Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 78011 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78011 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
“Yeah, you didn’t know him,” he tells her and looks at me, then back at his mother. “That you both loved me very much.”
“Right.” She blinks tears away from her eyes. “That no matter where he was, if he knew about you, he would love you with his whole heart.”
He just nods. “Well, honey, yesterday at the barbecue, I saw your dad.”
His eyes open. “You did? Did you tell him about me?” He claps his hands together, and I want to jump and grab him, bringing him to my chest and kiss his head.
“She did,” I finally speak up, and he turns to look at me. “I had no idea that I had a son, that’s you.” My eyes look into his. “That I was a dad.” I also know that this moment is more emotional for me than it is for him. He probably doesn’t even get the impact of it.
“You’re my dad?” he asks the question, and I just nod my head. The lump in my throat is so big I don’t think any words could come out. “So now I have a mom and a dad?” he asks, looking from Eli to me.
“Yes. Now you get to have a mommy and a daddy,” she tells him, leaning over to kiss him. My heart just fills so much. I had no idea that I could love another human as much as this.
“I really want to spend time with you, and,” I tell him, “I live right next door. So if you want to come over, all you have to do is come.”
“Do I have a bedroom there?” he asks, and I look at Eli.
“No.” I shake my head and see his face fall in disappointment. “But you can have whatever bedroom you like. We can go shopping, and you can pick everything yourself,” I say, hoping to entice him to want to come over and spend time with me. Wow, did I just bribe my kid? Yes. Yes, I did.
“If I sleep over, can Mommy come, too?” he asks me and then looks at his mother who just stares with her mouth hanging open. “She has no friends.”
I shrug my shoulders. “If Mommy wants to sleep over, she is more than welcome to,” I say, and his face lights up.
“Um,” Eli starts to say. “How about you go get dressed for school so we can go?”
“Are you going to come with us?” He turns and asks me once he’s gotten off the chair.
“I am,” I tell him, and he turns around, running out of the room.
“Cool,” he says, running up the steps to his bedroom.
“I’m going to change, too,” Eliahn says, getting up. “Help yourself to anything you want,” she says, walking away from the table and going upstairs.
I take out my phone and send a text to the boys.
Me: Announcement made.
Nick answers me back right away.
Nick: When do we meet him?
Me: Sunday?
Nick: It’s a plan. Bring the wife or the baby momma, what are you calling her?
I roll my eyes at him and don’t have time to answer when my phone rings, and I see it’s Lauren.
Chapter Six
Eliahn
My hands and legs shake as I walk up the steps toward my bedroom. I walk into Aiden’s first and see him trying to put on a superhero costume. “That’s a no,” I tell him, and he just looks at me.
“But I can be Batman today,” he says, holding up the pants.
“Or you can be Aiden and wear these shorts,” I say, opening his top drawer and then walking to the closet to see that there are some short-sleeved button-down shirts. I grab a dinosaur one. “You can be Batman when you come home.”
“But Batman is cooler,” he says, looking at me. “I should ask my dad.”
And it starts. “You should ask me who is standing right here. Those shorts and that shirt. Batman is for after school.”
“But, Mom,” he moans, and I cross my arms over my chest.
“Or you can not wear it at all today,” I tell him. He just hangs it up and walks toward his bed with his shoulders slumped down like I just told him I kicked his puppy. “I’ll be in my room getting dressed. Don’t forget to brush your teeth after that. D’accord?”
“D’accord,” he says. I walk into my room, and I open my closet door to see two outfits hanging that my mother must have left for me. I grab the green pants that are hanging, putting one leg through and then the other. Talk about low ride. It fits just on my hips. I pair it with the white long-sleeved shirt that falls off one shoulder. I grab the pair of nude high heels that are in the closet and go to the bathroom, untying my hair and letting it fall. I walk out and see that Aiden is wiping his mouth on a towel. “Look at my teeth,” he says, showing me that he brushed his teeth.