His face crumpled.
When Dad arrived, I went upstairs for my last bag. I heard the two men talking in the kitchen.
“She thinks I don’t want her,” Ethan said.
“Give her a little time,” Dad answered.
“I’ve given you three years.”
I stopped on the stairs.
“Tell her the truth.”
“You said you’d tell her yourself,” Ethan continued. “I can’t keep lying every time she asks.”
Dad said something I couldn’t make out.
Then Ethan lowered his voice.
“I bought the ring years ago, but I can’t ask her until you tell her the truth.”
My heart started pounding. What truth? What could my father possibly know about why Ethan wouldn’t marry me?
I couldn’t stand.
After a long silence, Dad said, “If I tell her, you’ll have to tell her what you did, too.”
I gripped the banister.
For a moment, I wondered whether Ethan had cheated on me and Dad had helped cover it up.
But why would that stop him from proposing?
I couldn’t stand another second.
“Long enough.”
I walked down the last few steps. “What does that mean?”
Both men turned toward me.
Ethan went pale. Dad pushed his chair back so quickly it scraped against the floor.
“Claire,” Dad said. “How long have you been standing there?”
“Long enough to hear what matters. Tell me the truth.”
I stared at Dad.
“Sweetheart, perhaps we should sit down.”
“No. I’m done waiting for answers.”
Dad looked at Ethan, then back at me. When he finally spoke, my suitcase slipped from my hand.
“Claire, Ethan has a daughter.”
“A daughter? What are you talking about?”
” I have a daughter.”
I stared at Dad, then turned to Ethan.
Neither of them spoke.
“Ethan, tell me he’s joking.”
Ethan swallowed. “It’s true, Claire. I have a daughter. She’s seven.”
Seven. We’d been together for six years.
“No!”
My stomach twisted.
“Did you cheat on me?”
“No!” Ethan stepped toward me. “Claire, I swear, I never cheated on you.”
“Then how do you have a seven-year-old daughter I’ve never heard about?”
“Her mother and I broke up before we met. I didn’t know she was pregnant.”
“How long?”
I pressed my hands against my temples.
“Her name is Lily,” he added quietly.
I stared at him. He knew her name. Her age. Somewhere out there was a little girl who called my boyfriend her father.
And I had known absolutely nothing about her.
“I’m asking you!”
“How long?” I demanded.
Ethan frowned. “What?”
“How long have you known about her?”
He looked at Dad.
“Don’t look at him! I’m asking you!”
Dad lowered his eyes.
“Three years,” Ethan whispered.
I felt as though someone had slapped me. Three years of birthdays, anniversaries, and Christmas mornings. Three years of him telling me he loved me.
I turned to my father.
“And you knew?”
Dad lowered his eyes.
“She called me.”
“Yes, sweetheart.”
I looked between them, suddenly realizing that the two men I trusted most had spent three years keeping the same secret from me.
“Start explaining. Now.”
Ethan pulled out a chair, but I remained standing.
“Before I met you, I dated a woman named Megan. We broke up seven years ago. She moved away, and I never heard from her again.”
Megan was ill.
“Until?”
“Three years ago. She called me out of nowhere.”
He swallowed.
“She told me she had a daughter. My daughter. She’d been pregnant when we broke up, but she never told me.”
“And you just believed her?”
“Not immediately. We had a DNA test. Lily was mine.”
Ethan glanced at Dad.
I gripped the back of a chair.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I wanted to. But Megan was seriously ill. She wanted Lily to know her father before…” His voice trailed off.
“So you told my father instead?”
Ethan glanced at Dad.
“You believed her?”
“I didn’t know what to do. Robert suggested waiting until things settled down.”
Dad stepped forward.
“I thought a few weeks wouldn’t hurt anyone.”
“Three years, Dad. You waited three years!”
Neither answered.
“Where’s Megan now?”
Ethan’s expression changed.
“Where does Lily live?”
“She passed away two years ago.”
I covered my mouth.
“So you’ve been raising your daughter for two years?”
He nodded.
“And somehow you managed to hide an entire child from me?”
I covered my mouth.
“I never wanted to hurt you, Claire.”
“You could have trusted me. Instead, you chose to lie.”
Ethan looked down.
“Where does Lily live?” I demanded.
“She’s with people I trust.”
“Who?”
Suddenly, I remembered.
He exchanged another glance with Dad.
“She’s safe, Claire. I promise.”
“That wasn’t my question.”
Suddenly, I remembered all those Saturdays Ethan had disappeared.
The emergency meetings. The weekends he’d spent supposedly helping Dad. The dinners he’d canceled at the last minute.
“How often?”
“All those times you said you were working late. Were you with Lily?”
Ethan hesitated.
“Sometimes, yes.”
“Sometimes? How often?”
“I see her several times a week. Most weekends, too.”
“She’s happy there.”
I let out a bitter laugh.
“Unbelievable.”
Then another question struck me.
“Where does she go to school? Who looks after her while you’re working? Why doesn’t she live with you?”
“She’s in elementary school. She’s happy there. People close to me help take care of her.”
I turned on him.
“What people? Give me their names.”
“Claire, please…”
“No! You don’t get to keep hiding things!”
Dad stepped between us.
“He’s been doing his best, Claire.”
I turned on him.
“Stop lying!”
“How do you know what he’s been doing?”
“Ethan talks to me. He asks for advice.”
“Apparently, he tells you everything except how to stop lying to your daughter!”
Dad flinched. I grabbed my suitcase.
“Claire, where are you going?” Ethan asked.
“I don’t believe you.”
“Anywhere but here.”
Neither man tried to stop me.
At the door, I turned around.
“I don’t believe either of you has told me the whole truth.”
I drove toward my friend Sarah’s house, barely noticing the road.
Lily. Seven years old.
I suddenly remembered.
Something about that name bothered me.
Then, at a red light, I suddenly remembered.
Dad had a little girl named Lily visiting him quite often. He’d introduced her as the granddaughter of an old friend.
She was about seven, too.
Last Christmas, I’d bought her a doll because Dad mentioned she’d been asking for one.
Ethan had been there that afternoon.
My stomach tightened.
I remembered Lily struggling with the packaging and Ethan kneeling beside her to help.
When her hair fell across her face, he’d gently tucked it behind her ear. I’d smiled at the time, thinking he’d make a wonderful father someday.
My stomach tightened.
Could it really be the same girl?
I reached for my phone.
I pulled into an empty parking lot. There were plenty of girls named Lily. And Dad had always been wonderful with children.
But then I remembered something else.
On Christmas morning, Dad had insisted we take a group photograph beside the tree.
Lily had stood next to Ethan. And I remembered exactly how he’d posed, with one hand resting protectively on her shoulder.
“Are you coming tomorrow?”
I opened my photo gallery and scrolled back to last Christmas.
There they were.
In one picture, Lily sat beside Ethan, hugging her new doll. In another, Ethan was helping her put on a Santa hat.
She was laughing, looking completely comfortable with him. I zoomed in on their faces. How had I never noticed how much they looked alike?
Then another memory hit me.
“Are you all right?”
At Christmas dinner, Lily had turned to Ethan and asked, “Are you coming tomorrow?”
Before he could answer, Dad had quickly interrupted. “Lily, sweetheart, would you like some more dessert?”
I’d thought nothing of it.
Now I wondered what else I’d missed. I found Dad’s number and pressed call.
He answered immediately.
“Answer the question.”
“Claire? Honey, are you all right?”
“Dad, remember that little girl who stayed with you at Christmas?”
A pause.
“Of course.”
“What was her last name?”
Silence. Then he cleared his throat.
I hung up.
“Why are you asking?”
I gripped my phone tighter.
“Just answer the question.”
“Claire, I really think you should talk to Ethan.”
That was all I needed to hear.
I wasn’t calling ahead.
“Never mind, Dad. I’ll figure it out myself.”
I hung up before he could respond.
Then I started the car. I was going to Dad’s house, and this time, I wasn’t calling ahead.
Twenty minutes later, I pulled into Dad’s driveway. Ethan’s car was parked outside.
I stared at it. An hour ago, he’d told me he would give me time to think. Apparently, he’d come straight here.
I recognized that laugh.
I walked toward the front door, my heart pounding.
Before I could ring the bell, I heard a little girl laughing inside.
I recognized that laugh.
Lily.
Then her voice came through the door.
I couldn’t move.
“Daddy, can you help me with my homework?”
“Of course, sweetheart.”
I froze.
That was Ethan. For several seconds, I couldn’t move.
Then I took my spare key from my purse and unlocked the door.
All three looked up.
In the living room, Lily was sitting at the coffee table, surrounded by notebooks and colored pencils.
Ethan stood beside her, holding a pencil.
Dad appeared from the kitchen carrying a plate of cookies.
All three looked up.
“Claire?” Ethan whispered.
I turned toward Ethan.
I barely heard him. My eyes were fixed on the little girl.
“Lily?”
She beamed.
“Hi, Claire!”
I took a few steps closer.
The doll I’d given her for Christmas sat on the couch.
“She’s your daughter?”
I turned toward Ethan.
“She’s your daughter?”
He opened his mouth, but nothing came out.
“Ethan. Answer me.”
Finally, he nodded.
“Yes.”
“Let me explain.”
I looked at Dad.
The little girl he’d introduced as his friend’s granddaughter was living in his house.
He hadn’t simply known about Ethan’s daughter. He’d been helping raise her right under my nose.
“Lily, sweetheart,” I said, forcing my voice to stay calm. “Could you go upstairs for a few minutes? The grown-ups need to talk.”
Ethan was struggling.
She looked confused but nodded and ran upstairs.
The moment her door closed, I turned on them.
“You let me meet her. You let me buy her Christmas presents. And neither of you thought I deserved to know?”
Dad stepped forward. “Claire, please let me explain.”
“Then explain!”
He sighed.
“After Megan died, Ethan was struggling. He had a full-time job and a little girl who’d just lost her mother. I offered to help.”
“You lied to my face!”
“So Lily lives here?”
“Yes. We thought it would be temporary. Then there were legal matters to settle, and Lily was already comfortable here. We didn’t want to disrupt her life.”
Ethan added, “I take her to school, help with homework, and spend weekends with her.”
I shook my head.
I remembered all those afternoons Dad had invited me over when Lily was visiting.
“Lily lives here?”
“You were watching me spend time with my boyfriend’s daughter while pretending she was a stranger!”
“I thought if you got to know her naturally—” Dad began.
“Naturally? You lied to my face!”
“I was trying to help you two build a relationship.”
“By tricking me?”
“I’m her father.”
Dad fell silent. I turned to Ethan.
“And what about Lily? Does she know who you are?”
He nodded. “She’s always known I’m her father.”
I swallowed. “And me?”
Ethan looked miserable.
“I asked her not to.”
“Claire, Lily has known about you for years.”
What exactly did you tell her about me?”
Ethan rubbed his forehead.
“That you’re the woman I love. She’s wanted to get to know you better for years.”
“Then why didn’t she ever say anything?”
“A surprise?”
Dad cleared his throat.
“Because I asked her not to call Ethan her father.”
I stared at him. “You asked a seven-year-old to lie for you?”
“I told her we were planning a surprise for you!”
“A surprise? Dad, she’s a child!”
“What did you say?”
Suddenly, I remembered a family dinner when Lily had asked why Ethan wasn’t there.
Dad had immediately changed the subject. Now I understood why.
Ethan lowered his head. “She asked me once why you didn’t know I was her dad.”
I looked at him. “What did you say?”
“She asked me if I was ashamed of her.”
“You might lose me.”
My heart broke. “And what did you tell her?”
“That I was proud of her. That I was just afraid of losing you.”
I shook my head.
“And now you might lose me because you lied.”
“Claire, please—”
“No, Ethan. You made your daughter keep secrets, and you made me feel like I wasn’t worth marrying.”
“Are you leaving?”
A small voice interrupted us.
“Claire?”
We turned.
Lily stood in the doorway, clutching her Christmas doll. Her eyes were filled with tears.
“Are you leaving because of me?”
Lily stood in the doorway, clutching her doll against her chest.
“I need time, Ethan.”
“Claire, are you mad because Daddy didn’t tell you about me?”
I immediately knelt in front of her.
“Oh, honey. I’m not mad at you.”
“But you were shouting.”
“I know. I’m sorry you heard that. I’m upset with the grown-ups, not with you.”
“Are you mad?”
Lily looked down at her doll.
“I wanted to tell you. Lots of times.”
My heart ached.
“Why didn’t you?”
“Grandpa said it was a surprise.” She hesitated. “I thought maybe you wouldn’t like me anymore.”
I gently took her hands.
She hugged me tightly.
“Oh, sweetheart. None of this is your fault.”
“But Daddy loves you.”
“I know he does.”
“And I like you, too.”
I pulled her into my arms.
“I like you, too, Lily. Very much.”
“Can we make cookies?”
She hugged me tightly. When Lily finally stepped back, I stood and faced him.
“I need time, Ethan. I’m not coming home tonight.”
He nodded silently.
Lily tugged at my sleeve. I knelt beside her once more.
She smiled.
“I like you, too, Lily.”
“Can we make cookies together?”
“Absolutely.”
I kissed her forehead.
Then I walked toward the door, leaving Ethan standing beside the little girl I was ready to love, even though I wasn’t ready to forgive her father.
