“Steve?” My voice sounded small, unsure. He was sitting on the edge of the bed, holding a small box in his hands, his expression distant and pained.
He looked up, startled, as if caught in the middle of a confession to himself. His face was pale, and his usually warm eyes were filled with guilt. “I’m sorry,” he said quietly. “I should’ve told you sooner. I should’ve told you before we even started this.”I clutched my robe tightly around me, my mind racing. “Told me what? What’s in the box, Steve?”
He sighed deeply, opening the lid to reveal a stack of old photographs and letters. My heart sank as I caught glimpses of my father in some of the pictures.”Your father and I… we weren’t just friends,” Steve began, his voice trembling. “We were more like brothers. We served in the military together, and there’s something I’ve been hiding from both of you for a long time.”
I stepped closer, my knees weak. “What are you talking about? You’re scaring me.”Steve rubbed his face, looking like the weight of the world had finally crushed him. “Your father… he had another child before you. A boy. He never told you, did he?”
I froze, my breath hitching. “Another child? No, he never mentioned anything like that. Are you saying—”Steve nodded, his eyes filled with sorrow. “It was a long time ago. Your father made some mistakes when he was young, and he fathered a son with a woman he never married. That boy… was me.”
The room spun as his words sank in. “You’re telling me… you’re my brother?” My voice cracked with disbelief.Steve quickly shook his head. “No, no! Not biologically. Your father raised me for a few years as his own because my mother couldn’t. But we were never blood-related. He was like a second father to me until circumstances pulled us apart. I didn’t know how to tell you because I didn’t want to ruin what we had.”
Tears welled in my eyes as I sat down on the bed, my mind reeling. “You should have told me, Steve. You should have told me from the beginning!””I know,” he whispered, his hands trembling as he reached for mine. “But I fell in love with you, and I was terrified you’d see me differently if you knew.”
I stared at him, torn between anger, confusion, and the love I still felt for the man I’d just married. “This is too much, Steve. I don’t even know how to process this.”He nodded, giving me the space I needed. “Take your time. I just couldn’t start our life together with this secret hanging over us. I love you too much for that.”
For the rest of the night, I sat alone, staring at the photographs and letters, piecing together a part of my father’s life I never knew existed. My feelings were a whirlwind of betrayal, sadness, and an odd sense of understanding.By morning, I knew one thing: Steve had made mistakes, but so had my father. Love is complicated, and so is family. The question now was whether I could move past this and build a future with the man who had kept this secret—and loved me—so deeply.