Chapter 13 - Grayson Became a Father
Grayson and Hannah had a daughter.
They named her Eleanor.
I stared when he told me.
“Are you asking permission?”
“Yes.”
That surprised me.
“My mother would be honored.”
“You?”
I thought.
“I am too.”
Baby Eleanor arrived healthy.
I visited.
Holding Grayson’s daughter felt strange.
Not painful.
Tender.
He watched me.
“I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“The children conversation.”
Our marriage had never seriously pursued children.
My mother’s illness and our careers delayed it.
Celeste once talked about children with him.
I had feared replacement.
Now it felt distant.
“You don’t owe me apology for having a child with your wife.”
“I owe you for many other things.”
“Yes.”
He laughed.
Little Eleanor grabbed my finger.
Life did not distribute outcomes evenly.
That was okay.
I returned to Blackwood and told Nate.
He hugged me.
We had chosen not to pursue children due to age and preference.
Sometimes I wondered.
May you like
No regret.
Just alternate lives visible through windows.
