Chapter 22 - Maddie learns about Lucas
Maddie was seven when we gave her the fuller story.
Not every medical detail.
Age appropriate.
Her therapist helped.
Grant attended.
So did I.
Lucas did not.
This was not his reveal.
I said:
“When we wanted to have you, Dad’s body couldn’t make the kind of cells needed to start a baby.”
Maddie knew basic reproduction by then.
She looked at Grant.
“Like sperm?”
“Yes.”
He answered himself.
“We chose to use sperm from a donor.”
“Okay.”
Then I said:
“The doctor used sperm from a different person than the one we chose.”
Her face changed.
“Why?”
“The doctor made a very wrong decision.”
“Who?”
“Lucas.”
She knew Lucas as Dad’s cousin.
Family picnics.
Christmas.
Her eyes widened.
“Uncle Lucas?”
“Yes.”
“Is he my dad?”
There it was.
Grant’s face tightened.
But this time he did not retreat.
He answered:
“Lucas is your biological father. I am your legal and everyday dad.”
Maddie considered.
“Two dads?”
Lucas’s terminology mattered.
I said:
“Different kinds of connection.”
“Does Lucas want me?”
That question hurt.
“Yes,” I said. “He cares about you. He also knows you already have a dad.”
Maddie looked at Grant.
“Are you leaving?”
“No.”
No hesitation.
May you like
Better.
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