Chapter 12
Life after the wedding was perfect.
David moved into the house with my mother and me. It worked out beautifully. He and my mother got along like they'd known each other their whole lives.
They gardened together. They cooked together. They watched old movies together.
Sometimes I'd come home from work and find them both in the kitchen, laughing and arguing over the best way to make tomato sauce.
It was the family I'd always wanted.
That fall, I got a promotion at work. A big one. I became the director of my department.
It was something I'd been working toward for years. Something Ryan had always told me I was "too busy" to go for. Something he'd said would "take time away from our family."
But David was nothing but supportive.
"I'm so proud of you," he said, when I told him the news. "You deserve this. More than anyone."
My mother threw me a celebration dinner. She invited all our friends and family. Sarah and Lily came. Lisa and her family came. David's parents came.
It was a night of love and laughter.
A few months later, Sarah called me. She was crying.
"Emily, I got the results back from the DNA test. Ryan is definitely Lily's father. But his lawyer is saying he doesn't have to pay child support because he's in prison. That he has no income."
Her voice broke.
"I don't know what to do. I can't afford a lawyer. Not a good one."
I didn't hesitate.
"Don't worry about it. I'll call Karen. She'll handle it. And if she can't, I'll pay for whatever lawyer you need. You and Lily are not going through this alone."
"Thank you," Sarah whispered. "Thank you so much."
Karen took the case. Pro bono.
She fought for Sarah and Lily. And she won.
The judge ordered that a portion of Ryan's prison wages be garnished for child support. And that when he got out, he would have to pay back support plus interest.
Lily would be taken care of.
Sarah was so grateful she cried.
"I don't know how to thank you," she said.
"You don't have to thank me," I told her. "We're family now. And family takes care of each other."
And we were family.
Sarah and Lily were at our house every weekend. Lily called my mother "Grandma Marnie." She called David "Uncle David." She called me "Aunt Emily."
She was a bright, happy little girl. Full of laughter and curiosity.
She had Ryan's eyes. But that was where the resemblance ended. She had Sarah's kindness. Her warmth. Her strength.
She would never know her father as anything other than a man who was in prison for hurting people. But she would know love. Lots of it.
From her mother. From our family. From all of us.
That Christmas was the best one yet.
We had a big tree. Lots of presents. Lily was the center of attention. She tore open her presents with glee, laughing and clapping.
My mother sat in her favorite chair, watching Lily with tears in her eyes.
"She's perfect," she said to me.
"She is," I agreed.
David put his arm around me.
"Our family is perfect."
And it was.
But there was still one thing missing.
One thing I'd wanted for a long time.
A child of my own.
I'd always wanted to be a mother. Ryan had always said we weren't ready. That we didn't have enough money. That it would be too much work.
But David felt the same way I did.
We started trying.
It wasn't easy. We tried for months. Nothing happened.
I was scared. Scared that Ryan had somehow broken me. Scared that I'd never have a child of my own.
David held me when I cried.
"It'll happen," he said. "When the time is right. And if it doesn't, we have Lily. We have each other. We have a wonderful life."
But I wanted more.
And then, on a warm spring morning, I took a test.
Two lines.
I was pregnant.
I ran downstairs, screaming and crying.
David and my mother were in the kitchen. They both looked up, alarmed.
"What's wrong?" David asked, jumping up.
"Nothing's wrong," I said, laughing through my tears. "I'm pregnant."
The silence that followed was absolute.
Then my mother screamed. She ran to me and hugged me, crying happy tears.
David just stood there, stunned. Then he smiled. The biggest, happiest smile I'd ever seen.
He ran to me and lifted me up, spinning me around.
"We're going to have a baby!"
May you like
We were.
And our family was about to get even more perfect.
