I’m wearing out the carpet in the living room pacing back and forth when Drake re-emerges. I can’t take my eyes off him. The look on his face is unlike anything I’ve seen on anybody before. He is so livid his eyes are practically shooting sparks. His mouth is clamped tightly with steely determination, and there’s a white ring around his mouth. Uh oh, something big is about to go down. What did we expect, though, when we invited someone as hot-headed as Drake to find out that he’s been lied to his entire life?

“Do you have a car?” he asks through clenched teeth.

I look at him blankly for a second. A car? Then I nod quickly. “Yes.”

He marches over to me, grabs my hand, and starts dragging me along with him.

“What are you doing?” I protest, even though a part of me loves the feeling of his hot flesh against mine again.

“Come on. I need your help.”

“To do what?” I ask.

“To take me to my father.”

I feel a cold sensation rush up and down my body.

“I need to go over there now,” he says heading for the door.

I glance in the direction of the kitchen and Dad catches my eye. He’s obviously heard everything Drake has said. I shrug and pull a don’t-ask-me I-don’t-know expression as I rush by.

“Wait, wait,” I cry to Drake as we get to the hallway. Fumbling in the dish on the sideboard, I fish out my car keys. Out on the driveway, he lets go of my hand and I head over to the driver’s side. I unlock the door and slip inside.

“Where does your Dad stay?” I ask as he climbs into the passenger side. I rest my hands on the wheel and turn to face him. In the close confines of the car I see that he is actually shaking with rage. What did Morgan say to him up there? Was there more than what she has admitted to me? Whatever it is, it’s enough to push him to this frenzy of anger. One thing for sure his Dad’s in for a bad time.

“Across town, Eagleswood Park area,” he orders. “Just go in that direction and I’ll tell you when we’re close.”

“Okay,” I say and start the car up.

He rolls down the window and hooks his elbow over the edge, even though it freezing cold. I can’t help glancing at him as I drive. He makes such a handsome sight. The wind rushes into his dark hair and ruffles it, making it even more sexy and adorable. His sensuous lips move slightly as if he’s planning quietly what he’s going to say to his father.

Would the woman who raised him be there too? I wonder how much she knows. Maybe, she’s an innocent party too. They could have presented the baby as a genuine adoption case to her. Morgan has always refused to give me any details, but I guess I’m going to hear it directly from the horse’s mouth.

“Take a left here, and go down the driveway at the end of the street,” Drake directs.

I do as he asks, and pull up at a gated mansion. Drake cranks his neck out of the window and waves at a security camera. After a few seconds, the electric gates open smoothly. We travel down a short driveway until we get to a large house. So, this is where he grew up.

The house has exposed red bricks, white trim and polished wooden doors with brass handles. It is replete with immaculate lawns and perfectly trimmed topiary. The whole place seems almost to glow in the setting evening sunlight.

We climb out of the car and Drake grasps my hand and strides up to the front door. He is walking so fast I need to trot to keep up. I want to tell him to slow down and give this a moment’s thought before he goes bursting in there, but I know it’s useless. He’s made his mind up, and there’s nothing I or anyone else can do to dissuade him from whatever course of action he has decided on. He raps on the door.

A few seconds later, the door is opened by a man who smiles broadly at Drake. He looks a little like Drake. Both have the same crinkles around the edges of their eyes when they smile, though the man’s grin is quickly wiped off from his face when he takes in Drake’s expression. Drake elbows his way past him and walks into the house, dragging me along behind him.

Drake lets go of my hand, and I edge a little away from the confrontation between the father and son. Yes, I want to hear the truth, but getting dumped in the middle of someone else’s family drama wasn’t exactly my idea of a fun evening.

“Son?” His father stares at him. “What’s… what are you doing here?”

Drake rounds on him in the vast hallway. “I need to ask you something, and I don’t want you to bullshit me,”

“What are you talking about?” His father straightens his back and pulls himself up to his full height.

“I went to see a woman named Morgan today,” Drake announces, eyeing his father carefully for a reaction, and God, did he get it. It was as though all the blood in his face drained away all at once, his skin paling into a sickly white as the words get processed in his brain. He stares at Drake and then glances over in my direction.

“Who the hell is she?” he demands arrogantly.

“Morgan’s stepdaughter. She drove me here,” Drake takes a step towards his father. “Keep on the subject. I’m not letting you squirm out of this one that easily.”

Father and son eyeball each other for a few tense seconds. The air becomes so tense I dare not even breathe as each challenge the other to back down. It’s Drake’s father who crumbles first. He looks down at the floor and briefly closes his eyes. He knows: he’s been found out.

This whole thing is true.

I feel that wild surge of joy at being vindicated. For not only myself but for Morgan too. After all this time of letting her pain eat away at her soul, the big secret that no one could ever believe is finally unraveling, and her truth is spilling out.

“How did you find her?” his father asks.

“No, you answer my questions first,” Drake grates. “Is what she said true? Am I her son?”

For a while, his father says nothing. Then his shoulders sag. “Yes,” he admits, and it is as though the entire room freezes, even the birds singing their late-afternoon chorus outside seem to come to a halt as the words hang in the air between the three of us.

“Why did you make her give me up?” he asks, his voice softer now, as though he’d expected it to be harder to wring a confession from his father. I certainly had.

“Because she wasn’t…” He trails off.

“Wasn’t what?” Drake growls.

“She wasn’t… right.”

“Right?” Drake’s voice is so soft, it is menacing.

“It was not just that. It just wasn’t part of the plan.”

“Plan?” Drake echoes

“I was young, a hot head. I saw her and I wanted her. It was a mistake. I was dating your mother, and we were supposed to get married, and…”

“My stepmother,” Drake reminds him. “She’s not my real mother, is she?”

“Right, right,” his father says. “It was just… easier. For everyone concerned.”

Drake looks at him incredulously. “It wasn’t easier for Morgan. You stole her baby.”

His father opens his mouth to say something, but we hear footsteps coming out of the kitchen; everyone turns, and my eyes land on the woman who I assume raised Drake. She is dressed in exactly the way that Hollywood portrays rich housewives. Slim, well-cut skirt, a cream sweater, pale lipstick, and a perfectly coiffured blonde hair. She even has a strand of pearls around her neck. There is a smile on her face as she comes through, but it freezes into a rictus grin as she looks around. Even before anyone can even say a word she recognizes instantly that something terrible is going on.

“He knows,” Drake’s father murmurs to her.

A look of horror passes her face, but she blinks and hopes it is not what she thinks it is. “About what?”

“About Morgan,” his father says quietly.

She clasps her hand over her mouth. Tears well up in her eyes, and my heart aches for her, despite everything. I watch her gather herself a little and then speak.

“You have to understand,” she urges her son.

“I don’t actually,” he says, his voice hard and so cold, I shiver.

She takes a few steps towards him and holds out her hands in a desperate gesture. “Your father just wanted the best for you.”

“Mom, what the hell are you defending him for? He cheated on you.”

The words don’t faze her. “We were all kids then. He made his mistakes and I’ve learned to live with it. All men sow wild oats when they are young. Look how many women you’ve had.”

“Are you trying to compare my whoring to Dad stealing someone else’s baby?” Drake burst out.

“He didn’t steal you. He is your father. All he wanted to do was give you the best life you could possibly have, and I think he has done an amazing job.”

“Did you know he wanted to have her pregnancy terminated?”

She doesn’t flinch. “That was before you were born. He didn’t know you then. We both love you now. You are everything to us.”

“So, that makes it all okay, does it?”

Her lips thin. “Don’t judge us so harshly. We were children ourselves, Drake. But we’ve changed, grown up. It was a very difficult time… for all of us”

“I can’t believe this. I just can’t believe this.” Drake throws his hands up in the air incredulously. “You stole someone else’s child and you think it was a difficult time for you.” Drake spat in her direction, moving away from her. I flinch at the harshness of his tone. His mother backs away and goes to her husband’s side, where he puts an arm around her protectively.

“If both of you really did it for my own good why have you never mentioned this before. Did you not think I might want to know?”

“I didn’t want you to have to worry about it!” His father shoots back, suddenly regaining his voice, his tone rising defensively. “You were too young, and then you were busy practicing to get on the team. You were on a good path. Why would I do anything to confuse or derail you? I was always trying to do the best thing for you. It was always for your benefit.”

“You were never ever going to tell me, were you?” Drake asks.

His father sighs.

Drake takes another step towards his father. “You were just going to let her die without me ever knowing that my mom wasn’t the woman who gave birth to me?” His voice echoes loudly off the walls of the enormous hallway.

“I was going to figure out a way to tell you before that happened,” his father scoffs. He glances over in my direction. I guess he saw the look on my face, the look that said things aren’t as simple as that. His gaze flicks back to Drake.

“Is she… sick?” he murmurs, and I swear I see a flicker of sadness move across his face.

“Very,” Drake says, his face black as thunder. “That’s why she invited me out to meet her. She wanted me to know the truth before… before…”

He tries a couple more times, but the words aren’t forthcoming. I want to reach out to comfort him, but I see that every muscle in his body is so tense he is almost vibrating with fury. He doesn’t want comfort. He wants someone to take his anger out on, someone to be righteously mad at, and with his father standing right in front of him with no excuses and nowhere to hide, Drake isn’t going to let him get away with lying to him any longer.

He shakes his head. “What a turn up for the book. I’m adopted.”

“You’re not!” His father pointed out. “I’m your real-”

“My real father,” Drake cuts in, his voice cutting and sharp, as though he’s finally figured out what he wants to say. “I don’t even know who the hell you are, anymore.”

And with that, he turns towards me, shoots one more look over his shoulder, and taking my hand in his, starts to stride away.

“Drake,” his father calls.

He doesn’t turn back and I hear his mother say, “Let him be. He’ll calm down. He just needs a bit of time.”

Drake wrenches open the door and we step outside. He is holding my hand so tightly it. “You’re hurting me,” I cry

“I’m sorry,” he says, and instantly releases my hand.

Silently we climb back into the car.

“Drake?”

He turns towards me, and I see that he is still shaking with rage.

“Are you okay?”

“I need to go check into a hotel,” he mumbles, and he rests his palms on the wheel. Until that moment I didn’t even notice that we switched positions. He had naturally gotten into the driver’s side and me into the passenger seat.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea? Don’t you think you should go back and talk to your parents?” I suggest reasonably. “I know what they did is wrong, but believe me, I know Morgan, and this is not at all what she had in mind. She didn’t want to break your family unit up. She would be very sad if she knew what trouble this has caused. She just wanted to meet you.”

“Well, what did she think would happen?” he lashes out.

“Don’t forget she didn’t know they hadn’t told you about the adoption. She thought you already knew. All she really wanted to do was say goodbye.”

He drops his head and stares at his shoes. Then he slams his right hand on the steering wheel.

“Talk to your parents, Drake. Please. Everybody makes mistakes. They were all so young.”

“I need time to think,” he says suddenly and turns the key in the ignition. “I’ll drop you off back home and get a taxi to the city.”

I don’t say anything, and he blinks twice and turns towards me. His eyes are suddenly glowing and his voice throbs with intensity. “Or you could come with me to the hotel?”

It takes me a second to realize what he’s suggesting. My eyes widen with surprise, and I stutter over my words. “Uh, yeah, uh, well-” I try to pull myself together.

“Spit it out, Reese.”

I know that I shouldn’t take him up on his suggestion given the state of mind he is in, and I know this isn’t how I wanted all of this to go down, but at the same time, I crave him in a way I haven’t needed anyone before in my life. He is still staring at me hungrily. I lick my lip and his eyes follow like a hungry dog.

You know what? I’m going to take this chance to be with him no matter what the circumstances.

“Let’s go,” I say firmly.

A flash of fierce pride jumps into his eyes. Then he turns his gaze to the road and sets the car into motion.