When Tom’s mother is in town to meet Lily, Tom and Megan’s newborn, Megan cannot help but think that it would make them closer as a family. Until Eloise hands her something that could change her and Lily’s lives forever.

The first meeting between a grandparent and a grandchild should be magical, right? At least, that’s what I thought it would be like when Lily, my newborn daughter, met Eloise.

Eloise is a fancy high-class lady, and I’m just a girl who fell in love with her son. A girl who grew up bouncing from one foster home to another. I knew that Eloise wanted more for Tom, but he had chosen me, he had fallen in love with me.

So, my mother-in-law arrives on our doorstep looking glamorous and polished — she moved to Europe when Tom was in college and had never turned back. She even missed our wedding because she didn’t want to travel at the time. We live-streamed the wedding for her, and Tom had to deal with all her questions regarding the flowers and music for hours after.

Eloise kissed Tom and enveloped Lily in a hug.

Maybe this is it, I thought. Maybe this is our chance for a real family connection.

But then Lily cried her dirty-nappy-cry and Tom went to change her.

“Megan,” Eloise said, pulling me aside, a smile plastered to her face.

I followed her, feeling like I was walking into a trap. She led the way to the kitchen and put the kettle on for herself. The moment she turned around to face me again, her demeanor changed faster than anything I’ve seen.

She hands me an envelope, and my heart drops when I see what’s inside — a thick stack of cash.

“Here, $25,000,” she says, dropping the envelope on the counter when I refused to take it.

“I hope that this will be enough for you to disappear with Lily. Tom had a wonderful fiancée, you know. Deborah. She was the best match for my son — a rich family, and she had a career that allowed her to travel the world. I mean, what will people think of us now? That Tom married you because you were pregnant? I’ve tried to spin that story to suit us, but that’s not going to work. So, I need you to disappear.”

I tried to keep my cool. I turned and went to the nursery, where Tom and Lily were — the only people I wanted to be around.

When Eloise went back to her hotel room after dinner, I told Tom everything.

“I can’t believe this,” he said. “But I don’t want you to worry, Meg. I’ve hated the way she’s treated you since day one.”

He gave Lily to me, letting me tuck her in.

“We’ll teach her a lesson,” he said, his eyes sparkling with mischief.

When we went to bed that night, I phoned Eloise and told her that I would go along with her crazy plan.

“I’ll do it,” I whispered into the phone.

“Really? Good girl,” she said, sighing in relief.

“But I need you to double the amount of money. I need to do the best for my child, and I need more money for that. Okay?” I said, holding my breath.

“Fine, that can be arranged. Meet me at a café tomorrow. There’s one across the street from my hotel. Meet me there and we’ll figure it out.”

She cut the call.

The next day, close to when I was supposed to meet Eloise, Tom and I bundled Lily into her car seat.

“You’re okay?” Tom asked me.

I nodded. We had a plan.

When she arrived, expecting me, she got Tom instead. And let me tell you, the look on her face was priceless.

Tom took the envelope off the table, and looked her dead in the eyes.

“Thanks, Mom,” he said. “Now, we have enough to invest in Lily’s education when the time comes.”

Eloise was speechless, just staring at him like he’d grown a second head.

“So, you’re choosing your wife over our family?” she hissed, trying not to make a scene.

“My wife is my family,” he said, pushing his chair back.

Tom returned to the booth where Lily and I were hiding.

“No one,” he said, his eyes soft. “No one and nothing comes between us, okay?”

I nodded. Because I truly believed him.

And just like that, we knew that we were in this together. Tom didn’t care that I didn’t have a fancy degree. He didn’t care that I had been a wounded foster child — he loved me for me. We were fine, financially, without Eloise’s money, but we put the money into an account for Lily.

I’ve learned that family isn’t always blood. It’s the people who choose you, no matter what. Now, Tom and I joke about Eloise and the entire situation. But when I think about it, I wonder what would have happened if Tom had retaliated differently.

What would you have done in my shoes?