“You can make more selling cars than I can selling cheese.”
He shot me a glance. “It’s not about the money, Meg.”
“No, it’s not.” I took a deep breath. “If there’s something else you have to do that day...”
His eyes flickered. “It doesn’t matter. You heard Trey. The dealership can manage without me for one more day.”
“And the wrestling team?” I asked in a steady voice. “Can they manage without you, too?”
John set our daughter carefully on her feet. “So you heard about that.”
“Trey said something. I sort of guessed the rest. How long has this been going on?” I asked. Like I’d caught him having an affair.
He looked away, at the tree. “At first it was just... I dropped in every once in a while. To see how the team was getting on. But this summer, the coach quit to take a teaching job in Virginia, and Ben—you know Ben Hardy in the math department—took over the program. He means well, but he doesn’t have any coaching experience. I’m just helping out until he learns the ropes.”
DJ hung another red ball on the tree.
“I wish you’d said something.”
He shrugged. “I didn’t want to worry you.”
“Not talking to me... That’s what worries me. It’s like my dad, keeping secrets from my mom. Or my mom, not telling my sisters about her surgery. You should have told me.”
“Honey, it wouldn’t have made any difference. It’s not like I’m going to quit my job.”
“Well, that’s a relief,” I joked.
He didn’t say anything.
“John?”
Daisy picked a red ball from the floor and hung it on the tree.
“Mine!” DJ grabbed the ornament. Daisy smacked him.
I leaped to separate them. “No, no. Are you okay?” I asked DJ.
He clutched the red ball to his chest. “Mine.”
“Sweetie, I know you like the red ones. But you have to share. And Daisy, no hitting. We don’t hit. We have to use our words, okay? Tell DJ you’re sorry.”
“I not sorry. DJ bad.”
“Nobody’s bad,” I said.
Daisy scowled. DJ’s little face was flushed, his lower lip jutting dangerously.
“All right, kids, hug it out. Come on,” John ordered when they dragged their feet. “Bring it in. Group hug.”
He swept them into his lap, hugging them, loving them, tickling them.Wrestlingwith them until they giggled and squirmed.
“John.” I hesitated.Use your words. “Do you have a tournament this weekend?”
His jaw set. “Doesn’t matter. You’re going to the farmers’ market.”
“Could we at least please talk about it?”
He kissed the top of Daisy’s head. Set DJ on his feet. “Nothing to talk about.”
