“Charlotte, honey,” their father said. “It’s your birthday. We thought this would be the perfect time to put our differences aside.”
“Differences?” She barked out a laugh. “Is that what you call hiding the fact that I have a brother? Not to mention how you used to say I’d come to no good and no decent man would ever want to marry me? Well, surprise,Mom and Dad. Look how well I did. I have the absolute best man in the world, and I have my brother and I love him to pieces.”
Sean’s eyes burned, and Tristan squeezed his hand, but he barely felt it. Not when his eyes met his mother’s for the first time in memory, and she turned white and clutched his father’s arm.
“Craig,” she whispered. “It’s…it’s Sean. Oh, my God. Sean.” She ran to him, and for a second he was transfixed, realizing his mother was not much older than Tristan. But the closer she got, the more he needed to escape, and he jumped off the couch and stood behind it, using it as a barrier between them like a goddamn prison gate.
“Don’t,” he warned. Following him, Tristan remained by his side and slid an arm around his waist. Sean drew strength from his presence.
“But…” His mother faltered.
“No buts. Stay away from me,” Sean spat. “What? You expected a hug? You think you’re going to come in here and say what?I’m sorry, but hey, let’s kiss and make up?And I’ll just shrug it off and say,No problem. Let’s forget the past thirty years.Never.”
It hurt to take a breath, but he drew air in shallow pants, and Tristan rubbed his back, for which he gave him a grateful smile.
“I love you,” Tristan murmured. “You’re not alone.”
His father glared. “You have no idea what your mother went through. It almost killed her to make that decision.”
The fucking gall.
“I almost died because of it,” he screamed. “I don’t care how much you hurt because trust me, however bad it was for her, I was hurt a hundred times more. You gave me away—your child. Because it was too hard to take care of me. But you know what? I could understand that. You were young, and it must’ve been overwhelming. But then to find out you married my father and never tried to look for me? Did you ever even think about where I was? Or did you erase me like a bad memory?”
Mascara streaked down his mother’s cheeks. “I did think of you, but we didn’t have much money. It was hard with one child.”
“So the answer is no. You never tried. You wanted to forget I was ever born and pretended I never existed at all.” Hands balled into fists, he released all the pain he’d held inside. “I exist, dammit. I’m here, but it came at a price. Did you know that every six months or a year, I was sent to a new family? I used to get so excited thinking maybe this would be my brother or sister and I could have a family. But it never happened, and they disappeared from my life.” His mother’s tears failed to move him. “Look at me.Look at everything you lost.Because you know what? I’m a fucking fantastic person. And now it’s my turn to say I don’t want you in my life. I don’t need you.” Transfixed, he couldn’t tear his gaze away from his mother, who’d crumpled at his words and stood crying in his father’s arms.
Charlotte hadn’t taken her eyes off him, and Ray, who’d remained by her side, now stepped in. “In light of what happened, I think I’ll get you a room at a hotel for the night and send you there in a car. Charlotte’s upset enough, and Sean and Tristan are staying here tonight.” Not waiting for a response, he pulled out his phone and made the arrangements. “The car will be here in less than fifteen minutes.”
His mother wiped her eyes. “Is this…is he your boyfriend?”
Stone-faced, he stared straight ahead, and Tristan leaned in to whisper, “You don’t have to answer. Let’s go.” And squeezed his hand.
With his head in a fog, he didn’t even remember walking up the stairs, but when he finally became aware of his surroundings, he found himself sitting on the bed with Tristan next to him.
“Are you all right?” Anxious eyes searched his, and he managed a smile.
“Yeah. I am. It felt really good to let it all out, but now…it’s like I’m just empty.” Fidgety, he ran his hands through his hair, then laced and unlaced his fingers. “Do you think I was wrong? Should I have talked to them?”
Tristan pulled him into a tight hug. “You’re the only one who can answer that, but you handled that way better than I would’ve. I think they’re lucky you gave them what you did.”
“And yet myfather…” The words sounded so strange coming from his lips. “He didn’t even want to hear anything from me. Not only did he check out when I was born, it’s obvious he had no desire to find me once they were back together.” That more than anything made up his mind. “Nothing they could say will ever make up for what they did.” He rested his head on Tristan’s chest. “Sometimes I watch those shows where the parents try and find the children they gave up, and I see the reunion and think, wow, look at that. Parents who care. It would’ve been nice to have someone who cared about me.”
“I care about you. And I promise if you ever disappeared, I’d search everywhere until I found you.”
“Lucky for you, I’m not going anywhere.”
At the knock on the door, he felt steady enough to answer it, and faced Charlotte, who, judging by her red-rimmed eyes, had been crying.
“They’re gone. I can’t believe they had the nerve to just show up like that.”
“It’s okay. They’re your parents.”
“I haven’t seen them in seven years. They’re like strangers to me now. All that bullshit about forgiving and forgetting…do they think I’m going to understand why they did what they did?” She threw her arms around him. “I used to wish I had a brother or sister, especially when they’d fight and say horrible things to each other and to me. Knowing you were out there and hurting kills me. We missed all those years together. It’s not something I can sweep under the rug or forgive.”
“I’m sorry, Char. I wish I’d been there for you.”
She kissed his cheek. “I’m thinking whatever you went through was worse than some stupid name-calling. But I’m not going to ask you to talk about it if it hurts too much. Luckily, you have Tristan for that. Like I have Ray. I’ve moved on from the part of my life where I’d cry myself to sleep at night, hating the world and wondering if it would ever get better. Now I have more than I could’ve dreamed possible. Why would I want to live in the past when the future promises to be so bright? I think you’re on your way to that too.”
