“Taking a night off does not make you a bad mother. Going on a date does not make you a bad mother. Having casual, consensual sex does not make you a bad mother. You are wonderful to that girl, and anyone with eyes and a functioning brain stem would be able to see that. You’re allowed to be a human being, Dahlia. You are not exclusively tied to that title. You can be a woman. Have a career. Hobbies. Be a friend and a sister. You’re entitled to all of those things—to having an identity outside of Lou’s mother. There is nothing wrong with that.” The near-setting sun casts Everett’s face in a
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