She wrinkles her forehead. “How did you know?”
“You missed our six o’clock call,” I tell her. “No matter what’s been going on this week, you’ve never missed our calls.”
Even with our limited time together this week between family interferences, not one call time went missed.
“I texted a couple of times before our call time because the kids wanted to see if you could come over for dinner.”
I immediately clamp my lips together. I hadn’t meant to add that last part on. My grandkids and daughters-in-law have been asking for days for Ellyn and her daughters and grandkids to come over, but I’ve put them all off.
Ellyn had said Shanice wasn’t ready to interact much with people outside of her mother and sister, and I knew Ellyn wouldn’t want to be apart from her daughter for too long.
It also wasn’t my place to tell them why Shanice was reluctant or what happened between her and her husband.
“Oh,” Ellyn says, looking up at me. Then she smiles. “That’s sweet of them, but?—”
“W-We should do it,” a soft voice comes from behind Ellyn.
We both look back to find her oldest daughter standing in the entryway between the hallway and the living room. Hershoulders are slightly slumped and the expression on her face is something between sadness and hope.
“Um …” Shanice looks around, searching for her words. “I mean, Mr. Townsend, it’s my fault my mom hasn’t had a lot of time to spend with you the past few days.”
“Shanice, don’t say—” Ellyn stops talking when Shanice holds up her hand, silently begging for the room to speak.
“Mom, you told us how much you love him just today.”
Ellyn gives me a look over her shoulder, and I tighten my hold on her, pulling her against my side to again kiss the top of her head.
I look up in time to see a whisper of a sad smile cross Shanice’s face.
“I don’t want to be the reason you don’t get to spend Christmas Eve with the man you love. And, well, Mr. Townsend, I made bread pudding earlier and I would love to share it with you all to say thank you for what you just did tonight.”
I glance down at Ellyn and then shake my head at Shanice. “You do not have to thank me for anything. You’re Ellyn’s family, which makes you my family. And I, and my boys, protect our family.”
Shanice looks away, blinking a couple of times. When she turns back to face us, the sheen in her eyes is evident.
“Thank you,” she says before clearing her throat.
“Is Daddy still here?” Randy comes running out from the hallway into the living room. I recognize him from the pictures Ellyn’s shown me of her grandson.
A somber expression passes over Shanice’s face before she kneels down before him.
“Daddy had to leave,” she tells him. “He won’t be able to spend Christmas with us this year. But Mr. Townsend has invited us over to have Christmas Eve dinner with his family. How does that sound?”
“Mr. Townsend?” the little boy says and looks over at me with confusion in his brow.
I drop my arm from around Ellyn and move closer, getting lower to the ground so I’m not hovering over the boy.
“I’m a friend of your grandmother’s,” I say in a low voice.
His eyes go wide.
“Are you the man she spent the night with?”
Ellyn and Shanice both gasp.
“Randy?” Shanice grasps his shoulders. “Where did you hear that?”
He looks at his mom innocently. “Grandma told me she watched a mommy horse give birth to a baby horse with her friend overnight.”
