A/N: No Erica this chapter, have to move the plot along. She's in the next one, though. There is NO baby swap here, so Bianca has no reason not to lean on David. And as for David. I took the direction I did with him, because he knows Erica so well. There is no point in pushing her. In trying to make her do what they want. She won't listen and it will only send her further into desperation.

Also, I chose Thankgsiving as the night that something happened with David, because that's what we've long thought in the fandom. Before Thanksgiving, the ruse was light and fun. They were friends and they cared about each other, but nothing to emotional. That changed after Thanksgiving. Things were a bit more tense, a bit more emotional, a bit more "connected" if you will. And then Erica reaction to David knowing about Bianca still being...to over the top for EK for someone who was "just" a friend.

Erica's love interests aren't the point of this, neither is the father. But I need to lay the foundation. I promise Jack will get equal time and I will treat J&E with a lot of respect.

Reviews and feedback appreciated.

Chapter 5

"Quite an ominous meeting spot," David smiled down at Bianca as he entered the pew, and slid in next to her.

She had called him quite upset only a few minutes ago, asking him to meet her here as soon as possible.

"Thought maybe a little prayer would help," She offered through a sad smile. "Thank you for coming on such short notice."

"What's wrong?" He asked quickly, not liking the look in her eyes. "Is it the baby?"

"No, no," She smiled, "Miranda is fine. It's Mom…"

He nodded at that, having known this is why they were here. He hadn't seen nor heard from Erica since the morning she was released from the hospital. What…two weeks ago, now.

"I thought it might be. What happened?"

"She's completely lost touch with reality, David. I can't get through to her."

He nodded. "Yeah, whatever Hell she's in right now is obviously too much for her."

"We were just trying to protect her."

"She'll get through it, Bianca. She just needs time to process everything."

"She's pregnant, David and I'm pretty sure she's on her way to a bar."

"We have to hope she can resist the temptation, it's all we can do." He didn't know how to get to Erica. He didn't know where they started or how they took the blank, cold look from her beautiful brown eyes. He had to believe she could resist the temptation. That rational, good, honest, hopelessly devoted mother, was still in there…already finding her way back to them. "I've tried to call her, but she won't return any of my messages."

Bianca nodded, not at all surprised. It was a miracle her mother hadn't completely shut her out and forced her from her life. "She's not to fond of me, either."

"She wants us to give up on her. As long as we keep letting her know that we're not leaving, we have a chance to pull her back."

"She threw me out a few minutes ago," Bianca told him quickly. "I've never heard that tone in her voice. Seen that look in her eyes, David. She's dead inside."

He nodded, and reached over to take her hand. "She will get through this," He said, hoping his words sounded more convincing to her then they did to his own ears. "Why did she throw you out?"

"Because I asked her if she wanted me to call you," She told him quickly, eyes on him as she watched him closely.

He laughed lightly, nodding. "I knew she was angry at me, but throwing you out at the mention of my name is a bit extreme, even for Erica."

"She threw me out because I asked her if it's possible that you're the father of her baby."

Her words hung in the air between them for a few tense moments. She studied his face, his eyes, the way his body tensed at her words. She watched his eyes flutter closed as he drew in a hard breath.

"Where would you get something like that, Bianca," He asked quickly, hoping she couldn't hear the tremble in his voice.

"Something Mom said last night," She tossed back, unwilling to give him time to back out of this. There couldn't be anymore secrets. No more lies. Nothing was going to come back and rip their lives apart any more than it already was. It all had to end now if they had any hope of rebuilding their lives. "How it wasn't fair that you get to break her heart and breathe life into her at the same time."

His eyes went wide at that, and he forced out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.

"And your reaction just now," She added quickly. "Is it possible that you're the father, David?"

"Jackson is the father," He told her, eyes locked with hers. How could he do this? Lie to her? Tell her the truth? After everything they'd been through, after all the lies and half-truths had cost them, how could he answer her that wouldn't destroy what little peace she had?

"That's what Mom says," She nodded, eyes still burning into his. "I'm asking you what you say. Is it possible?

He forced out a hard breath, and his eyes slipped shut. He didn't want to see the pain in her eyes, before he nodded. "Yes. Yes, it is possible that the baby is mine."

She was silent for a few seconds, letting the words echo in her head. They had promised nothing was going on between them. Promised they were being honest. Promised there was nothing being hidden or kept for her. "You said…" She started, trying to force the words out, trying to make it all come together as a coherent thought, "that nothing was going on. That you and mom were faking being lovers for the police."

"We were, Bianca. We didn't hide anything from you. We were as honest with you that night as we could have been."

"So it happened after Thanksgiving?" She wondered, watching him nod.

"It was actually that night." His eyes were closed again and he was trying to will his thoughts to stay in the present, and not go back to that night. To her. To them. "We didn't plan it. I swear to you, Bianca nothing about that night was planned."

She nodded for him to continue.

"After you left, Erica and talked for a while, and then I left. I didn't feel good about leaving her, but I couldn't stay. Sometimes you have to know when to walk away."

She raised a curious eyebrow at him, "But you came back?"

"She called me about ten minutes later and asked if I would come back, she didn't want to be alone," He confirmed, "I've always had a hard time denying Erica."

She smiled slightly at that, and nodded for him to continue.

"I told her I'd go pick up something to eat," He was trying to get it out quickly, before his mind betrayed him and images of that night started racing through his brain. "She hardly ate dinner, and we know she will push herself until she collapses."

"So you came back with dinner," Bianca continued, "And?"

He pushed out a hard sigh. "I went back with dinner and we turned on a movie, for some background noise. And then we ate Chinese takeout while we talked."

"About what?" She wondered curiously.

"You. Michael. What happened the night he died. We even talked about your Uncle Jack, anything she needed to talk about."

"And you weren't worried that this was all leading too…"

He shrugged and offered her a knowing smile. "This wasn't the first time we'd stayed up all night talking. We behaved ourselves that night and neither of us had any plans to do anything different."

"But something changed?"

"We fell asleep on the couch," He confirmed, "and didn't wake up until after two. It was late. I needed to leave, I had an early surgery…" He stopped and shook his head.

"You didn't leave…"

"She asked me to stay," He pushed it out quickly, without thinking. Needing the memories to stay right where they were, locked away in his brain. "I couldn't…I couldn't leave her. I don't know if she kissed me or if I kissed her or if fate pushed us together. We were playing with fire, Bianca. Tempting fate in every direction."

He hadn't let himself go back to that night since he'd left her penthouse. He pushed it all to the back of his mind. Tempered the feelings that burned in his heart. He forced away the feel of her skin under his hands. The way her lips tasted against his. The way her perfume smelled. The way she said his name. The way they'd moved together, like they hadn't ever been apart.

She studied his face. The way his eyes had slid shut. The way his lips twitched as if they wanted to smile at the memories. The way his body was clenched and pained. He was trying to keep it all at bay. Keep his heart in line. Keep the truth from pouring out. "You love her."

It wasn't a question or a statement. It was the truth he didn't dare speak.

He shook his head quickly, forcefully. "My feelings for your mother are complicated, Bianca."

"You love her," She said again more confidently this time.

"I care about her. I always will."

"You love her, David. I can see it in your eyes," She pointed out, "Not just that, but if this was any other woman, you would already have her locked away in a rehab facility or Oakhaven so she couldn't drink, while your lawyers worked on how to get you custody when the baby is born."

He laughed aloud at that, and nodded. She knew him well. "You've gotten to know me so well."

She flashed him a smile at that, and made sure he couldn't turn his eyes from hers. "You aren't doing that with Mom. You know that more stress and lies will tear her apart. You're not just protecting her because she's pregnant, you're protecting her because you love her."

"What do you want me to say, Bianca? Do I love Erica? Yes. Have I always loved her? Yes. Will I ever stop? Probably not. But what good does any of it do. She hates even the mention of my name."

"She loves me too, but right now she hates me. She doesn't know what she's doing," Bianca countered. "She's lost right now David, but maybe knowing how you feel maybe…"

"Maybe it will pull her back? Maybe it will put the life back in her eyes? Maybe it will take away her pain? Don't you think I've thought of all of that? Don't you think I almost told her while she was laying in my ER drunk and unconscious? It won't change anything. It's only going to make things worse."

She sighed. "You might be that baby's father, doesn't that count for something?

"A baby she can't even bring herself to want yet. It's all too much for her Bianca. Anything else is going to push her over the edge."

"So you'll just keep quiet? Let her keep self-destructing?"

"We can't make Erica do anything," He reminded her.

She shook her head. This wasn't right. "She needs something to hold onto."

"What good does her knowing do? She will always, always choose Jack." It was the truth and he wouldn't delude himself into believing knowing he loved her would somehow change anything.

"David…" Bianca started, but he shook his head.

"This has to stay between us, Bianca. We have keep it all inside and let your mother work through her demons without pushing or pulling her for any direction."

"And what if she's at a bar right now? What if she's getting drunk? She's pregnant!" She pleaded, "We can't just sit here and do nothing."

"We have to," He conceded, "We have to let her fall apart. If she can't fight the temptation not to drink for her child, she can't fight it for us. The only way she's going to get past these demons is to struggle with them. We have to let her find her own way out of it."

"You won't give up on her?" Bianca asked softly, letting his words sink in. He was right. They had to let Erica fight her own battle. She wouldn't be magically saved by words of love. By her baby. By Jack or anyone else. This was something she had to do on her own.

"I'll be right here when she decides she's ready to start feeling again."

It was going to be a long road. One they couldn't see the end of, yet, anyway. But they were willing to wait for her. Stand by and let the battle rage. Watch herself destruct, and fall to pieces. Watch her say and do things she would regret. Watch the light eventually start to find its way back into her eyes. Watch the color return to her cheeks. Watch the life pour back into her soul.

Watch her come back to them, however long it took.

To be continued