Father’s Day was a meaning day where my family celebrated me, but when my daughter told me a secret that almost broke my heart, I ended up finding a truth that would force my hand.
My daughter Lily is five. She’s my world, funny, full of wonder!
Lily makes me feel like a hero just by asking me to open the peanut butter jar. And I was happy to be her dad.
My wife, Jessica, and I had Lily soon after our wedding. We hadn’t planned to become parents so soon, but we were ready.
I’m an electrician, 40, seasoned, not flashy, and Jess runs a photography studio out of our garage.
So, last week, I picked Lily up from preschool. She climbed into the back seat, smelling like finger paint and raisins and said something that made me surprised.
“Daddy, can we invite my real dad to Father’s Day dinner?”
My foot slipped on the brake! We jolted to a stop.
“Your… real dad?” I asked.
She shook, her curls bouncing.
“Yeah! He comes when you’re at work,” she said.
Struggling to process what she was saying and also suffering from denial, I turned back to look at her and replied, “Maybe you blended something up, sweetie.”
“Uh uh,” she said.
“He comes all the time and brings me nice things like chocolate, and we play tea party. Mommy makes dinner for him sometimes, and you know him. He told me he’s my real daddy.”
So I created a plan.
“Wow,” I said, thinking quickly.
“That’s… a big surprise. Hey, tell you what, sweetheart, wanna play a game? Invite him to dinner on Sunday. But don’t tell Mommy. And don’t tell him I’ll be home. It’ll be fun, and our little secret.”
“A game?”
“Yep. But it has to be a secret, no telling Mommy, okay?” I reminded her.
“Okay! I love games!”
I smiled and leaned in to kiss her head, but inside, I was collapsing.
I got to work while she prepared her equipment that morning. Pancakes for breakfast. A trip to the park. Lily got to pick the centerpiece for dinner at the grocery store, a lopsided sunflower bouquet. By the time we got back home, Jess was gone.
I told my wife that Lily and I were going to be out of the house the whole day, doing something funny on special day. However, I revealed that I’d ring up the babysitter and leave Lily with her while I went out to see my parents.
She knew not to predict me back until much later.
At 6:07 p.m., there was a knock.
I took a deep breath, opened the door, and nearly dropped the serving tray!
Adam.
He was my best friend since college. He was my best man, my fishing buddy, and my daughter’s “Uncle Adam.”
“Hey… bro. Wow, didn’t know you’d be home. What a—what a surprise!”
“Danny?!” she said. “What are you—?”
I opened the door wider with a smile.
“Come on in, buddy! My best friend! We were just about to eat.”
His face exhausted. Jess looked like she was about to collapse. I stepped aside, gesturing toward the table like a game show host.
“Dinner’s hot. Don’t want to let it go cold.”
They followed me in.
“I told him it’d be fun!” she muttered, spooning potatoes onto her plate like it was Christmas.
Adam sat down stiffly, obviously sweating. Jess avoided my gaze as she took her seat.
“So,” I began, sitting across from him. “Been a while. You been busy?”
“Yeah,” he said. “Work’s been nuts.”
“Sure. Not too busy to visit though, huh?”
“What does that mean?” Adam asked.
“Oh, nothing. Just heard you’ve been around. Brought chocolates. Had some dinners. Did some bonding.”
Jess jumped in, too fast.
“He just stopped by once or twice. Lily loves visitors. You know how she is.”
“Just once or twice?” I asked.
“Maybe… three times,” he shouted. “It wasn’t a big deal.”
“Right, right. No big deal. Just a guy stopping by to visit his daughter.”
The air stiffen. Jess’s fork froze halfway to her mouth. Adam set down his wine with a shaking hand.
“W-What are you talking about?” Jess muttered.
I turned to Lily.
“Hey, sweetheart, who’s Adam?”
She said.
“He’s my real daddy!”
The silence afterward was total.
“We were going to tell you,” he said quickly. “Eventually.”
“It never felt like the right time,” Jess added.
I leaned back, still calm, too calm.
“When would’ve been the right time?” I asked.
“After I taught her to ride a bike? After the bedtime stories and the nightmares? Or maybe at her next birthday party, when you both would’ve toasted to ‘family’?”
No one answered.
“Look, man, I just wanted to be there for her.”
“For your daughter?” I asked.
“Interesting. You mean the one I’ve been raising for five years? The one who has my name? My eyes? My routines?”
“I didn’t want to destr0y everything,” Jess said.
“I was afraid. You loved her so much, and I didn’t know how to take that away.”
“You already did,” I said. “You just didn’t admit it.”
“You both have ten minutes. Get your things. Get out of my house.”
Lily’s lip trembled.
“Daddy?”
“Sweetheart, listen to me. I love you. I’m not going anywhere. You’ll always have me, no matter what.”
“Okay.”
I kissed her forehead and turned to Adam and Jessica.
“You heard me. Ten minutes.”
Adam whispered something about being sorry. Jessica couldn’t meet my eyes. I didn’t watch them leave. I just held Lily.
The next day, I filed for divorce.
We began paternity testing a few days later, but the truth is, I don’t care about the results. She’s my daughter. I’ve raised her, held her through fevers, danced with her in the kitchen. She’s mine.
Last night, Lily hang back bed beside me.
“Daddy?” she muttered.
“Yeah, baby?”
“I don’t want to play that game again.”
“Me neither. I’m sorry, my baby, you’ll never deal with again.”
She gazed up at me, her eyes wide and honest.
“Are you still my real daddy?”
I didn’t falter.
“I always have been. I always will be.”
She bobbed and rested her head on my chest.