The guilt on his face, the lingering revulsion in his expression as he realized what my childhood had been like, it…melted me. With a sigh, I looked at Kiera. I’d always told her our stories were similar. If I could erase what I knew about my parents, if I could put myself in Gavin’s shoes…if I’d gotten Kiera pregnant…would I leave so she and Denny could stay together and raise the baby in peace? I honestly wasn’t sure what I would have done, but with how many times I’d tried to leave Kiera…I could see myself walking away. Walking away to save their relationship, to give my child the best chance at life, since Denny was by-far a better person than me…

No matter how much it cost me, killed me…I might have made the same choice and walked away. And if Gavin had misjudged his friend, if he’d felt the same way about John Kyle as I do about Denny? If his past had been wholly similar to mine…then I couldn’t really blame him for leaving. If he was truly clueless, then maybe he was also blameless.

Still looking at Kiera, I told Gavin, “Yeah, I think I get that part.” Kiera’s eyes moistened as she stared at me, and I knew she could see the truth in my eyes. The guilt as I remembered what we’d done, as I contemplated abandoning my child. I was so grateful I’d never had to make that choice, that I didn’t have to live with Gavin’s regrets.

The empathy I felt sucked all the anger out of my body, filled it with acceptance. I nodded at Gavin as I stepped back, letting him know that I understood. He smiled at me, looking relieved. Then he said something that blew my mind.

“I tried to see you once, you know. When you were about Riley’s age.”

My jaw dropped as I stared at him. He did? “No, Mom never mentioned that you…” Why hadn’t he?

Gavin’s eyes lowered. “Yeah, she told me that you didn’t know about me, that you believed John was your father.” He glanced up to look me in the eye. “Was that true?”

That fucking bitch. Of course she wouldn’t let me meet my father. Of course she wouldn’t let me know that he thought about me…cared about me. Of course she would hurt Gavin by hurting me. I shook my head. “No, I’ve always known that I was a bastard child.”

Gavin flinched, and his face filled with anger. “She convinced me that I’d hurt you by showing up in your life. That it was better if I stayed away…so I did.”