We drove home together that day.
Through Lily’s lawyer, Jillian received a formal letter shutting down every attempt she’d made to insert herself into my daughter’s finances. We never heard from her again.
***
Three weeks later, Lily stood beside me in a small courthouse and legally took my last name.
I cut my hours at the hospital down to something a normal human could survive.
We drove home together.
***
That night, we ate dinner on the porch where the gift box had once appeared.
Lily laughed at something on her phone, and I just watched her.
