GRACE

I sat in the car clutching my child to my chest a little tighter than normal as hot tears streamed down my eyes. I patted her hair to keep her from seeing me cry.

I couldn’t hold back the tears anymore. My heart was tearing into tiny shreds and sinking at the same time. My hands trembled, I held on tighter, my chest burned and my head swelled. Connor’s mother’s words were like knives targeted straight into my heart.

And if her words were meant to hurt me, she succeeded because they really hurt and what made it worse was my child was sitting right there hearing them.

I...