That evening Nathaniel returned to his own home.

He stepped through an entryway large enough for an entire family to gather beneath its high ceiling, though nobody was there.

Caroline’s winter coat still hung in the closet, protected under a garment cover.

On the mantel stood a photograph taken during the last Christmas they shared: Caroline laughing, her cheeks flushed, as she held a crooked gingerbread house.

He sat by the fireplace and remembered an argument they’d had decades before.

Caroline had wanted them to mentor young people leaving the foster-care system.