“Doing well. We, uh, we had brunch with our mom the other day. It was at a restaurant, and I gave Mika an escape route if things got too heavy. He wound up staying through the entire thing, which I was proud of, but fuck was it awkward at first.”

Sanders chuckles. “That’s how it usually goes. How did it end?”

“Good. I gave Mom a hug, and Mika stood his distance and waved. But we promised to do it again in a few weeks.”

“That’s progress,” Sanders says.

“Little progress, but I was happy about it.”

“When do you think you’ll introduce your mom to Scottie?” He sets down his golf ball and gets into position.

“Uh, probably not for a little while and not before Mika and Mom have a better understanding of each other. I don’t want to make Mika feel pressured to make amends because Mom met Scottie.”

“That’s really considerate,” Sanders says, hitting his ball off the lip of the cup. He snaps his finger in disappointment. “Does Scottie know that?”

“Yes,” I say. “I’m very open and honest with her about everything.”

“Good. I’m sure she appreciates it.”

“She does,” I answer and set my ball down.

“And how are you feeling in general? Everything with Mika, your mom? Are you finding peace?”

“I am,” I answer. And that’s almost a strange realization, as I hadn’t realized my life was lacking peace. I’d thought I lacked nothing. How wrong I was. I line up my putt and shove the ball into his desk. Shit, I’m terrible at this. “I like how feeling internally at peace is allowing me to focus on what Scottie needs and deserves in her life.” It reminds me of how my dad loved our family. I miss him. And I wish he’d gotten a chance to meet Scottie. They’d get along very well.

“Has she found peace?”

I set my putter to the side and take a seat on the couch. “Honestly, I think she has. I’ve seen a change in her. No longer is she second-guessing herself or turning down compliments. She accepts them wholeheartedly. She has more confidence, she’s feeling herself, and she’s made great progress with her coworkers too, which I think is a big deal.”

“Why do you think that’s a big deal?” Sanders asks, lining up another putt.

“Because at first, she just kept to herself, and I think that was from a lack of confidence and not wanting to engage with men since the last one she was with ignored her. But now she goes out to lunch with them and has truly made some more friendships, which I think is great.”