Brielle jiggled the key to her friend’s apartment as she undid the lock and pushed the door open. It’d been another hellish day of job searching; there was nothing for her out there. The only opportunity had been a drive thru operator at a greasy fast food joint and she just hadn’t been able to accept the position. Not only did the restaurant smell like sweaty feet, but she thought she’d seen a rat in the corner. She’d also nearly lost her lunch as a severe case of morning sickness had set itself in.

She had managed to get lucky with only getting sick a few times; but when it hit her it hit her and she would hardly be able to move from the bathroom floor of Lily’s apartment. And right now her stomach was churning and she knew it’d be another night spent by the toilet bowl. Then she’d have to force herself to head out again tomorrow to hunt down some more jobs. She really needed to find something soon, Lily and Jordan had been so sweet to let her stay, but it’d been nearly two weeks now and she was as ready as they were to get out of there. They were trying to plan a wedding and the last thing either of them needed was a homeless girl hanging around.

Moving into the apartment, the sullen blonde closed the door behind her and tossed the keys onto the table. Not only was she sick to her stomach, but her feet were sore and she was exhausted. Lily had brought home a pregnancy book the other day and Brielle had just started reading through it. So far, she was definitely feeling the symptoms of the first trimester. She’d also started tracking the days and weeks on an extra calendar her friend had and today would be the middle of her eleventh week. Hopefully the morning sickness would die down, but would only be replaced with lower back aches, uncontrollable bladder and shortness of breath. And she didn’t even want to think about how she would afford maternity clothes when her stomach really started to fill out. At the time, she got by with using a rubberband to hold the button of her pants so they wouldn’t fall, unfortunately they didn’t make them any bigger once she really started to show.

“Brie? Is that you?” Lily appeared in the doorway of the foyer. She frowned at the sight of her friend and moved closer. “Are you okay?”

Brielle faked a grin. “Yeah, I’m okay, just tired. And I had the worst interview at this greasy fast food place,” she shuddered at the thought, “I think I need a shower.”

“Aww, honey, you can take one in just a minute, first,” she took her friend’s hand, “there’s someone here waiting for you.”

The blonde blinked. “What? Who?”

Lily couldn’t help the grin that tugged at her lips. “He’s in the living room, come see.”

“He?” She stayed in her place when the brunette tried to tug her with her. “Who’s in there, Lily?”

“Come in and see for yourself.”

Brielle frowned some and glanced towards the archway that led into the living room. There wasn’t a single person she could think of who would be coming to visit her. The only guys she really even talked to were Jordan and Cory from the convenience store, but he didn’t even know who Lily was or where she lived. “Why can’t you just tell me?” She turned her tired blue eyes back to her bestie.

Lily sighed. “Because, I wanted it to be a surprise.”

“Oh my gosh,” she looked towards the archway again then back to the other female, “it’s not Eric, is it?” The idea of her ex boyfriend showing up at her doorstep had gone repeatedly through her mind ever since she left home, but the idea of it being a reality really scared Brielle.

“Eric?” Lily frowned some. “No, it’s not Eric. Just please, come see.” She sighed and gave her friend’s hand a tug.

Brielle’s shoulders sagged in defeat. “Alright, I’ll come see who it is, but then can I take a nice, hot shower? Ooh, maybe a bath instead.”

“Yes, yes, you can take a shower, a bath or both after. Now, c’mon.” And she led her friend through the archway and towards the decorative living room.

The blonde followed along, wondering who it would be that had come to see her, but too tired to put much thought or worry into it. If she hadn’t been pregnant, Brielle might think Lily was trying to set her up with someone, but she knew her friend wouldn’t thrust her into that situation with the situation she was already dealing with.

“Okay, who am I supposed to be seeing?” She questioned as they entered the room, but then stopped short and gaped at the figure standing before the fireplace. He was dressed in some casual jeans and a plain black tee that clung to his body showing off his firm features. A pair of dark sunglasses hung from the collar of his shirt and he had his hands shoved nervously into his pockets. She recognized the tattoos instantly and then the rest of him and her stomach took a dive right into her shoes.

With eyes as big as saucers, she turned to her friend. “Wh…what is he doing here?”

Lily sent her a guilty grin and shrugged.

Brielle frowned. “Lily…”

“Lily didn’t do anything wrong,” Alex spoke up.

The blonde turned her eyes back to him. “She didn’t? Then how did you just happen to show up here?”

He shrugged some. “I…wanted to see you.”

Her eyes narrowed.

He sighed and pulled his hands from his pockets. “She was only trying to help.”

“I told her I didn’t need any help.”

“Well, it kinda looks like you do.” He lifted his brows and watched her with those eyes that had a horrible habit of drawing her too far in last time they were together.

“Look,” Lily spoke up, taking a step closer, “I’m sorry if you think I overstepped my boundary, but you really need some help, Brie, and he has a right to know that he’s going to be a father.”

Brielle thought she was having a mini heart attack. She whirled on her friend. “He knows!?”

She flinched. “…Yes.”

“I cannot believe you went behind my back and told him!” The anger was starting to boil up and her hands balled into fists. “I specifically told you it was my decision and you flat out ignored me and went behind my back to tell him!” A pause. “How the hell did you even find him?”

She sighed some and rubbed the back of her neck. “I did some research and found his mom on Facebook.”

Brielle grabbed for the nearest sturdy object, feeling her head growing light. “His…his mom knows?”

“Well, I had to get her attention.”

She tried to stand right, but the room was slowly tilting. “Lily…you know,” a weird pressure was filling her head, “that I didn’t want,” tiny black spots began to dance before her eyes and she wavered, “to tell-” and then she was going down, her knees buckling and collapsing face forward to the floor.

“Shit!” Alex lunged for her, grabbing her arm and keeping her head from bonking against the wood floor. “Brielle,” he shifted and cradled her head in his lap, gently patting her cheek, “Brielle, baby, can you hear me?”

“Oh my God!” Lily crouched down next to them. “Is she okay? Is she breathing? Should I call 911?”

“Yes,” he instructed as he gently gave her shoulder a shake, trying to rouse her. “And bring a cool cloth.”

Lily nodded and scrambled for the kitchen to do so, her heart hammering against her chest. She had no idea Brie would have reacted that way, she seriously thought her friend would have been shocked, but happy that he was here. He hadn’t said anything negative in their phone conversation and had immediately agreed to fly out and see the blonde. And when Lily had said that Brie had insisted it was his baby, Alex hadn’t even argued that it wasn’t. He seemed to be manning up and taking charge of the situation like she had hoped he would. And now, her friend had gotten so angry with her that she had passed out. If anything happened to her or that baby, Lily would never forgive herself.

Returning with the cool cloth and instructing the 911 operator on the quickest way to get to the building, Lily crouched by her friend, fear trickling through her veins at the sight of the blonde still unresponsive. She urged the paramedics to hurry then tossed the phone to the side, kneeling over Brielle. “Brie, can you hear me?”

“She’s out.” Alex pressed the damp cloth to her cheeks then her neck. “But she’s breathing. I think she just fainted.”

“What if something’s wrong with the baby?” Fear laced Lily’s words and she grabbed her friend’s hand. “This is all my fault.”

“Shh, don’t say that,” he instructed, glancing to her then back to the girl who had sent his world rocking with her news.

Lily bit her bottom lip and stared helplessly at her friend. She breathed a huge sigh of relief when the paramedics arrived a short time later and Brie slowly started to come around. They checked her blood pressure then loaded her up in the ambulance and jetted off to the hospital, despite the blonde’s weak attempts to stop them. Lily wanted to ride with them, but knew Alex didn’t have a way to the hospital, so she let him drive her car and called her fiancé on the way, thanking him when he agreed to meet them there.

It was all a blur to the tattooed man; from the minute Brielle had walked into the apartment up till the minute he was pacing back and forth in the waiting room. He hadn’t expected her to react the way she had, and when she’d exploded, he had honestly wanted to tuck his tail between his legs and take off running. She obviously didn’t want him involved and who was he to just barge in on someone’s life like that. He didn’t know this girl, save for the one single night they spent together. It would be easy to just turn and walk away. Just like his dad had done. Fuck. He could really use a drink right now.

He rubbed his head and gave a frustrated sigh. And now here he was in a hospital waiting room with complete strangers waiting on news about the woman having his child. His child. Could he really be having a baby right now? Was this seriously happening or some kind of weird dream? A week ago his biggest worry had been what kind of china patterns his fiancée was trying to decide on and now it was on the fate of this unborn child. His unborn child. He knew it was his, he knew they hadn’t exactly played in safe during their time together. And now his karma was rearing its ugly head and smacking him over and over in the face. Life was a nasty little bitch and he had one hell of a headache. Damn, he could use a drink.

“Alex?”

The soft, feminine voice cut through his thoughts and he jerked some, turning to find the big, green eyes of Lily at his elbow. “Yeah?”

She bit her bottom lip and fiddled with the hem of her shirt. “Are you okay?”

That was a very loaded question, but what other than yes could he say to this woman. Alex opened his mouth to reply, finding his throat squeezing tight on him and forcing him to nod his head.

Lily gave her own nod and glanced off then back to him again. “Um…I’m sorry about all this.”

“It’s,” he forced his words out, “um, it’s okay.”

“No, I shouldn’t have gone behind her back like that. She asked me to let her make the decisions and I didn’t.”

Alex ran a hand over his face and watched the petite brunette. “You did what you thought was right.”

“Yeah.” She sighed and hugged herself. “I just…I didn’t want this baby growing up and wondering why his father never called him or sent him a birthday card.”

“I get that, I really do.” More than she would probably ever know.

Lily nodded again and glanced off then back to him. “I hope you can forgive me for dragging you into this and making it a big, hot mess.”

He couldn’t be upset with her, she had only been doing what she thought was the best for everyone. “Hey, you don’t have to apologize to me. You’re okay in my book.”

Lily looked like she wanted to say something else, but the doctor decided to make an appearance.

“How is she?” She threw at him the minute he located the proper group and they gathered around him.

The doctor, who had a head full of salt and peppery hair and brown eyes shrouded with wire rimmed frames, scanned over the clipboard in his hand then looked towards Alex, Lily and Jordan. “Are you family?”

Lily bit her bottom lip. “Technically?”

“Yes, technically. We have a policy against giving information to people who are not related.”

She frowned. “But, she has no family like that. We are her family.”

“Um,” Alex cleared his throat, “would it help to know that I’m the father of her baby?”

The doctor lifted a brow. “That would help very much.” He nodded and tapped the clipboard against the palm of his hand. “Miss Madison was brought in with dehydration and exhaustion. Under normal circumstances, we would administer fluids and observe her for a few hours before releasing her under her own cognizance. However,” he paused and adjusted his glasses, all three of them leaning in towards him, hanging onto his every word. “However, due to her condition with the baby, we feel it in her and the baby’s best interests to stay overnight.”

“But she’s gonna be okay, right?” Lily rose onto her tiptoes and peered to the chart in the doctor’s hands.

He tilted it closer to his chest. “She should be just fine; provided she follows the advice from her ob-gyn on proper diet and care for herself and the baby.”

Alex wet his bottom lip. “And the baby?”

The doctor’s friendly brown eyes met his own and he smiled. “The baby is just fine. I’ve advised Miss Madison to make an appointment with her ob-gyn to do a follow up visit as soon as she can get in.”

Lily nodded. “Okay, thank you, Doctor. Can we see her?”

“Of course, she’s in room 123. It’s just down the hall then to the left.” He pointed in the direction then excused himself and moved on to speak to another couple on the other side of the waiting room.

Jordan sighed and looked between his fiancée and the newcomer. “You two go on, I’ll wait out here.”

“You sure?” Lily squeezed his arm. He gave a nod and she kissed his cheek then looked to Alex. “Ready?”

“Yeah.” He nodded some, not ready, but knowing they needed to have a conversation. Obviously, she wasn’t taking care of herself and if she didn’t change that, something more severe might happen next time and the baby, or Brielle herself, may not be so lucky again.

Lily led the way down the hall and around the corner, stopping before the room. She knocked softly then pushed the door open and peeked her head in. “Hello?”

Brielle sat propped in the bed, a blanket covering her legs and a few IV’s feeding into the backs of her hands. She glanced over at the knock and sent her friend a tired grin. “Hey. Come in.”

“How ya feeling?” The brunette questioned as she strolled on in the room, Alex hesitantly moving in behind her.

“Tired, but okay.” Brielle’s hands smoothed the blanket and her eyes darted between the two visitors.

“You scared me half to death, Brie.” Lily pulled a chair closer and took a seat, reaching for her friend’s hand.

Brielle chuckled lowly. “I’m sorry; it wasn’t like I did it on purpose.”

“Well I know that. And you,” she waved their clasped hands some, “need to take better care of yourself. The doctor said you were dehydrated and exhausted.”

The blonde made a face. “I know, but it’s not like I’m in a good situation where I can do that no problem.”

“I’m so sorry, Brie,” she sighed and rested the back of Brie’s hand to her forehead, “I should have done more.”

“Hey, don’t blame yourself,” Brielle shook her head, “this isn’t your fault. You’ve done what you could.”

Alex watched the two girls, shoving his hands into his pockets and thinking he should have stayed in the waiting room with Jordan. These two obviously needed a moment to talk about things and he really had no business being there eavesdropping on them. Well okay, maybe he had a little bit of business considering she was having his child. But he could always come back. Just as he was about slip out the door, the girls fell silent and he found two sets of eyes watching him.

“Um…hey.” He gave a little wave.

Lily waved him over then slipped from the chair. “I um…think you two need to talk. I’m gonna go let Jordan know you’re feeling better.” Then before either could object, she slipped from the room and closed the door securely behind her.

“Well…” he cleared his throat then tugged on the legs of his jeans and took the seat the brunette had vacated.

Brielle watched him for a moment. “You didn’t have to come.”

Alex wet his bottom lip. He was fully aware that he didn’t have to show up; his life would have been a hell of a lot easier had he pretended he didn’t know who Brielle was and just gone about his business. Something told him she wouldn’t have taken her story to the press, or tried to sue him for all he was worth. “I know,” he finally managed out.

“Why did you?”

A shrug. “I honestly don’t know.”

Brielle nodded some and picked at the sheet over her legs. She was quiet for a few moments before finally speaking, “I’m sorry that Lily brought you into this.”

He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s mine, isn’t it?”

She watched him with a heavy feeling in the pit of her stomach. She could lie then he could go about with his life and be none the wiser. He wouldn’t have to worry about what the press would say, he wouldn’t have to worry about what his family would think, he wouldn’t have to worry about his fiancée finding out, he wouldn’t have to worry about her messing up his life. The more she thought about it, the more and more she began to think it would be the best thing to do. It was on the tip of her tongue and then Lily’s face flashed through her mind and her shoulders sunk. “Yes,” she choked out.

Alex’s head fell forward.

“I’m so sorry,” she whispered as tears began to gather in her eyes. “I…I didn’t mean for this to happen. You…don’t have to stay. You can go back home. I’m not gonna…come after you for anything. I’ll put that in writing if you want me to.”

“No,” he shook his head and lifted his gaze to hers again, “I can’t just walk away. You’re having my baby. That’s not something someone can just walk away from.” He wanted to, Lord knew he did, but the guilt would eat him alive. He was too scarred from his own father and he couldn’t do that to someone else; someone who was innocent in all this mess.

Brielle nodded some and fiddled with the blanket. “So…what do we do?”

Alex sighed and his eyes darted around the room. “Well, one thing’s for sure, you need to start taking better care of yourself.” He watched her a moment, seizing up the situation in his head. “Are you…living with Lily and Jordan?”

A flush crept over her cheeks and she slunk further into the bed. “Yeah…I got kicked out of my place.”

“And Lily said you were between jobs?”

Brielle wanted to throw her pillow at her best friend for having such a big mouth. “I…can’t find a job. I’ve been interviewing like crazy the last week, but no one wants to hire me.” Her shoulders slumped and she studied her lap like something interesting was sitting in it. “I don’t have any money. I don’t have a place to live. I can hardly afford to eat. Lily tries to help, but I know Jordan really wants me out.”

Alex had to strain his ears and he felt his heart ache at her words. “What…God,” he ran a hand through his hair, “what were you planning on doing when the baby was born?”

She reached and wiped at a stray tear. “I don’t know,” her voice was so desolate it took all his willpower not to pull her into his arms and promise that he’d make it okay. “Lily,” she cleared her throat and wiped at her eyes, not meeting his gaze, “Lily,” she repeated, “said I should put it up for adoption. But I don’t think I could do that.”

He was torn between agreeing with her friend or with the blonde herself. In Brielle’s situation, adoption would have probably been the best option. There’s no way she would be able to afford and support a child and even if she could scrape by, that life would not be one that a baby should even be in. He sighed and rubbed his jaw, trying to put his words together in his head before speaking them out loud. “Brie,-”

She shook her head and interrupted him, “You know I don’t expect anything from you, right? Lily didn’t bring you out here so you could give me a bunch of money.”

“No, I know.”

“Her dad took off on her and her mom when she was little. She…feels strongly about this kind of stuff.”

He gave a small chuckle; well fancy that.

The blonde’s eyes narrowed. “It’s not funny.”

“No,” he shook his head quickly and took her hand in his, “I know it’s not funny, believe me. I’ve been there.”

“Oh.” She pressed her lips together.

Alex sighed and glanced off towards the window, watching out at the bare trees. Finally, he turned back to her, her hand still clasped in his. “I have an idea.”

She lifted her brows.

He wet his bottom lip and cupped her hand with both of his. “Hear me out before you say anything, okay?”

She bit her bottom lip and studied his face before giving a slight nod. It couldn’t hurt to hear the guy out, though she was pretty sure she wouldn’t like what he was going to suggest.

“Good.” He offered up a small grin then inhaled a breath and spoke, “What if you come back to LA with me.”

Brielle’s eyes widened, but Alex held up a hand to silence her before she could speak.

“I said, hear me out.”

“Sorry,” she mumbled then motioned him to continue.

“You come back to LA with me for awhile. It doesn’t have to be months and months, but just long enough for you to get yourself healthy again; at the weight you should be at, hydrated and rested. I could help you get back on your feet and once you’re there, you can leave.” He wet his bottom lip. “Or you could stay if you liked it enough. I have lots of connections, so finding you a job isn’t going to be a problem and you can stay with me until we find you your own place.”

“Leave New York?”

Alex wasn’t sure this was the best idea, but it was the only thing he had at the moment. She needed out of the situation she was in, and at the time, the only person who could help her with that was himself. Besides, she was carrying his baby and what kind of guy was he if he left her and that child in the misfortune she had stumbled into. The little life she carried was his responsibility as well. “Just for the time being. You can’t stay with Lily and Jordan forever and you said yourself that you can’t find a job and have no money. Let me help you.”

“Why are you doing this?” Her eyes searched his face for some kind of answer.

“Because you’re having my child.” His hand pulled hers closer and he laced their fingers together, a softness in his eyes and voice. “You have a part of me inside you and I can’t walk away from that. Just like I can’t go back to LA knowing the condition you’re in and not doing all I can do to get you out of it.”

“I don’t want your charity.”

“Oh, baby,” he chuckled low and pressed the back of her hand to his cheek, “this isn’t charity. This is me being a man and stepping up to my responsibilities.”

How could she argue that? But how could she tell him yes? He was practically a stranger and he wanted her to uproot her life and move clear across the country to a place she didn’t know. “I…I don’t know.”

Alex nodded and lowered her hand to the bed. “It’s a lot to take in and think about, I know. And I don’t expect an answer right away.”

“Good, cuz I couldn’t give you one right now even if I wanted to.”

He chuckled at that and rose from the seat. “You take a few days and think it over. I’m not going anywhere.” Then he brushed his lips over her forehead. “But I’m gonna slip out and let you get some rest. You look like you’re past the point of exhaustion.”

“I am.” She sighed and watched him through weary lids. “Where are you gonna go?”

“I’m gonna get a hotel room. I’ll be back tomorrow. You get some sleep.”

She nodded and snuggled down into the bed. “Mmkay, thank you.”

He smiled then gave her hand one more squeeze before letting it go. “Sleep tight.”

“I’ll try to.” She shifted the blanket up over her shoulders and watched as he slipped to the door and flicked the light switch, casting the room in a dim light. “Tell Lily I’ll see her tomorrow.”

“Will do.” He sent her one more glance then slipped from the room, the door closing quietly behind him.

Brielle sighed and watched him go, wondering if she was already dreaming. What a lot to take in; just the thought of it made her head hurt. Tomorrow she would have a long conversation with Lily. Maybe her friend would help her figure it out and she’d have an answer, because how do you say yes to something like that; but then again, in her situation…how do you say no?