New Beginnings by Helen Cooper Read Free Book Online

now content Jacob back on his blankets and sat on the couch. Sophie made sure to distance herself from Max on the couch and he frowned.
    “So I want to know what’s going on, Max.” She looked at him seriously. “How long have you known about Jacob?”
    Max sighed and took a seep breath. He knew that it was too good to be true when she had come in and not bombarded him with questions right away. “Only since today, Sophie. I swear.”
    “You didn’t know Alexis was pregnant?” She asked in a hushed tone.
    “No.” His voice was direct and angry and he held her hand. “I had no idea, Sophie.”
    “And he’s definitely your son?” She cocked her head and studied his face.
    He swallowed and thought as she looked at him. He wasn’t sure what to say. There was a possibility that Jacob wasn’t his but that would mean delving into a part of his past that he wasn’t sure she could accept. A past that he was ashamed of and could ruin lives. “I think so.” He made sure to keep his voice even and steady. He didn’t want to lie to Sophie but he wasn’t sure how his sweet, innocent Sophie would handle the truth.
    She pulled her hand away from him and frowned at him. “Don’t lie to me, Max, is there a possibility that Jacob is not your son?”
    He looked at her stony face with wide eyes and stared at the sleeping baby. “He looks just like me.”
    “That’s not answering my question, Max.” Her voice was agitated. “He has the same color hair and eyes, yes, but that doesn’t make him your son definitively.”
    He sighed and bit his lip. He could feel her withdrawing from him and he spoke again. “There is a possibility that he isn’t my son.”
    “And you know who the other potential father is?” She looked at him curiously.
    “Maybe.” He spoke slowly, pleading her with his eyes to stop the line of questioning.
    “Maybe?” She leaned towards him. “Alexis cheated on you and you knew about it?”
    “She didn’t cheat.” He looked away and sighed. “I knew about it.”
    “What?” Her voice rose and she looked at him in shock. “What do you mean?”
    “I don’t want to talk about it any further, Sophie.”
    “Your fiancée slept with other men and you knew about it and it was okay with you?”
    “She is my ex-fiancée.” His voice was harsh. “I didn’t love her and we had an unconventional relationship.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “Sophie—it’s the past.”
    “I want to know.”
    “Sophie, there is nothing good that can come from you knowing.”
    “I love you, Max. I want to know more about your past.”
    “My love for you is all that matters.”
    “No, it’s not.” Her voice was resolute.
    He sighed and grabbed her hand. “Please, Sophie. I don’t want to go back to that place.”
    “I think you owe it to me, Max. A baby was delivered here today. A baby you had with Alexis. I need to know, Max,” she pleaded with him.
    “We were members of a sex club, Sophie. She fucked other men. I fucked other women. Sometimes we had threesomes, sometimes I didn’t know if I was fucking her or another woman.” His voice was harsh and he looked at her with pained eyes. “Does that make you feel better? Are you satisfied now that you know?”
    “No.” Her voice was small and tears sprang to her eyes. Max studied her face and felt a dull rumbling in his ears. He was mad at himself, he had been harsher than he had intended and now she was upset. He didn’t know why she wouldn’t just leave it alone.
    “I’m sorry, Sophie.”
    “Do you miss them?”
    “Miss what?”
    “The clubs?”
    “No.” His voice was loud. “No. I frequented them at a bad time in my life, Sophie.”
    “I want to see what it was like.” Her voice was a whisper.
    “No.”
    “I want to see, Max.”
    “It’s not a good idea, Sophie. You don’t belong in that world.”
    “It was a part of your life, Max. I want to understand.” She studied his face and played with her long brown hair. “I want to