She studied him carefully. He’d been sick last night and bailed on their plans to take in a movie. She’d gone with two girlfriends, but had keenly felt his absence. This morning, he looked pale and his eyes were definitely red. Hopefully whatever bug he suffered from wasn’t contagious. She pushed her book out of the way and took a sip of coffee, noticing that her hands quivered.

Something was wrong.

He wasn’t looking at her. Usually Seth was one big smile and flirting blue eyes. Now, his gaze was on the floor and the sides of his mouth were down. Maybe they should have met at his apartment if he was still sick. He stopped at her table, met her gaze, and Victoria’s stomach sank.

Oh Lord. “What happened?” she whispered. Her fingers turned to ice.

He slumped down in a chair and looked at her, defeat showing in his face.

“Are you okay? Do you need to go back home?” The words tumbled out of her mouth. A tornado of disconnect spun through her chest, making it hard to breathe. She’d never seen Seth look so miserable. He leaned forward, grasped her hands and pulled them across the table, gripping tightly.

“We need to talk.”

Were there any worse words from your boyfriend’s mouth? The phrase triggered Victoria’s inner walls to rise, protecting and guarding her heart, and her brain shifted into an eerie calm. Every physical and emotional defense in her body shot into high gear. It’s bad. Her icy hands clenched into fists inside his grip.

A woman knows. She didn’t have to experience a breakup to know one was about to happen. Seth’s eyes pleaded with her to listen, his hands squeezing hers. Victoria was in listening mode, but that didn’t mean she was in understanding mode.

“What happened?” she asked again.

“Remember Jennifer?” Seth asked.

Victoria nodded, her gut clenching, acid burning. Jennifer was Seth’s old girlfriend from home in Arizona. She’d cheated on him, they’d broken up, and she’d had a baby with her new boyfriend. The woman had moved on quickly. Victoria knew he’d been stung over the cheating and the fast move to another man.

“You knew she had that baby girl?”

Victoria nodded, unease creeping up her spine. A shrill voice inside her head started to scream. No, Seth, no! The baby had been born about a month after Victoria and Seth had gotten together.

“The baby is mine. I didn’t know. She always swore it was Pete’s. He finally had a paternity test, and Eden isn’t his daughter. They’ve broken up and now she says Eden is mine.” His eyes pleaded with her, begging her not to judge him.

Victoria breathed out a sigh of relief, stress flooding out of her body. “She’s lying. Of course she says it’s your baby, but that doesn’t mean that it is! We’ll get you tested and prove that she’s lying to you just like she lied to the other guy.” The words rushed out of her mouth.

A false alarm.

Seth was shaking his head. “No, I already had a test done. She told me last week, and I immediately thought the same as you. I laughed it off and went to have my blood drawn here in town. Her doctor called me with the results last night.” He crushed her fingers. “I haven’t slept since she called; I’ve had to figure out what to do.”

Victoria tried to pull her hands away. “What do you mean, what to do? You don’t have to do anything. She dumped you. She chose another guy over you. Why do you need to fix this?” Clanging bells pealed in Victoria’s brain.

This isn’t happening.

“You don’t understand. I can’t abandon the baby. We need to be together to raise her.”

The pounding sounds in her head escalated. “You don’t have to abandon the baby. You can be there for the baby. You might be the biological father, but Jennifer ruined any relationship the two of you could have together,” Victoria whispered. “She cut the ties. Why start again with her?”

“She wants me in the baby’s life.”

“Of course she does. You’re the money. You can support them. She’s panicked because this other guy has left her and now she doesn’t know where to turn. You’re a great guy. Any woman is going to want you to be the father of her baby!” Her voice rose and people turned to stare, but she didn’t care. She could feel Seth slipping from her and she had to stop it. Her inner foundation rocked, crumbling.

Misery radiated from his face. “Tori, I’ve made up my mind. I told you what my father did to my mother and me. I can’t do that to a child.”

“But Seth—”

“I told you, I have to do this. It’s the right thing to do. I won’t let a kid grow up wondering why her father isn’t with her.”

“You can still be a part of this child’s life—”

“No. I have to be there. I never had a man in my life until my uncle came along. I’ve told you the difference he made for me growing up. I can do that for my daughter. Eden is my daughter.” Amazement touched his eyes as he said the words. “I have a daughter, Tori, and the most important thing is that she grows up feeling loved and wanted. I can provide that.”

“But what about Jennifer?”

“We can make it work. We did once.”

Every connection between them snapped in half, stinging Victoria. “You’re dumping me for a woman who left you? Who cheated on you? What about medical school?”

“I’m applying to the University of Arizona.”