PART7: My Daughter-in-Law Gave Me a $2 Scratch Ticket for My 73rd Birthday—She Never Knew It Was Worth Millions
PART7
His eyes filled with tears.
“Mom…”
“I wasn’t going to live in that room forever.”
“I thought you wanted to stay.”
“I wanted to be wanted.”
Silence.
He looked down.
“I made a mistake.”
“Yes.”
“Paige made mistakes too.”
“I know.”
“She feels terrible.”
I raised an eyebrow.
“She feels terrible because the house is being sold.”
Graham didn’t answer.
That silence told me enough.
Then he said something I never expected.
“Mom, Paige wants to know if you could help us buy another house.”
I stared at him.
He immediately looked embarrassed.
“She didn’t ask me to say it exactly like that.”
“But she asked you.”
“Yes.”
I walked toward the kitchen.
I poured two cups of coffee.
Then I placed one in front of him.
“Do you remember what you said when you gave me that brochure?”
He frowned.
“What?”
“You said Pine Harbor was the best choice for me.”
“I was trying to help.”
“No. You were trying to solve a problem.”
He lowered his eyes.
I sat across from him.
“You didn’t ask where I wanted to live.”
“I know.”
“You didn’t ask what I wanted to do.”
“I know.”
“You didn’t ask if I was lonely.”
His eyes became wet.
“I know.”
“You only asked where you could put me.”
He covered his face with both hands.
For several seconds, he cried silently.
I didn’t touch him.
Not because I didn’t love him.
Because sometimes a person needs to sit with the truth without being rescued from it.
Finally, he looked up.
“Can I tell you something?”
“Yes.”
“When I was little, I thought you were the strongest person in the world.”
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