I waited until the children were asleep.
« How much money have you spent building your parents’ house? »
He went still.
« What? »
« I saw it, Jacob. »
His expression changed.
« Why were you there? »
« Answer my question. »
He went still.
« Sarah, I…I can explain. »
« Go ahead. »
He rubbed his face.
« My parents sacrificed so much for me. Dad helped me buy my first work truck. Mom let me use their garage when I started the business. »
« I know. »
« I wanted to give them something special. »
He rubbed his face.
« So you built them a house? »
He nodded.
« How much? »
He hesitated, then saw my no-nonsense look.
« About $180,000 so far. »
I stared at him, my mouth agape.
« How much? »
Jacob quickly explained that he’d bought the land and was using business earnings and personal savings to build the property.
The house remained in his name, but his parents would live there rent-free.
