have Daphne. Besides being a beautiful woman, she's
a woman capable of great love. She loved my father
and I believe, she accepted all this because of her love
for him, as much as her love for me. In fact, she
accepted some responsibility."
His head bowed down into the cradle of his
hands.
"Because she was unable to get pregnant
herself?" I asked. He lifted his eyes quickly. "Yes," he said. "I see you know a lot more than
I thought. You seem like a very mature girl, perhaps a
lot more mature than Gisselle.
"Anyway," he continued, "throughout it all,
Daphne has maintained her dignity and poise. That's
why I think she can teach you a great deal and why, in
time, I hope you will accept her as your mother. "Of course," he added, smiling, "first, I have to
get you to accept me as your father. Any healthy man
can make a baby with a woman; but not every man
can be a father," he said.
I saw there were tears in his eyes when he
spoke. As he talked, I sensed every molecule of his
being was striving to reach out and force me to
understand even what he himself must have found
inexplicable.
I bit down on my tongue to keep from asking
any questions. It was difficult to breathe, not to be
drowned by everything that was happening so fast. "What's in your bag?" he inquired.
"Oh, just some of my things and some
pictures."
"Pictures?" His eyebrows rose with interest. "Yes." I opened the bag and took out one of the
pictures of my mother. He took it slowly and gazed at