“How do her gifts get to you?”

"She sends it to my work address, and they send it to me," Father replies. "I work at a homeless shelter a few kilometers from here. I still go a few times, now and then, but they let an old man have a few days of rest."

“I don’t do much,” he continues. “I just check their vitals and give a few medical consultations with the other doctors present. You should come sometime.”

I smile at him. “I will.”

"You know she had surgery, right?" I say, "Cancer… she is still recovering from it."

"Yes, I know," he says. "I tried to come to the hospital, but your mother wouldn't let me. She said you were not ready to see me yet."

Mother was right. I was not ready to see my father, and as I grew up, I discovered there was never a time I'd be ready.

But here I am, discovering that seeing my father is one of the best things that has ever happened to me.

Halie interrupts us with a knock; we both look at her as she tells me that I have a visitor.

"What?" I ask. "No one knows I am here." I turn to my father, who is as confused as I am.

"What's their name?" I ask. "The person outside, what's their name?"

Halie swallows, “Troy Robinson.”

I glance at my father. "Troy Robinson?" He asks as he leads the way to the living room. Halie is right; sitting nervously on the off-white couch is Troy Robinson.

For some reason, my heart skips a beat as his blue eyes rest on mine.

"Troy," I say as if I can't believe he is sitting in my father's living room, waiting to talk to me.

"Camile!" he says as he stands up to hold me. He sighs, relieved to find me finally. "I am so glad to see you."

“How did you find me?”

"You are not so hard to find," he replies. "Let's go back home, Camile; I want you to come back home to me."

I shake my head. “I don’t know, Troy… your mother threatened.”

“I know what my mother threatened to do to me, and I have spoken to her. She is not a problem anymore.”

I see Troy's bright smile, and I don't think he cares about what his mother had threatened. "My mother is not a problem, Camile," he repeats. "She was never a problem; I would have started a relationship with you even if she were." Troy pauses and adds, "She gave me her word."

Troy breathes heavily. “I love you so much, Camile,” he says. “Come back home to me, to us. To your mother and to Amelia. We all need you in our lives.”

I look behind me to find my father and Halie holding each other. They smile at me as Troy continues, "I know you love me too, Camile, and I promise to keep you safe."

I search for Troy's light blue eyes. I can feel his sincerity burning into me. I hold his hand to feel his warmth, and his touch tingles.

This is the man I have fallen in love with. A man almost twice my age, who I thought was the coldest person I had ever met. I am standing across from this man and seeing that I can never love anyone else the way I love him.

“Trust me,” Troy says and cups my face with his palm. “Trust me to protect you.” He doesn’t have to tell me. I trust Troy with my life.

"I trust you," I respond, "but I can't go home now." I watch his face change. "I can't go without seeing my siblings once more to say goodbye."

Troy looks around as I tell him Aden and Adam are somewhere across the street. "I can't wait for you to meet them." I continue, "You are going to love them."

I lean in, wrapping my hands around Troy’s head as I kiss him. A little too passionately.

Chapter twenty-five