It was a baby. Ugly like all babies are with dark hair and a scrunched up red face. He didn't know why Debs was standing with it on his doorstep looking at him, a stubborn set to her jaw. Months had passed since he'd last seen her, she hadn't even crossed his mind since the last text he'd replied to. The reply had been blunt, to the point, he'd moved on and so should she. 2 dates and 3 shags they'd had together, with hindsight even if Georgie hadn't come into his life they were never going anywhere. It took a special person to compete with his first love - the Army.

With a nod of his head Elvis invited her into his home, you didn't grow up with an Italian family and not respect a woman with a baby, kicking abandoned shoes to the side as he lead her through to the kitchen. Maybe she needed a favour, wanted to wish him well on his marriage. He never had taken her off his facebook page. Saying that, she could just have left him a status like half the world had done. "Cuppa?" He asked, looking at his watch. 11.30am. It was going to take him an hour comfortably to get to the Town Hall, Charlie was due in half an hour. "Though I'm not sure the milks the right side of fresh." Laughing, expecting her to share in his humour, she always did, everybody always did. He was Elvis; the cheeky chappy, always an answer and joke for every situation.

"No thanks."

Raising his eyes at her answer he took the kettle over to the sink. She might not want one but he did. There was still a lingering hangover from 2 nights ago. The hangover to kill all hangovers, just as well he never planned on getting married again, one stag weekend was enough for a lifetime. A grin lit up his face, he really couldn't believe he was getting married today. Tomorrow he'd be standing looking at this view with Georgie, spending the last few days here together before they moved into Married Quarters. The honeymoon was going to have to wait. She had an exercise coming up and they both knew the Army came first. He couldn't remember being this happy, excited for the future ever before. Content's how he felt, exactly where he should be in life. The luckiest bastard alive. Georgie the woman of his dreams, the girl who knew and understood his job just like he appreciated hers. Not many couples worked like they did.

Placing the kettle back on the cradle he turned, almost surprised Debs was still here. As if by having submerged himself in the happy thoughts of the the future she'd disappear like everything else in his past. But she wasn't, she was standing inside the door, the baby still in her arms, only an intermittent snuffle coming from the abundance of blankets.

"We need to talk."

The song he was humming, their song died on his lips. He'd been around women enough to know this was never going to be good. "Alright."

"I should have told you before…." She stopped there, awkwardly looking down at the floor, her arms tightening around the kid. Somewhere in his belly he started to get worried, the small glint of fear he'd sometimes get on a mission where for a second you thought things were going to go tits-up. At an attempt at controlling the situation he leaned against the kitchen counter, his default position of showing no emotion. Without thinking about it he crossed his arms, leaned back increasing the distance between them.

"Spit it out Debs."

"Listen this is difficult for me okay?" Debs shuffled from foot to foot, not able to stand still. Her eyes searched his face, looking for something she wouldn't find because more and more he was shutting himself off. Withdrawing. Foreboding taking hold, a fear he was going to lose control over the day, have to sort some problem out for the woman standing in front of him. Georgie would have his balls if he didn't turn up on time, years of taking the piss because he hadn't even turned up on time for his own wedding ahead of him. A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth because really he liked it when his fiancee took the piss, never in a million years would he admit that to her. "I thought I could do it on my own."

His chin jerked back, giving up hiding the confusion on his face. Really, he had no idea what she was on about. It was now 11.50, Charlie would be here any minute, he needed to get her out of here. "What Debs, what couldn't you do on your own. And I don't mind admitting, I really can't see what I can do to help."

"Laura. She's yours."

The tone was so soft, he struggled to hear. Letting his brain try to put the pieces together the woman he barely knew had said. "Who the fuck is Laura?"

For some reason she was looking down at the baby. A tear sliding down her face. "This has nothing to do with us Elvis, I don't want to get back together with you but you need to know. I should have told you before. I made the wrong choice."

Nobody would have said Elvis wasn't clever, maybe they would argue he was more street clever until they saw him commanding an op, the strategic thought process he had would have put them in their place, silenced any doubters. In this situation he would have admitted he was stupid still not having a clue what she was talking about. "You're going to have to give me it straight. I ain't got a clue what you're talking about." Manners, the ones his parents had struggled to instill in him made an appearance in the fact he didn't tell her she needed to get a move on, say what she had to say and let him get to his wedding.

"She's yours?"

Her words were strong, decisive, clear. He knew now what she meant. Fragments of his life starting to crumble around him.

In his life he'd been in too many life threatening situations, a cool head had got him out of them and nothing was different in this situation. It was his heart which was thumping a million beats to the minute, rushing blood around his body. The clear head which before would have been juggling solutions, waiting for him to pick the best one was now showing him in vivid technicolour detail Georgie's face. He'd let her down. "We never.." Recollection, a struggle to remember their times together. Grasping at straws. 3 times and he was sure he'd used a condom each time, he wasn't stupid, didn't take risks that way. Georgie had been the first he'd been willing to take the risk with. But there was enough room for doubt, a fleeting memory of thinking something wasn't right through the fuzz of far too many shots. "How do you know it's mine?" If his mum ever heard he'd asked her that, she'd disown him. Even to his ears it sounded crass.

"She is yours because I don't sleep around and…."

"Ready to give up the rest of your life mate?"

At the interruption Debs drops her head, hiding her tears. It doesn't take long for Elvis to move forward, avoiding looking into the bundle in her arms as he passes. In the corridor he's met with the sight of Charlie, fully kitted out in his No1's, his oldest mate. He wished he looked like him, no concern on his features, a smile which isn't forced. "Listen..." Looking down the hand he's holding out, pointing back to the door his friend has just come through, is shaking. "I need you to give me 5 minutes, actually make it 10 no 15, there's something I need to sort out."

His friends face changes to amusement, a cheeky dawning as he comes to his own conclusion. "What you doing a wedding day special, shaving your balls or something for Georgie."

If the baby, no Laura he supposed, hadn't cried he might have got away with a boyish grin and an arm on the back of Charlie as he escorted him out the flat but instead his friend looked at him. "What the fuck is going on Elvis." His preferred reply would be 'I don't fucking know, help me.' There was even a threat of tears, or eyes which filled with unshed tears which didn't go unnoticed causing the look on the man opposite to change to disagreeable acceptance. "I'll give you 15 minutes and then I'm coming back in, I'm here for you but I won't have you hurting Georgie. Believe you me marriage is hard enough when things are perfect never mind cheating and taking…"

"Quick to jump to conclusions aren't you?" Elvis spat out. It had the desired effect of Charlie shutting up, conceding the point for the moment. "As I said give me 15 minutes…. Please."

For the first time in his life he feels alone. Closing the door on his friend, turning around and facing his past. More than anything he wanted to go back to this morning and do everything differently. Not to have opened the door and have the bubbling excitement as he got dressed in his No1's, rather than the sick churning he was now experiencing. Rather than go into the kitchen Elvis stands at the door, taking a deep breath before smiling a smile which doesn't meet his eyes. "Come through to the living room." Whether he wants to or not his eyes are drawn to the baby, this time they see more. Almost laughing when he acknowledges the kids ugly because it looks like him. God help it. He would like to say he didn't feel anything for the crumpled bundle but something in his heart is sparking, unfortunately the guilt and worry about George is damping the naked flame, stopping it igniting. "What do you want me to do?"

Debs sits down, rocking the now gurning bundle in her arms. She looks apologetic, out of place and ashamed when their eyes meet. He find himself sitting beside her, putting his hand on her shoulder, it's not a hug but it's some sort of human comfort. "Be there for her, she doesn't deserve not to have a father because we made a mistake."

"I'm in the Army, I ain't exactly going to be around much." Elvis knows in some ways he's still looking for an out, him and Georgie are lucky, both stationed near Manchester and yet have enough trouble finding time for each other. Debs lives in London, 4 hours away. Looking down he sees his hands winding round each other, his eyes filling up with tears. "I can give you money, work something out." Is he really offering her money to shut up, to go away. That's not who he is. When younger he had been a womanising shit, now changed, settled, not the kind of man who'd let someone else take the burden of his responsibilities. Laura takes that specific moment in time to open her eyes, they're blue, piercing and looking right at him. "How old is she?"

A small finger escapes the blanket, Debs catches it, lets it wrap around her own finger. "4 weeks." A smile breaches her face for a second, a look of love at her daughter. "I don't think I've had more than 2 hours sleep since she's been born." She sighs, a sadness to it and looks at him properly for the first time. "I have tried Elvis, but I was running out of time to make a decision."

His wedding day, a brilliant time to get him to make a decision. "I'm meant to be getting married today Debbie."

"I know."

"Fucking hell. I don't know what to do."

"She'll understand. It's not as if you've been unfaithful."

But it's her life he thinks. They had plans. Countries they wanted to see, Georgie had wanted him to teach her how to ski. Could they do all that when he had a responsibility elsewhere. Or would he be holding her back, forever. There was no doubt he loved her, but where was his right to lumber her with someone else's kid. "I'm gonna' go out and speak to Charlie alright."

His friend looks up in surprise as the car door opens and Elvis, still in his jogging pants and t-shirt sits next to him. There's no filter as he tells Charlie the story. A lack of emotion even in his delivery. Because he knows now he has a choice; Georgie or Laura.

"What you going to do?" Charlie's face is ashen, it would comfort Elvis to know he was trying to think up solutions. "You might be lucky mate Georgie might not rip your crown jewels off in front of your entire family…. You going to catch her before she leaves the house?"

"I'm not getting married."

"You don't know that you daft dick. Talk to her, you're a bit unlucky the first test of your relationship is coming before you've even signed the nuptials but…."

"I'm not ruining her life Charlie."

"Is that your decision to make?" The windows of the car have steamed up, making it easier to argue, raise voices at each other. "I'm telling you, you need to speak to Georgie, postpone the wedding but don't….."

Tears start cascading down Elvis's face. Angrily he wipes them away, tries to retain the impartiality needed for his job but it's hard when your heart is breaking. "It'll never work, she'll always be held back because of me. I won't be able to give her the life she wants and you know how that doesn't work."

"Yes but at least Rebecca and I tried…"

"And how long was she unhappy whilst you tried Charlie. I remember,picking up the pieces for you and her." His voice breaks from shouting, and trying to keep the emotion lodged somewhere it doesn't hurt. Silence settles in the car, neither of them like arguing, especially with each other, too long they've been there for each other. Elvis speaks, quietly, a hint of steel to his voice. "I'm making this decision for the two of us."

Charles drawls, sarcasm dripping off the vowels. "Well good luck with that conversation." At the lack of witty or otherwise retort he turns to his friend, raising an eyebrow waiting on a response. He doesn't get the one he expects.

"I'm not going to have that conversation am I. I want you to tell her. From this moment I'm out of her life."

"You fucking do that mate and I'm telling you, if you decide a day, a week, a month, a year, even in another fucking lifetime you've made the wrong decision she'll have nothing to do with you and if she does I'll be the one telling her she's a stupid fool. You are making the wrong decision here, categorically no doubt about it."

Elvis nods his head, hand on the door handle. "So you'll tell her then?"

"And what exactly the fuck will I tell her Elvis?"

He's out the car, a decision made which he thinks he can't go back on no matter what his friend say. Bending down into the car he looks at his mate. Maybe this will ruin them as well. He can see Charlie thinks he's a selfish bastard, is making the wrong mistake but he's not standing in his shoes. Wasn't brought up in a family who would never understand if he didn't do the right thing by his kid. He doesn't love Georgie like he does.

Anyway he always knew Georgie was too good for him, her family had never hidden their thoughts about him; they'd be relieved. This was the first unselfish act of his entire life. What would her life be like married to an SAS bloke, nothing but stress and worry. "Tell her I'm sorry but I can't go through with it." The slam of the car door ends the conversation, the crunch of the brakes and squealing of tyres adds an air of finality.

Standing in front of his flat, Elvis shuts his eyes, has one final image of Georgie beneath him as they made love, remembers the feel of her as he held her, the glint in her eye when she laughs and then as pain engulfs him he opens his eyes. The world is duller now, colours muted. And suddenly he knows, turning and seeing Charlie's car disappear at the end of the street he's made a mistake, a huge mistake because she's never ever going to smile at him again.