BOSTON, MA — A 37-year-old cafeteria cook who died of a heart attack weeks after winning $3.6 million in the Massachusetts lottery never got a chance to enjoy the money, a relative said.

"All he really bought was a Dalmatian puppy for the kids. He couldn't have afforded that before," said William Curry's sister-in-law Shirley Bourdon.

Curry, 37, died Monday, his first day back on the job at the Blue Cross-Blue Shield lunchroom after taking two weeks off to celebrate.

He'd been hounded by financial advisers and people seeking money after word spread.

Curry was adamant about keeping his job with the Merit Food Co., where he had worked for 20 years.

Last week, he cashed the first of 20 annual installments of $180,722.

He leaves his fortune to his wife, Maureen, and their two children, a 7-year-old son and 5-year-old daughter.

"They were going to sit back for a while to figure out what to do with the money," Bourdon said. "They were only just starting to talk to people about investments.

Bourdon said Curry's health began to deteriorate about the time he won the Sept. 8 lottery. He had been scheduled for medical tests Monday afternoon.

She said Curry had been hounded by financial advisers and people seeking money after word of his lottery win spread. "It was the stress of it that killed him," she said.