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All this time. He had a kid, and he didn’t fucking know it.
He had a son.
“How could you keep this from me?” he roared.
Mandy paled. “He’s not yours.”
He found his footing again, and the rage bubbled up. “The fuck he’s not.”
She reached out, putting her hand on his arm, but he shook her off. “He’s not even mine.”
The lie burned like fire. For the first time, things started to make sense. Why she left him. Why she wouldn’t even see him all those years.
He’d loved her for so long. Even after she crushed his heart. Even after she ruined him for any other woman. But now? For the first time, he knew what it was to hate her. “I want a DNA test.” He shouldered past her, heading toward his bike. He needed to be anywhere but here.
She ran behind him. “Joshua is not our child.”
“Do you think I’m blind?” he shouted as he whirled to face her. “You and Mike don’t share one strand of DNA. His kid looks just like you.”
“He’s my brother,” she said weakly.
“Yourstepbrother.” The fury threatened to make him explode. He turned back to his Harley before he said or did something he couldn’t take back.
“No.” She stepped between him and the bike, blocking his path. “Joshuais my brother.”
He shook his head, his brain trying to make sense of what she said.
She forged on. “We both look like my mom. Joshua is her son with Charlie.”
“But…they died.” Only a few months after Mandy left him. He’d heard nothing about a baby.
Mandy squeezed her eyes closed tightly. “Mom didn’t tell anyone she was pregnant until after her first trimester. She was in her forties; she was worried about a miscarriage. She was about seven months along when their car accident happened. The baby survived; she didn’t. I give you my word.”
His mind scrambled, searching for a hole in her story. His knees weakened, the rage giving way to crushing sadness. There was a time he would have accepted Mandy’s word without question—back when he thought he knew her. She was a stranger now.
He walked around her and climbed on his bike from the other side. “Your word isn’t good enough. Not when it’s this important. I need proof.” He pushed the ignition button, and the engine rumbled between his legs. “You’ve got until Monday.”
Ignoring her stricken expression, he revved the engine and peeled out into the street.
***
Amanda
Amanda’s eyes stung as Kane sped away, his long, dark hair streaming behind him. How far had she fallen in his eyes for him to believe she would have kept a child from him?
Tired and heartsick, she let herself back into her brother’s house.
Mike was nowhere in sight, but Joshua sat on the sofa, his thin arms folded over his chest. He stood when she walked in. “I finally got to see the infamous Kane.” He frowned. “He thought I was his kid, didn’t he?”
She gaped. “Wh—where did you hear his name?”
Joshua rolled his eyes. “Are you kidding me? I’ve heard his name my entire life. Being a kid doesn’t make me deaf, and despite what all of you think, it doesn’t make me dumb. Of course, the guy thought you were my mom. I used to wonder the same thing.”
Oh no. She rubbed at her chest as she dropped to the sofa. “Oh, honey. Why didn’t you say anything?”
“I did, eventually, but for a long time before I talked to Dad, I used to make up stories in my head. About why you gave me up…about how you might want me back someday. About the Kane-guy Mom and Dad whispered about sometimes.” His eyes lost some of their fire. “I’m glad I know the truth now. It makes things easier.”
“We should have told you sooner.” How long had he thought she’d rejected him?
