Just as Chad had suspected, Jo pounced on him as soon as she'd slammed her doors and locked it—possibly so he couldn't run away.

"You stupid, idiotic fool! How could you not even know her real name? How can you say you love someone but not know a thing about them?"

Chad opened his mouth like a fish. He had no words. None that didn't border on the 'neither could you' defense like a child. And he was not a child, dammit.

"How, Chaddy? How?"

"There was nothing to make me suspect June wasn't her actual name! And in my defense, neither could you? Or anyone else."

"Yeah, well, we don't sleep with her mate. We don't kiss and cuddle and get naked with her. You do!" Jo barked, turning the engine on. "We see her for a few hours occasionally and she's always lovely. You, however, see what we don't."

Jo checked for cars over her shoulder and pulled out, still fuming in her flabbergast state. "I mean, you're a writer mate—don't you observe people? Because of what you do, aren't you supposed to tell a person's character just by being around them?"

Chad remained quiet in his seat. He had no defense, no argument. June had given no indications that she was hiding things from him. And he hadn't been very good at deciphering her.

Well, that's an utter bull crap of a lie! A small voice chided in his head. June's been hiding things from the very beginning... every time her parents came up. Why do you think?

The screech of the tyres as Jo rashly pulled over brought him back to the car, and away from rifling through memory banks to confirm this filthy accusation—which he knew was true. June had always skirted that topic. Her folks.

"What?" He peered over at his sister sitting there glaring at him.

"Well?"

"Well, what?" He blinked. "I'm a fool and this is all my fault... somehow?" he added when Jo continued glaring, thinking that's what she wanted to hear. Yes, what a fool he was.

"The address, dumb, dumb! Where the hell am I driving?!" she huffed in anger.

He handed her the post-it note and watched her angry-punch it into the car's GPS.

"Wait till we get a hold of her," she was mumbling. "I'd like to give her a piece of my mind! For running away, for making us chase her... Fuck!"

Jo hit the dashboard in anger. "Something must have triggered her. What was it? What did you do last night? Was it something you said?"

"Besides asking her to marry me?" Chad stared wide-eyed.

Jo growled like a lion cornered. "Get out!"

"What? Why? What did I do?" Chad flinched in his seat. "I said I'm sorry. I'm not the brightest bulb in this family about relationships, but I—"

Jo uncomfortably cupped her breast for a moment, then shoved him towards his door. "Get out!"

"But, but—why?" He fumbled for the still-locked door, struggling to find the individual lock on the panel.

"Chad! I don't want to explain exactly why I need you to get out of the car and give me some space. Just leave your window open or something so you can hear me." She shoved him more till his door flung open and almost landed on the sidewalk.

"All right, all right. I'm getting out. Quit with the pushing!" He rose to his feet and shut the door, only to hear the whirl of the window winding down.

When he peered in through it, Jo was bent over the seat, trying to reach her baby bag on the back seat. She was slightly struggling to reach it—fingertips mere centimeters from its straps. So close, yet so far—what with being petite like her mother.

"What are you doing?" he asked, amused. At least she wasn't throwing him out and driving off without him because her brother was an idiot—blinded by love.

"Don't just gawk at me. Help me!" she barked, having gone red in the face from straining.

He opened the back door and passed the bag to her before standing at his window and staring in—till Job fished out a strange-looking contraption with a bottle on one end and fumbled with the buttons on her top, trying to free a breast.

"Wow, wow, wow." Chad turned around toward the houses lining the street and his bum shielding the window where he stood. "What are you doing?"

"Ciara didn't drink properly this morning, and I didn't have time to pump, so now, I'm about to burst—"

"Lalallala." Chad threw his hands over his ears. "I can't hear you!"

In the car, Jo rolled her eyes and sighed as she felt the tension in her breast ease.

"How long is this gonna take? People could see you, you know!"

"If I'm driving you around to find the love of your life—one you don't even know—then it will take as long as it takes." Jo switched over to the other one, barely eyeing the street. "As for people? They should fucking mind their own business!"

It was a little while longer before Chad was back in his seat, dubiously eyeing the insulated baby bag carrying Jo's milk. He shuddered involuntarily. He hadn't yet gotten used to Jo being a mother, and a thumping good one at that. It was a whole other thing to know what had just happened in the car.

"Shall we?" Jo asked, a sliver of a smile on her lips and her demeanor several shades lighter.

"Oh, grow up will you!" She snapped when he eyed the bag again. "Baby's gotta eat just like you and me."

And with that, she finally got the car back onto the road, and on their way to see Manish Surve—holder of knowledge pertaining to Yumi, Chad's on-the-run, mysterious girlfriend/fiancé.

Why does it always fall apart when I propose? He stared darkly at the passing streets outside his window.