AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You’re still going to marry her.” Gretchen shook her head.
Sawyer took a deep breath and reminded himself why he was here. He couldn’t give in to the anger she seemed determined to drag out of him.
“When I was little, I used to think that if I ever found you, I would ask you why you left and demand an answer.” He sat down across from her at the table. “I realize now that the reason doesn’t really matter. You left, and no explanation can change the way that shaped who I am today. What I really want to know is why you came back. Because that will help me decide if I’ll let you influence my life moving forward.”
Gretchen averted her eyes and shifted in her seat. She folded and unfolded her hands. “I told you, I came back to stop you from making the same mistakes I made. It would have been a mistake to marry someone you didn’t love because she was pregnant.”
“And for all intents and purposes, you accomplished that goal when Piper called off the wedding, but you’re still here.”
She took a cookie off the plate and broke it into smaller pieces. “Well, I’ve been catching up with Harriet and spending time with Faith.”
“So, another reason you came back was to reconnect with Harriet and Faith. Anything else?”
“It’s not like you want anything to do with me, but I might have come back to get to know you a bit, too.”
“Getting to know me is another reason. Is that correct?”
She nodded.
“Anything else? Do you need money? Are you dying?”
Gretchen’s brow furrowed. “Lord, no. I don’t need your money, and I am healthy as a horse.”
“Is there a reason reconnecting became important to you all of a sudden? Twenty-one years is a long time. You can’t blame me for being suspicious after so much time has passed.”
“I don’t have a good answer. I wanted to talk to you all for years, but I guess hearing you on the radio and reading about you in the news gave me the push I needed to actually do it instead of thinking about it.”
Sawyer was surprised to hear her say she’d wanted to reconnect for so long. He had assumed Gretchen’s reappearance had something to do with his fame, but knowing she had wanted to reconnect him before that was a relief.
“Why not sooner?” Faith asked.
“Your father was a great dad. He knew what to do no matter what you two threw at us. It was like he was born to be a dad.”
Sawyer could only hope to be half as good at parenting as his dad was, but he wasn’t sure what this had to do with his mom staying away.
“We were very lucky to have him,” Faith said.
“Me, on the other hand, I was a terrible mother,” Gretchen continued. “I’m not nurturing. I don’t know what to do when kids cry. I hate bodily fluids. I didn’t want to be a parent, but I loved your dad and he wanted a family. I gave him what he wanted even though I knew I couldn’t rise to the challenge.”
“I don’t remember you being a bad mom,” Faith said. “I remember chasing fireflies and sleep-outs in the summer. I remember how you’d take us to the lake and teach us about nature.”
Gretchen actually smiled. “I’m glad those are the things you remember about me, because I remember locking myself in my room while you were crying until your father came inside. I remember yelling at you both to stop touching me. I remember telling you to make your own dinner when you were like six years old.”
Faith and Sawyer exchanged glances. Sawyer had been way too young to remember that stuff, but Faith had been ten when Gretchen left. She had to recall their mom being so distant.
“I don’t remember any of that,” Faith said. “When Dad and I talked about you, we only talked about the good things. He would tell me stories when I was missing you.”
Gretchen pinched the bridge of her nose and shut her eyes. “That man.” She got up and grabbed the box of tissues on the counter. “That man was a freaking saint.”
Sawyer leaned back in his chair. His dad, a man who had had every reason to bad-mouth Gretchen and paint her as the villain, never had. In fact, he’d done the exact opposite. He’d made sure that the only memories that stuck were the ones that made Sawyer and Faith feel loved.
