The moment Kate realized her daughter had walked home alone on Christmas Day, carrying every gift she had brought and believing she had ruined the holiday, she knew something had changed forever. Eleven-year-old Emma was sitting quietly at the kitchen table in the red dress she had worn to her grandparentsâ house, her coat tossed over a chair and her unopened gifts lined up near the door.

Kate had expected to hear about a crowded house, a misunderstanding, or maybe a forgotten invitation. Instead, Emma told her that her grandparents had opened the door, looked at her, and decided there was no room for her inside.
