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The reaction moves through the room as reporters start typing. I wait until it eases.

“Emma Love and I never had an affair. I never told her how I felt while she was with Spencer because she hadn’t done anything to invite it, and I respected her relationship even when I didn’t like what I saw.”

Emma’s eyes brighten.

“I left because staying would’ve made it harder to keep boundaries that mattered to me.”

I glance toward Theo, who already knows where this is going.

“Years later, after Emma ended that relationship, she walked into Wolf Shield for a job interview.” Theo starts smiling. “She’d already been attacked by a cup of coffee.” Emma closes her eyes as laughter spreads through the room. “That detail may be disputed later.”

She mouths something that looks suspiciously like asshole.

I have to stop myself from smiling.

“I hired Emma because she was good at her job. Somewhere after that, the feelings I’d spent years walking away from became impossible to ignore.” Her hand moves over her stomach. “We’re expecting twins.”

Applause breaks out before I finish the sentence.

Babs starts clapping above her head. Biddy joins her, both of them looking so proud that Mom has to pull the sign back into place when it slides from their knees.

I wait for the room to calm.

“The missing years were never a gap between my old life and Wolf Shield. It connected them.” I glance toward the company logo behind me. “Celeste showed me that protection means more than keeping somebody alive through one dangerous night. The shelters showed me how often people trying to rebuild their lives have to do it in buildings that can’t afford proper security. Wolf Shield eventually gave me the resources to help on a larger scale.”

The next slide appears.

THE CELESTE WOLF SHIELD INITIATIVE

Seeing her name still catches me, even though I approved every part of the program.

“Beginning today, Wolf Shield will provide qualifying domestic violence shelters with security assessments, equipment, installation, monitoring, maintenance, and emergency upgrades without charge to the organizations.”

The applause starts again.

I let it run before continuing.

“This program carries Celeste’s name because the work began with her long before Wolf Shield existed. Every shelter should be able to protect the people who walk through its doors, regardless of budget.”

Babs lifts the sign over her head.

GO DADDY

Biddy grabs the other side, which tilts it enough that Mom has to help.

My throat tightens before I can stop it. I look toward Emma, where she watches me from the front row.

“I spent years thinking I was keeping a promise to somebody I’d lost. It took me a long time to understand that she was also showing me what to build next.”

I step away from the podium and the applause rises again. I barely make it through the curtain before Emma wraps her arms around me.

I hold her as close as her stomach allows and kiss the side of her head.

“You told everyone about the coffee,” she says into my jacket.

“It established context.”

She pulls back enough to look at me. “It established that Theo can’t walk while answering email.”