‘We Were Shocked’: Britney Spears' Children Lose Another Father Figure – They Were ‘So Close To David,’ Declares Source

Britney Spears made a shocking admission on Sunday night during her "Piece of Me" show at the Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas that her boyfriend of 17 months David Lucado had cheated. But those close to Spears say that her children are the ones that are suffering the most.

“I feel bad for the kids because they were so close to David,” a source close to Spears tells RadarOnline.com exclusively. “He was such a father figure to them.”

Although the source said that Britney did not talk about the split with those involved in the show, his absence was clearly felt.

“David used to come to all of the rehearsals and performances and take care of the kids while Britney was working,” the source adds. “He knew everyone and we all knew him.”

Between songs during her Sunday performance, Spears told the packed audience “Well, by now everyone knows my boyfriend cheated on me. But the best part of breaking up is going on first dates."

“No one knew that she was going to say the thing about David cheating on her until she said it,” the source tells Radar. “We were all shocked, but it is obvious that Britney wanted to get it out and be done with it. It is just going to feel strange without him around.”

Spears and Lucado had been together since February 2013, which was only a month after she called off her engagement to agent Jason Trawick. She has two sons, Sean Preston, 8, and Jayden James, 7, with ex-husband Kevin Federline.