Looked at her father.
And whispered,
“Daddy?”
She hadn’t called him Daddy in years.
Then she started crying.
Mark pulled her into his arms.
He held her the way he’d held her when she was little.
“I’ve still got good days ahead, sweetheart,” he whispered.
“I’ll be there when you graduate.”
He smiled through his tears.
“And someday, I’m going to embarrass you at your wedding with terrible jokes.”
“You’d better,” Sophie whispered.
We all knew the future was uncertain.
But for that moment, we let ourselves hope.
Eventually, Sophie wiped her eyes.
Then she glanced at me.
“Mom mentioned a folder with a ring on it.”
Mark looked embarrassed.
I squeezed his hand.
He drew a breath.
“I’m planning to marry your mother again.”
Sophie blinked.
“What?”
“September twentieth. At Loon Lake.”
He smiled.
“And I need your help finding her a dress. If I choose it, she’ll never forgive me.”
