My stepdad never treated me like family. Right before my bachelorette trip, my mom called to say he was dying and asked me to cancel and come help. I told her he was her husband and left for my trip anyway.

The next morning, as I looked out from my beachside suite, I saw his sleek white yacht—the one he never let me near—anchored just offshore.

Soon after, the concierge delivered an envelope with the boat’s title and a handwritten letter. In it, he apologized for making me feel like an outsider and wrote that he loved me, hoping the boat would give me the freedom he never did.

He died that morning while I was away celebrating. I never said goodbye, and now I’m left with overwhelming guilt, realizing too late that I mattered to him more than I ever believed.