When Nancy said she wanted to throw a housewarming party, I bought the snacks and hid my nerves. I just wanted her to feel proud, to walk through her own space like she belonged to herself.
I never expected Jacob to show up.
I had just stepped back into the kitchen when Jacob slid into the center of the room beside Nancy, acting like he belonged there.
A woman I barely knew leaned toward him, nodding at the hallway. “You must be so proud,” she said. “Buying her a place like this.”
Jacob’s smile didn’t even twitch. “I try.”
His eyes flicked to Nancy, waiting to see if she would correct him.
My throat clicked. My eyes burned.
Across the room, Nancy noticed. She nodded once, filing it away.
Nancy found me hiding in the kitchen.
“Dad, I went to the adoption agency last year,” she said. “I wanted to know who my biological father was. They gave me his details. Turns out he wasn’t hard to find. His name was in the paperwork, just not on my birth certificate. I thought maybe I was missing something about my life.”
Before I could answer, she walked back to the living room and tapped her glass.
“Can I have everyone’s attention?” she called. “I want to do a toast. And if you keep talking, I’ll have to start throwing olives around the room.”
The laughter was real. Jacob straightened, ready for whatever role he imagined was his.
Nancy lifted her glass. “I’m grateful to be here with my father.”
Jacob’s smile widened. But Nancy kept going, her voice clear.
“And I don’t mean my biological father. I’m talking about the one who chose me and stayed for my entire life.”
The room stilled. Jacob’s expression faltered as Nancy’s eyes found mine.
“Bruce is my father,” she said. “He’s the one who picked me up and showed up when I didn’t know how to ask. He’s why I’m here, even after Julia left us. And he bought me this home.”
I swallowed hard.
“This house isn’t just a gift. It’s evidence of his love and support.”
She looked around, eyes shining. “To new beginnings, and to Bruce, my dad, who built me a home long before he ever bought me one. You’re the only person I’ll ever count on.”
Applause thundered through the room.
Jacob swallowed, his smile cracking for a second. “I didn’t earn that title,” he said quietly, almost only to himself.
Nancy’s hand found mine, steady as a promise.
I had become a home.
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