The Favor (BOOK 1 & BOOK 2 INCLUDED)

2. Like Father, Like Daughter

We find a decent restaurant to eat at for a quick meal. I decide I'll only eat the appetizer because I want to save my stomach for later tonight. Charlie has taken my car to go out to his relative's that live about fifty minutes away to drop off stuff while my mom is here to talk to me and Derrick. I assume it's business related, but at the same time I have no idea because my mom is the most pale I've ever seen her and her hands are shaking as she lifts her water.

"Mom, is there something wrong?" I ask finally after a while of watching her have a what seems to be mini panic attack.

"Honey..." She puts a hand on her forehead and sighs. "This is really hard."

"What's really hard? Mom, are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm alright I'm just really nervous."

"Why are you nervous?" I ask. She can't look me in the eyes, all she can do is look down at her hand in front of her.

"Okay, I'm telling you this because now that you've met, I should just come right out with the truth. And this will also effect if you'll work together anymore."

She's scaring the hell out of me. I have no idea what she's trying to say, but it's really freaking me out.

"Mom, what's wrong?"

"I... Honey..." She can't even speak. "Okay, I'm just going to say it." She takes a deep breath and finally looks up to us. "Lily... Derrick is your biological dad."

In sync, Derrick and I both snap our heads to look at each other. Like father, like daughter, my conscience jokes. And then I realize it. I didn't see him on the internet. I recognize his face from somewhere else. He was the one who picked me up the night Trevor branded me.

"I-I don't understand. I thought Henry was her dad," Derrick is blinking over and over, trying to let the information sink in.

"No, he wasn't. We did that because I didn't want anyone to know it was you."

"Oh, wow. That just makes me feel wonderful," Derrick falls back in his seat. This is the first time I've seen him... Angry. "Why didn't you tell me I had this daughter living inside your stomach all of senior year? What did I do to not deserve to know?"

"Are you kidding me? You were obsessed with boxing, it was your life. If I told you that I was going to give birth to your child, you wouldn't have cared. All you wanted was to get scholarships and if someone found out it was your kid, that would never happen and you would blame her for the rest of your life."

"Did you seriously think I was that shallow? She would have been the best thing in my life and she would always, always come before my career. I have a son now and I know that even when I was an arrogant asshole in senior year I would have loved her more than anything."

The table is silent for a moment. Both my mom and Derrick are heaving. I honestly don't even know what I'm supposed to feel like right now. I'm still really in shock. Nothing is really setting in.

"You're right, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have hid her from you. I don't even know why I was trying to defend myself. I'm just really hormonal right now." Mom takes a very deep breath and once again stares down at her hands.

"So what does she know about me?" Derrick asks her once he's calmed down a little more.

"I told her everything except for your name. When you had that career ending injury that was all over the news, I knew it was a good time to introduce her into your life. But she was already curious because she was thirteen. And I was selfish and told her that we'd never see you because I loved her so much that I didn't want to share her. I've been so selfish and I'm so sorry Derrick. You should have known but there were other reasons too."