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Nick sighed to himself as he drove across the small town toward Bianca’s house. He’d gotten in at about 4am and crashed in a hotel for all of three and a half hours. Now, he was on his way to see Bianca and he wasn’t as sure of himself as he had been the day before. Taking in the sights of the small southern town, Nick shook his head. He’d only been here once right after he and Bianca had started dating, but it hadn’t changed at all since that time. It amazed him.

Surprisingly, Nick found his way to Bianca’s house very easily. He pulled into the circle drive and stepped out of his car. He stood for a few moments staring up at the two story brick home and felt his stomach begin to churn. A nervous ball had taken place in his gut and his palms suddenly felt clammy. He wiped his hands on his jeans and made his way to the front door, growing more nervous with each step. Lifting his hand to the doorbell, Nick hesitated and had the urge to just turn around and go back home. No, I’ve come too far to turn back now. Just as he was about to press the doorbell, the large front door cracked open and Bianca appeared.

His finger still poised over the doorbell, Nick smiled and slowly lifted his hand to his neck. “Hey.”

Taking a deep breath, Bianca returned his smile and stepped outside. Wrapping her robe more tightly to shield herself against the cold December air, she sighed and looked down at her feet, feeling awkward. “I heard your car pull up and I knew it would be you.”

Nick nodded. “Yeah. I’m sorry for coming so early, but I couldn’t sleep and I just didn’t see the point in being bored out of my mind at that hotel.”

“It’s okay,” she shrugged and reached back to open the door. “Come on in.”

Jamming his hands in his pockets, Nick slowly followed her into the house feeling very unsure of himself. He felt like he might have made a big mistake even coming here, but he hadn’t been thinking clearly at the time. He stopped suddenly when he realized Bianca was staring at him with a questioning expression. “What’s wrong?”

“I just asked if you wanted some coffee.”

“Sure, that would be good,” he nodded and followed her into the kitchen. Sitting down at the breakfast bar, he looked around at the cozy area. Even if he hadn’t known this family, he would have been able to tell they were from the South. He smirked at the sign above the stove: Kitchen closed due to illness-I’m sick of cooking. That summed up Bianca’s mother to a tee; she was headstrong and feisty and damn proud of her roots. Turning his attention away from the surroundings, Nick let his gaze wander over Bianca. She was standing with her back to him stirring a cup of coffee. She placed the spoon on the counter and reached for another mug from the cupboard, she had to stand on her tiptoes and stretch to reach the cup. He smiled as she grumbled to herself and poured another cup of coffee.

“Cream and sugar?”

“Please. Three sugars.”

“Sweet tooth, huh?”

“You know it.”

Bianca brought the coffee over to Nick and sat down beside him. Blowing on the steaming liquid, she lifted her blue eyes to meet his. She could look at him and tell he’d had a night much like her own. After she’d talked to him, she fell into a fitful sleep; when she wasn’t wide awake tossing and turning, she was having nightmares. If she had to guess, she would say she only got about two hours of sleep the entire night.

“So,” he broke the silence as he sat the mug back on the countertop and placed his hand over hers. “I’m sorry I just came up here with no invitation.”

Bianca nodded. “It’s okay. You coming up here will actually make things a little easier if you really think about it. We can go ahead with the paternity test this week and clear that up.”

“Yeah,” Nick didn’t try to hide his disappointment. Somehow, he had hoped she would be as happy to see him as he was to see her, but apparently he’d been wrong. “As soon as we get that done, I can just head back home then.”

She looked down as she folded her hands in her lap. “I think that would be best, Nick.” Avoiding his penetrating stare, she began to fidget with the tie on her robe. “You have to understand Nick, it’s more complicated now. Not that it hasn’t always been complicated, because that’s how we are…you and me. This is hard for me, too. I know you might not believe that, but just try to understand.” Finally, she lifted her tear filled eyes to meet his and let out the breath she’d been holding.

“I do understand,” he reached over and took her hand in his. “I don’t like it, but that doesn’t mean I don’t get it.”



Later that morning, Bianca watched as her mother bustled around the kitchen avoiding her questioning gaze. Though she was trying to act upbeat, Bianca knew better. Her mother was not happy about Nick being there; not because she didn’t like him, but because he had “no reason to show up on the doorstep of a married woman”. Looking down at the tiled floor she tried to think of something to say, anything to say, that would spark a conversation that would last more than ten seconds. She knew it wouldn’t work though. Her mother was ignoring her.

“So, is there anything you want me to do for you today, Mama?”

Silence.

“Any errands you need me to run for you? I really don’t have anything to do,” Bianca said quietly as her mother began emptying the dishwasher. “Mama, please talk to me. I hate it when you do this.”

“Bianca,” Shirley turned to her youngest child with a sharp expression, “I have nothing to say. You are a grown woman, I realize that, but right now you are not acting like someone in your position should. I—”

“What do you mean ‘someone in my position’?”

Tossing her dishtowel to the counter, Shirley lifted her chin. “Don’t interrupt me when I’m talking to you young lady. I don’t know exactly what’s going on with you and Nick, but I’m not stupid. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out there’s something going on between the two of you. Now, I have no problems with him, but I don’t like that he showed up unexpectedly on my doorstep to see my daughter who happens to be married. It just doesn’t seem appropriate if you ask me.”

Bianca, seething, cleared her throat and started out of the kitchen. The room had suddenly become too small for her. “Just so you know,” she said on her way out, “there’s nothing going on. It just so happens that Nick and I are friends. I didn’t know that was so wrong, even for a married woman.”

“Well, Bianca, you asked me to talk to you and I did. Don’t go off and pout because I said things that you want to pretend aren’t true. Just think about this: if it’s this obvious to me, how will it look to AJ?”

***

Bianca made her way through the den mumbling to herself. Glancing over, she saw Nick sprawled out on the leather sofa. His long form was nearly too long for the couch, but he seemed comfortable enough to be asleep. His right leg was bent with his foot flat on the cushion while his left leg was stretched out. He had his left thumb tucked into his belt loop and his right arm draped over his eyes. Bianca could hear him snoring lightly and knew he was gone. Walking over, she reached across him and pulled the afghan from the back of the sofa and carefully covered him with it. She stood watching him sleep for a few minutes before finally turning to go upstairs. It startled her when she felt Nick grab her wrist and she turned to find him staring up at her, his eyes half open and groggy looking and a heart melting smile on his lips.

“Watching me sleep?” his voice was husky with sleep.

“Covering your butt up is more like it,” she rolled her eyes.

“Liar,” he smirked playfully and his dimple appeared.

“You’re so full of yourself, Nick. Go back to sleep,” she replied.

Suddenly, Nick brought her hand to his lips and placed a tender kiss on her open palm. “I’m sorry if I got you in trouble, Bean.”

Bianca bit the inside of her cheek and nodded. “’s okay,” she whispered. It was another moment before she felt composed and she cleared her throat. “Go back to sleep, okay? You need to rest.”

“Kay,” he smiled and closed his eyes.

When she was sure Nick was drifting back off to sleep, she took a shaky breath and turned back toward the stairs. She wasn’t so sure she would be able to handle much more. She was going to go lock herself in her bedroom and take her own advice. A nap was definitely more than welcome at this point.



Sometime around noon, Nick wandered into the kitchen to find Shirley Parker sitting at the table reading a book. She glanced up briefly and offered a tightlipped smile, but didn’t acknowledge him further. He knew that Shirley was a little pissed about him being here, but he was at a loss for words to say to her. Standing behind the chair directly across from her, Nick cleared his throat. “Do you mind if I sit down?”

Folding down her page and closing the book, Shirley shook her head. She folded her arms atop the table and looked at Nick expectantly waiting for him to start the conversation; she’d known this was coming. They both sat quietly for a few moments while Shirley continued to stare while Nick twiddled his thumbs. Finally, she’d had enough of the tense silence. “What’s on your mind, Nick?”

He took a deep breath and looked up to meet her eyes. “I know I showed up here without an invitation, Ms. Parker, and I’m really sorry that you’re upset. I—”

“Why did you come here Nick?” her question wasn’t harsh or accusing. It was simply a question.

“I…well…when I found out Bean was coming home, I kinda felt like I needed to come see her,” he said feeling lame.

“But why?” she pressed gently. “What made you come all this way to see my daughter?”

Looking down at the table, Nick wondered if she could tell his hands were shaking; he was almost sure she could hear his heart pounding. After all, he could barely hear anything else over the sound. “Well…” he paused knowing she wasn’t going to like his answer. “I…well, you see…I’m…I’m still in love with her.”

Shirley nodded and pushed away from the table. Walking over to the sink, she plucked a glass from the cupboard and filled it with water before taking it to Nick. “Well, that is obvious to me, Nick. I still don’t understand why you came,” she said and sat back down. Looking into his young face, she smiled sadly. “I don’t want you to think that I have any problems with you, Nick, I just want you to understand where I’m coming from, okay?”

Nodding, Nick took a sip of water and put the glass down on the table. He wasn’t sure what was coming, but he had a feeling he needed to prepare himself.

“I actually do like you, despite what you or Bianca might think; you also have to know that I like AJ, too. And that’s why I’m so concerned about you being here. Things are hard when two people are dating, but when two people are married it’s a completely different ballgame,” she paused and took a deep breath, trying to gather her thoughts. “It’s not just a label holding AJ and Bianca together now; they are legally bound to one another and that’s not something that either of you need to take lightly, Nick. I’m by no means an expert on marriage nor am I trying to become one; I know you care very deeply for my daughter and despite what she says, she cares very deeply for you as well.”

“I understand that, but—”

She shook her head and held up a hand. “I wasn’t finished, Nick. I’m not telling either of you what to do because you are both adults and ultimately you both know what you want. I’m just asking you both to consider everybody that’s involved in the situation now that she’s a married woman. And Nick, don’t think that I don’t like you because I do. I really do think the world of you,” she smiled and stood up. Stopping to pat him gently on the shoulder, she leaned down and placed a soft kiss on his cheek before leaving him alone with his thoughts.



Bianca’s eyes fluttered open and for a brief moment she was unaware of her surroundings. It only took a moment to realize she was in her bedroom in North Carolina and Nick was sitting beside her, gently brushing her dark hair away from her face. Sitting up, she gave him an inquiring glance. “Nick, how did you get in here? I had my door locked.”

He shrugged. “I picked the lock. It wasn’t that hard to do since all you need is a butter knife.”

“Nice to know I can have privacy.”

He smiled and patted her knee. “We should get going.”

Bianca raised her eyebrows and crossed her arms over her chest. “And where are we going exactly?”

“We’ve gotta go to the doctor. I was doing some research online and I found one in Wilmington and gave him a call. I explained the situation to him in as little detail as possible and he said he would fit us in today as a courtesy. I told him we’d be there at 4, so you need to get dressed. And I’m letting you drive since I don’t know the area at all.”

“Okay,” she nodded slowly and swung her legs over the side of the bed. “It’ll only take me a few minutes to get dressed. Hey,” she said as he was leaving the room. “How are we going to explain this to my Mom? It’s not like she knows about the baby yet.”

He shrugged. “I just told her that since today is my only day in town I wanted to see the sites again. That seemed to be a good enough answer for her.”

“Oh,” Bianca said. She wasn’t expecting him to be leaving this soon and though she knew that was for the best, surprisingly she felt somewhat disappointed. Forcing a smile she added, “I’m glad you thought of everything then.”

He nodded his head and pursed his lips. “I’ll be waiting for you downstairs.”