He looked away, jaw tightening. "Why not? Maybe they just loved me because they needed someone to fill the hole their real kids left behind."
There it was, that raw, wounded bitterness that made Bella's chest ache. She understood that pain too well.
"Jake," she said gently, her voice barely above a whisper. "Listen to me. Whether you were adopted or not doesn't change the fact that they raised you. That they chose you. That's what love is."
"Even if it feels like I was just a replacement?" he muttered.
Bella shook her head and then took a slow breath, her gaze steady. "It's fine to feel that way. You've just had your whole world turned upside down by one truth; anyone would question everything after discovering something like that. But Jake…" She stepped closer, her voice low and full of quiet conviction. "How about you ask yourself this; in all your time with them, did they ever treat you like a replacement?"
He didn't answer. His silence said enough.
