Surprised to see her childrenâs reactions, Stella grew distressed. She had always assumed that she was enough for Elias and Emma, that she could love them so much that they would never feel the absence of their father.
But now, it seemed they were really curious about who their father was. Only now did she realize that they had never asked her anything about their father, not because they did not care about him, but because they didnât want to hurt her.
After all, they must have noticed that everyone had a mommy and a daddy.
The light in her eyes dimmed. She had no idea what to say to them now.
Marcus sighed and began to explain to the children. âThis man in front of you is your daddy, heâsâ¦â
âGrandpa!â Roger suddenly cut him off, evidently disapproving of what Marcus was about to do.
He wondered how his grandfather could just blurt out something like that in front of the children. They did not even know if Elias and Emma were ready to accept the truth!
âTheyâre almost four now,â Marcus reminded Roger in a grave voice. âTheyâre at an age when theyâre beginning to understand things. Nowâs the perfect time to let them know since it might be easier for them to accept the truth. Who knows, they might even forget in a few days and start to enjoy their mommy and daddyâs company. If we keep hiding the truth from them, it might be harder for them to accept once they get olderâ¦â
All this sounded very sensible, but the truth was that Marcus also had his selfish reason for revealing the truth.
He was well aware of Weston Fordâs strengths and talents during these three yearsâWestonâs wealth and influence expanded steadily, and his empire had only been growing. He even became a very powerful figure in the delta. In his hands, Ford Corporation spread its influence across many different countries, making Weston Ford one of the most powerful men in the world.
Naturally, Marcus would love to get this man to work with the Garcias, as this would undoubtedly bring enormous benefits to the family.
Besides, it looked like the man had genuine feelings for Stella, so as long as she was there, she could strengthen ties between the Garcias and the Fords.
Elias and Emma were shocked. Their eyes widened to the size of saucers, and they stared silently at Marcus, unable to react for a long time.
âIâm sorry,â Stella told them in a serious voice, kneeling in front of them. âMommy has not been honest with you. The truth is that this man here is your daddyâ¦â
Elias was the first to react. He lightly shoved Stellaâs hand away and cried, âI donât believe you! Mommy would never lie to me, so Iâm sure youâre all joking, right?â
Stellaâs heart was broken when she saw how her son reacted, but now that she had already told them the truth, she could not possibly go back to lying anymore.
âIâm not lying to you,â she told Elias in a grave voice. â He really is your daddy, but if you canât accept this truth, then weâllâ¦â
âYouâre lying!â Elias interrupted her before she could finish. âYouâre all lying to me! Liars!â
His response was surprisingly more dramatic than they expected. He pushed them all away and ran into his room. They were all on the second floor then, and they watched as he flew up the stairs.
Stellaâs heart dropped like a bag of rocks. It hurt just as much as being cut with a knife.
Only Emma was standing there silently, not reacting yet. She stared stiffly at her mother and then at her father. It was much easier for her to accept the truth since she liked Weston in the first place, thanks to how handsome he was.
âDaddy?â she cried, stretching out her arm.
Weston paused, immediately pulling her into his arms, his eyes reddening.
But his joy was quickly tempered by the memory of his sonâs reaction, which had nearly smashed his heart into a thousand broken pieces.
âThank you for accepting me,â he whispered into Emmaâs ear, patting her back gently.
But Emma gently pushed him away and turned towards the direction that Elias had run in. She put her thumb in her mouth and asked, âWhat about Elias?â
âElias is angry right now,â replied Stella. âMommyâs going to try to cheer him up, so will you help me?â
âSure!â Emma quickly put up her little hand and agreed.