“Dad—”
“No. I’m not asking for an apology.”
“I should have called before.”
“Probably.”
I smiled.
“You’re terrible at this.”
“At what?”
“Making people feel less guilty.”
“I prefer accuracy.”
For years, I had explained my distance from Dad as independence.
Leo complicated that explanation.
Watching Dad become a grandfather reminded me that family relationships weren’t fixed structures.
They were living things.
Ignore them long enough, and they weakened.
Give them attention, and sometimes they surprised you.
Two days before Mercer & Lane opened, Selina invited us to a private
