“Then why would you give it away?”
“There was a lady at the bus stop,” he said quickly. “She was pregnant, Mom. Really pregnant. She was crying, and her coat was soaked, and nobody was helping her.”
I stared at him.
“So you gave her your jacket too?”
He looked down at his wet shirt. “She was cold, too. And she had to worry about herself and the baby. If I got sick, you’d make me soup, and I’d be fine.”
I pressed my fingers to my mouth. How could I be mad?
“Eli…”
“I didn’t want to lose it,” he said. “I promise. But Dad always said you don’t wait to help.”
The words knocked the anger out of me.
Darren had said that all the time. When a neighbor’s car wouldn’t start. When someone dropped groceries. Even when we were late.
Continue on the next page:
