Chapter 2

2

One of the older relatives, Uncle Jerry, cleared his throat, trying to regain control of the situation.

"Alright, everyone, settle down!" His voice was booming and authoritative.

Everyone quieted down, their eyes on Uncle Jerry.

He turned to Sarah. "Sarah, why did you call us all here?"

Sarah took a deep breath, like she was getting ready for something big.

She put her arm around Mark's shoulders, putting on a dramatic display of affection.

"Actually, I have something important to announce." She paused, looking around the room, finally settling on me and Dustin.

I just watched, waiting for the fireworks.

"Dustin... he's not Michael's biological son." Her voice was soft, but it dropped like a bomb in the living room.

Dustin whipped his head around to look at me, his eyes wide with shock.

I signaled him to stay calm.

The relatives started buzzing, like a bunch of sharks smelling blood, excited by the drama.

"Years ago, when we did IVF..." Sarah hesitated, acting all embarrassed. "The doctor said... Michael's sperm wasn't the best... I didn't want to hurt his feelings, so I used Mark's sperm instead."

The nerve of this woman! She stole my sperm and is now trying to blame me?

Sarah gave me a nasty look, like she was expecting me to freak out.

But I was cool as a cucumber, so she had to keep going.

"I called you all here today so you can see…" She looked at Mark with fake love in her eyes, "Dustin reunite with his real father."

The relatives were losing it.

"If Dustin's not Michael's son, he should meet his real dad!"

"Yeah, he's been acting like he belongs in the Johnson family for way too long, it's time for him to move on!"

"Michael's been running the Johnson business for years! Now that the truth is out, he needs to step down!"

I chuckled.

These conniving relatives, I'd had to oust them from the company for their own misdeeds, and now they were just leeching off dividends at the end of the year. No wonder they were eager to see me go.

They were relishing the chance to see Sarah and me fight, hoping they could sneak back into the company and get a piece of the pie.

Dustin, seeing the greed in their eyes, squeezed my hand tighter.

I spoke: "Dustin will always be my son."

My voice was quiet, but firm.

Mark put on a helpless face, choking up.

"Mike, how long are you going to lie to yourself?"

I wasn't lying. Dustin is my son.

Did Sarah and Mark really think they could fool me?