I had thought he was talking about leaving his job to work for a nonprofit.

He was talking about his daughter.

“He made me promise never to tell you unless the surgery went wrong,” Chloe said, kneeling in front of me.

“He didn’t want you to carry the weight of his secret if he lived.

He wanted to earn the right to tell you himself.

He was planning to bring Nora to your house next Sunday for dinner to introduce her as your granddaughter.”