"Milk, Miss Parker?" The timid computer tech asked her.

"Give the man a round of applause, ladies and gentlemen!" She answered sarcastically as she set down her glass on her desk. "Just taking care of myself."

"Have you gone to the doctor? I know for a fact that..."

"That what, Broots?" She got off of her chair and folded her arms across her front.

Broots slowly backed away from her.

"What the hell are you lurking around in here for? Can't I have a moment of privacy in my own office?"

"I know for the past week now, we know that..."

"We? Oh, you and Freud? What the hell do we know what?" Her eyes glared at him.

"Nothing, Miss Parker. Never mind."

She lost her temper and flared up. "Okay! So, I'm pregnant! I'm not the first woman who's ever gotten pregnant before! How the hell could you two have known? Am I showing or something? Is my belly protruding a mile away from me?"

"Well, actually, Miss Parker. I was going to say, we know that you have a recurring ulcer condition and maybe you should be seeing a doctor for it, Mi...Miss Parker."

"Shit! I..." She was now the one who spoke nervously. "I...I just assumed you and Sydney knew."

"We do now." The psychiatrist suddenly appeared. "Have you given a thought of how dangerous it would be for you to be here at "The Centre" now that you're having a baby? I'm assuming the "pretender's" baby."

"And why are you under the assumption that it's his baby?" She asked defensively.

"I do know something happened between the two of you before he left."

"Yes, Miss Parker. You've been so sad since he's been gone. And it's best that you leave here."

"Well, you two never cease to amaze me!" She laid her hands on her hips. "Of course, I've thought about it! I'm telling "daddy" that I'll be taking an extended leave of absence. Now that Jarod's disappeared without a trace, there's no reason for me to be here in this god-foresaken place!"

"Jarod. He must be made aware of your condition. Broots will try his best to locate him."

"And what, Sydney? Force him to be with me? Did I ask for your help? He didn't want me with him. He could go to hell for all I care! This baby's mine! No one else's! And if anyone gets in my way, I'll shoot them!"

"Pleasant thoughts, Miss Parker. One should have pleasant thoughts when one is expecting a child."

"Well, thank you, Dr. Broots! And don't waste your time looking for him! I forbid you to do so! You got that! My baby and I will just be fine. We'll start a new life elsewhere."

JMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMP

Miss Parker looked around her new home. She missed her mother's house terribly, but, her unborn child was now the most important matter in her life. A mother would protect her child in every way possible, especially from "The Centre." She knew that her child would be a likely target. She cried at nights over Jarod. It pained her that he would never know that he fathered her baby. She hated herself for what she felt for him which was her love for him.

It was something that felt so good, just the two of them together alone in his cabin. Their time of passion together had not led to a lifetime of commitment. He hadn't wanted that. Instead, he chose not to have her in his life. Memories of him filled her thoughts. Although, he was gone, those memories of their precious time together stayed in her heart.

Gently, she caressed her belly. "Oh, sweetie pie. What am I going to do without your daddy? You would have loved him." She felt flutters and a soft kick inside of her. She cried.

JMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJPMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMP

"This is..."

"Sydney! It's Jarod. I can't get a hold of Parker. She doesn't answer her phone and I'm here sitting on her steps as we speak. Is she away?"

"Jarod. How are you?" Sidney sighed, relieved he had finally come to his senses. "Broots and I have been trying to locate you."

"Has something happened to Parker?" He panicked. "I've been trying to contact her for the last few days now."

"It's been months since we've heard from you. You could have at least called me."

"I know. I'm very sorry. Thought I could stay away, but, I couldn't, not from her. Where the hell is she?" He raised his voice at his mentor.

"She's gone, Jarod. She moved away several weeks ago. You see, "The Centre" would have been after her if they found out her secret."

"What secret? You're not making any sense. If they found out about what, Sydney?"

"It's against my better judgment, but,...no, she confided in me."

"Will you tell me, Sydney? Please. Why did she leave? Telll me. I don't understand. She is a part of "The Centre". What would she be running away from? She would never leave her mother's house."

"It's her story to tell, Jarod. Broots and I will be picking up Debbie at her place. Since school's out, Debbie has been keeping Parker company."

"Yes, and then she'll shoot me. Look, just tell me already. So, I'll be prepared."

"You two will need time to sort things out. You'll have a lot to talk about."

He wasn't called a genius for nothing. He picked it up instantly. The only way "The Centre" would be after Miss Parker was if she had any connection to Jarod. There would had been no reason for her to have left Blue Cove. It took several seconds before Jarod spoke out.

"She's pregnant." He was 99.5 percent so sure of himself.

"You should speak to her, Jarod."

"God, I should have been there for her. Tell me where she is, Sydney."

JMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMPJMJMPJMPJMPJMPJMP

A half an hour after Sydney, Broots and Debbie had left Miss Parker's house, Jarod arrived. Slowly, he walked up to her walkway. It was an unusual setting for her. Instead of her goulish gray like her mother's manor, her house was something you'd expect out of a storybook, with a white picket fence and flowers along the side. It looked like a family occupied her new home, a happy family.

There was a time he convinced himself she didn't need him in his life, that he was a substitute for Thomas. But, she surely wouldn't have put up a fight to have wanted to stay with him if she hadn't loved him.

He's never seen her as beautiful as she was at that very moment. Miss Parker had a glow all over her. Her face was flawless and her hair was pulled back into a pony tail. She was barefooted and wore a baggy tee-shirt and shorts. She hid her pregnancy quite well and no one would have ever guessed of her upcoming motherhood. Her first reaction was to kiss him, her second was to push him away and he knew her so well he would had anticipated the latter. Her third which she hadn't expected was cried.

"I'm sorry, Parker. Can I come in?"

She opened her door widely. Then, quietly closed it, but said nothing.

He reached out to her. She stepped back. Although she was dying inside, she wiped her tears as she composed herself.

"What brings you here, Jarod? We said goodbye a long time ago." She was cold.

"I was wrong. I tried to convince myself that I could live without you, but, I couldn't. I know I've been lying to myself when I told myself I could go on without you, I can't. I am sorry on how I had treated you and turned you away at the cabin. I shouldn't have."

Her voice was hoarse. "But, you did. I don't want your apologies."

"I've loved you as long as I've known you. I love you, Parker. I'd die for you, I really would, but, I'm not ready quite yet. I'd like to be here for you and our baby."

"When I get my hands on Sydney and Boots, I'll kill them. They betrayed my confidence. "

"They didn't tell me. I figured it out. Why else would you have left "The Centre"?"

"The passion we once shared doesn't exist anymore, Jarod. You deceived me, you didn't want me to stay with you. You used me." She said tearfully. "You used me only for a good time."

"Melissa, please don't cry. I didn't come here to upset you. And I didn't use you. Please believe me." He laid a hand on her cheek and brushed her tears away.

For just a moment, she placed her hand over his, then caught herself. "Dont." Miss Parker walked away. "I wish I could believe that you cared about me. But, you never did."

"Parker, that's not true."

"Wait." She held her hand up to him. "I realized something, Jar. Our relationship? We never had one. Not the kind I wanted from you. We were friends once, a very long time ago. But, not anymore. The only thing we were to each other were a good time in bed. Nothing more. But, in love? We were never. I was with you, but you weren't with me. You just wanted to see how much you could melt this "Ice Queen" persona of mine."

Jarod felt his heart drop.

She continued. "You had me with those passion-filled kisses, but your heart wasn't really into. I could have been happy with you. You made me feel like no one had ever made me feel. You made me forget the pain of Thomas. But, you didn't feel the same way, did you?"

"I did! I do! I never used you. I love you! Melissa, I really do love you!"

"I resent the fact that you ever laid a hand on me. And, hey, don't worry about this." Miss Parker pointed to her belly. "It's someone else's mistake!"

She regretted those words as soon as it came out of her mouth. In the years she had known Jarod, she never once saw tears, until that very moment. She watched as water slowly slid out from those sad puppy-dog eyes of his. And all she had wanted to do was to have held him in her arms and told him she loved him.

TBC - Chapter 10