When a strange package shows up at Kate and Josh’s doorstep, they are bewildered to see it’s from Josh’s estranged father. The mystery deepens when Josh discovers a ticking box within the gift — an ornate pillow. This leads to a confrontation and leaves Josh grappling with a dilemma. Should he forgive his father or continue to act as if their relationship is non-existent?

Josh had just taken their daughter, Emily, for a walk around the garden when the doorbell rang, signaling the start of the day.

“I have a delivery for you,” the courier said when I opened the door.

I signed and brought the package into the kitchen. Our third wedding anniversary was this week, and Josh was always buying me little surprises.

“I just want to surprise you, Kate,” he once said as we relaxed on the couch. “It’s the little things that count, you know?”

So, naturally, as I carried the package to the kitchen, I assumed it was from him.

Until I used scissors to cut through the thick tape. Inside, I found a beautifully embroidered pillow with a note tucked underneath. It matched our living room décor perfectly.

For a moment, I appreciated the thoughtful gesture. But then I remembered that there was no way Josh would accept this gift.

“Hey, what’s this?” Josh asked, coming back into the kitchen with Emily on his shoulders. “Did we order something?”

“It’s a gift,” I said cautiously. “From your father.”

Josh took the note from me, his eyes scanning the paper.

I wondered what he would do. Josh and his father had a very complicated relationship. When Josh was a child, Taylor had abandoned him and his mother.

He had been involved with another woman, and when it came down to choosing, Taylor chose the other woman.

Josh had been seven, and he never recovered from it. He told me all about it one evening when we went out for dinner.

“A father is supposed to choose you, Kate. But he left us to start a new life with his mistress. That’s not how this works.”

I understood his perspective. He just wanted his father to be there for him and his mother.

Instead, Taylor had different plans.

“He said he needed to be happy and that my mother was too strict. He had a job, but he was always doing shady things on the side. So he packed up and left.”

“What do you mean?” I asked, shocked that Josh had experienced this at such a young age.