Emily

I've paced in my living room since I put Cora in her big girl bed. She fell asleep in the car, but luckily she is a deep enough sleeper, I can carry her to bed without her waking up. I look at the carpet and see a path worn into it.

I pick up my phone and dial my mom's number. It only rings once before her comforting voice fills my ears.

"Hi Emily, how was the zoo?" Cora had been talking about the trip for a week, so I'm not surprised that mom knew.

"It was good, but I'm calling because we went to that cafe by the hospital and Braxton was there." Her gasp is audible over the phone. She doesn't know much about what happened, but she knows the basics. She and dad have been supportive ever since I told them I was pregnant, even though I'm not married and Cora doesn't even know her dad.

"And? Does he know?" She asks when she regains her wits.

"No. I asked for his number and said I had to tell him something, but then I bolted. God, he probably thinks I'm crazy." How could he not? He hasn't seen me in nearly 4 years and I tell him I have something to discuss then run out the door.

"So have you called him? We can take Cora tomorrow, so you can talk to him."

"No, but thank you so much, Mom. I'll ask him about tomorrow when I call. What would I do without you?"

"Don't worry about it! We love spending time with Cora and since your brother won't give me any grandkids, I'll take all the time I can get with Cora!"

"Thanks mom. I gotta call him while Cora's still napping, talk later okay? Love you!"

"Love you too! Bye!"

After I hang up with mom, I pull up his name. Braxton Thompson. That suits him, if only I had known that 4 years ago. I click the call button and rings. On the fourth ring, he picks up.

"Hello?" His deep, gravelly voice sounds a little off.

"This is Emily." I say.

"Emily, beautiful Emily. What are you up to?" And now I know why he sounded off, he's drunk or pretty far on his way.

"I was wondering if you are busy tomorrow? We can talk then, if you are free." I try to sound calm, but I know I'm failing. Hopefully, he's too drunk to realize.

"Uhhhh, yeah sure that works. The same cafe?" I hear a guy talking in the background, so he's probably at a bar somewhere.

"Okay, noon?" Hopefully his hangover is gone by then. I don't think the news that he has a three year old will go over well and him being hungover won't help.

"Yup, I'll be there." Then he hangs up on me.

Not what I was expecting, but it could be worse. I'm just hoping that he is the kinda guy that will want to be a good dad to Cora. I love her with everything in me and I want to protect her, but she has a right to know her dad. And maybe it's not just because he is her dad, I have dreamed about Braxton for years. Those dreams certainly weren't fatherly dreams.

Cora's tiny little feet pad down the hallway and I know she is done with her nap.

We play for a few hours, then I start on dinner while she finishes the movie she watched in the car. I heat the water in the pan and open the jar of sauce and pour it into another pan and put it over a burner. When the water boils, I toss in enough noodles for Cora and I to have leftovers tomorrow. It doesn't take long until it's done and we eat dinner.

"Mommy pasketti!" She still has trouble pronouncing some things, but it's so adorable.

"Yep sweetie, it is spaghetti." She practically inhales it and I just think about tomorrow, how will he take it? That night when my head hits the pillow, I dream of our one night together, all my experiences up until him were great, or so i thought, but that night was not even in the same universe as my times before Braxton. He was so strong, but gentle and his body knew exactly what to do. I fall asleep thinking of him and his little smirk.

***

I wake when I feel Cora slip in bed next to me. I look over at the clock and see it is already 10. Shit. I gotta get up, I never sleep this late.

"Cora, we gotta get ready, Mommy has to go talk to someone, so you are gonna spend a few hours with Grandma Jo!"

"Yay! Okay, I'll get dressed!" That girl will make the best of anything.

We rush through getting ready and I buckle her up in the car. When I get to Mom and Dad's I unbuckle her and walk with her inside.

"Okay, baby girl I'll be back in a few hours. Have fun with Grandma! I love you so much. Thanks mom!"

"Bye Emily, good luck."

I close the door behind me as I hope this is the right decision. What if he doesn't want her? What if he doesn't believe me? What if he tries to take her from me? What if he has a family?

I shake my head and clear my head. He has a right to know.

The drive to Houston is nothing exciting, when I get to the cafe, it is 10 'till noon, so I grab a coffee and sit in a booth. Ironically, the same one as yesterday.

He walks in a few minutes later, looking like death. He looks around and sees me, so he walks over.

"Hey." He rubs his temple and looks at me.

"Hey, sorry for whatever I said yesterday on the phone. I was kinda drunk, so I don't really remember." I laugh lightly.

"You didn't really say much. But if you don't mind could we jump right in?" He nods.

"When I left I didn't really look around and I didn't know your last name, so I didn't know how to contact you, but I got pregnant from our night and we have a little girl." His strong jaw drops and he just stares at me. The look of shock on his face is startling and it takes him a few moments to get composure.

"I....wha?....Can you repeat that?" I give a slight nod.

"I hadn't been with anyone in a while before our night and then a few weeks after I kept getting sick, so I took a pregnancy test and it was positive. I..We have a 3 year old girl. I named her Cora and you saw her yesterday. I know we used protection, but I promise she's yours. We can get a paternity test if you want, but I swear she is." He nods slowly, but still looks shocked.

"Do you have any pictures? I..I didn't really get a good look at her yesterday."

"Yeah." I hand him my phone and show him the picture we took at the zoo yesterday. I got a couple to stop and take a few of us. I'm standing and she's resting on my hip and smiling brightly.

This could have gone worse, he hasn't demanded proof yet. Or said he didn't want anything to do with her. Or blamed me.