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Amanda reached for his hand and threaded her fingers through his. He turned toward her, and whatever she might have said died before it reached her lips. The emotion he was trying to keep under control was right there on his face.

She squeezed his hand and stayed beside him while the others kept discussing restaurants. He didn't need her to tell him Rissa would be fine. Instead, he needed a few more minutes before he had to let her go.

They settled on a steakhouse about a mile from campus, and for the next couple of hours, Rissa and Sophie talked through dinner as if they’d known each other much longer. They compared schedules, discussed orientation events, and shared their excitement about the students they'd already met. Elaine and Grady offered the occasional piece of parental advice, most of which both girls met with good-natured eye rolls.

Amanda was happy to sit back and take it all in. Eight weeks ago, Rissa hadn't even known whether she'd get a dorm room. Now she had a roommate she already seemed to genuinely like, a space they'd made their own, and an entire college experience waiting for her. Every so often, Amanda caught Grady watching his daughter, pride and sadness competing on his face. He laughed at the right moments and joined the conversation, but she knew what was waiting for him after dinner.

They lingered over dessert before finally admitting it was time to go. Since they’d arrived in separate cars and the campus was in the opposite direction from Elaine’s route home, she said goodbye to Sophie outside the restaurant. There were tears in her eyes as her daughter promised several times to call the next day.

Then Grady and Amanda drove the girls back to campus. The ride didn't take long, and by the time Grady pulled into the parking lot outside their dorm, Amanda could tell he was hanging on by a thread.

They all climbed out, but no one seemed in much of a hurry to leave. Around them, other families were doing the same thing. Parents unloaded the last few bags from cars, students called goodbyes across the lot, and somewhere nearby, a helicopter mother was reminding her son for the third time to call her in the morning.

Grady shoved his hands into his pockets as the girls retrieved their purses from the back seat.

Rissa closed the door and faced him. “Okay, Dad. Let's hear it.”

At first, he denied having a final list of fatherly warnings for all of three seconds before launching into one anyway.

Keep her phone charged. Call if she needed anything. Pay attention when walking around campus after dark. Never get into a car with someone who'd been drinking.

He probably had another dozen ready, but Rissa didn't give him the chance to get to them. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him. Grady stopped talking, and Amanda's throat ached as he folded his daughter into his arms and closed his eyes.

Nine years ago, he'd lost his wife and been left to raise their little girl alone. Since Amanda returned to Antelope Rock, she'd heard him question countless parenting decisions, wondering whether he'd done enough or made the right choices.

But he'd gotten her here. Not just to college. He'd raised a smart, capable young woman ready to leave the safety of the life she'd always known and start building her own.

When they finally separated, both had tears in their eyes.

“I love you, Dad.”

“Love you too, kiddo. More than you'll ever know.”

Rissa’s smile was a little shaky. “I think I have a pretty good idea.”

One of Grady's tears escaped, and Rissa wiped it away before assuring him she'd be okay.

Amanda expected the sheriff in him to argue, find another warning to give her, or come up with one more reason she still needed him looking over her shoulder. Instead, he nodded. “I know.”

Those two words seemed to cost him more than anything else he'd said.

Then Rissa turned and came straight to Amanda. The force of the hug caught her by surprise. So did the whispered, “I love you too,” against her shoulder.

Amanda closed her eyes and held her close.

Months ago, she'd driven into Antelope Rock expecting to help Edith recover and then return to California. She hadn't expected Grady, and she certainly hadn't expected his daughter to claim a place in her heart right alongside him.

“I love you too, sweetheart.”

By the time they separated, Sophie had moved several yards away, giving them some privacy. Rissa joined her, but not before promising her father she'd call the next day and asking him to text her when he and Amanda got home safely.

Amanda slipped her hand into Grady's as the girls crossed the parking lot. He held on to her, his attention fixed on Rissa the entire way. Near the dorm entrance, his daughter glanced back and gave them one last wave before following Sophie inside.

Even after the door closed behind them, Grady remained where he was, staring at the spot where Rissa had disappeared. Amanda stayed beside him, giving him as much time as he needed. She knew better than to fill the moment with reassurances. Rissa was fine. They both knew that.

This wasn't about worrying that something would happen to her. It was about eighteen years of being her father every single day, and knowing that, starting tonight, that role had changed.

Amanda gave his hand another squeeze. “Come on. We've got a long drive ahead of us.”