Josh shot to his feet. “Can I go see him?”
Robyn offered a watery smile. “Second room on the right. He’ll be the one with his ear pressed to the door.”
Excitement bloomed even as his nerves frayed. Insecurity swelled. His gaze darted to Maggie.
Her eyes swam with tears even as a smile trembled on her mouth. “What are you waiting for? Go say hello to your son.”
It was all the encouragement he needed. His legs wobbled as he walked the length of the hall. When he reached the door, he gave it a few soft raps. The door swung open immediately.
Will stood there, eye to eye with Josh. Blue eyes—his, not Ethan’s—stared back at him. His cheeks were mottled pink, his hair tousled as if he’d raked his fingers through it a dozen times. He ran his palms down the sides of his pants.
Josh frowned. “You okay?”
“Did you know?”
Josh shook his head. “I thought you were my nephew.”
“Your brother, Ethan—Maggie’s husband? I did some research last night.”
“Late husband, yes. We thought he was your biological father.” Josh steeled himself for a round of questions. “Can I sit down before I keel over?”
“Uh, sure.” Will stepped aside, ushering him toward his neatly made twin bed.
Josh’s legs gave way. “It’s not every day you find out you have a nineteen-year-old son.”
Will sat beside him, seeming just as stunned as Josh felt. “It’s not every day you find out your boss is your dad.”
“Touché.”
Will studied his face. “How old are you anyway? You don’t look that old.”
“Thirty-three.”
“Dude, you were fourteen when I was born.”
He’d done the math in a split second. Smart kid, his boy.His boy. His son.It would take some time to sink in.“I was sick back then—lymphoma. It’s a type of cancer so I had to have chemo.”
Will frowned. “Wow, you were just a kid. That’s rough. I’m sorry.”
“I got through it just fine. But before I had chemo, they recommended I bank some sperm in case the treatments made me sterile.”
Will winced. “No offense, but I’ve heard enough about your sperm to last me a lifetime.”
Josh chuckled. “Fair point.”
“Anyway, I want to know how all this started. How did you even find out about me?”
He told her about Maggie spotting him at the carnival. “She about fainted dead away because you’re the spitting image of Ethan.” Josh reached for his phone. “Let me show you his picture. You won’t believe it.”
“I already saw him online. There’s a good resemblance.”
“Not the younger photos probably.” Josh showed him several pictures of Ethan in his late teens and early twenties, photos he’d saved to his Favorites album after Ethan’s passing.
Will studied the photos, swiping until he’d seen them all. “Wow. You weren’t kidding.”
Then Josh relayed the whole story, from their trip to Rock Hill to the day they’d finally found him at the carnival.
“Did you think I was your nephew then? When you hired me?”
