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We stay for hours talking and laughing. After years of not knowing where I came from, it feels nice to be around family. Spending time with them shows me where a lot of my traits and genes come from.
When it’s finally time to say goodbye, I hug them all for what feels like a lifetime. I don’t want to let go.
We all exchange numbers, and they promise to come down to Tennessee to visit in a few weeks.
As we are getting ready to leave, Ken stops me. “Wait, I have something for you.”
He pulls a check out of his pocket.
“What’s this?” I ask.
“Remember how the state claimed it was a so-called clerical error? Well, we filed a lawsuit, and they settled out of court. We’ve never touched any of the money, instead keeping it in a savings account in hopes that one day we would get a chance to give it to you.”
I look down at the amount, and my jaw drops. “This is a check for six-hundred-thousand dollars,” I gasp.
“It’s all yours,” he says before giving me another hug.
Five minutes later, we are in the car on the way back to Cheryl’s.
“You okay, baby?” Jonas asks.
“It’s been a very eventful couple of days,” I say, grabbing his hand. “But you know what? I’m good.”
“Really? Do you feel like you finally got some peace?”
“More than you know, but I think there is still one more thing to do before we go home.”
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“Hi, Stacy,” I say, walking into the living room where the blonde woman sits with her son.
Jonas walks into the room behind me and over to Mikey.
“Hey, bud, can you come over here and show me your dinosaur toys? I’d love to learn more about them,” he says to the little boy.
Mikey looks to his mom, and she nods that it’s okay.
They walk to the other side of the room, and I have a seat next to Stacy. She looks uncomfortable, as though she’s still worried I’m going to hurt her.
“Can we talk?” I ask.
She simply nods.
“Cheryl told me that you didn’t know about me when you and Michael were together.”
“I didn’t. Maybe I had my suspicions at times. I honestly thought about ending it before things got serious, but I found out I was pregnant, and I just wanted my baby to have a dad. I’m so sorry, Andi. Had I known, I would have never…”
I cut her off. “I know. He lied to all of us.”
“But why? Why would someone do something like that?”
I sigh. “I don’t know. Honestly, Michael and I got together when we were so young. I think back then, what we had was great. But as people get older, they change. You fit really well into his new life. The problem was that he didn’t want to give up his old life either. You were a glowing beacon for his future, and I was a wonderful reminder of his past.”
“I’m not sure where to go from here,” she says in a low voice.
“I’m not sure that I have any answers for you, but I can tell you this. You may have lost Michael, but you gained Cheryl. And she is the best motherly figure you could ask for. She will do whatever she can for you and Mikey. You guys are all each other has left now.”
“She still has you, too,” she smiles.
