. “Not by destroying you.”
“You don’t get points for regretting damage after standing near the match.”
He nodded once.
“You’re right.”
I expected excuses.
He gave none.
That annoyed me because it made him harder to hate.
My phone buzzed.
Unknown number.
I almost ignored it.
Then I answered.
“Mr. Brooks?” a woman asked. “This is Dr. Patel from Mercy Hospital.”
My heart slammed.
“The test?”
“There has been a complication.”
My hand tightened around the phone.
“What complication?”
“I cannot discuss details over the phone, but the lab flagged the samples. We need you, Ms. Carter, and Mr. Ellis to return tomorrow morning.”
Jacob stepped closer.
“What happened?”
I stared at the apartment window.
Nia stood there holding the baby.
Her face was pale.
I said into the phone, “Was there a mistake?”
Dr. Patel hesitated.
“The initial report shows something unusual. It does not match a simple paternity dispute.”
My blood went cold.
May you like
“What does that mean?”
“It means we need to verify whether the baby tested is biologically related to any of the submitted adults.”
