There was a small cut above his lip.
But his eyes were fixed on Mark.
“Why is Dad here?”
My stomach fell.
I forgot that Cole was in the room.
I looked at Mark.
He looked at Cole.
Then at Stefan.
And for the first time, I saw something in my husband’s eyes that I had never seen before.
Recognition.
It's not a surprise.
Recognition.
Like I was looking at two pieces of a secret that had spent eight years trying to stay hidden.
I turned to the director.
“I need you to tell me exactly why my husband was called here.”
The director cleared his throat.
“Stefan’s mother listed the lord. Carter as his emergency contact.”
My blood cooled.
“His mother?”
I looked at the woman.
Now I was crying.
“My name is Laura,” she said quietly.
I looked at her.
“Laura what?”
Laura Bennett.
The name meant nothing to me.
Until Mark whispered:
“Emma, please.
I turned to him.
“Who is she?”
Mark said nothing.
Laura wiped a tear of the cheek.
“Didn’t he ever tell you?”
My heart started beating faster.
“Did you tell me what?”
He looked at Mark.
Then at Stefan.
And then back to me.
“Mark was Stefan’s father.”
“I know.
“No.
His voice trembled.
“I mean it was his father before Stefan was born.”
I've frowned.
“What does that mean?”
Laura looked at Mark again.
“He wasn’t just Stefan’s father.”
She hesitated.
“He was his father when Stefan was still in the hospital.”
I felt dizzy.
“What hospital?”
Laura's lips separated.
“The same hospital where your twins were born.”
It all stopped.
The director's expression changed.
Mark's face was completely blank.
And suddenly I understood why.
The room.
