Chapter 7 - THE MAN WHO OFFERED US SANCTUARY
I met Gabriel Whitmore at a charity fundraiser six weeks after leaving Alexander.
He was forty-one, a widowed architect who had recently moved back to Chicago after working in Boston.
I had volunteered to help the organization review its annual budget.
Gabriel was overseeing renovations for its family housing center.
We met over a spreadsheet.
“This number doesn't make sense,” I said.
He leaned over.
“Which one?”
“The contractor's estimate.”
He frowned.
“What's wrong with it?”
“They've charged twice for the same materials.”
Gabriel studied the document.
Then looked at me.
“You're right.”
I smiled faintly.
“It's an expensive mistake.”
He laughed.
“An extremely expensive mistake.”
We spent the next hour reviewing the budget.
At the end, Gabriel offered me a position as financial director for his development foundation.
I stared.
“You barely know me.”
“I know you just saved the organization eighty thousand dollars.”
I laughed.
“That doesn't mean I'm qualified.”
He raised an eyebrow.
“Your résumé says otherwise.”
I looked down.
For years, Alexander had treated my professional experience like something I'd outgrown.
Gabriel treated it like something valuable.
I accepted an interview.
Not a favor.
An interview.
Two weeks later, I was hired.
I rented a small house near Lincoln Park.
It had three bedrooms.
A bright kitchen.
And a garden filled with old rosebushes.
When Ethan saw it, he ran straight into the backyard.
“Mommy!”
I followed.
He pointed toward the flowers.
“Grandma's roses!”
I knelt beside him.
“Yes, sweetheart.”
He smiled.
A real smile.
May you like
The first I'd seen in weeks.
And I knew we'd found our home.
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