“He loved you,” Daniel said quickly, his voice firm despite the emotion in it. “That was clear. Every letter, every word… he loved you deeply.”
I looked at him, searching his face for something—anything—that might tell me this wasn’t real.
But instead, I saw Peter.
Not entirely.
But enough.
My eyes dropped back to the letter.
“I was young, scared, and selfish when Daniel was born. I thought I could live two lives—be the man I was supposed to be, and the man I wanted to be.
But when I met you, everything changed.
You gave me a life full of love, honesty, and light. And I chose that life, every single day.
Still… I never stopped being his father.”
A tear slipped down my cheek.
Fifty years.
Fifty years of memories, laughter, quiet evenings, shared dreams.
And beneath it all… a secret.
I pressed the paper to my chest.
“Why didn’t he tell me?” I whispered.
