“Not just like. You made her a valentine that year. Threw away about ten versions before you had one you were happy with.”
“A valentine? I don’t remem… wait, did it have a moose on it?”
“Yes.” She grinned. “It was kind of a theme with you that year.”
“I love you moose-t of all.”
“Yep. That’s what it said.”
“A moose is hard to draw. It must have been a dorky card.”
“It was an adorable card.”
“She had this stuffed moose. She had a lot of stuffed animals but the moose was my favorite. That’s what I used as a model when I made the clay one for the diorama.”
“Now do you remember going over there all the time?”
“Kind of. Not the frequency, but I’m getting little snippets.”
“You loved her.”
Had it really started when he was eight? Had he been fighting his instincts that long?
“And you still do.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“But I could tell at the dinner table that something’s not right.”
He took a deep breath. “She doesn’t think it’s real because it came out of nowhere. She thinks it could disappear just as fast.”
“It didn’t come out of nowhere,mijo. You’ve held that girl in your heart all along. Remember when I suggested you draw straws to see who took the diorama home?”
“That’s clear as a bell. She won. And I was okay with her winning.”
“Because you asked me to rig it.”
“Huh?”
“You got me aside and said you wanted her to win, so I told you the short one would be sticking up a little higher and you grabbed it before she had a chance to.”
“I don’t remember doing that.”
“Ask Carrie. She was there. I told her about it.”
“Did Tracy find out?”
“I doubt it. Carrie and I weren’t going to tell her. But you can. You never know what might make a difference.”
“We’re not… um…the ball’s in her court.”
She gazed at him. “I see. Gave her an ultimatum, did you?”
He flushed.
“You are so like your father.”
He let that sink in. She wasn’t wrong, but he’d also learned some things from her. He cleared his throat. “Any suggestions,Mama?”
