Chapter Eleven
For the second time in his life, Michael’s heart pounded so vigorously he could hardly draw breath. Back in the front room, Jillian sat on the couch and he seated himself beside her, not touching. Cole was still intent on the mystery mansion, oblivious to the tension in the air.
“Cole,” Jillian said, “leave that alone for a minute. Michael and I want to talk to you.”
“But I’m constructing,” he protested.
“This is more important,” she said.
Huffing, the boy looked up. “What?”
Michael forced breath into his cramped lungs and let it out again. He and Jillian, in a quick strategy talk, had agreed on how to handle this. The announcement would be his. He only wished his son wasn’t glaring so sulkily at them.
“Cole, there’s something we want you to know,” he started. “I’m not just an old friend of your mom’s.” He took another breath and said the rest in a rush. “I’m actually your father.” There was no going back now, and he was glad. But terrified. What if Cole rejected him?
The petulant expression turned into a puzzled frown. “My father? Huh?”
Now it was over to Jillian. “I told you how your father and I agreed that it didn’t make sense for him to be with us, since we lived far apart and had such different lives. But how he sent money every month to make sure you had everything you needed.”
“I don’t have a smartphone,” Cole complained.
Michael promptly added that to his mental Christmas shopping list. He’d already ordered a bunch of stuff online last night, paying for expedited delivery.
“Because you don’t need one,” Jillian said.
Cole tilted his head toward Michael. “So why are you here now?”
“Because I want to know you.”
“You’re moving to Destiny Island? Are you marrying Mom?”
“Uh . . .” Neither he nor Jillian had guessed the boy might leap to these conclusions. “No, Cole. But I’m here for Christmas and I’d like to spend time with you. Then, after I go home to Toronto, I’d like us to keep in touch. Do you know what Skype is? Or FaceTime?”
The boy nodded. “I use Skype with my great-grandparents in Sidney.”
“We can use it, too, and e-mail.” They could text and phone as well, once Cole had opened his Christmas gifts. “And I can come visit again.” Previously, Michael’s vacations—alone or with whatever girlfriend he’d been dating at the time—had been to places with intriguing architecture. His life was in for a big change, but this boy was worth it.
He couldn’t honestly say that he loved Cole, not yet, but he felt something different from anything he’d ever experienced before. Protectiveness, the desire to build the connection between them. The wish for his son to have two parents who were really there for him and supported him, who didn’t just dump a bunch of expectations on him and leave him to the care of an auntie. No offense, Deepa—you’re awesome.
“Huh.” Cole’s eyes squinted like they did when he worked on modifying a Lego design.
“What do you think of all this?” Michael asked.
“It’s okay, I guess.” He cocked his head. “What do I call you?”
He and Jillian had anticipated that question. “Whatever you want to. You could call me Dad or Daddy, or Michael.”
The boy considered. “The kids at school say ‘dad’ or ‘daddy’ unless they have two dads.” He glanced at Jillian. “I don’t have two of them, do I?”
“No, honey,” she said, a touch of humor in her voice. “You definitely don’t.”
“Two dads?” Michael queried. How was that biologically possible?
“A father and a stepfather,” she clarified, “or two gay dads.”
“Oh, got it. That’s not where my mind went first.”
She gave a quick snort of laughter and then said, “You get used to the permutations and combinations of ‘family’ when you’re a parent.”
“Cole,” he said, “you don’t have to decide now. See what you’re good with after we’ve spent more time together. Okay?”
“Okay.” The boy nodded. He seemed more puzzled than upset by tonight’s revelation. “Are you coming to my school’s holiday spectacular tomorrow night? I’m an elf!”
Michael again glanced at Jillian. Would it be awkward for her?
She picked up the ball. “Would you like him to, honey?”
He nodded firmly. “Parents come. I have two parents now.”
Jillian gave a subtle nod of her own, and Michael said, “Then I’d be proud to be there.”
“By the next morning,” she said wryly, “the entire island will know Cole’s dad is here.”
“Are you okay with that?” Michael asked.
She sighed. “Nothing in life stands still.”
Obviously, she was less than happy. Michael, on the other hand, was pretty thrilled. He was a dad, and he was going to see his son up on stage playing an elf. That was damned cool.