12

Katie couldn't seem to muster the energy to speak, blink or even breathe. She looked at him and saw the firmness of his jaw, the frown lines around his eyes. The familiar, and yet unfamiliar face of the man she had thought she was coming to love.

"I need to speak to you." His voice was a croak.

She shook her head, "it's too late Dan. You turned your back on me, left me to deal with all this shit alone. I can't cope with you being here. I need you to leave."

"I feel sick!" he muttered, "I don't know what to do. I can't get you out of my mind. It's wrong; I know that, but......"

She raised a hand to stop him, "it has been weeks since I walked away, now you want my help? Why now? I've been on my own Dan, struggled to deal with my world falling apart again! My marriage is over, I'm away from my home, my recent new relationship with my father is over......and you!" she shook her head, "at this moment I hate you because when the shit hit the fan you sided with your mother. As I knew you would. So please leave, go and don't find me again."

"You're my sister," he breathed sadly.

She shook her head vehemently, "I am nothing to you and you are nothing to me. You take what you want when you want, you chose to stay with your mother over me, that's fine, but don't come sniffing around here wanting sympathy after rejecting me so publicly."

"But we need to talk."

She held up a hand to stop him, "we needed to talk weeks ago, right around the time your whore mother made that revelation. I've dealt with things in my own head, alone, and that's all that you've got left now, because like the rest of your family, you're dead to me."

He gasped, "you can't mean that?"

"Has anything changed?" When he reluctantly shook his head, she continued. "You are a selfish and spoilt gutless child Dan, you need to do a lot of growing up, and maybe this will be the start of that. I hope you get over this and go on to have a happy life, but I will not be even a distant part of that, do you hear me? Now please leave!"

"Please Katie." It was a beg, and whilst she felt her resolve weaken a voice from behind him gave her the strength she needed.

"You heard the lady!" the heavily accented voice of Ramon cut through the atmosphere like a knife. "I really think you should leave!"

Dan opened his mouth to protest, then looked between her and the dark tall Mexican and shook his head in resignation.

Reluctantly he backed away. As he turned a corner, Ramon pulled her sobbing body into his arms and held her for an age.

"How much did you hear?" she eventually asked wiping her eyes.

"Enough!" his face was grim. "What were you thinking?"

Katie shook her, "it wasn't like that Ramon. We were attracted to each other, his mother married my father, it's only now that she's announced that for the last who knows how many years she was having an affair with my father, his father's my father."

"Oh Katie!" he sat next to her on the sofa and held her close not knowing what to say.

"I can't stop thinking about him," she eventually offered.

"Do you want to tell me about it?" she nodded, and like a ton weight being lifted off her shoulders, she told him everything. How they'd got on, the accidental kiss, his pursuit, the edited version of their time away together.

All the while Ramon said nothing, just held her hand, nodding as she explained the nuances of her time with Dan, and how happy she'd felt.

He thought for a long moment after she'd finished, then turned to her, "I wonder whether part of the attraction to this boy was the chance to 'get one over' on your wicked step mother? And partly to get closer to your father through him?"

She thought for a moment, "well it did both of those things, but not consciously. I promise you."

He nodded, "I'm not saying that you were really aware of it, just that may be that was an unseen benefit?"

She shrugged, "either way, here I am, in a worse position than ever, sad and depressed."

Taking her hand again, he asked "can I be completely honest?"

"I want that more than anything!"

He stood and started to pace the room, "well, you moved to Mexico to get away from your family. Whilst we all love you, whilst you became part of our family, you still needed more, so you married Xavier. Even an idiot could see he was wrong for you, but I kind of think you needed someone for yourself, your own replacement family?"

"Go on." Despite the pain the words caused, she wanted to hear his theory more than anything.

Stopping in front of her, he put his hands on his hips and looked at her, "maybe when that broke down you needed someone else to step in." As she nodded, Ramon continued, "I think you should have some time on your own, enjoy life, appreciate your friends. But stop looking for a surrogate father; you've got a real father who has treated you like shit. Don't try and replace him, try to get over him."

He spotted the tears leaking from her eyes, and he squatted down in front of her. "You'll get over this Katie, and you'll smile again, you'll love again, I promise!"

She fell into his arms, "oh why did you have to be gay Ramon?"

He chuckled, "let's get going for dinner come on!"

For the next few weeks Katie was busy, very busy. She had deadlines for everything, and barely had time to think other than about work. Once the paperwork and the takeover was complete, she breathed a sigh of relief. Ramon would be returning to Mexico soon, his father needed him in Mexico City for some other more pressing issues. Before he left he was determined to take her for a night out. They'd had a beautiful meal in a seafront restaurant and were due to head to a club. As she rose to leave she suddenly became woozy, turning to Ramon, she offered an apologetic look before she felt her knees buckle under her.

She was vaguely aware of the hubbub of people around her fussing, pestering, but she closed her eyes, for a few moments there was peace with the thought that this was the end of her pain and misery.

Katie's next conscious thought when she opened her eyes in a brightly lit room. Ramon was sat beside her, holding her hand. '

"Hey, are you ok?"

She nodded, "Where am I?”

“I brought you to the Emergency Department. The doctor is coming to see you any minute. You really scared me querida!”

“I’m sorry, I’ve not been looking after myself Ramon, I’ll be ok, you have plans. Go out, I'll be fine!"

He shook his head, "don't be stupid, of course I won't go." At that moment the door opened and a gray haired doctor approached.

"Senora Albasos! Thankfully you are awake! I am Doctor Juarez."

She nodded, "Hi. Thank you Doctor. Sorry about all this, I just felt light headed, tired."

Nodding his head he looked at her for a moment. "That's ok, this is my job! You are very pale. I need to do a few tests, ask you a few questions. Ok?"

Katie noticed a shadow at the door, Antonio. She turned to Ramon, "go! Please Antonio's out there; you've not got long left before you head home. Please, go with him and be happy. I can get a taxi when I'm ready to go home. Please. I promise to call you."

Dr Juarez turned to Ramon, "she is in good company, leave your number at reception. We'll call as soon as we know anything!"

Reluctantly he hugged her tightly, then headed out to see Antonio. She turned back to the doctor, "sorry!"

He smiled, "that's ok, I just need to ask a few questions. Do you have any medical conditions? Take any medications?" She shook her head as a response to both questions. "Have you fainted before?” Another head shake. “Your last period was when?"

Suddenly Katie was overwhelmed, heat, shame, devastation washed over every inch of her body. Her heart raced her breathing quickened. Her last period? That was easy to remember, the day her marriage ended...almost three months ago. She’d been at Pilar’s... How had she not even noticed that there had been nothing since?

She looked up at the doctor, struggling to see past the emotions that washed over her, "Maybe three months ago...” She flushed, mortified, “I’ve been so busy...” Then she stared up at him, “are you saying I'm pregnant?"

"Are you normally regular? Do you use contraception?"

Slowly she nodded, "yes, very regular..." When it came to contraception she shrugged, she’d taken all her pills, hadn’t she? This was a ridiculous suggestion. Wasn’t it?

He nodded, completely unaware of the turmoil in her heart, in her mind, "we'll do a scan in a moment, that's the easiest way to tell. Any test will take time. I'll go get the machine."

He left the room, and she sighed. How the hell did she cope with this?

Within seconds, as tears rolled down her face, she was looking at a twelve week foetus on a monitor, a minute baby with four limbs and a strong heartbeat. And for the first time in her life, despite the shock, pain and humiliation, Katie felt complete, total and utter love. This was an innocent baby, her baby, she knew there may be problems, and that it was wrong on so many levels, morally, legally, socially, everything, plus there could be risks to her baby, but all of a sudden she knew this was what she'd craved all her life.

The future would have to take look after itself. Now all she cared about was protecting her little baby.