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Gavin’s chest felt like it expanded Like it fucking grew, because this was the first tied that fact, that whatever he felt for anotherdown his face now It was the first time in his life that he’d ever seen his father cry Damned if it didn’t cause a lu…like I said, everything else feels so ht now I couldn’t see that when I was healthy I don’t knohat it , and it hurts to fear for you, that I won’t be reunited with you one day, but I can say, knowing that I’ who I am…did we do that to you? Try to take aho you are?"

They had, but in this moment, it all wiped away "It doesn’t ed his father while the man cried "I’m sorry I’e his et this conversation to thiselse mattered This is who Gavin was and would always be He was proud of that And right now, he thought maybe his father was, as well

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

Mason stared at the wo across from hireen Damned if he didn’t have her smile, too "I didn’t come here because I want you to be my mother I have one"

She nodded "I know that I would never expect anything different I’h"

They’d spoken for an hour Not about anything of importance The restaurant, and how she went back to school recently They made sure to skip over the hard parts, but they couldn’t do that forever Hell, Mason didn’t want to

"They loved me They treated me well"

"I knew they would That’s all I ever wanted for you"

Then why couldn’t you do it? But then, did he want that? He fought an internal ith hiet clean for hie the parents he had The ones who had always loved hi for him

"I’m sure that’s hard for you to understand Or maybe it’s not Maybe at this point it’s too late, but I want you to know, I love you I always have I…I wasn’t in the place where I could be the s I never would have been able to That’s a selfish answer in a lot of ways I should have made myself be the person you deserved, but I didn’t, and there’s no going back It was never you, though It was all my fault Always And I have always loved you, Mason"

Christ, it was alht off his chest The question in his head that hadn’t stopped in the months since he found out

"I went to see you once Did your mom tell you that? I wanted you back She didn’t know that, of course, but I wanted you, and then… God, you were happy Such a smart, well-adjusted, happy kid, and she loved you with all her heart She loved you the way I did, only she had the courage to be the ht for you You here you belonged, and I missed out in this beautiful, sret that"

It’s incredible how much a person needs to feel wanted Mason didn’t like that about himself, that need, that he’d desired to hear those words fro as best for et that from her? He wondered The fact that he could feel but he still never cried

"Can I ask questions about you? Your life? Are you married, or do you have children?"

"No, not h He’s in Blackcreek Things are…coh"

His hed "Oh, I recognize the sound of that Why do things get coed "It was probablyI think I did I’h"

"I think that’s part of life We never really know if the decisions we’re ht reasons or not There’s only so ut, and hope for the best There’s nothing more any of us can do than that"