I glanced at the clock. "It's during your school time."
"But I want to see!"
I heard Palisade's voice in the background, then she came back on the line. "Casey, go finish your pancakes. I need to talk to your dad for a minute."
Some shuffling, then Palisade's voice, clearer now. "Should I let her watch?"
"I don't know. It's going to be… intense. But I want her to see it. I want her to know I said these things publicly."
"Okay. I'll talk to the school, see if I can bring her home for it."
"Thank you."
"I'm proud of you. Whatever happens today, I want you to know that."
"I'll call you after."
"We'll be waiting."
The press conference was held at the Shadow Wolves' practice facility. Management had tried to convince me to hold it at their offices, where they'd have more control, but I'd refused. This was my statement, on my terms.
When I walked into the press room at noon, it was packed. Reporters filled every chair, cameras lined the back wall, and the red "LIVE" lights were already glowing.
Greg Hartley stood off to the side, his expression grim. He'd tried one more time this morning to get me to reconsider, and when I refused, he'd made it clear: this was all on me.
I took my seat at the table, adjusted the microphone, and looked out at the sea of faces. Somewhere out there, Palisade and Casey were watching. That was who I was doing this for.
"Thank you all for coming," I began, my voice steady despite the adrenaline coursing through me. "I know there's been a lot of speculation and coverage about my personal life over the past few weeks. I wanted to take this opportunity to address some of that directly, in my own words."
I took a breath, looking down at my prepared statement. Then I set it aside. This needed to come from the heart, not a script.
"Seven years ago, I met a woman named Palisade Honors. We spent one night together, and it was… significant. More significant than I realized. When I left the next morning, I had every intention of calling her, of seeing where things might go. But when I tried to reach her, her number didn't work. And I couldn't find her."
The room was silent, every reporter hanging on my words.
"What I didn't know was that Palisade was pregnant. What I didn't know was that she'd tried to contact me too, and couldn't get through. What I didn't know was that somewhere out there, I had a daughter."
I paused, letting that sink in.
"Her name is Casey. She's six years old. And she's the best thing that's ever happened to me."
A ripple of murmurs went through the crowd. I pressed on.
"A few weeks ago, I discovered Casey's existence. And my first reaction was anger. Not at Casey, but at the situation. The years I'd lost. That I'd missed her first steps, her first words, her birthdays and bedtimes, and all the moments you can't get back."
My voice was getting rougher, more emotional. I didn't hide it.
"But here's what I've learned in the past few weeks. Anger and love aren't mutually exclusive. I can be angry about the time Ilost and still be grateful for the time I have. I can grieve what I missed and still celebrate what I have now. Casey is a privilege. Not a problem. Not a scandal. A privilege."
More murmurs. Several reporters exchanged glances.
"Which brings me to the other narrative that's been circulating that Palisade Honors is somehow a gold digger. That she's trying to trap me or cash in on my career or use Casey as leverage."
I leaned forward, looking directly into the nearest camera.
"Let me be very clear. That is absolute bullshit."
Greg made a noise off to the side, but I ignored him.
