Mr. Banks nodded solemnly. “You’re mine too. Even if you do chew too loudly and put syrup on eggs like a sociopath.”
Angus beamed. “You love me anyway.”
“I tolerate you deeply.”
They leaned against each other like it was the most natural thing in the world—Angus in plaid pajama pants, Mr. Banks holding a stuffed lemur like it was sacred. Although on any given day, it could have been the other way around.
And I just… watched them. This strange, perfect pairing. These two chaotic souls who somehow made each other feel like home.
Maybe that’s what I was really looking for in all this.
Not perfection.
Not some airbrushed ideal from a brochure.
Just that.
That click. That weird, wonderful, unmistakable click where people fit.
Family wasn’t something you found. It was something you recognized.
And the second you saw it—you held on.
Tightly.
With both hands.
And maybe a plush lemur.
CHAPTER 9
I wasmid-way through alphabetizing our spice rack in a completely futile attempt to feel in control of my life when the phone rang.
“Hello?” I answered, already bracing for it to be Mrs. Mulroney insisting we name the baby after a dead saint or a good whiskey or a combination of the two.
“Hi Matt, it’s Tessa Burke.”
I straightened like she could see me through the phone. “Oh! Hi. Yes. Hello. I’m here. Calm. Prepared. Just let me put this turmeric in the right place. There. That’s better.”
“I wanted to see if you and Cal could come in this afternoon,” she said. “I’ve refined your search filters and I’d love to go over some expanded options together.”
“Expanded? You mean there’s even more women with snakes for pets and Joni Mitchell as their idol?”
“I’ve narrowed them down.”
“Narrowing and expanding aren’t exactly the same thing.”
“Stay calm, Matt,” she said. “I think we’re getting close.”
Getting close.That did something funny to my heart.
“I’ll get Cal,” I said. “We’ll be there.”
We arrived at True Path like we were showing up for a final exam we hadn’t studied for but still weirdly believed we could ace.
Tessa greeted us in her usual crisp white blazer, smiling with just enough restraint to keep me from overreacting. “Come in,” she said, gesturing toward her office. “We’ve made progress.”
We followed her to the same consultation room—still warm, still calm, still scented with something exotic and soothing to try and slow down my heart rate.
