Chapter 14 - THE HOUSE WITHOUT LOCKED DOORSThree years after our wedding, we moved into a smaller home near the coast.
It had a garden.
A wide porch.
And a bedroom on the ground floor designed around Nicole's accessibility needs.
Nicole was now twenty-one.
He studied graphic design.
His artwork had appeared in several exhibitions.
And he had become an advocate for young people living with disabilities and trauma.
Dante continued working with legitimate businesses.
I became a registered nurse.
My mother lived nearby.
One evening, Dante stood beside me on the porch.
Nicole was in the garden, sketching the sunset.
"Thinking?" I asked.
Dante smiled.
"Always."
"About what?"
He looked toward his brother.
"About how different everything is."
I leaned against him.
"Do you miss the old life?"
He shook his head.
"No."
He paused.
"I miss my father."
My expression softened.
"But I don't miss the world that took him."
I took his hand.
We watched the sunset together.
Then Nicole raised his tablet.
A message appeared.
YOU TWO ARE DISGUSTINGLY ROMANTIC.
I laughed.
May you like
Dante groaned.
"He's definitely my brother."
