Chapter 17
“Your grandpa would have loved this,” I whispered.
Benjamin stood in the doorway.
He looked away when he saw my tears.
I made hot chocolate for Lily and coffee for my son.
We sat at the kitchen table, the same table where I had sat in my navy dress the night he excluded me.
For a while, everything felt almost normal.
Lily told me about her teacher, her best friend, and a science project involving a paper volcano.
Benjamin listened quietly.
Then Lily ran upstairs to find the old puzzle I kept in the guest room.
When she was gone, Benjamin placed his coffee cup on the table.
“Mom, I need to tell you something.”
I waited.
“The business is worse than I said.”
“How much worse?”
He stared at his hands.
“I owe about $180,000 between the business loans, credit lines, and personal guarantees.”
I felt my stomach tighten.
“Does Genevieve know the full amount?”
“Not all of it.”
“Benjamin.”
“I know.
I should tell her.”
“Yes, you should.”
He leaned forward.
“I don’t expect you to pay it.
I swear.
I just need you to understand why I was panicking.”
I looked at him carefully.
“Thank you for telling me.”
He seemed surprised.
“You’re not going to ask why I let it get that bad?”
“I already know why.
You hoped it would get better before anyone discovered how bad it was.”
He gave a sad, almost embarrassed smile.
“That’s exactly what I did.”
“Then the next step is to stop hiding.”
He nodded.
“I’ve spoken to a restructuring adviser.
He thinks I can negotiate the business debt and sell some equipment.
I may have to close the company.”
“That will be difficult.”
“It’ll be humiliating.”
“Those are not the same thing.”
He looked up.
I continued gently.
“Losing a business does not make you a failure.
Refusing to face reality can destroy you.
There’s a difference.”
His eyes grew wet.
“Dad used to say something like that.”
“Yes.
He did.”
“I wish I’d listened.”
“So do I.”
He bowed his head.
For a moment, I saw the grief he had carried since Thomas’s death.
But grief did not excuse his choices, and I no longer needed to pretend otherwise.
“You can ask me for advice,” I told him.
“You can tell me when you’re frightened.
You can visit me when things are difficult.
But I will not pay your debts.”