Chapter 17
The next six months were a strange limbo.
We knew Evelyn was getting out.
But we also knew she was going to Florida.
Far away.
The court made the restraining order permanent.
One thousand miles.
No contact.
No exceptions.
If she so much as drove through Texas, it was ten years in prison.
I installed even better security.
Just in case.
But I didn’t lose sleep over it anymore.
The wedding was three weeks after her release date.
We’d planned it that way.
A new beginning.
Fresh start.
The week before the wedding, we got confirmation.
Evelyn had been released.
She’d been transported directly from the prison to the airport.
Put on a plane to Miami.
She was in the halfway house.
Her probation officer sent us a copy of her ankle monitor data.
She hadn’t left Miami-Dade County.
She was where she was supposed to be.
I breathed the deepest breath of my life.
The wedding was perfect.
Sunny.
Seventy-five degrees.
The azaleas were blooming in the backyard.
Jessica walked me down the aisle.
Sophie scattered rose petals in her white dress and white sneakers.
Linda and Marnie cried.
Karen cried.
Daniel watched from the back, smiling through his tears.
Tom stood at the altar, looking handsome in his navy suit.
When he saw me, he cried too.
The ceremony was short.
Meaningful.
We wrote our own vows.
Tom promised to love me.
To protect Sophie.
To be our partner in everything.
I promised to love him.
To let him in.
To build a life together.
When the priest said, “You may kiss the bride,” the whole yard cheered.
The reception was under a big white tent.
We ate.
We danced.
We laughed until our sides hurt.
Sophie gave a speech.
She was only twelve, but she spoke like she was thirty.
“Most kids only get two parents,” she said. “I get four. My mom, who is the bravest person in the whole world. My dad, who loves me even when he makes mistakes. Aunt Jessie, who is the best cookie baker and the best person to watch movies with. And now Tom, who teaches me science and coaches volleyball and makes the best pancakes on the planet. I’m the luckiest kid in the whole world. I love you all.”
There wasn’t a dry eye in the yard.
Later that night, after everyone had left, the four of us sat on the porch swing.
Sophie was asleep on Jessica’s lap.
Peanut was asleep at our feet.
“Can you believe it?” Tom said, squeezing my hand. “We’re married.”
“I know,” I said. “It feels like a dream. I keep waiting to wake up.”
“You’re not dreaming,” he said. “This is real. We’re real. And we’re never going to let anything hurt us again.”
I rested my head on his shoulder.
I looked at my new ring.
At Sophie sleeping peacefully.
At Jessica smiling at us.
The moon was full.
May you like
The stars were bright.
Everything was exactly as it should be.
