As Hope pulled up to the front of the convenience store in her recently acquired used car, she took a deep breath to try to calm her pounding heart and still her shaking hands.

What was she going to do now? Hope slammed her head against the back of her seat and dragged her hands down her face. Why hadn't she thought through this more carefully?

What was she supposed to do? Barge into the store and say, 'Hi, you don't remember me, but we slept together and it turns out you're not as sterile as you thought, because I'm pregnant.'

No. No. She'd go in and be smart about it. She was a natural born predator, able to wait hours, days even, for her prey to come close. She could be patient and work her way back into Ryan's life. Maybe taking it slower than she did last time, since she was pregnant, but she could do this.

With another breath in an effort to calm herself, Hope climbed out of the car. The car door slamming sounded like a gunshot to her overwrought nerves and she spun around. Shaking her head to try to dislodge the nervous thoughts, she headed towards the door. But before she reached it, she doubled back towards the car.

"No. No." She turned around, only to be unable to make that final step.

She slumped onto a bench positioned near the front door and braced her elbows on her knees. She couldn't do this. When it came down to making herself truly vulnerable, she just couldn't do it. What sort of a coward was she?

"Are you okay?"

Hope looked up, startled. Ryan stood there, his hands in his pockets.

"Um." Hope wrapped her arms around her middle as if to protect the baby from possible rejection. "I um, I don't know."

"You wanna come inside?"

Was she just imagining it? Or was there truly a spark in his eyes, as though that connection she'd felt to him before was still there?

"Look, if you wanna wait in your car, it's okay, but you're welcome to come in if you want."

"Sure." Hope stood up slowly.

"I'm Hope." God, that hurt, introducing herself to him again. She was an idiot for allowing herself to feel so deeply for someone she'd only known for a week and that was a month ago, and he didn't even remember it.

"Pretty name, for a pretty girl."

"It's a painfully normal name, Ryan." She glanced at his name tag, trying to cover her slip of knowing his name.

"So, what brings you to town?" Ryan asked as he headed back towards where he was stocking some shelves at the back of the store.

"Just looking to start a new life. You wouldn't happen to know of any rooms for rent, do you? I've got some money, so I can pay an advance."

Ryan pursed his lips as if considering something, then he said, "My step-mother's been looking to rent out our basement, so I can take you to meet her after I get off work this evening, if you don't mind waiting."

"I don't mind." Hope smiled, then bit her lip.

"It'll be another four hours," he warned, his gaze flicking to her lips for a moment before returning to her eyes once more.

"I can wait. If you don't mind the strangest girl you've ever met keeping you company."

"You think you're the strangest person I've ever met?" He raised one eyebrow skeptically as he stood up, towering over her.

"Two things, one you don't know anything about me, so for all you know, I might be a serial killer, and two, I was pacing outside the store just a few minutes ago. So yeah, that's strange."

"Fine, that is strange, but your eyes say that whatever you've done, you didn't do it to be cruel." Pulling out his phone, he typed out a message, then slid his phone into his pocket. "I sent a text to Seylah, telling her that I think I found a renter."

"You don't mind, renting a room to someone you just met?"

"Something tells me I can trust you."

"Would you still trust me if I told you I was pregnant?" Fear clogged her throat and she was forced to choke out the words. Here it was. Now he knew part of the truth about what was going on with her.

"Oh." Ryan's face closed off and he looked down, his brows furrowed. His breath shuddered and he chewed on the inside of his cheek as he struggled with whatever thoughts were going through his head.

"I'm sorry. I'll um, I'll go."

Hope wrapped her arms more tightly around her middle and she headed towards the door. Tears flowed down her cheeks and she sniffed in an effort to keep from sobbing. She should have known her dreams were too good to ever come true. What man wanted to have a girlfriend who was pregnant with what he believed to be another's baby?

"Hope, wait." He caught her arm. "I didn't mean it like that."

"I've got no right to expect anything from you." Hope shrugged in an attempt to make it seem like his reaction didn't cut even though the tears in her eyes gave away her pain.

"Don't, don't say that."

He looked down and swallowed thickly, something in his expression made her wonder just what he was thinking. If she didn't know any better, she'd think he was devastated by her news, like his heart was breaking.

"It's just the way you said it, your tone, it reminded me of something I was hoping to never hear again."

"What did it remind you of?" She scrubbed her face with her sleeve, then looked up at him.

"The way my step-mother sounded when she found out she was pregnant after the nightmare she endured with my father. That same fear. You don't have to tell me, if you don't want to, but I'm here, I'll listen, no matter how crazy or terrible your story is."

"I'm not so sure you'd believe me if I told you."

Ryan stepped closer to her, cupping her cheek gently as his thumb brushed along her lower lip and Hope's breath caught in her throat. He shifted his hand so that he could cradle the back of her head with his hand.

"Tell me when you're ready."

"You promise you'll listen with an open mind?"

"As open as it can possibly be."

"Okay."

"Ryan!" a girl called from the front door.

The pair broke apart and both of their masks slipped into place, the moment shelved until a later time.

"Yes, Lucy?" he sighed.

When she saw Hope standing close to Ryan, the younger girl stared at her, rage in her eyes.

"Who's this?" Lucy demanded.

"Hope Marshall," Hope replied brightly.

"My girlfriend," Ryan added, then tugged Hope closer to his side and whispered, "play along."

"Girlfriend? You have a girlfriend?" Lucy squeaked.

"Yes. We've been together about a month." Hope tucked her head under Ryan's chin and allowed herself to luxuriate in his scent filling her nose: warm, earthy, home.

"Yep." Ryan kissed her temple and sighed into her hair, a contented sound Hope hadn't thought she'd hear from him, especially not so soon.

"How come I've never seen her before?" Lucy crossed her arms across her chest, her mouth pulling into a furious pout.

"I'm from out of town. We met when I was here a month ago, looking for a place to live." Hope ran her hand up and down Ryan's back, the way a real girlfriend might do with her boyfriend. The realization that the last time she'd touched him like this, they'd both been very naked sent a jolt of heat through her and she wished the next four hours were already passed.

"Now, I really have to get these shelves stocked while I have a chance. Chris won't stock it and I don't want to want to help him off a short pier when I come in tomorrow." Ryan turned back to his work and Hope leaned against the opposite shelf.

"I can do something about Chris, if you want," Hope offered.

"Like what?" Ryan grinned, a dangerous glint in his eyes.

"Pretty much anything you want. Depending on how old he is."

"Careful, Hope. I might just take you up on that."

"Any time you want me to mess with him, let me know."

"You want Ryan to get into trouble with the cops if something bad happens to Chris and they somehow trace it back to him?" Lucy cut in.

"I can get him out." Hope shrugged.

"You're a scary woman, Miss Marshall." Ryan looked up at her from under his lashes.

Hope shrugged lightly, her brain short-circuiting for a moment. God, he was beautiful.

"So you're fine with your girlfriend breaking the law?" Lucy struggled to get the word 'girlfriend' out.

"It's only breaking the law if an innocent person gets hurt. Otherwise, it's justice." Hope raised an eyebrow at the girl.

Did Lucy not think about what she was saying? If Ryan had decided to start something with her, he'd be breaking the law and be risking jail time. But what did a sheltered girl understand about life altering decisions like that?

"You might want to rethink your 'punish the annoying coworker' thing until after the baby's born though."

"Baby!" Lucy squeaked. "What baby?"

"Hope's pregnant and the baby's mine."

"Ryan." Was he seriously doing this? Hope felt lightheaded and she swayed on her feet. Had he seriously just claimed her baby as his?

"Hope." Ryan caught her arm and guided her to the floor. "I know you were wanting to keep this a secret for another few weeks at least, but I just couldn't keep it quiet."

Hope could only nod.

"She's seriously pregnant?"

"It can happen when you have sex. Now, either you buy something or leave. I've got work to do."

"Okay." Hope took a deep breath and blinked several times. "I think I'm feeling a little better."

She was still very lightheaded, but she could focus now, the words no longer reaching her through rushing in her ears.

"Just stay where you are for a few more minutes, until you know for sure you're not going to faint."

She nodded again and Ryan started stocking shelves again.

"Are you upset with me?" Ryan asked after a long moment of silence.

"Why would I be upset?" Hope struggled to think.

"Because what I told Lucy that I was the father of your baby and it's going to get around. I should have asked before saying anything."

"I don't mind." Hope looked up at him, studying his face. "Are you sure you want to be involved in my life though? The baby's not the strangest part of it."

"As long as the father won't show up to tell everyone that he's actually the father of the baby."

"There will be no one coming around to disprove your claim." Hope cradled her belly, then met Ryan's gaze. "Like I said, crazy story."

"Do you think I'm crazy?"

"Why would I think that?"

"I invited you to live in my home and claimed your baby as mine. That's gotta seem strange to you."

"Sometimes, something might seem a little impulsive, but it turns out to be the best thing that ever happened." Him accepting her and their baby, even if he didn't know it was his, it had her swallowing thickly. How was he so good to her?

"You think I could be the best thing that ever happened?" Ryan's lips curled up and he focused on cutting open a box.

"Yeah." Hope laughed softly. "I guess that makes me just as impulsive as you are."

"I'm not, at least not normally. It's just you."

"So it's my fault?" Hope bit her lip to fight her smile.

"Less your fault and more like you inspired me to let go for once."

"I hope you won't regret this, because getting involved with me is to invite a whole lot of, um, nothing normal into your life."

"Good thing I'm an expert at nothing normal."

Hope wondered what he'd say if he knew just how 'nothing normal' her life actually was.

For the next few hours, Hope stayed near Ryan, talking to him about anything and everything, aside from the supernatural. While it felt like she was lying in a way, she was still more honest with him than she'd been with anyone since she was taken. She wasn't the only one talking though. Ryan seemed just as eager for her to get to know him and before they realized it, it was time for Ryan to clock out.

"You ready?" Ryan asked as he led the way to the front door.

"As ready as I'll ever be."

"Don't be nervous. Seylah's a good woman and my kid brother isn't anyone to be afraid of."

"I just haven't been in someone's home as a guest in a very long time."

Ryan wrapped his arm around her shoulders and kissed her hair, then whispered, "I'll be right here, the whole time. I promise."