“No, honey, it’s mine. It doesn’t matter what you said or did—I should have shared my worries with her, instead of trying to protect her and handle everything. I have to figure out a way to convince her she’s part of this family. And that I love her.”

She could hardly believe her dad was saying all this stuff to her. It made her feel ridiculously grown-up. And she didn’t want to blow it by saying the wrong thing. She wanted to say something wise and helpful, not totally lame. “I guess you should just talk to her. And listen.”

“I’m definitely going to start doing more listening. Always assuming Flora is still willing to talk to me.”

Izzy tried to imagine Flora not talking to someone. No matter how hard her mind worked, she couldn’t picture it. “Flora is very patient and kind. She’s not the sort to stomp out of the room and not listen. Just tell her the truth. Also, she’s nuts about flowers. She’d probably appreciate a bunch of those.”

He nodded. “That’s a good thought.”

Izzy sat there feeling like a proper adult for the first time in her life.

“You know, I’ve been thinking, maybe I will think about college. I mean, you haven’t given Molly ham in a while, so maybe she wouldn’t die if I left.”

Laughing, he pulled her closer. “I hope my parenting isn’t so bad that I’d accidentally kill your sister, but there’s no need to rush into a decision. Think about it. Take your time. If you need a listening ear then I’m here and I promise not to try to influence you in any way.”

“How are you going to manage that? You want me to go to college, I know you do.”

“Only because I want the very best for you, and I think it’s an experience you’d enjoy. But how will I not influence you?” He stretched out his legs. “I will pretend to be very calm and neutral about the whole thing, and work hard to keep all my parental panic on the inside. Parenting involves a lot of internal panic.”

“So basically you’ll be freaking out and I won’t know it?”

“Sounds about right.”

“You’re not that good an actor. I’m going to know if you’re freaking out.”

“I’ll work on it, but you should also know that the reason I’m freaking out is because I love you, and I want nothing but good things for you. But whatever you decide, and whatever happens with Flora, I’ll be right here backing you up. I want you to fly, sweetheart, but know that you can always come back home. And you will always have a home wherever I am, I hope you know that.”