5 days after the divorce, the mother-in-in-law asked: “Why are you still here?” I smiled calmly and and said, “Because this house was paid for with my money.” She went pale.

and they drove away.

I stood there a moment longer, keys in my hand, feeling not triumph but relief.

Because the real shock that morning hadn’t been Diane asking why I was still there.

It was that she had truly believed I had no right to be.