Ethan threw himself at her so hard the suitcase fell over.

Mom held both of us for a long moment, right there on the doorstep. Then she stood up straight, and walked into the house.

The party noise slowly died away as people noticed her.

Brittany came out of the kitchen with a glass of champagne. She looked Mom up and down, at her jeans and her sneakers and her suitcase.

“Sorry, are you with the caterers? Staff use the side door.”

“I'm Julia,” said Mom pleasantly. “Maddie and Ethan's mother.”

The room went completely silent.

Dad appeared in the hallway. When he saw Mom, the color drained out of his face.

“Julia? What are you... you're supposed to be in Singapore.”

“I was,” said Mom. “Until my daughter told me she'd been sleeping in a box room for four months.”

A murmur went round the guests.

Brittany recovered first. She put her hands on her hips.

“Excuse me. You can't just walk into my house uninvited.”

Mom looked at her for a long moment. Then she smiled.

“Your house?” she said.