"You really are a piece of work aren't ya?" Tina sneered, stepping further into the pub, her eyes glinting menacingly.

"Me a piece of work?" Carla scoffed, feeling the anger towards the young woman in front of her bubbling under the surface of her skin and she took a step forward, "you know, I've seen some brass necks in my time, Tina, but you," she wagged her finger at her, "you really take the cake, love."

"What, as opposed to a desperate, scorned wife pretending to be pregnant just to win her husband back?" Tina eyed her up and down in disgust, "you're pathetic!" she snorted derisively, before turning to Peter, "and you. You can't seriously tell me that you believe this?" she gestured towards Carla

"It's true," Peter responded, his arm gripping Carla tighter to his side by her waist, "Carla's pregnant -"

"Oh Peter please, would you just listen to yourself!" Tina shouted, her hands coming up to her face angrily before lowering once again, "she -" she pointed at Carla, "is lying through her teeth! She hasn't got a maternal bone in her body-" she sneered, "ask anyone in 'ere; ask Simon!"

"Tina, enough!" Peter warned her

"Oh, she's lying to you, Peter!" Tina practically screamed, "Can't you see she's just manipulating you-"

"I said that's enough! I've seen the scans, Tina," Peter interrupted, his voice raising in anger, "I've heard the heartbeat," he shook his head at her, "She's not lying."

The words hit Tina like a punch to the stomach. Her hand dropped to her side, her eyes filling with tears and lower lip quivering as the news she desperately hoped was a lie suddenly became real. Her eyes darted between Peter and Carla, her eyes lowering to Carla's stomach almost dreading to see the proof in the form of a bump, before sighing thankfully at it being obstructed by the loose black shirt the factory boss was wearing.

"Oh you know what? I've had enough of this now," Tracy muttered, placing her glass on the bar, "Go on, that's it! Hop it love!" Tracy ordered the younger woman

Tina turned her gaze to Tracy, "What?"

"You're not welcome!" Tracy stated, "go on then, shoo! Don't stand there gawping!"

"How long has she been pregnant?" Tina asked, ignoring Tracy and facing Peter

"What does it matter?" Peter responded

"Well when did she tell you?" Tina pushed further, "this morning? Last night? When?"

"A while ago," Peter answered truthfully

"And why didn't you just tell me the truth?" Tina sniffled

Peter sighed, "Would you have really wanted to hear it?"

"You finished with me, because you didn't want children," Carla felt her heart sink as Tina's words hit her like a wave, "or so you said. You said that you'd been there, you'd done that, you couldn't make the sacrifices, you said all those things..."

Carla turned her head to look at Peter, her body slowly edging away from his and inching towards Michelle who slid her arm around Carla's supportively.

"Yes, I said a lot of things," Peter acquiesced

"Yeah and it sounded like you meant them..."

Peter shook his head, "I didn't,"

Tina snorted derisively, "Or maybe you did," she shot back, her eyes flickering to his wife, a slight smirk tugging at her lips as she saw the seeds of doubt being planted in Carla's mind as she stepped further from Peter and closer to Michelle, "and maybe you're lying now..."

"You need to stop this, Tina" Peter said

Tina nodded and scoffed. She turned her back on them for a moment, her hand coming up to wipe the tears that had fallen down her cheeks before facing them once more, "So," she asked as she folded her arms across her chest, "are you disappointed? Do you wish she wasn't pregnant?"

"What kind of a question is that?" Peter shot back angrily, "you're poisonous!"

"Answer the question Pe'er," Carla's voice broke from next to him

Peter turned his gaze to his wife; her green eyes brimming with tears as she pleaded with him for the truth. Her face and posture trying desperately not to give away how she felt as though she were standing over the mouth of a raging volcano on nothing but a thin sheet of ice.

"Car-," Peter reached for her hands but she pulled back from him, shaking her head as her lips pressed together, "Carla, I meant every word I said to you about wanting this baby," he answered her truthfully

"Yeah right," Tina rolled her eyes and sniffled, "and was that before or after you found out that I wasn't pregnant, Peter? After you told me that you didn't want anymore kids because you already failed at being a dad once, so why would you want to put another kid through that-"

"Before," Peter cut her off, his eyes blazing into hers now, "it was before I told you any of that!"

Carla looked at Tina as the young woman inhaled a sharp breath, and she felt her heart break for her.

She knew she should hate her. Hate her for pretending to be her mate while she was bedding her husband behind her back. But for some reason she just couldn't bring herself to...

...the word hypocrite kept flashing over and over again in her mind.

After all, she had done the same to Maria and to Leanne. And no matter how she may have tried to justify her actions in the past, she had long accepted that she had been in the wrong. And she knew that Tina was now where she once was: unable to quash the feelings that she knew were wrong, and yet felt so right. Being completely in love with a married man; on the outside looking in, and wanting more.

And she couldn't help but feel for her...

"Wha-what are you saying?" Tina asked, her voice cracking as a sob threatened to escape her throat, "You knew she was pregnant before I did the test?"

"Yes," Peter responded, "she told me before you did."

"When?"

"Earlier the same evening that you told me you thought you might be pregnant..."

"March 31st?" Tina whispered

"Yeah," Peter nodded

Tina's eyes darted around embarrassingly, feeling as though she were suddenly standing naked in the centre of the pub. She locked eyes on Carla, who stared back almost empathetically at her. Feeling a rush of guilt overtake her, Tina let out a sob and ran out of the pub.

As the pub began to whisper in hushed tones, Carla continued to stare at the spot where Tina had stood just moments earlier.

"Carla-," Peter reached for his wife's elbow only to have it snatched away sharply

"Don't touch me," she whispered, her voice thick with anguish.

"Carla, please-" Peter tried,

"No," she shook her head, "I just -," she closed her eyes, and inhaled deeply, "I just can't deal with this right now..." she stated as she blinked her eyes back open, before grabbing her purse and heading out of the pub

"Carla," Rob called after her, following her out onto the street, "wait-"

"No, Rob," she said, turning to look at him and wiping her eyes, "I'm okay. Please just go back to your party,"

"No, not until I make sure you're alright," he said, "come here," stepping closer to her and attempting to pull her in for a hug

"Don't," she stepped away from him, "it'll set me off," she mumbled. She exhaled and flashed him crooked smile, "look, I'm just going to head back to Roy's, have a cuppa and a natter with him, and have an early night, okay?"

"Alright, well I'll walk you back,"

"Rob, I think I can manage a two minute walk without an escort," she snapped irritably

"Oh just shut up and humour me, will ya?" He rolled his eyes, smirking at her as she relented, like he knew she would, falling into step beside him and curling into his side as he placed his outstretched arm around her shoulder

"Go on then," she prodded him, "give me your lecture about kissing Peter..."

Rob sighed, "Nah," he pressed a kiss to the top of her head, "I think you're beating yourself up about it enough on your own,"

"He sounded so genuine," she whispered, "when he was talking to you about me it sounded so honest, so truthful,"

"Why do you think it wasn't?" Rob asked curiously

"Look how easily he lied to Tina," she answered softly, "how can I trust he was telling me the truth, and not her?"

"I dunno," Rob responded, "by his actions, maybe?"

"Hang on," Carla pushed away from her brother, turning to stand in front of him, "you're defending him?" she pointed at him, "you? Defending Peter?" She looked around the street dramatically,

"What are you doing?" He asked her

"Looking,"

"For what?"

"Well the devil's obviously skating into work in't he?" Rob let out a chuckle, "just checking to see if he'll pass through this way..."

"oh ha ha! Come 'ere," he tugged her back into his side, using the crook of his arm to pull her head closer to plant another kiss on her temple, as they continued towards the cafe, "look, all I'm saying is Tina's tried multiple times to seduce him, threaten him, anything to get him in her bed since he got back from rehab, and he has had nowt to do with her every time. I'm not saying you should get back with him this quick, but, I dunno," he breathed out, as they stopped in front of the cafe door, "just give the guy a chance to prove he was telling you the truth."

Carla crossed her arms across her chest, "why are you suddenly team Peter?" she asked shrugging, "What's changed?"

Rob lowered his gaze to the ground, "Because you were right," he said softly, "you don't need all this stress weighing you down, and you don't need me and Peter at each other's throats. You want what's best for the baby, and I think he does as well. Just, don't let Tina McIntyre win, yeah?"

Carla nodded, "so, when did you get so wise?" she poked him teasingly

"I dunno," he shrugged, "maybe falling in love's made me a right softie and all..."

Carla smiled, drawing him in for a hug, "thank you," she kissed him on the cheek, "now go back to your party and enjoy yourself!"

"Alright, I'll text you in the morning, yeah?"

"Yeah," she watched as he began to head back to the Rovers, "oh and Rob?"

"Yeah?"

Carla shifted from foot to foot uncomfortably, feeling almost sick as the words rolled around in her mouth, "Apologize to Tracy for me, will you?"

Rob winked at her, placing his hands in his pockets and heading back to the Rovers.

Carla exhaled as she watched her brother's retreating back, her eyes shifting towards the Builder's Yard flat...

Peter solemnly made his way back into the Rovers from the back garden.

"Where have you been?" Steve asked, worried when he disappeared shortly after Carla and that his friend had found solace in the nearest bottle of booze.

"Out back, having a cig," Peter responded despondently

"Peter what's happened to your face?" Michelle asked

"What?" He shifted his eyes to her.

"Your face, Peter, you're bleedin'," She continued gesturing to the scratches along his left cheek.

"He had an altercation with a cat!" Mary stated knowingly from her seat with Norris

"Yes, or at-at least that's what he told us when we saw him," Norris muttered disbelievingly into his drink

"Hmm," Michelle huffed, folding her arms across her chest, "a cat named Tina, perhaps?"

Peter ignored her, glancing about the pub, "Where's Rob and Tracy?"

"They slipped out about half an hour ago," Steve responded

"Dierdre's not happy," Liz piped up, "not after all the money and work she spent on getting this party together,"

"Yeah, leave it to Tina to turn up and ruin everything," Beth hiccupped next to him, "I knew she were planning sommit..."

"Eh?" Peter's brows furrowed as he stepped closer to the blonde, "What do you mean, 'planning sommit'?"

Beth turned to lean her elbow on the bar, staggering tipsily, and narrowed her eyes at Peter, "I saw her in the shop a few hours ago; she were trying to talk to your lad but he weren't having none of it. He said that once you and Carla get back together, that he'll have all the family he needs between his mum and Nick, and you and Carla, and he wants nowt to do with her anymore and he called her pathetic." Beth took another sip of her prosecco, "Leanne told him that were enough and they left. And I were winding Tina up that she were told by a ten year old, and she just said that if she couldn't get her happily ever after, than she'd make damn sure Carla wouldn't get hers either, and that she'll spend every waking moment making her life a living hell..."

Peter clenched his hands into fists, the anger inside him crackling beneath the surface.

"You know," Beth mused, as she leaned on her elbows on the bar, "she's a right bunny boiler, that one. It wouldn't surprise me, if she clocked onto Carla's pregnancy and caused all this just to add stress onto your missus..."

"I need to go," Peter mumbled

"Where are you going?" Steve called after him, but Peter continued walking out the front doors of the pub, "Peter!" Steve called after him again. He exhaled and turned to Michelle, both casting a worried look to each other.

A fog-like haze cascaded over him as he trudged up Rosamund Street. He only had one emotion pulsing through him at the moment, and that was white-hot rage. He needed this over with, now. He wished he had never clapped eyes on Tina, never asked her to help out with Simon; wished he hadn't of let his pride at losing the Bookies get in the way of his love for Carla; wished he had been stronger to draw a line between him and Tina long before they had ever kissed.

He had cared for her. She was a young, impressionable young woman and he should have known better. He had always felt she had a good heart underneath it all, but now he wasn't so sure. He wasn't sure he ever really knew her at all.

But as he came to a stop at the corner of Rosamund and Victoria Sts, there was one thing he did know for certain: every inch of him hated Tina flamin' McIntyre.

His eyes narrowed as he began to head towards the Builder's Yard flat, before something made him stop and turn around. His eyes finding their way to the cafe flat window and the lights that flickered there. He felt the rage melt off of him, as he thought of the woman inside...of Carla, and of their baby. He let out the breath he had been holding and felt the tears prick the corners of his eyes.

His eyes glanced back towards the Builder's Yard flat door, then back to the cafe flat window several times as his emotions battled for control inside of him. He had a choice to make: confront Tina once and for all, or beg Carla to hear him out.

With one last final look, he made his decision and with determination made his way towards the flat and the confrontation he knew awaited him inside...

"Sir? Can you tell us if she is breathing?" the voice came through the mobile he had pressed against his chest, "Sir?"

Rob squeezed his eyes closed, his breathing erratic as he leaned against the side of Barlow's Buys. He couldn't get the sound out of his head: the terrified scream of the young woman he had grown to hate over the past few weeks, before it was silenced by the sound of metal slashing through the air.

He couldn't get his head around it. They had been arguing on the flat balcony, they struggled, and she fell to the cobbles below. Instinct took over and he bolted out of the flat, leaving the door ajar, and jogged to where she lay on her back on the cobbles and tried desperately to awaken her without moving her. He took out his mobile, poised to dial for an ambulance when she stirred. He was shocked but relieved, and as he tried to help her, she became venomous again: threatening to shop him to the police for trying to kill her over the dodgy deals she knew he was involved in with Tracy and Tony Stewart. He tried to reason with her, but she was so bitter with wanting revenge that she didn't care, she would tell the police whatever she needed to in order to get some semblance of satisfaction and vengeance on Carla and Peter.

As she ranted, his eyes were drawn to the metal bar poking out tantalizingly from the skip, and he felt an overwhelming desire to bash her skull in and silence that gobby mouth of hers once and for all.

And yet he couldn't.

And so he turned away, listening to her continue to taunt him almost breathlessly through her obvious physical discomfort. He knew he was done for, and yet he still dialed for an ambulance. He would take the punishment he had to if it meant protecting Carla and her baby, and Tracy.

"Yeah, an ambulance to Victoria Street; builder's yard; a young woman has fallen off the balcony..."

It was then he heard Tina shouting,

"Don't be daft-" followed by a bloodcurdling scream, and he found himself turning back; turning back around the corner onto Victoria Street to see Tina's prone body lying face down on the cobbles, blood pooling around her head. His fearful eyes turned to the skip, and to the metal bar that was now missing from where it had been minutes prior.

"Sir?" The voice came through his mobile, "EMS is en route, can you tell us if the woman is conscious?"

Panic overtook him and he backed away from her, his feet carrying him back to Rosamund Street where he leaned against the window of the shop he shared with Tracy. As the EMS operator continued to ask questions through the receiver he quickly cut off the call. Breathing erratically he quickly made his way to the ginnel, and into the back garden of Number 1

...not seeing his sister make her way out of the cafe flat and heading towards the Builder's Yard flat...