Kassie woke up Saturday morning after managing maybe three hours of sleep, spending most of the night replaying every moment of her conversation with Daniel, analyzing every look, every word. The way her entire body had responded to his presence like no time had passed at all.
Emma, in contrast, had been awake since dawn, but her excitement was now mixed with visible nervousness. The older kids had been briefed about Daniel’s visit and were handling it with their characteristic maturity—Lee reading in his room but clearly listening for any signs of distress, Aaron playing video games but checking on Emma periodically, and Marie offering to braid Emma’s hair “so she looks extra pretty for her dad.”
“Mommy, what if he doesn’t like me?” Emma asked for the tenth time that morning, sitting at
