Page 20 of Broken Daddy

“A half brother?”

To say I’m shocked is an understatement.

There’s no photo next to this person’s name.Jenson Sharpe.

Sharpe.That’s my last name—Dad’s last name.

“Looks like Dad went and set up another family after he left Mom.” Chris’s smile is sad, and it hits me that he looks tired.

Everything in me has slowed down as I stare at him.

“We have a brother?”

Chris nods and I stand, throwing the folder down on the table and starting to pace. My jaw aches from clenching it.

“I can’t believe that asshole,” I fume.

Trying to defuse the situation, my brother stands, hands raised. “Woah, it’s not that big of a deal, Nate.”

“How can you say that?” I whirl around, eyes blazing. “Do you remember how devastated Mom was when he left? He took everything—”

It was actually part of why Chris became a lawyer. Our dad really screwed Mom over, hiding assets and money, leaving her with a mortgage and two kids to raise on her own. Neither of us ever wanted to be in that situation again.

“Yeah, he was a real piece of shit,” Chris agrees calmly. “But we can’t change what happened. We have a brother, Nate—”

“And what? You want tomeet him?” I scoff, realizing that’sexactlywhat Chris wants. “You want to meet the kid our dad left us to have with some other woman?”

Chris’s jaw clenches. We’ll both have headaches later today. I’m already well on my way to one, the throbbing starting in my temples.

“We’ve already talked, actually. He didn’t know about us, either.”

My heart practically stops in my chest.

“You—you—”

“He’s up in Boston. I was thinking we could make the drive—”

“What would Mom have to say about all this?” I burst out, vision going red with anger. We never,evertalk about Dad. It’s a sore spot for everyone. Aside from feeling completely abandoned, I’ll never get over all the nights Mom stayed up crying. Chris probably doesn’t remember, because I shielded him from most of it.

But I’ll never forget.

“Mom already knows.”

My heart beats again, then drops. I have the urge to find my cell and call her right away, make sure she’s okay.

“She’s fine with it,” Chris continues, sitting back down and shuffling the papers back into the folder. “She wasn’t surprised, actually.”

I huff out a strangled laugh. “Yeah? And did you tell her you want to meet this kid?”

“He’s not exactly a kid anymore, Nate. He’s only a few years younger than us. And he lost his mom a few years ago, so…”

That piece of information finally ignites a sliver of empathy. I unclench my fists and sit back down as Eva peeks into the room.

She hesitantly scurries over, climbing onto my lap. “You guys were yelling.” She pouts, looking from Chris to me with those big eyes. Her mom’s eyes.

The ache of loss echoes in my chest. I give Chris a warning look, one that says,Don’t youdaretell my daughter any of this.

He smiles at Eva, that one-sided smirk back. “It’s okay, bee. Your dad and I were just disagreeing about something. You know how he is, with his attitude.”

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