Layla had never needed a wedding gown to feel like a bride. She had never cared about the fancy details or the extravagant celebrations. All she wanted was to marry Derek. And when the two of them finally did, it wasn’t in a church or under sparkling lights. It was simple. Quiet. Just the two of them at the courthouse. No wedding cake, no fancy flowers, just a clerk who barely looked up, two simple rings, and a little lunch afterward at a bistro that didn’t bother matching the napkins

Everything seemed fine between my husband, Dave, and me before our daughter was born. But once she arrived, things began to shift. Dave thought that I wasn’t doing much around the house while he was at work, so I decided to show him how wrong he was. When I found out I was pregnant, I made the choice to quit my job so I could focus entirely on being a mother and wife. Dave supported my decision, believing that it would be the best choice for our child. My pregnancy

Losing my husband, Ryan, was the most devastating thing that ever happened to me. I felt like the world had been torn apart. But then, just two days after his funeral, his mother, Margaret, made everything even worse. She kicked me and my kids out of our house, changed the locks, and left us homeless. She thought she was winning, but she had no idea she was making the biggest mistake of her life. When I married Ryan two years ago, I wasn’t naïve about his mother. Margaret had always