CHAPTER 5
Brad had just finished unpacking his carry-on when his mother knocked on the door to his bedroom. It had been over ten years since he left home for good, but she still opened the door and let herself in.
“You resting?” she asked.
“Not anymore.”
She sat on the edge of his bed. “Your father’s reading his magazine.”
Did she think he cared? “That’s nice.”
She gazed at him imploringly. He knew exactly what that look meant.
“Listen, Mom. I’m here for you, and I’m here for Grandma Lucy. But seriously, if Dad wants to talk to me, he knows how to walk up these old stairs just as well as you do.”
Mom nodded. “I know. I know. I just wish ...” She let her voice trail off. How many times had they rehashed this exact same conversation? In the end, it didn’t matter what she wished. Some
