It was an extraordinary day. People came from as far away as Asheville and Washington, D.C., and the reporter from the Charlotte Observer stayed for two hours. She interviewed me about the mural, and toward the end of our talk, she pointed to my alcohol monitor and said, “Interesting ankle jewelry.”

I told her the truth, all of it, while she scribbled her notes, and I had the feeling the whole tone of the article she would write changed in that moment.

The only negative of the day was that by five o’clock, my feet were killing me and my ankle let me know that my sprain was not completely healed. Shortly after five, once the last guests had left and the servers were cleaning up, I found Lisa sitting on the steps of the gallery’s small back porch, teary with happiness, or perhaps with relief. I sat down next to her and put a tentative arm around her shoulders. We sat in silence in the hot, sticky August air as Lisa blotted her eyes with her fingertips. Finally, she spoke.

“You don’t need to move out any time soon,” she said. “I think you have something cooking with Oliver, and I’m guessing you don’t have any place to go. Am I right?”

“Yes and yes,” I said, dropping my arm from her shoulders. “And I’d really like to stay for a while. Thanks.”

“You’ll have to find a job,” she said, sounding more like herself. “No freeloading.”

I smiled. “I’ll start looking right away,” I promised, though I had no idea what sort of job I could find in this little town. I’d do anything to be able to stay while I figured out what I’d do about school, though. “I think I want to go back to college,” I said.

“Good,” Lisa said with a decisive nod. “Exactly what I was hoping to hear. I owe you the rest of that fifty thousand, plus there’s something I didn’t tell you.”

“What?”

“My father specified that if you’d return to school, his estate would pay for your education, regardless of what you decide to study.”

I was speechless, the thrill of her words sinking in. “Oh my God,” I said finally. “I don’t know what to say. Are you sure he was ‘of sound mind’?”

Lisa gave me a genuine smile. “You’re the last beneficiary of my crazy father’s generosity. Use it well.” She got to her feet, looking down at the phone in her hand. “And now I need to run to my office,” she said. “I’d like you to stay and help Oliver straighten up.”

“Sure.” I winced as I got to my own feet. “Go do what you need to do,” I said. “Oliver and I will take care of the gallery.”