“I have no fucking idea.”
“I would think if he knew, he’d be talking about it.” Barrett winks at me in that just-trying-to-be-supportive kind of way. “There’s no doubt the kid idolizes you. If he knew you were his dad I’m pretty damn sure there wouldn’t be a human being in the entire arena that wouldn’t hear about it.”
“Bear’s got a point,” Oliver says, tipping his marker toward me.
I guess they’re right. I should’ve asked Harper last night what her plan was to tell him.
Does she plan on telling him?
“What if Harper doesn’t want to tell him?” I ask the guys, bewildered at the possibility.
“The kid is pretty smart,” Ledger points out. “He could figure it out if he really paid attention. I mean you guys look like the spitting image of each other.”
“What if he asks me?” I push my hand through my hair. “Am I supposed to lie? I don’t want to lie to him. That’s not a good way to start a relationship with anyone.”
“I suppose that’s something you and Harper will have to discuss,” Oliver says.
Fuck.
“Speaking of Harper…” August looks up from the stick he was just signing. “Since she’s here now, and back in your life, do you think you two will?—”
“No.” I shake my head. “Absolutely not.”
The table goes silent and when I lift my gaze I notice each of the guys staring at me.
“What?”
Barrett cocks his head. “You loved this woman at one time in your life.”
“Ten fucking years ago.” I scoff. “A lot happens in ten years. People have babies that they don’t tell anyone about for example.”
Griffin winces. “Ouch.”
I slam my fist on the table, making the markers jump. “Well, what the FUCK does she expect? She didn’t just break my heart. She goddamn shattered it, ground it into dust, and left me bleeding for years. Now she waltzes back into my life with MY SON—a kid who has my eyes, my smile, my fucking DNA—and acts like I’m supposed to just nod and say ‘cool, cool, thanks for the decade of lies’? He’s ten years old for Christ’s sake! Ten birthdays, ten Christmases I can never get back while she’s been playing happy family without me!”
“Hey guys!” Our heads turn as Ella practically skips into the room. “Are you working hard or hardly working?” She takes one quick sweep of our faces and stops. “Oh…did I just interrupt something?”
“Oh nothing,” Griffin explains. “We’re just helping Harrison here deal with his innermost feelings of anger and despair over learning he does, indeed, have a ten-year old son.”
“And wondering if he still has feelings for the woman who raised him,” August adds.
“Aww, Harrison.” Ella brings a hand to her chest, right over her heart, and then stops next to me placing her other hand on my shoulder. Her expression hopeful.
At least someone is.
“You have a son! You’re a father!”
“Yeah.” I roll my eyes. “Some father I am, huh?”
“No, no, no,” she says softly, shaking her head. “You can’t think of it like that. You didn’t know. You can’t spend time faulting yourself for something you were never aware of.”
“See?” Oliver says. “Told you.”
Ella takes a seat on the table right beside me and reaches over to squeeze my hand. “But you can look at this whole thing as an opportunity to be the dad you’ve always wanted to be. You’ve said before that you saw yourself being a dad one day.”
“Yeah, one day.”
“Well, that day is today.” She shrugs. “Sure, maybe it’s sooner than you were expecting or even sooner than you were ready for but that doesn’t change who you are. It doesn’t change who Harrison Meers is. You’re a good guy and you’re fantastic with kids. You’re going to be a great dad. It’s just…in you.”
