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“Did you tell him that?”
“I’m not sure.” I ran my hand over my forehead, the headache I’d kept at bay all day was starting to come back. “I can’t remember everything I said.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Bree smiled softly. “He’s going to do whatever he needs to do to take care of you right now, and if that means giving you space, he’ll do that.”
“He told me he might have a son.”
Her eyes widened. “Really?”
“Yeah.” I rolled my lips together. “Maybe I shouldn’t have shared that.”
“Your secret is safe with me.” She promised, and I believed her. “How do you feel about him having a son?”
“Okay.” I shrugged. “He’s grown already, but I felt bad for Tank. He seemed so…” I shook my head. “Lost, I guess.”
“He’s had a lot on his plate recently.” She laid her hands on my shoulders. “And so have you. Come on.” She pointed at the door. “Let’s get a drink and some headache medicine since I can tell it’s coming back, and we’ll take a break. Then we’ll get busy working.”
I needed the distraction work could offer me, and somehow Bree knew that. She was a friend I never expected to come from this, but she had, and I couldn’t help but wonder if I ever thanked Tank for giving that to me just by introducing us.
29
TANK
I tossedmy phone on the table, not surprised Jane hadn’t answered my text, but still pissed off about it. It had only been a few days since I stopped by Rachel’s apartment, but I’d been texting her daily to check in. She hadn’t given me much except that she was feeling better. This morning, I checked in, and she replied that I didn’t need to text her every day. I knew she was blowing me off, and I also knew that was because she was afraid. But after I saw her, I was even more determined to fix what I broke.
I heard the door to the garage open, but I didn’t turn to see who it was. I wasn’t in the mood for company, and I didn’t feel like talking today. That was why I sent Dom in for lunch, but I stayed out here.
“Results are in, Tank.”
Turning slowly, I faced Bear, who was holding an envelope. He tapped the corner against his palm before holding it out to me.
I crossed the garage until I stood in front of him. Taking it, I exhaled loudly. “Where’s Leo?”
“In the kitchen eating lunch with Dom.”
I looked past him toward the door leading inside but then hesitated. The results in this envelope had the ability to change my life forever, and I still wasn’t sure how I felt about that. I wasn’t sure I was cut out to be a dad, and the idea that I could ever turn into the one I had scared the shit out of me. But none of that had anything to do with Leo. He was a good kid. We set him up in a room next to Dom’s, and he’d been spending time in the garage tinkering, but he stayed close to Dom. It felt awkward between us, and that was obviously because of this damn paternity test hanging over our heads.
“You don’t want to open that, brother, you don’t have to.”
I had no idea how long I’d been standing there, staring at the plain white envelope, but Bear’s voice brought me back to the present.
“Need to,” I acknowledged.
Sighing, I tore open the envelope and pulled out the letter. I read the first few lines before dropping my head and handing the letter to Bear. I didn’t need to read more, but I did need a minute to process how I felt about the news.
Bear read it and met my stare, but we didn’t share our thoughts before turning and making our way inside. After eight long days of waiting for these, Leo needed them as much as I did. Walking down the hall, we turned into the kitchen just in time to hear both Dom and Leo chuckle.
When I cleared the doorway, I headed straight to Leo, and his smile dropped. He wasn’t sure of me or how I felt about our situation, and I couldn’t blame him.
I held up the letter. “Got the results.”
Leo put the sandwich he was holding back on the plate and jerked up his chin. “You read ’em?”
I nodded and glanced back down before laying the letter on the table. “We’re not a match, kid.”
“What?” He grabbed the letter and began reading. “That can’t be right.” He glanced back up at me. “You’re on my birth certificate.”
“Yeah—” I started, but he interrupted. “And my mom told me you were my dad.” He slammed the letter down. “This has to be wrong. Why would she lie?”
