Gwen let out a long sigh. "Honestly, if he was still his old, messy self, I'd totally get why Bea wouldn't want him. But he's practically a domestic god now. He's tried so hard, and to still be tossed aside... of course he's crushed."
"Does Bea not have a mind of her own? She just blindly listens to her son?"
"She doesn't have any say. She's from a rural background and only has the one son. Her pension is basically non-existent, and my dad really doesn't have any savings to speak of. If he goes before she does, he won't be able to leave her much. Her son hit her right where it hurts. Let's be real—if Bea had her own money, she wouldn't be held hostage by her son. She'd be the one dictating who gets her inheritance and who gets to take care of her."
"So it all boils down to busting our asses and making money while we're young, otherwise we won't even have a voice when we're old."
Gwen offered a dry, cynical smile. "You and Gavin don't have to stress about that, but Jason and I really need to hustle. I was just telling him the other day that thank god we met early. If we had met in our twilight years and Mia threw a fit, we'd probably be stuck in some platonic, long-distance senior romance."
The nanny had the day off, so Sophie stayed with Gwen until Jason got back.
"Did Mia not come up with you?" Gwen asked.
"I ran into Ethan downstairs. She said she wanted to play for a bit before coming up."
Hearing this, Gwen turned to Sophie. "Gavin has been waiting downstairs for you this whole time, hasn't he? You'd better go. You're heavily pregnant, and he's probably worried sick. If I don't let you leave soon, he might just come knocking."
Sophie made her way downstairs and, sure enough, Gavin was standing off to the side, watching Mia and Ethan play hide-and-seek.
After waving goodbye to Mia, Gavin took Ethan's hand with one arm and wrapped the other around Sophie's waist as they slowly walked back.
As they passed the park, they spotted George. He was sitting on the railing of a gazebo, staring at the ground, holding a box of mooncakes. He was clearly waiting for someone.
"George," Sophie and Gavin called out as they approached.
"Harold and your mom went ahead. I'm just getting some fresh air," George said, looking visibly awkward.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABEL
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: I Walked Away Seven Years Too Late But Right on Time