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Hazel was pregnant. She was clearly, blatantly pregnant. Had she known when they’d fought in the restaurant? Ian took a moment to berate himself. Of course, she had known. She had been avoiding alcohol, taking mere sips of wine when it was offered. She had looked pale and tired, and… He should have guessed. His first wife, Pearl, had gotten pregnant once, and he knew the symptoms before she’d lost the baby and been unable to get pregnant again.
He should have known. And he should have been honest with her. Hazel must have felt so trapped…
Ian walked up to the group of them quickly and said in a booming voice, “Hello there, Miss Greenwood. You’re looking well.”
Hazel jumped as she heard him. A hand flew over the curve of her modest belly. How far along was she? She could only be four months at most…
Wait, was this baby even his?
He realized that he was glaring at her when she started glaring back.
“Good morning, Dr. Cartwright. I didn’t know you’d be coming back to campus. Or did you have business to follow up on here?” she said sharply.
Ian sighed. “You and I need to talk about what you left unfinished at Cartwright & Benton. If you could come to my office on campus sometime today?”
Hazel looked at her friends. “I could come around 1:00 pm if that’s okay? I have a meeting, and then I have to eat lunch.”
Ian found himself bobbing his head up and down dumbly. That little emphasis made his heart jerk inside of him. She did have to. It was no longer an option to subsist on Pop-Tarts and bean sprouts. He gave a nod to the others and started to walk to his office. It was still his, despite the fact he wasn’t teaching this semester. God, with this development, they’d probably never bring him back. They’d probably set fire to everything mentioning the idea of the practicum.
***
Hazel showed up roughly twenty minutes late. Rapping on his doorframe, she peered inside, and Ian had flashbacks to those first few weeks they’d know one another, and she came to his office to argue about grades and his lax discipline with his class.
Now, there she stood, face slightly softened, cheeks rosy red, and her body changing right in front of him.
“Hazel,” he said, his voice so much softer than he’d intended.
“Dr. Cartwright,” she replied, coldly.
He stood and beckoned her forward. “Please, take a seat.” He waited for a moment for her to settle herself, and then he shut the door behind her. His office at the university wasn’t very large, but it was a single office, and it had comfortable enough furniture.
“You wanted to talk?” Hazel raised a brow.
“I think it’s obvious why.”
“Is it?” Hazel pursed her lips.
Ian didn’t want to admit that it was fair that she was being so tight-lipped now—since he’d refused to talk about their relationship the many times she’d brought it up. Rather than sit at his desk in front of her, he pulled up a chair beside her.
“Hazel, you’re pregnant.”
“Really?” Hazel blinked, as if surprised, and looked down at her stomach. “I thought I’d just had too many tacos.”
“Be serious.”
“You’re the one who doesn’t want to be serious,” she said, her voice breaking a little. Ah, there. She wouldn’t be able to keep up this cold façade for long.
“I should have tried to talk, yes, but you should have told me about this!”
“Who says you’re the one I should be telling?” she challenged.
Ian stood suddenly, looking down at her. That wasn’t possible, was it? She couldn’t have… Then again…
“How far along are you?” he demanded.
“That’s a personal question.”
Ian leaned over and grabbed her shoulders. “You be straight with me, Hazel! Is that baby mine?”
“I-I um.” She looked away and covered her eyes.
“Oh.” Ian wrapped his arms around her and rubbed her back. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry I yelled, love, but I have to know. Did I do this? I thought I’d been careful. I can help—”
“As what? A benefactor? You’re going to be the patron of my babies?” Hazel said bitterly.
Ian froze. Babies. Plural. “You’re having more than one?”
“I mean…” Hazel smoothed her hands over the front of her sweater. She definitely was too big for this to be one child.
Ian crouched down and cupped her face, wiping away a tear with his thumb. “They’re mine, aren’t they? I can’t fix the hurt I caused. I can only help you now, not just with money. I don’t know how it’ll work, but I do love you.”
