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right?”
    “I am,” he says kindly.
    “I really am sorry for blubbering to you, Karl. I’ve had a rough twenty-four hours.”
    “Like I said, don’t worry about it. Tell me what’s happened so I can figure out what we need to do.”
    “I stole a baby.”
    “What’s that?”
    “I stole a baby.”
    “Are you planning on returning the baby and looking for representation for legal matters?” he asks in a shocked heightened tone.
    “No. I don’t know who the baby belongs to and I don’t know what to do with him. I found him in a crack house and for reasons that seem really stupid right now, I didn’t follow any normal protocols and I’m not sure what to do.”
    “Natasha, I need to get an attorney. Do you mind if I put you on hold for a moment?”
    “Are you callin’ the police?” I ask terrified I’ve just made a grave error.
    “No. I’m going to get someone that can help you better than I can. Just hang tight.”
    He doesn’t wait for me to respond before instrumental music fills my ear. I should hang up. This was a really foolish idea in the first place and now I’ve made it worse. Why can’t I just do something right?
    I stay on hold. What other choice do I have? I check on the baby and pace when I find him sleeping peacefully. Zeus hops off the couch and follows in my nervous wake, trying to ease my tension.
    “Natasha?” his smooth deep voice filters through the phone and I feel vomit fill my mouth.
    “Uh huh,” is all I’m able to respond with, like an idiot.
    “This is Brian O’Sullivan. Do you remember me?”
    Do I remember him? Is he fucking kidding? How could anyone forget Brian O’Sullivan? He’s a tall drink of poisonous water. Dark brown messy hair, chocolate eyes, a smile that can melt panties from a hundred paces, the body of a fighter and the cocky smirk of a man that gets what he wants. I remember Brian O’Sullivan. And he knows it. He’s been hitting on me for the last two and a half years. Damn it!
    “Natasha? Did I lose you?” he prompts with concern in his voice.
    “I’m here. I remember you,” I say in a small voice.
    “Karl filled me in a little. Why don’t you start from the beginning and let’s see what I can do for you?”
    “I’m thinkin’ I should just forget about this. I don’t know why I thought calling Shannon was a good idea, but I’m seeing things more clearly now. It’s best—”
    “Natasha,” he cuts me off abruptly, “you need to consider your actions very carefully from this point forward. A plan needs to be made with your legal wellbeing as well as the wellbeing of the baby you currently have in your custody as top priority.”
    He doesn’t sound like the dirty sleaze ball that hit on me the entire time I took care of his sister. He sounds commanding and well spoken. My mind is reeling and I don’t have the capacity to process everything coming at me right now.
    “I’ve been trying to figure this out! I don’t know what I’m doing and calling an attorney and telling him I just committed a crime seems supremely stupid right now. I’m gonna lose my job. I’ll be arrested. My brother’s gonna go to jail! Who’s gonna take care of Zeus while I rot in prison for kidnapping?!”
    “Zeus?”
    “My dog!” I squeal like a five-year-old before I dissolve into tears again.
    As I sob, I can hear him trying to soothe me, but I can’t rein it in. I’m going to lose everything and all I can do is cry about it. Between gasps I hear Sully say, “I’ll be right there.”
    Then he hangs up on me. Right here? I don’t understand. He doesn’t know where I live. I think I’ve just hallucinated that entire interaction. I continue to bawl into Zeus’s head as I cuddle up to the only being on Earth that’s always been here for me. I’m completely alone in this world. What have I done?

O’Sullivan
    I have no clue what I’m doing. I’m driving my Mercedes like a crazed person to get to a woman I don’t know. And what I do know is