Joseph held out his hand as Adele walked into their living room, rubbing her eyes. She must be tired to have changed into her unicorn pajamas. “Are you ready for bed?”
“Not yet but soon.” She sat beside him and snuggled into his side. “The hamburgers you made were yummy.”
“They were. Thank you for all the help you gave us at Shona’s store.”
“I didn’t do too much before I went home with Mrs. Terry.”
He kissed the top of Adele’s head. “You helped me bring the bags of candy out of the kitchen and made sure Nate had enough wrapping paper for the quilts.”
“And you drew some amazing pictures,” Shona added.
“They’re for the story I’m writing.” Adele’s mouth opened in a huge yawn. “Katie said the sooner we draw the pictures for our book, the sooner we can publish it.”
“What are you calling your story?”
“I’m not sure yet.” Adele closed her eyes against Joseph’s chest. “You smell nice.”
He smiled at the sleepy little girl in his arms. “Let’s get you tucked up in bed. Did you say goodnight to Nate?”
Adele nodded. “He’s playing games on my Xbox. Goodnight, Shona. I hope you had a good day at your store.”
“I did. Thank you for your help today.” She rose from the sofa and picked up her glass of champagne. “We should go home, too. It’s getting late.”
If it were anyone else, he would have been happy for them to leave. But he rarely spent time alone with Shona—even if Nate was in the next room playing video games.
“You’re welcome to stay for longer. As soon as Adele’s head hits the pillow she’ll be asleep.”
Shona looked uncertainly at Adele and then at him. “If you’re sure it’s not too much trouble, I’ll stay for a little while longer.”
Breathing a sigh of relief, he held Adele’s hand. “Come on, pumpkin. Let’s get you into bed.”
It didn’t take long for Adele to wash her teeth and climb into bed. “Do you like Shona, Dad?”
His hands stilled as he pulled her blanket higher. “I do. How about you?”
“She’s really nice. Nate said Shona was sad after his dad died. Do you think she’s happy now?”
“Most days, she probably feels happy. It’s hard when someone you love dies. It leaves a little hole in your heart, and you don’t know if it will ever get better.”
“Did you have a hole in your heart after Mom left?”
“Your mom didn’t die, pumpkin. She moved to Australia.” Although, to Adele, it could have felt like she’d died with the lack of communication from Hillary.
“But did you have a hole? Charlie said his mom was really sad when she divorced his dad. But when his dad came back to visit, she wasn’t so sad anymore.”
“Maybe they talked about what was worrying them.”
“Charlie’s dad had a new girlfriend. Charlie said she’s a lot younger than his mom. Is Shona going to be your girlfriend?”
He was glad Adele had asked that question away from Shona. “I like her a lot, but I don’t want a girlfriend.” The lie stuck in his throat like runny honey.
“Why not? Mom married Duncan, and he looks a lot older than her. If you asked Shona to be your girlfriend, I wouldn’t mind.”
Joseph’s eyebrows rose. “You wouldn’t?”
“Nope.” Adele snuggled under the blankets and yawned. “Shona said she’d teach me how to make quilts. I’d like that.”
Gently, Joseph pushed a strand of hair away from her face. “What kind of quilt would you make?”
