Chapter 9
A year passed.
Then another.
The twins turned six.
They were in first grade now.
Lena was still a force of nature — loud, bright, impossible to ignore. She’d added “inventor” to her list of future careers and was constantly building things out of cardboard and glue.
Ash was still quiet and thoughtful. He’d discovered chess and was already beating adults at the library tournaments.
Luca’s business was doing better than ever.
But he still came home every night for dinner.
Still coached Ash’s T-ball team.
Still let Lena paint his nails pink when she asked.
We’d added a new member to the family too.
A golden retriever puppy named Bear.
After the original giant teddy bear.
The twins adored him.
He was the worst trained dog in the history of the world, but we loved him anyway.
Life was good.
Quiet. Peaceful.
The kind of life I used to only dream about.
But I never forgot.
I never forgot the three years alone.
The fear. The hunger. The nights I cried myself to sleep wondering if I’d made the right choice.
I never forgot Vanessa.
Not in a way that hurt anymore.
But in a way that reminded me how lucky I was.
How fragile happiness could be.
And how hard you had to fight to keep it.
We got a letter once.
From the prison.
Vanessa.
I almost didn’t open it.
But I did.
It was short.
Angry.
Bitter.
She blamed me for everything.
Said I’d stolen her life. Her chance at happiness.
That she’d get out someday.
That she’d make me pay.
I read it.
Then I burned it in the fireplace.
Luca came up behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist.
“Bad?” he asked, resting his chin on my shoulder.
“Same as always.”
“Want me to have the warden make sure she can’t send any more?”
I leaned back against him.
“No. Let her write. Let her be angry. It doesn’t touch me. It doesn’t touch us. She can rot in there for all I care. We’re the ones who won. We’re the ones who are happy.”
Luca kissed my neck.
“That’s my girl.”
I turned in his arms, looking up at him.
The years had been good to him.
The lines around his eyes were deeper now — laugh lines, not worry lines.
He was stronger. Happier.
The broken man who’d sat on my porch in the rain was gone forever.
In his place was a man who knew exactly what he had.
And never took it for granted.
“Remember when you sat on my porch for twelve hours in the rain?” I asked.
“Vividly. I caught pneumonia. Worth every second.”
“Remember when you let Lena ride you like a pony in our tiny apartment?”
“Best day of my life. Until the wedding. Until the twins were born. Until every single day I get to wake up next to you.”
I smiled.
“You’re very smooth, Mr. Moretti.”
“Only for you, Mrs. Moretti.”
He kissed me.
Slow. Deep.
Like he still couldn’t believe I was his.
Like he was memorizing every second.
“Ewwww!”
We pulled apart, laughing.
Lena and Ash stood in the doorway, Bear at their feet, all three of them making disgusted faces.
“Kissing is gross,” Ash announced.
“Very gross,” Lena agreed.
“Just wait,” Luca said, grinning. “Someday you’ll meet someone and you’ll think kissing is the best thing in the world.”
“Never,” Lena said firmly. “I’m going to marry Bear. And we’re going to live in a castle made of candy. And we’re never going to kiss.”
“Sounds like a solid plan,” I said. “Now, who wants pizza for dinner?”
Three pairs of hands shot into the air.
“Pizza! Pizza! Pizza!” they chanted.
Luca laughed and grabbed his keys.
“Pepperoni for the ladies, sausage for the gentlemen?”
“Extra cheese!” Lena yelled.
“Extra everything!” Ash added.
“Extra everything it is.” Luca winked at me. “Be right back. Don’t have too much fun without me.”
He left.
The twins ran off to the living room, Bear bounding after them.
I stood in the kitchen for a moment, listening to their laughter.
The sound of pure joy.
I looked at the fireplace where the letter had turned to ash.
Gone.
Just like the past.
I looked at the pictures on the fridge.
The twins’ school photos.
Our wedding picture.
A recent family photo — me, Luca, the twins, and even Bear, who’d been bribed with a treat to sit still.
This was my life.
May you like
My beautiful, messy, perfect life.
And I’d earned every second of it.
