And so she was always entranced by family resemblances. Those shared features always felt miraculous to her, especially when they were as pronounced as they were with Anne’s kids.
Claire looked like a carbon copy of her mother, from her vibrant red hair to the abundance of freckles that marched across her nose and cheeks. The resemblance was so strong that it gave Laurie flashbacks to her own childhood.
Zoe looked different at first glance, more like her dad than her mom. But she had those same silver-gray eyes, all the more startling in a face the color of dark honey.
Pete was something else altogether, a bundle of energy with his grandma’s bright blue eyes and sandy blond hair – and anability to tan that he must have inherited from his dad. He was still chattering away, practically vibrating with excitement.
Mia waved at Laurie to get her attention.
What’s up?she asked her daughter.
“Can I show Pete the bunnies across the street?” she asked, speaking and signing at the same time.
Sure, Laurie signed.
Thanks!
All three of Anne’s kids followed Mia out the door. Even fourteen-year-old Claire and grown-up Zoe couldn’t resist the promise of baby bunnies.
Laurie grabbed a couple of bags and went upstairs in search of her sister.
Dawn’s door was open, and she stopped to look in. Her adopted mother sat in the dark, face illuminated by white-blue screenlight as she played some mindless game on her tablet. Laurie set the bags down and walked into the room.
“Mom?” she said, and Dawn looked up.You OK?
Fine, Dawn signed.
Laurie sighed. She crossed the room and opened the drapes to reveal the huge windows her dad had installed. Out past the cliffs, the ocean flashed silver beneath a white sky.
Dawn winced at the sudden brightness, then looked back down at her tablet.
“You hardly said two words to Anne,” Laurie said.
I’m tired,she signed without looking up.
“Have you eaten today?”
Dawn shrugged.
Laurie pressed her eyes shut and fought to swallow the fierce irritation that rose in her chest.
She desperately wanted Dawn to get better, to come back to herself, to be theirmotheragain. But the loss of their dad had been even harder on Dawn than it had been on his kids.
It had only been a few months, and Kimo had been Dawn’s partner her whole adult life. Her hero. Her better half.
Laurie would never know what that was like. She could hardly imagine.
“I’ll warm up some of that soup before I go,” she said.
Thanks, Dawn signed distractedly.
Laurie found Anne in her old room, long since converted to a guest room. She was hanging clothes in the open-air closet, getting settled in.
“Hey. Are you hungry? I’m going to warm up some kabocha squash soup.”
Anne paused what she was doing and turned to face Laurie. Signing while she spoke, she said, “I’m not hungry, but I should eat. The kids too.”
“How’d they take the news?” Laurie asked.
