I gently coaxed him to the sofa and made sure to keep my hands on him. After all the emotional turmoil he’d been through, I didn’t want him to think there were more unpleasant things coming his way.
“Start from the DNA test.”
I nodded with a smile. “I got the results back in an email that matched you to a man who they identified as a paternal uncle. His name is Grant Perry, and he works in Santa Barbara. He and your family live in Long Beach.”
It didn’t take long for Adam’s eyes to widen and to put the wrong pieces together. He popped up off the sofa. “My father is Stephen Perry?TheStephen Perry ofJourney? TheDon’t Stop Believin’ guy and you haven’t told me? What the fuck Michael?” His pitch was so high only dogs could probably hear it. I was seriously worried he might hyperventilate if I didn’t calm him down.
I got up off the sofa and shook my head frantically, lowering my hands to his shoulders. “No, no, no, that’s not him. In fact, your father’s name isn’t really Stephen. It’s Liam. Liam Perry. No relation to the rocker. In fact, he’d be more likely to be your grandfather.”
Adam deflated like a helium balloon with a hole in it. He flopped onto the sofa and closed his eyes. I waited patiently until he opened them and shifted his gaze back to me.
“You okay there, babe?” I asked, running my hand up and down his thigh.
He released a big sigh and nodded. “I think so. But fucking hell, that would have been amazing.”
I nodded in agreement and waited until he waved his hand at me to keep going. Suddenly, he furrowed his brow. Something wasn’t making sense to him. And I knew he was beginning to put the right pieces together.
“Santa Monica, California?”
I nodded, but didn’t speak..
“You went to California for work.”
I nodded again, still not saying a word. I felt the calm before the storm. He narrowed his green eyes at me like an indignant parent about to scold their teenager.
“You went to California to find my uncle without telling me that you’d even found him? That was weeks ago, Michael!”
I raised my hands again to try to calm him. “I know, babe. But I had a good reason.”
His eyes narrowed as he clenched his fists. I expected him to tell me to fuck off and get the hell out of his life. But he didn’t.
“Really? What could possibly have been agood enough reasonfor you to have kept that kind of information from me for so long?”
Taking a deep breath, I told him the truth. Holding his green gaze to mine, I gave him my pleading eyes.
“I had to protect you, Adam. Not because you’re my client, but because I’m in love with you. There was no way I could bring someone new into your life and take a chance that they would hurt you like your mother did. I had to vet him and your family like my life depended on it. That takes some time. And in reality, my lifediddepend on it.”
He blinked at me a moment before he asked his question. “And what if they’d been bad news? What would you have done?”
That was simple.
“Tell you that the search came up with nothing. That you were mine to protect, and you had me and the Bradleys. I’ll never let you feel like you’re alone. No matter if we’re in the same place or not.”
“So you would have lied to me?”
“If I had to in order to protect you, then yes.”
I waited for him to say something, but he just continued to stare. I was afraid I’d said the wrong thing when his eyes finally softened as he blinked at me. I knew he was weighing what I’d said and the repercussions of a potential lie. That’s how he was. And I felt everything he was feeling—love, pain, happiness, and disbelief.
“You’re never going to be alone again, babe. You have an aunt and uncle, three cousins, your dad, and a stepfather. Your name is common enough that I didn’t have to tell him you weretheAdam Spencer of Fallen Angel. And they all want to meet you.”
His chin trembled as he fought to keep the tears at bay. The relief had to be overwhelming, especially after yesterday. I smiled at him and kissed his forehead. “Let it go, babe. You don’t have to hide your feelings or shove down anything with me. Just let it go.”
I held him as he broke down again, his tears falling onto my bare shoulder. When he looked up at me with his beautiful eyes, I could see these were tears of happiness.
As Adam’s tears turned into full out laughter, he pulled away from me to look into my eyes. His expression was one of both gratitude and longing. I knew what he wanted, and I wanted it too. We both leaned in at the same time, our lips meeting in a passionate kiss that expressed all the love and emotion we had been holding back.
For a few brief moments, we were lost in each other, the rest of the world fading away. But as we pulled away, we both knew that there was still so much he didn’t know. I took Adam’s hand and led him back to the sofa, sitting down beside him and putting my arm around him.
