Chapter 82

Leighton

I'm doing my best not to let my emotions show as I watch his incredibly toned back walk out of the kitchen I now call ours, onto the deck. Once he's there, I watch as he gets the grill started, and it's only when I turn away from the window do I let myself feel. Tears silently stream down my face as I let the impact of the words he spoke wash over me. I never knew how much it truly mattered to me, his opinion, until he uttered the words it didn't matter what stock you came from.

This afternoon, here in our kitchen, after almost a year of living together and six months of marriage has been an absolute game changer. One I never saw coming, but at the same time, one I'm absolutely grateful for. I try to take a breath, but let out a sob instead, not sure how to handle this onslaught of emotion. It's never much mattered to me what others thought, because I couldn't change the way they perceived my family. I knew at a very early age I was an extension of what others believed of