Part 2 of 3

Little Things I Couldn’t Repay

Within weeks, the property began changing.

I repaired part of the greenhouse, cleared the paths, replanted flower beds, and rescued several rose bushes.

Nolan started attending a nearby elementary school.

One afternoon, he discovered an old red bicycle in the garage.

The chain was broken.

We fixed it together.

The next morning, a brand-new bicycle pump appeared outside our cottage.

No note.

I wrote its estimated cost in my notebook.

A few weeks later, Nolan came down with a fever.

Grant returned from town with medicine, drinks, and crackers.

Around two in the morning, there was another knock.

Grant stood outside.

“How is he?”

Eventually, he sat quietly in a chair while I watched Nolan sleep.

When I woke after accidentally drifting off, Grant was gone.

A glass of water had been left beside me.

I opened my notebook.

Then closed it again.

For the first time, I didn’t write anything down.

The Story Behind the Swing

Mrs. Whitaker eventually told me about Sophie.

Grant’s daughter had been four years old when she passed away after a serious illness. His marriage didn’t survive the grief.

The garden had originally been designed for Sophie.

The swing had been hers.

After she was gone, Grant stopped caring about the grounds.

Suddenly, I understood why he rarely walked near that tree.

And why restoring the garden sometimes seemed to make him happy and sad at the same time.

By spring, Nolan had grown attached to him.

Grant never tried to act like his father.

That was probably why Nolan trusted him.

They repaired toys together. They built model airplanes. Sometimes I found them sitting on the kitchen floor arguing about which superhero would win an imaginary battle.

And for the first time in years, I heard my son laughing without immediately wondering what problem was coming next.

The Man From My Past Returned

One afternoon, Travis appeared at the gate.

He looked at the large house behind me and smiled.

“So this is where you ended up.”

I kept my hand on the gate.

“What do you want?”

“Come home. Things are different now.”

“No.”

His smile disappeared.

“Nolan needs a father.”

I looked directly at him.

“He needs people who make him feel safe and wanted.”

Travis tried to argue.

I didn’t.

“If you keep showing up here, I’ll handle it through the proper channels.”

Then I closed the gate.

My hands shook afterward.

But I didn’t reopen it.

When Grant returned, I told him what had happened.

He didn’t rush outside looking for Travis.

He didn’t tell me what I should do.

He simply said:

“If you ever want legal advice, you can use my attorney. Only if you choose to.”

Strangely, those words made me trust him more than any promise could have.

The Apartment

By May, I had saved enough money for a deposit on a small apartment.

It wasn’t fancy.

But it would be mine.

I told Grant that Nolan and I would move out at the beginning of June.

He became quiet.

“I understand.”

That night, he came to the cottage.

“Before you leave, there’s something I need to tell you.”

I waited.

“That morning at the family center, I thought adoption would fix something inside me.”

He looked toward the garden.

“Then I met you and Nolan.”

Grant explained that he had eventually realized he wasn’t ready to bring a child home simply to make his house feel less empty.

Sophie could never be replaced.

Neither could the life he had lost.

“Then what changed?” I asked.

His eyes met mine.

“I stopped coming home early because of the house.”

He paused.

“I started coming home because you two were here.”

I didn’t know what to say.

Part of me wanted to believe him.

Another part remembered every promise Travis had once made.

“I trusted someone before,” I said. “I was wrong.”

Grant nodded.

“Then don’t trust me quickly.”

That answer surprised me.

“I’m not asking you to stay because you need somewhere to live. Move into your apartment if that makes you feel safer. Your job stays yours. Nothing changes for Nolan.”

“How do I know you won’t become someone different later?”

Grant thought for a moment.

“You don’t.”

I stared at him.

“People can’t give each other guarantees. All we can do is watch what someone chooses to do over time.”

Then he added:

“If you ever stay with me, Audrey, I want it to be because you can leave and still choose not to.”