I slide a hand into her hair and lead her mouth to mine. My muscles tense then relax at the contact. She tastes like tequila and smells like lemon and lavender, and I’ve missed her so much. “You’re an all-or-nothing girl, and you deserve the all.”

She draws in a breath right against my mouth. “I don’t want another night of nothing.”

I wrap my arms around her, stand, and carry her to the bed. I don’t know when I’ll be able to give her everything she deserves, but tonight, I can give her this.

Part X.

Easton

I spent the beginning of the week unpacking and trying to make the house feel a little more like home, but on Wednesday, I had to drive to Grand Rapids to go to a few meetings. I’m not officially starting until this summer, but I’m being kept in the loop regarding recruitment, and I like to be at all the coaching and athlete meetings.

I head into the house from the garage and drop my keys in the mudroom. I follow the smell of homemade spaghetti sauce and find Tori in the kitchen, stirring a pot on the stove. Abi’s nowhere to be seen.

“How was my girl’s day?”

“It was okay. She’s upstairs now,” Tori says. “I think she might be a little homesick tonight.”

“Hence the sauce?” I motion to the makings of my daughter’s favorite meal.

She shrugs. “Maybe it will help.”

This was bound to happen sooner or later, but my chest aches nevertheless. Even though I know it’ll be for the best in the long run, I hate that this transition is going to be tough for Abi on any level. “Thanks, Tori.”

I head to the twisting stairwell at the front of the house. When I was a kid, I used to drive by the big houses that line Jackson Harbor’s Lakeshore Drive and dream of what it must be like to own a place like this, to have a big enough family to fill it. One out of two isn’t bad, and even if it’s only me and Abi forever, I can be okay with that.

I find my daughter in her room, sprawled on her bed looking at pictures of her friends on her iPad. “Hey, squirt. How’s it going?”

Frowning at me, she sits up and curls against the headboard. “I don’t have any friends here.”

“Not yet.” I try to keep my voice upbeat, but the tears in her eyes slay me. “But you will with time.”

“How do you know? What if I never make any friends? What if no one here likes me?”

“You met Lilly a couple of days ago, and she likes you.”

She shrugs. “I guess.”