Family Man

know.” Justine leaned her head back in her chair and watched the fog roll in off the sea. “All my life I've been so sure of myself. I've always tried to do what was best for the company and for the family. But lately I've begun to realize I made a lot of mistakes along the way.”
    “Everyone does, Justine,” Katy said quietly.
    “It is entirely possible that Luke came here to destroy Gilchrist, Inc. I convinced myself that once he was here he would want to become a part of the company and a part of the family. But I may have been wrong.”
    Katy chose her words carefully. “I don't know if he will want to become a permanent part of the company, but I don't believe he will deliberately destroy it, either.”
    “Why shouldn't he want to destroy it?” Justine's mouth curved sadly. “Why should he develop any affection for me? No one else in the family ever has.”
    Katy stared at her. “Justine, how can you say that?”
    “It's true, Katy. You know it. Oh, they all tolerate me because I've held the purse strings all these years. They come to dinner when I demand it. They show up on my birthday and dutifully bring me gifts. But the truth is none of them really cares for me, and I've often felt that Maureen may actually hate me.”
    “She doesn't hate you,” Katy said calmly. “She's afraid of you.”
    Justine scowled. “Afraid of me? How idiotic of her. Maureen always did lack backbone. What does she think I'll do to her?”
    Katy sipped her tea. “I don't think she's afraid of what you'll do to her, but of what you'll do to her family.”
    “That's utter rubbish.”
    “No, it isn't,” Katy said firmly. “You made a lasting impression on her thirty-seven years ago when you condemned Luke's mother out of hand and banished your son. Maureen has spent the past thirty-seven years trying to make certain you don't do the same thing to Hayden and your other grandchildren because of her. It's been a heavy responsibility for her to carry all these years.”
    Justine paled. “My God. Are you serious?”
    “Yes. And if you ask me, she's had good cause to be concerned. You have not always been the most diplomatic or understanding sort of mother-in-law.”
    “Because I never approved of Hayden's obsession with glass?” Justine scoffed furiously. “What was I supposed to do when I realized he preferred to waste himself on his art rather than assume his responsibilities?”
    “Accept his decision,” Katy suggested mildly. “It's his life. He has a right to do what he wants with it. You did what you wanted with yours.”
    “What makes you think that?” Justine demanded, her eyes fierce. “I'll tell you something, Katy. Something I've never told another soul. I never wanted the responsibility of running Gilchrist, Inc. But when my husband died I was twenty-four years old and alone, except for two young sons to support. The only thing my husband left us was one shabby little waterfront restaurant that was losing more money each month it stayed open.”
    “Justine, please. You don't have to explain this to me. I know the story.” Katy put down her cup and saucer and went over to kneel beside Justine's chair. She put her arms around the older woman's rigid shoulders.
    “I worked night and day to make that damned restaurant pay,” Justine whispered. “I had to take care of my boys. I had to find a way to make certain they never went hungry. I would never have survived that first year if your grandfather and grandmother hadn't taken pity on me.”
    “I know, Justine. They wanted to help you. You deserved their help. You were a hardworking young mother trying to make your own way in the world. Granddad respected that. He always respected hard work.”
    Justine's eyes were on the gray horizon. “They gave me advice. Sent customers to me. Told my suppliers to keep making deliveries even when I couldn't pay the bills. Then they paid those suppliers to make certain I got what I needed. Everything Gilchrist, Inc. is today I owe to your grandparents, Katy. They kept me in business that first year until I could turn a small profit.”
    Katy smiled to herself. It was typical of a Gilchrist to overdramatize everything, including gratitude. “I think that's going a bit too far, Justine. Gilchrist, Inc. is what it is today because you worked darn hard to make it that way. My grandparents may have helped keep you afloat that first year, but you did all the rest.”
    “I owed them more than I could ever repay,”