My mother-in-law told me to get up at 4 a.m. to cook Thanksgiving dinner for her 30 guests. My husband added, “This time, remember to make everything really perfect!” I smiled and replied, “Of course.” At 3 a.m., I took my suitcase to the airport. – usnews 0/2

That last message made me laugh out loud, earning a concerned look from the businessman in the seat next to me. Vivien wanted to have a family meeting about my behavior, as if I were a teenager who had missed curfew instead of a grown woman who had refused to be taken advantage of.

The airport was crowded with post-holiday travelers, all of us looking slightly shell-shocked by the transition from vacation time back to real-world responsibilities. But as I walked through the terminal, I noticed something different about my own reflection in the shop windows. I stood straighter. My face looked relaxed in a way it hadn’t in years.

Hudson was waiting for me at baggage claim, looking like he hadn’t slept well in days. His clothes were wrinkled, his hair unkempt, and there were dark circles under his eyes that made him look older than his thirty-four years.