Lie to Me Read Online Free PDF Page B

“Son, where did you hear I’d died?”
    “You’re not my daddy! You can’t be!” His eyes brimmed again as his face crumbled. “B-but you look like the man in Mom’s picture.” He stared at Damian for a long time and the world came to a standstill. Miles finally spoke again, his voice shaky. “If you’re my dad, then you hate me for real ’cuz you never came home. Prob’ly because I’m bad and stupid.” Tears spilled onto his cheeks.
    Damian’s confusion equaled his despair. “No, Miles don’t ever think that. I left because of my behavior, not yours—”
    “If you’re my dad—you hate me!” Miles voice grew higher and more agitated. Tears continued. “ If it’s really you. If you’re not a fake, like a clone, you left me!” Miles started striking his chest, and Damian, shocked and horrified, grabbed his son’s small fists. A moment later, the boy’s arms were wrapped around his waist as he said one beautiful word over and over again. “Daddy.” Damian lowered himself to his knees to get down to his son’s level. Miles grabbed him in a stranglehold around his neck. “You’re alive,” he mumbled, wonder in his voice, speaking into his shoulder. “You’re my dad—and you’re alive.”
    Damian felt all choked up and maudlin as he lifted his son and brought him to the couch. While he settled him on his lap, Miles never let go of him. After a few silent minutes of hugging one another, his child finally asked, “Why didn’t you see me all this time? Didn’t you like me?”
    Oh, hell. How could he explain? “Miles, I love you. I’ve always loved you.” Staring down at the blond head of his son, he’d never loved anyone more in his life. And he’d never felt like a bigger jerk.
    The boy wiped his eyes and looked up at him. “I thought you died ’cuz you never came home.”
    He cursed himself and his decision. “I told Uncle Alex to make sure you never knew about the accident, Miles. I didn’t want you to worry about me.”
    Miles sniffed. “That was dumb. I found out anyways. Uncle Alex came over and told Mom. They thought I was sleeping and they talked soft, but I heard. Mom was crying.” He gave Damian a look of disdain. “Why did you drink and go on a motorcycle? That was even dumber.”
    Damian tightened his arms around him. “It was dumb,” he said, resting his cheek on top of the little boy’s head. “I did a lot of dumb things at one time, Miles.”
    “Drinking and riding the motorcycle was the dumbest! Lots of nights, I’d hear Mom calling your name in her room. I thought she was crying because you died. Then I’d feel sad and cry too.” Tears rolled off his chin.
    Damian cradled his son gently and rocked him. It was bad enough to learn that his son had thought him dead. Worse to learn that Casey had called out his name at night. Crap, he loved them both so much.
    “Mom made you come back, didn’t she?” Miles said, speaking into his shirt.
    Damian didn’t know how to answer. Finally he just said, “Yes.”
    Miles tried to stem his tears.” Mom worries about me a lot. I try not to tell her stuff or she gets all scared about me.”
    “So you just handle it yourself,” Damian mumbled. “Brave of you, but you’re a kid. Parents want to know if you’re hurting.”
    “I don’t like when Mom’s all worried. And I didn’t want her to think I’m a wuss and can’t take care of myself.” He watched Damian with a flat expression. “You weren’t here. There was no one to tell.”
    “I’m sorry.” He swallowed hard. “Guess you wanted me around, even though I wasn’t a very good father.”
    “You were a shitty father.”
    Damian accepted the criticism dully, and didn’t correct his language.
    “I loved you anyways,” Miles said. “I didn’t want you to be dead. I remember you were nice to me when you weren’t drunk.”
    Damian almost lost it, but stayed the adult, the one in control. “Did you-did you ask Mom if I was dead, Miles?”
    “Yes.