Feeling overwhelmed, Lucas quickly excused himself and he was relieved when Haley didn't stop him this time. She knew he needed some time alone. It was a lot to take in. Even she was still processing the shocking news, and neither of them knew how he was going to tell the family, especially Peyton.
Lucas was so focused on his thoughts that he didn't even realize Mouth was still waiting outside for him. It took him a few tries before Lucas was brought back to reality. His friend looked at him concerned. "Hey, are you alright?"
Lucas didn't know how to answer. He leaned against the car next to his friend. "I just found out that I am not only married, but I'm a dad. I have a son." He shook his head in disbelief. "This is not how I thought I would be spending the week before my wedding."
Mouth looked at him sympathetically. "I'm sorry, man. I only found out about you being Ethan's father this morning." Lucas realized that was the moment Millie had pulled Mouth away from his friends. "When I found out Brooke was pregnant, she never brought up who the father was. She just said that she tried to contact him, but there was no response. It never occurred to me that he was yours until Millie told me."
"It's okay, Mouth," Lucas sighed. "It's not your fault. Now I just need to figure out how to tell Peyton that we need to postpone our wedding indefinitely. But I can't do that without telling her why, and I can't tell her why until I find out if Ethan is really my kid." He turned to Mouth. "Do you think he's my kid?"
"Hearing that you are Ethan's dad made me open my eyes and realize it's true. He doesn't just look like you, but he has your personality and your passion for the love of reading," Mouth said.
Lucas couldn't help but smile when he heard that the little boy loved books. "Really? Ethan loves to read?"
Mouth nodded. "You should see the pile of books he brings home from the library every week. According to Brooke, he never wants to stick to the limit of just five books." Lucas couldn't help but laugh. "He's really an awesome kid, Luke. And I will be behind you with whatever you decide to do."
Lucas smiled gratefully. "Thanks, Mouth. I appreciate it."
"No problem. I should be getting back to work," Mouth said as they heard the front door open and they saw Haley. They exchanged friendly smiles as she approached them. Lucas moved out of the way so Mouth could open the driver's door. "Please let me know if you need anything. That goes for you too, Haley."
"Thanks Mouth," Haley said. They said their goodbyes before Mouth climbed into his vehicle. The two best friends watched him drive off before Haley turned to Lucas. "Listen, I know you want some space, but I was thinking it might be time to tell your mom. Or Keith."
Lucas shook his head. "No, I don't want to tell anybody until we find out whether I'm the father or not," he said. "Because Peyton will know something is up if my mom and Keith would fly down here when we should be on a flight back to New York. And I'd rather tell her about Ethan in person than on the phone." He let out a heavy sigh. "I think I'll get the paternity test done here and then we'll return home to settle things there."
Haley looked at him concerned. "Are you sure that's what you want to do?"
"No, but I can't ignore my responsibilities at home just because I found out I can't annul my first marriage and I might have a kid," Lucas said. He didn't let Haley respond as he noticed Brooke was now outside, heading to her car. He ran to catch up with her. "Hey Brooke. I need to talk to you."
Hearing his voice nearly made her jump, making Lucas realize he had interrupted some deep thoughts. Brooke caught her breath. "I didn't realize you were still here. I thought you two left. What can I do for you?"
"Before I return home, I want to find out whether I'm really Ethan's dad or not," Lucas said. "Do you think we can try and keep it on the down low? I don't want the public to find out about Ethan before I tell my fiancée."
"Really? You're giving me the warning?" Brooke asked as she opened her front passenger door and threw her purse on the seat. She shut the car door, nearly slamming it. "I'm not the one whose mother has a morning talk show."
"You can't remember where you put our marriage license, but you remember me telling you about my mom?" Lucas asked as he felt a nudge from Haley. He realized that wasn't the point Brooke was trying to make. "Look, I know you're trying to protect Ethan. You have every right to, but I can assure you that my mother would never exploit you or him."
"Lucas's right. I know Karen and she would never do that to you or Ethan," Haley added, hoping to ease Brooke's fears. "She understands the need for privacy."
Brooke let out a deep breath, and she looked at the two friends hard. She gave them a warning finger. "I can handle the press. But if you or your family tries to take advantage of my son, then you can forget about seeing him. Do you understand me?"
Lucas nodded. "I meant what I said. You're in charge here."
Brooke seemed satisfied with that answer. "Look, I was debating on whether to do this, but I think you should see this before you go and get a paternity test," she said as she pulled out her phone.
Lucas didn't even have to ask to know what she was doing. She handed her phone over to him. He gasped in shock as he saw the photo of the little boy. Mouth was right. It was like seeing a little mini version of him. There was no doubt in his mind that Ethan was his son.
"Oh my god!" he whispered in amazement. "That's my son."
"He's adorable," Haley complimented. "I can't believe how much he looks like Lucas."
"Thank you," Brooke said.
Lucas stared at the photo for a few minutes, almost not wanting to give the phone back to its owner. This little boy was his son.
Eventually, he was able to hand the phone back to Brooke. "I'm sorry I doubted you."
"It's okay. I understand," Brooke said as she put her phone back in her purse. "There's a reason why I didn't pursue trying to contact you after there was no response. I wanted to raise Ethan on my own. I still don't expect you to support him or me financially. We're fine on our own." Lucas was about to interrupt, but Brooke didn't give him a chance. "Julian's dad Paul is a lawyer and I'm sure he will help us figure out how we can get a divorce."
Lucas groaned. "Divorce proceedings will take months," he said, not wanting to wait that long to marry Peyton. She might not want to wait for him. His eyes lit up as he thought of an idea. He didn't know why he didn't think of this before. "Maybe I can talk to my private investigator and see if he can go and find out what could have possibly happened to our marriage license."
Brooke frowned. "Do you really think he can find out what happened to our marriage license?"
"Andrew Hargrove is one of the best in the business," Lucas said. "If he can't find it, then nobody can. I'll call him as soon as we get back to the hotel. But even when we do get divorced, I want to pay child support."
"I told you that's not necessary," Brooke said as she hurried to the other side of her car. "But I really don't have time to discuss it right now. I have to get back to the store to play peacemaker between my mother and Millie."
There was a little bit of hesitation in Lucas's voice before he spoke again. "Thank you for telling me about Ethan. I'm looking forward to meeting him. Whenever you're ready."
"I'll let you know," Brooke said before she said goodbye to her guests and climbed into the driver's seat.
Lucas and Haley watched the car as it backed out of the driveway and drove off.
They then returned to the house to say goodbye to their host before they drove back to the hotel. By the time they arrived, both of them found out they had missed several phone calls from various people asking about an update.
Lucas took care of the private investigator phone call first. Investigator Hargrove wasn't surprised to hear he had called him back. He didn't believe his work was completely finished, and he was willing to try and help him find the marriage license. However, he couldn't make any promises.
Now it was time to give Peyton an update. Although, he was dreading it. However, he knew it was better to be honest with her than try to hide it. Maybe he should tell Peyton now before he got home. At the same time, he didn't think this was something he should tell her over the phone.
He took a deep breath before he began dialing her number. He waited anxiously until he heard Peyton's voice on the other end. There was a hint of anger in her voice. "Well, it's about time you called. Here I thought you were avoiding me. I take it things are not going well on your end."
There was silence before Lucas spoke. "Yeah, it looks like it might take a little longer than we thought. Neither of us knows where the copy of the marriage license is. So I contacted Inspector Hargrove and he's willing to try and find it. I don't know how long that will take, but I'm really sorry, Peyton. We'll have to postpone our wedding until he does." Lucas was ready for the fireworks.
The news didn't seem to faze Peyton. "That's not the reason why Brooke refused to sign the papers, is it?" she asked. Lucas didn't know how she sensed it, but she knew there was something going on. "There's something else, isn't there?"
Lucas didn't want to lie to her. "Yes, there is. But I'd rather tell you in person than over the phone."
"Why? What's so important you can't tell me over the phone?" Peyton asked, trying to keep her anger in check. "We're almost husband and wife. I'm your fiancée. If you can't tell me now, then we shouldn't be really getting married. Maybe you should stay married to your first wife."
Lucas let out a heavy sigh. "You're right." There was a short pause as he tried to find the right words. "There's no easy way to tell you this, but I found out I have a son. That's the only reason why Brooke was refusing to sign the annulment papers. She wanted me to know about my son." There was silence on the other end. "Peyton, are you there?" he asked worriedly. He was afraid she had hung up on him.
Peyton managed to find her voice. "Yeah, I'm here." He could hear her stumbling over her words. "Are you sure he's yours?"
"Yeah, he's mine," Lucas said, not wanting to mention he didn't order a paternity test. He knew in his heart that Ethan was his son, and nobody was going to tell him otherwise. "I swear I had no idea he existed. Brooke told me she tried to contact me, but I never received anything from her. I know this is a big shock. I'm still getting over the shock myself, and I would understand if you don't want to be involved. But I want to get to know my son. I can't walk away from this."
"I know you can't," Peyton said in a soft voice. It was a surprise to Lucas that she was taking the news so well. However, he could still hear the hurt in Peyton's voice on the other end. "I just don't know if I can do it with you. You're going to have to give me some time to think about it."
Lucas was expecting that answer, and he wasn't going to fight her on it. "Yeah, I understand."
Haley couldn't help but listen to his side of the conversation. She gave him a sympathetic look as Lucas finished up the words he wanted to say. "This doesn't change anything in how I feel about you. I still love you, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Don't give up on us, okay?"
There was silence on the other end before Peyton finally spoke. "I'll be staying at my mom's for a few days," she said before she hung up the phone.
Lucas let out another heavy sigh as Haley looked at him with curiosity. "I don't know what to do here, Hales. It is feeling like déjà vu all over again."
"I know it does," Haley said, putting a comforting hand on his shoulder. "But I'm sure everything will work out. Not just with you and Peyton, but your new relationship with your son."
Lucas managed a smile. "I still can't believe I'm a dad." He shook his head in disbelief. "What do I do? I have no experience being a dad, especially to a three-and-a-half-year old."
"Who's better to ask advice from than the man who raised you?" Haley asked, giving him a hint.
Lucas let out a defeated sigh. Haley was right. It was time to tell his parents about their grandson. He just wasn't going to tell Dan. If anyone would cause trouble and try to take advantage of Brooke and Ethan, it would be him.
