“Are you sad because of my dad? Does he make you sad?”
“I’m not sad.”
“Then why are you crying?”
“They’re happy tears,” I lied.
“Please don’t cry, Mom.”
I picked him up, placing him on my lap to look deep into his eyes.
“I want you to know that I love you so much. Your dad didn’t know about you, but he’s excited to meet you, and he loves you very much.”
“He does?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t he know about me?”
“We can talk about that some other time.”
“Who’s my dad, Mom?”
“Your dad is…” I hesitated for an instant. “Jax Colton, Ben.”
I’d never forget the expression on his face. This was one of the best moments of his life, while it was one of the worst of mine.
“Mom! Are you for real?!”
“I am.”
“You promise?”
“I promise.”
“You swear?”
“I swear.”
“My dad is Jax Colton! My dad is Jax Colton!” he repeated over and over again, jumping up and down on his bed and making me sick to my stomach.
“This is the best day ever! My dad is Jax Colton!”
I didn’t know how much time went by until my phone dinged with a text message. Grabbing it off his nightstand, I swiped the locked screen.
Jax: Did you tell him?
There in front of my eyes was a text from his father. We’d exchanged numbers last week, and for the most part, Jax left me alone. I wanted to believe he was giving me space. It was the least he could do after what he was putting me through.
I texted back.
Sophie: I just did.
The bubbles appeared on the screen.
Jax: How did he handle it?
I reluctantly filmed a video of Ben, still jumping and screaming on his bed that his dad was Jax Colton, and texted it back to him.