Among All The Stars I Found You Chapter 26
On the day the baby was born, Preston was more nervous than I was.
Every time a nurse came out of the delivery room, he shot to his feet.
Leo sat in the hallway, hugging that old drawing to his chest.
After he saw his little sister, he leaned over her bassinet and stared for a long time.
“Will she call you Mom, too?”
I stroked his hair.
“She will.”
He lowered his head.
“Then will I still be the one you love most?”
My heart melted.
“Love doesn’t get smaller just because you share it.”
“You will always be my first child.”
Leo finally smiled.
Preston stood nearby, his eyes a little red.
I glanced at him.
“Are you crying?”
“No.”
He pushed up his glasses and turned away to find a nurse.
That night, after the hospital room had quieted down, he placed a bank card in my hand.
“This isn’t two million dollars.”
I looked at him warily.
“Then what is it?”
“The lawyers have already sorted out your legal share of our marital assets.”
“You can stay, you can work, or one day you can take it and leave.”
His voice was low and earnest.
“I want you to stay because you want to stay.”
Holding that card, I felt tears slide down my face.
What I had wanted most in the past was money.
Money could buy food, pay for my mother’s treatment, and give me a choice when I had nowhere else to turn.
Only later did I understand.
What truly made me feel safe wasn’t having someone else pay my bills.
It was finally having the right to choose for myself.Â