For disclaimer and other stuff, see part 1.
Chapter 2
In the end she was forced to face Paul a couple of days later.
She was talking to Harm in the bullpen when Gunny Galindez approached her.
"Lieutenant Singer, there is someone here to see you. He said his name is Paul Jacobs." Gunny told her and motioned to the man standing a few feet away.
Loren flinched. She didn't need to look in the direction Gunny was pointing to know who he was. Paul Jacobs was her baby's father, the baby who had never had the chance to be born.
She was already on an emotional rollercoaster and didn't need the added stress of confronting her ex. Harm knew it too.
"You want me to talk to him?" he asked.
"I need to face him."
"Yes, but you don't have to do it today. Let me tell him you're busy and we'll talk to him some other time." Harm suggested.
As tempting as it sounded Loren knew she couldn't always lean on Harm. She needed to make her own decisions and face the ghosts of her past on her own.
"I'm going to talk to him now, in my office." she told the Gunny and when he went to fetch her ex, she added quietly to Harm. "Alone."
With that she turned and entered her office, with her ex following her a couple of seconds later.
--
Harm was worried. While Loren was in her office, talking to her ex-boyfriend, Harm stayed in the bullpen, pretending to listen to Harriet Sims-Roberts as she was telling him about her son's teething.
Finally she noticed she didn't have his attention and asked him. "Sir, are you listening to me?"
But before Harm could answer, the door to Loren's office swung open.
"Gunnery Sergeant, please escort Mister Jacobs to the gate and tell the guards that he is no longer allowed on the premises." With that said, Loren rushed past Harm, towards the restrooms.
Harm knew he couldn't follow her inside. It was a ladies bathroom.
"You want me to see if the coast is clear?" Harriet asked.
She had anticipated the Commander wanting to follow the upset Lieutenant. Since their return from Boston both had been different. Harriet had namely been observing them closely.
There were no glaringly obvious differences, only little things. Like having lunch together a couple of times per week, Harm bringing her coffee and Loren occasionally smiling, which she had never done before. Harriet was a romantic by heart and believed the Commander and the Lieutenant were having a secret affair.
"Which coast?"
"I mean, should I take a look if some other female is in the restroom?"
"Please, Harriet."
There was no-one else in the restroom and, after placing an out-of-order sign on the door, Harm went inside. He found Loren standing in front of a wash-basin, looking into the mirror.
"Say it already."
"What?" Harm asked her.
"I know you want to say: I told you so. Yes, Harm, you were right. I shouldn't have talked to Paul today. Damn."
She tried to wipe away some tears.
"I'm sorry."
"I've always been strong. I was able to put up a strong, brave front. But since Boston, since I let you in, I'm not capable of doing it anymore. I hate that I'm now a weak, crying female."
Harm stepped behind her and placed his arms around her, drawing her back into his body. In his arms Loren felt safe.
"You're not weak. Loren, you're one of the strongest women I know. Facing and dealing with the past is never easy. Do you want to tell me about your talk with Paul?" he asked.
Loren nodded. She needed to talk about it. Seeing Paul again had been painful and Loren had been reminded of the famous "what could have been" phrase. She leaned her head back, letting it rest against Harm's shoulder. She needed as much physical contact with him as she could get.
"He ran into my mother a couple of days ago. I don't know how, they aren't in the same social circle, but last week they met again. My mother told him where I'm now living." Loren stopped.
Privately Harm thought that the meeting between Paul and Loren's mother couldn't have been a coincidence.
"They've always had a natural dislike for each other and suddenly my mother has lunch with my ex-boyfriend." She continued.
"What did he say to get you riled up?"
And so Loren told Harm what had happened in her office.
Flashback
"What do you want?"
"Is this the way to greet an old friend?" Paul asked instead.
"We're not friends!"
"We were. Need I remind you of our wonderful time together, all the things we shared? I taught you everything you needed to know about love. Hell, I was your first lover and I fathered your child."
"There is no child."
"I should've known that someone as cold-hearted as you would have aborted my son or daughter. You should have talked..."
"I should've? Paul, you left me when things got complicated, meaning me becoming pregnant. And, for your information, I didn't abort MY baby, I had a miscarriage."
END of Flashback
After having heard of what had happened Harm hugged her closer. He vowed to himself to make sure no one would ever hurt his Loren again.
