Sweet Caroline

#32 The truth comes out

He looks straight into my eyes and grunts. "I wanted to, though. I still want to. And if I somehow ever run into him in a dark alley, I can't promise I won't. I just can't do stupid shit like that anymore, not when I've got Rose to raise. It's bad enough that her dad has a criminal record. I can't go around beating people up anymore. Jail is not an option."

"Like I said, you're an amazing father." I caress his cheek and smile. "And if you change your mind, let me know. I'll cut off his dick and feed it to him. And I'll kill him after. I don't have kids to take care of+."

He smiles at my silly proposition. "Caroline, you've got a whole classroom full of kids who need you. Kids like Rose. Kids who need you to talk sense into their parents."

"Right," I agree with a grin. "Maybe murder isn't for me."

"Do you want the last of the story?" he asks. "Yeah? Okay. Turns out that while I was trying to learn how to change diapers without getting poop all over me, Elise was having another affair. With the manager of the local grocery store this time around. When I found out about it, I decided to leave her, but in the end, I didn't. I wanted Rose to have a real family and I decided to give Elise one last chance."

"Wow," I breathe. "Did you still love Elise at that point?"

Nathan shrugs and hesitates for a moment. "See this tattoo?" He points at the angel on his chest. "That's Elise. I mean, I got that when we got married because I thought she was an angel, my one true love, too good to be true. Boy, was I wrong. Still, she was good to me at the start of our relationship and she did love me."

"Cheating is a funny way of showing it." I glare at the angel tattoo. "Why didn't you get it removed?"

"My tattoos are the roadmap of my life," he explains looking down at himself. "Sometimes you take a wrong turn – doesn't make it any less part of your journey. Elise was and still is an important part of my life. I have Rose because of her. And it's not like she doesn't feel bad about her affairs. We both got in too fast too deep with each other and we were already too far into it when we realized we weren't right for each other. That's on me as much as it is on her. I worked late a lot, I wasn't very attentive..."

"You're the most attentive person I know," I argue.

He smirks. "In the bedroom, maybe."

"In all aspects," I insist.

"Caroline, you're only starting to see the real me." Nathan is absolutely serious. "You don't know what I'm like in a relationship."

"I know you." I'm not gonna sit here and let him tell me that I don't know what I'm talking about. Sure, I don't know everything about him yet, but we're slowly getting there. "Tell me, Nathan. Do you feel like you're just now getting to know me, during the two dates we've had? Or did you already know what sort of a person I was in the first week we spent together?"

He frowns. "A little of both, I guess? I knew you were amazing from the start, but I'm learning new things every time we see each other that tell me more about you."

I smile. That's nice to hear, obviously. "I feel the same way. That being said, I trusted you from the start. If I don't trust someone, I don't give them a key to my house. And I surely don't let them cuff me to my bed. You're a good person, Nathan. And trust me when I say that you are definitely very attentive."

"Fine," he says, finally accepting the compliment. "Maybe I am with you. I wasn't always that way with Elise, trust me. We brought out the worst in each other."

"Why did you finally get divorced?" I ask. "Did she cheat on you again?"

"No, it was way worse." Nathan's hands clench into fists and I jerk back my hand so he won't squish it. "Sorry," he breathes. "I've never actually told anyone this."