Chapter 5 - What the Storm Left Behind
Three months later, the sun finally broke fully over the Pittsburgh skyline.
The divorce was finalized in record time. Because of the pending criminal charges for corporate embezzlement and forgery, Trevor had signed away all parental rights to avoid a harsher sentence. He was currently awaiting trial. Delilah had taken a plea deal, turning state's witness against him in exchange for probation.
I sat on a wooden bench in Schenley Park, a warm cup of coffee resting between my hands. Beside me, the stroller sat parked under the shade of a massive oak tree. Hazel was awake, her bright blue eyes wide with wonder as she watched the leaves sway. She wore a tiny yellow sweater, dark curls bouncing whenever she kicked her feet.
A shadow fell over the bench. I looked up. Marcus stood there, holding a medical journal under one arm and a bag of pastries in the other, just off his shift.
"Is this seat taken?" he asked, a familiar warmth in his eyes.
I smiled, moving my bag to make room. "Only if you're willing to help me handle a very dramatic situation."
He laughed, sitting down. "What kind of situation?"
I pointed at Hazel, who had just grabbed her own toes, letting out a victorious little squeak.
"She refuses to nap," I said. "And she's a fighter."
He looked at her, his expression softening into that same deep, respectful calm that had saved me on the worst night of my life.
"She gets that from her mother," he said quietly.
I looked away, watching the sunlight dance across the water. The storm had taken everything I thought I knew about my life. It had stripped away the lies, the false security, and the man I thought I loved.
May you like
But as I felt the warmth of the sun on my face, and heard my daughter's soft laughter beside me, I knew the truth.
The storm hadn't broken me. It had just washed away the dust, leaving behind the woman I was always meant to be.
