“Leo was my dad.
“No,” I said quickly, taking her hands. “No, sweetheart. Don’t let your mind go there. Leo was someone I loved long before you were even thought of.”
“My mother married him in 1990,” Julian said.
“Then why didn’t you tell us?” Lila asked.
His jaw tightened. “Because I was scared.”
“Of losing me?”
“Yes.”
“So you lied instead?”
“I delayed the truth.”
“I was scared.
“That is a dressed-up lie,” I snapped. “You don’t get to bring my past into my daughter’s future and decide when we are ready to hear it.”
“I know,” he said. “I handled it wrong.”
Lila wiped her cheek.
His eyes filled. “I kept telling myself I needed the right time.”
“There is no right time for a lie,” I said.
He nodded once, ashamed. “You’re right.”
“I handled it wrong.
I pointed to the locket in his hand. “Then show me what you came to show me.”
“It’s in my car.”
“Go get it.”
Lila whispered, “Mom…”
“No,” I said. “If he has carried my past for three months, I can wait three minutes.”
***
Julian returned with a brown leather satchel and set it on my dining table like an offering.
Inside were letters, photographs, and an old envelope with my name written across the front.
