“A real family again,” Hailey declared happily, her face beaming as she pulled back to look at each of them in turn.
The word echoed in Sunny’s mind as she rose, her legs slightly unsteady beneath her. They had been a family before — Liam, Kate, and the girls. Then they had been a broken family, struggling to find their way through grief. And now? Now they were becoming something new — not a replacement for what was lost, but a fresh configuration, built on the same foundation of love.
Liam’s eyes caught hers over the girls’ heads, a silent question in their blue depths.
Yes, she tried to convey with her gaze. This is exactly what I want.
The warmth in his expression told her he understood.
***
Dinner that evening felt different somehow, charged with an undercurrent of possibility that made even the simple act of passing dishes around the table feel meaningful. Beth had prepared a roast chicken with vegetables before taking her leave, offering Sunny a knowing smile and a gentle squeeze of her shoulder on her way out.
“So Katie’s mom let you play with the new puppy?” Liam asked, expertly cutting Hailey’s chicken into manageable pieces while maintaining eye contact with his younger daughter.
Hailey nodded enthusiastically, her curls bouncing. “His name is Muffin and he’s super tiny and his tongue is really pink and wet.”
“He’s a golden retriever,” Maddie added, always the fact-checker to her sister’s exuberance. “Katie’s mom says he’ll get really big, but right now he fits in a shoebox.”
“Do you think we could get a puppy?” Hailey asked, turning her pleading gaze first to her father, then to Sunny, as if recognizing there were now two adults whose approval she needed to secure.
The casual inclusion sent a warm glow through Sunny’s chest, even as she exchanged an amused glance with Liam.
“That’s a pretty big decision,” Liam hedged, clearly trying to avoid an outright ‘no’ that might dampen the evening’s good spirits. “Maybe we should revisit that conversation when you’re a little older.”
“How much older?” Hailey persisted, undeterred. “Like tomorrow older or next week older?”
Sunny couldn’t suppress her laughter, the sound bubbling up from a place of genuine happiness. “I think your dad means a bit older than that,” she said gently.
“Exactly,” Liam agreed, relief evident in his expression. “Maybe we start with something smaller. A fish, maybe?”
Hailey’s nose wrinkled in disgust. “Fish are boring. They don’t even like cuddles.”
“They’re also quieter at six in the morning,” Liam pointed out, winking at Sunny across the table.
The easy banter continued through dinner, the four of them falling into a rhythm that felt both familiar and fresh. Sunny found herself savoring each moment — the way Maddie meticulously separated her food into neat sections, the enthusiastic sound effects Hailey made while describing the playdate’s highlights, the warmth in Liam’s eyes whenever they met hers.
This, she thought. This is what I almost lost.
When dinner was finished and the kitchen tidied, bedtime routines began with the usual controlled chaos. Baths were taken, teeth were brushed, pajamas were donned, and finally, it was time for the beloved ritual of bedtime stories.
“Can you read the one about the bear family?” Maddie asked, already reaching for the well-worn book on her nightstand, its spine creased from countless readings.
“You know that’s my favorite,” Sunny said, settling on the edge of Maddie’s bed as Hailey snuggled close on her other side.
The story was simple but profound — a tale of a young bear who becomes separated from his family during a storm, only to find his way back through a series of adventures that teach him about courage, kindness, and the true meaning of home. The girls had requested it repeatedly over the past days, something Sunny now recognized as their way of processing their own feelings about separation and reunion.
“‘Home isn’t just a place,’ Mother Bear told Little Cub,” Sunny read, her voice gentle in the dim light of the bedroom. “‘It’s wherever love lives and waits for you to return.’”
Hailey’s eyelids were growing heavy, her small body leaning more heavily against Sunny’s side with each page turn. Maddie remained alert a bit longer, her keen mind absorbing every word.
“Sunny?” she asked as the story concluded, her voice already thick with approaching sleep. “Will you help me with my science project? The one about butterflies?”
“Of course I will,” Sunny assured her, smoothing the blanket around Maddie’s shoulders.
“Promise?” Maddie persisted, fighting to keep her eyes open. “Forever?”
The word hung in the air between them, weighted with more meaning than a simple project timeline.
