Perfect Match

Part 15

Stella paced back and forth, slowly getting more irritated by the minute. It's been three hours—three long hours—since Kelly walked out of the house without saying a word. She knows he is angry, hurt, and devastated, feeling completely gutted. And she understands; she does. Madison is his world; he has been by her side since the day she was born. One of the happiest moments of his life was watching his baby come into the world. He loved being a father, and even though he lost his way after Christina decided she didn't want to be a mom or wife, he let his heartbreak take over his responsibility for his daughter. But when she got sick, he was snapped back into reality. With the thought of losing his daughter, he knew he had to step up and be the dad she needed him to be. He slept at the hospital the whole time she was in there; he made a deal with God to love and be there for his daughter in every way if he let her be okay. And by the grace of God, she was okay. And Kelly kept his word; he has made Madison his top and only priority.

He put his life on hold to make sure he gave his daughter what she needed and wanted. He saved every paycheck so he could one day buy a home for them. Everything he did was for Madison; he has always been there. Her first step, her first word, her first day of kindergarten—when she broke her arm falling off the monkey bars, he panicked all the way to the hospital. He let her have ice cream for dinner that night because he felt so bad that she was in pain. They built a wonderful father-daughter bond. She was his little best friend.

And now, after seven years of raising her into the remarkable little girl she is today, there is a slight chance she isn't his daughter; Stella couldn't even grasp how truly heartbroken he is. Her heart breaks for him and Madison because this news doesn't just affect Kelly; it's also going to change Madison's world. She is only seven, and in her eyes, Kelly is her daddy; she loves him, she adores him, and he is her hero. Her little heart will be broken too. This just doesn't seem fair; nothing about this situation seems fair.

She stops pacing as a wave of nausea hits her. She closes her eyes, taking a deep breath. Her mind is still on Kelly and Madison; she hates that they are going through this, and she wishes she could make it all disappear. She knows in her heart that if, by some horrible twist of fate, Madison isn't Kelly's, he would still be there for her; he would still love and care for her; it's the man that he is; he won't turn his back on her just because he's not her biological father. He would probably lose her to Christina, whether she was his biological daughter or not, which would kill him.

She leans up against the wall and rests. Her head is spinning and pounding, her stomach is doing flip-flops, and she feels like she's going to be sick. Her tears are falling like crazy as she gets more emotional thinking about Kelly and Madison. She just wants to be happy—no more drama, just happy stuff.

Why can't her life be simple? She finally let go of her past and fell in love again. She has this image in her head of being married to Kelly and raising their daughters and their son. She believes their unborn baby is a boy; at least she is hoping it is. Even if it's a girl, she will be happy because he or she will complete their family. She finally got a family—two beautiful daughters, a man who loves her and supports her—and he loves her daughter, and she knows he will never lay a hand on her. But as her life was coming together, Kelly's life was falling apart. It just didn't seem right; they deserved to be happy, didn't they?

She looks at the clock. It's now ten o'clock, making it four hours since Kelly's been gone. He left his phone, so she can't call him, and he can't call her. He's not at his mom's because she is out driving around looking for him. She's the one who gave her son the terrible news, and she feels responsible for breaking his heart. Stella told her it wasn't her fault; she didn't do anything wrong but be honest with her son. Benny and Christina are at fault both in different ways. Christina should have told him years ago that she was sleeping with other people and there was a chance he wasn't the father. Benny should have been upfront with his son from the beginning; she doesn't understand the whole situation when it comes to Benny paying her; why did he pay her? What was he paying for? How much did he pay her? These were all the questions that needed to be answered, but they would probably never be answered because Benny only told people what he wanted them to know.