COLE

Watching Arlene leave with Liam that night had done more damage to my mind than I expected. My arrival here had originally been to confirm her identity and to know if she was really pregnant with my child.

I had checked one of those things off the list, and instead of feeling relieved, I felt like the hole in my heart had widened beyond what I could imagine.

Our last conversation left me aching for more instead of easing the sense of loss I was experiencing. Every day since she left, I wondered how she was doing and hoped she would return to the house.

The relationship between Mr....