Racing Hearts

Chapter 18- Reality Check

Ryan's POV

"I can't Ry, you look." Kori said, covering her eyes and pushing the laptop to me.

I stared at the screen, the words and numbers and medical terms all a blur, until I saw the words and number that would change my life forever: The alleged father cannot be excluded as the biological father of the tested child. Based on the analysis listed above, the probability of paternity is 99.999.

I could not keep the smile off of my face or the tears from burning in my eyes.

"Kori, look at me babe." I said, turning her head towards me. "I'm a dad. For real. Look." I was giddy with excitement, and the smile she flashed at me nearly blinded me as she looked at me then at the computer screen.

"I knew it!" She squealed. Oh did she really? I laughed to myself.

It was then that I noticed an additional link had been provided. "Do you want to know the gender?" I asked. Her eyes lit up even more, if that were even possible.

"I don't know. Do we?" She asked, and judging by the twinkle in her eyes, I was guessing yes.

"You do it this time." I said, turning the laptop to her.

She read for a moment and smiled at me. "How do you feel about having a son?" She asked.

"A boy? For real?"

"Just kidding. It's a girl. I hope you're okay with that." She smirked.

Okay? I was more than okay with that. For some reason, I had always imagined myself as a girl dad. I was so excited, all I could do was hug her tightly and plant a kiss on her mouth. I was going to have a daughter.

"You're name is Italian isn't it?" I asked, the wheels in my brain already spinning.

"Welllll. It was supposed to be. If it were spelled correctly, it would be." She laughed and rolled her eyes.

"Spelled correctly?" I questioned.

"I told you my dad stuck around long enough to sign my birth certificate, well, he spelled my name wrong. It was supposed to be Karina, with a Ka, not Korina Ko."

"But if he would have spelled it correctly, you would be Kari, not Kori. I like Kori better."

Yeah, I guess so." She laughed again.

"Did your mother have an Italian name?" I asked.

"Yes. Isabella." She replied.

"Isabella. That's beautiful." I started imagining a little girl. Petite with blonde hair and green eyes, just like her mother.

"Bella does mean beautiful." She spoke with a smile.

"Like bellissima." I said thinking back to the first time I had heard her speak Italian. That seemed like ages ago.

"You remembered."

"Of course I remembered. What do you think of Isabella Blaney, or even Bella? Personally, I love it."

"So do I. What is your mom's name? I can't believe I don't know that." A small frown line appeared between her eyes.

"Lisa." I replied. Reminded again of just how crazy it was that we still had so much to learn about each other.

"Hmmm. Too many A's at the end. What about Isabella Alise? Still too many A's?"

I nodded, but my mind went elsewhere. Her comment about not even knowing my mother's name was a stark reminder. Kori and I had been so wrapped up in our own little world that we had failed to think about anything else.