But none of it matters.
"Turns out the kid was right," I say quietly.
Natalie's eyes soften.
Behind us Maddie throws both hands in the air like she just won the Stanley Cup.
The principal claps.
"Best Career Day we've ever had," he says.
The teacher looks exhausted.
"This is definitely not how Career Day normally goes."
Dex grins.
"You're welcome."
The principal nods enthusiastically.
"We should invite the hockey team every year."
Dex grins.
"Tradition," he says.
I barely hear him.
Career Day might be over.
But Maddie is still holding Natalie like she belongs there.
Like she’s been part of us all along.
I chuckle as I realize…
My kid figured this out long before I did.
Chapter twenty-one
Natalie
The gym slowly empties.
Children get herded back toward classrooms.
I’m still standing near the bleachers.
Still replaying three words.
I love her.
Gabriel Shelly said it in front of an entire elementary school.
And somehow I’m the only one in the room who still seems stunned.
Dex isn’t stunned, he’s narrating.
