Chapter 9 — The House by the River

Six months later, beneath the branches of a sprawling oak in Henry’s backyard, Matthew asked Rebecca to marry him again. This time there was no trust requirement, no debt agreement, no waiting attorney.

The construction crew sat in wooden chairs they’d built themselves. Neighbors from the apartment building brought casseroles, pies, and flowers from their gardens.

Amelia attended alone.

Before the ceremony, she approached Rebecca, who wore a simple ivory dress. “I was wrong,” Amelia said. Rebecca waited. Her mother’s hands trembled as she adjusted one of the wildflowers in Rebecca’s hair.

“I spent my life believing money prevented suffering. I did not realize how much suffering I caused trying to protect us from losing it.”

“An apology does not erase everything.”