Maya opened her mouth to speak, but I cut her off.
“No. I asked for the truth, James. And you couldn’t even give me that.”
“Why are you upset, Mom?
This is Daddy’s girlfriend.”
I turned to Sophia. “Do you know what a girlfriendis, sweetie?”
James stepped forward, looking guilty. “Elena, please, let’s talk about this.”
I shook my head, but I followed him as he moved away from the others.
“This isn’t just about us anymore.
You’ve been lying to me, and now Sophia knows.”
James sighed. “Maya is my half-sister.”
“Your half-sister?” I stopped, shocked. “You’ve never mentioned her.”
“I didn’t know about her until recently.
My father… he had an affair, and Maya is the result of that. I didn’t know until a few months ago.”
Еhe weight of the truth crashed down on me.
“We were afraid,” James admitted, looking ashamed.
“We didn’t want anyone to know, especially my mom.”
“You should’ve told me, James. You can’t hide something like that.”
“I didn’t want to add more stress to your life. I thought it was better to keep it quiet.”
“I know.
I’m sorry. I should’ve been honest with you. I promise I’ll never keep anything from you again.”
“We’re a family, James.
All of it, good and bad.”
James pulled me into an embrace, holding me close. “I’m sorry, Elena. I’ll do better.”
We stood there, holding each other, and in that moment, I realized how much I needed that honesty between us.
It wasn’t perfect, but it was real, and that was enough.
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