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We all got out of the car, and pretty soon, another car pulled up. An older woman got out, and I said, “Hi, I'm Farrah. You must be Francesca?”

She smiled at me and my kids. “Yes. We talked on the phone earlier. Can't wait for you to see this place.”

“Me neither,” I replied, scanning the exterior and the short brown grass up front. I could only imagine what it would look like with a blanket of freshly mown lawn. “It looks lovely.”

“Oh, it is,” she said, walking alongside us up to the front door. Cora balanced along landscape stones, her arms straight out and her sequined skirt shimmering in the day’s last rays of sunshine. Andrew and Levi followed dutifully behind us.

When Francesca opened the door, she said, “Why don't you all take a look around and I’ll wait out here.”

“Sounds great,” I said.

The younger two kids led the way into the house, and Andrew said, “This isnice, Mom.”

I nodded, unable to speak. When I had looked at the pictures online, I fully expected the placed had been staged and edited to look so nice. But the photos hadn’t even done it justice.

The front room had dark vinyl flooring and a grand fireplace with ceilings that stretched at least twelve feet high. As we walked farther inside, there was a dining room and then a kitchen with granite countertops and natural wood cabinets.

I half expected Francesca to come inside and tell me I’d been Punk’d. This place was so much nicer than what I anticipated and somehow in my price range. When Caleb and I broke up, I had accepted that I would have to lower my standard of living by quite a bit to make things work, but this didn't feel like a massive step backward. In fact, this was exactly the kind of home I would be proud to live in.

It wasn’t as new as the home we had built in Austin and wouldn’t be furnished as nicely, but I could picture picking out a comfy couch for us to sit while we watched movies on Friday nights, and I could see us all gathering around a table to have dinners together after work and school. And as we walked back to the bedrooms, I could envision setting them up to each of my children's tastes and styles.

I wouldn't be able to fully furnish it at first, but maybe the fact that this house could always change was part of the allure. It would always be somewhat of a blank canvas.

From one of the bedrooms, Cora yelled, “This is my room!”

Andrew said, “Hey, I wanted this room!”

Because I could hear where their voices were coming from, I laughed. “That's my walk-in closet.” I walked around the corner to see him and Cora cozied up in opposite corners of the closet.

Andrew snuggled up on the tan carpet. “It’s so cozy.”

I laughed, looking from the closet and around the main bedroom. There would be room for a king-sized bed in this space, so Andrew and Cora could sleep with me if they ever got scared at night—without kicking the crap out of my back.

And I would have my own bathroom, one that I wouldn't have to share with Cora or the boys. All of the kids could share the bathroom in the hallway that had double vanities. Perfect for decreasing the amount of fights over sink space in the morning.

“Would this be mine?” Levi called from another room.

I left the main room, joining him in the second biggest room, one with a view of the treed backyard. There was a thoughtful look on his face.

“What do you think?” I asked, leaning in against the doorframe.

He hooked his thumbs in his pockets, shrugging. His lips spread into a smile despite himself. “I’m thinking it’s going to be quiet without Drew snoring all night.”

I laughed as Andrew yelled, “I HEARD THAT.”

We finished walking around the house, and then I had the kids load up in the van while I talked with Francesca. She leaned back against the hood of the car as I approached. “What did you think, hon?” she asked.

“It was amazing. Which kid do I have to give you to move in?”

She tossed her head back, laughing. “I like you. But no kid required. Just a deposit with first month and last month’s rent.”

My stomach sank as I did the mental math. That would be literally all the money I had after my paycheck came through tomorrow. “Is there any chance we could start the lease at the end of the month?”

The lines around her mouth creased. “I’m sorry, hon, but there’s a lot of interest in this place. Actually...” She glanced at the oversized smartwatch on her wrist. “There’s another couple coming to look in an hour.”

“What would it take to make it ours?” I asked. The thought of this house going to anyone else when it was so clearly made for us made my stomach turn.

Francesca held up two wrinkled fingers. “A signed lease and a check for the deposit with first and last month’s rent. As soon as the check clears, you get the keys.”