‘Yes.’ Annie smiled encouragingly. ‘And, through Lewis, Dimitrios and I met, a long time ago. We became...friends,’ she said, stumbling a little as she got closer to revealing the true nature of their relationship.
Dimitrios settled his large frame in the seat between Annie and Max, putting a hand out over Annie’s. She hadn’t realised until then how badly it was shaking.
‘The truth is, Max, your mother and I were more than friends. We fell in love...and made you.’ Every cell in her body began to reverberate. We fell in love. It was such a lie, but told so easily that it flared to life inside her.
‘Made me?’ Max frowned. ‘As in, you’re my dad?’
It was impossible to miss the flaring of pride in Dimitrios’s eyes, or how much that statement meant to him. A wave of nausea-inducing guilt flooded her body.
‘Mummy? Is that true?’
She found words almost impossible, so nodded instead.
‘But you don’t live with us.’
‘No, I haven’t lived with you,’ Dimitrios responded.
‘Why not?’
‘I live in Singapore.’ As though it were simple and that answer explained it.
And, to Annie’s surprise, Max nodded. ‘That’s very far away, isn’t it?’
‘Yes. Have you ever been to Singapore?’
‘I’ve never been on a plane. I don’t even have a passport.’
Dimitrios’s face angled towards Annie. ‘I see.’
That wasn’t so uncommon, Annie thought. It’s not as though she was the only single parent in the world who’d deprived her child of an overseas holiday.
‘I can organise a passport for you. How would you feel about going to Singapore?’
Annie’s heart skipped a beat. She put her hand on top of Dimitrios’s to quell his line of questions but he resolutely ignored her, refusing to look her way.
‘I... Are we going, Mummy?’
Annie tried to smile. ‘That hasn’t been decided yet.’
Dimitrios leaned forward. ‘The thing is, Max, I think it’s time for us to be a real family—for us all to live together—and my home and work are in Singapore.’
Max tilted his head thoughtfully. ‘What’s your home like?’
Dimitrios’s smile was pure charm. ‘Would you like to see a picture?’
Max’s eyes shifted to Annie’s. ‘Mummy? Do you want to move to Singapore?’
Annie felt Dimitrios’s warning gaze, and her stomach looped with feeling. He’d lost so much—wasn’t this the least she could do? Besides, her brief run-in with the paparazzi had shown her what her life was about to become. And what about Max? Didn’t he deserve everything Dimitrios could give him? Didn’t he deserve a father in his life?
‘Singapore is lovely,’ she said carefully. ‘How would you feel about leaving school, though, darling?’
Max frowned, considering that, then turned to Dimitrios. ‘Are there schools in Singapore?’
Dimitrios smiled gently, passing his mobile phone to the boy. ‘Yes, there are excellent schools.’
‘Is this...the school?’ She saw Max’s little mouth open in shock. Instinctively, Annie angled herself to see the phone better.
‘No, Max. That’s my home.’