“I’d like that very much. Would you like to go first?”

The wineglasses and a bottle are set on the table. After the server pours the wine, we order appetizers. I’m not sure if we’ll make it to dinner, so this feels like less of an obligation. The alcohol helps. I’ve asked so much of her, but I’ve still been dancing around what I want to know most. So I take another heavier sip, and ask, “Why did you leave?”

“I’ve been trying to figure that out myself for twenty-five years. The reasons made sense in the beginning, but then time passed, and it felt too late to turn back. Does that make sense?”

“No, it doesn’t. I was your daughter. You had a man who worshipped at your feet. You left us. You left us for what? Why?”

It’s the first time tonight that tears begin to well in her eyes. And because I feel this surge of overwhelming emotion from just voicing that question, I take my napkin and dab the corners of my eyes.

She dabs her own eyes, and then says, “My parents cared more about status than my happiness back then. I loved your dad so much, but they cut me off when I refused to stop dating him. They cut me out of their lives entirely. I had no money. I had nothing more than a high school diploma and eyes full of stars when John and I fell in love. Then I had a baby—you. I don’t think you’ll be surprised to hear you were unplanned, but we never had a doubt about starting our family. It just came a little sooner than expected.”

Briefly looking across the room, she turns her attention to the wineglass and takes another sip. “It’s a hard lesson to learn that money matters when you’re surviving off love. If I found a penny, I’d pick it up because we needed it. We had nothing back then, and your dad was trying to buy his garage. It wasn’t going to happen. He would have been turned down for the loan.” She’s nodding as if she’s attempting to convince herself.

“How would leaving me get him the shop?”

“It wasn’t as easy as you make it sound. There were offers and threats. My parents wanted to leave Beacon Pointe to remove me from the situation.”

Jabbing my fingers into my chest, I say, “I was the situation.”

“This is what I meant by being too late to turn back. The deal was that John would get the loan he needed if I left him.” She pauses, looking down and wiping her eyes again.

“Okay, I understand what a hard position that would be, but he would have made it work without a loan. Why did you leave me?”

“Because they threatened to get custody and take you from us. If I left, at least John would have you. I figured one parent was better than none.” She toys with her napkin and then adds, “I made the biggest mistake in my life leaving the two of you, but please realize at twenty-one, I thought it was the only option I had. I believed them.”