Page 35 of Happily Ever After

Essie closed her eyes and exhaled, her heart full of longing.

The service ended quietly with prayer and a hymn of invitation.

Afterwards, people stood and gathered their things. Purses, bulletins, and Bibles. Their voices were low and polite as they moved toward the aisles. Essie waited, letting the first wave pass, then slid out of the pew with Sophie beside her. They walked down the center aisle together, Sophie just slightly behind her.

Outside, the air was warmer than it had been earlier, the sun fully up and shining down on them. The parking lot buzzed with conversation, doors opening and closing, engines starting. Essie smiled at a few people, waved at a few others, but avoided getting into any conversations that would require her to introduce Sophie. All because she knew Sophie wouldn’t like that.

Essie unlocked the car and paused before getting in.

“Would you like to go to lunch?” she asked. She kept her tone casual, like it was no big deal. “Just the two of us.”

Sophie hesitated, her hand still on the car door. She looked out across the lot, not really seeing anything.

“I’m not very hungry,” she said.

“That’s okay,” Essie replied. “We can keep it simple. Soup or a salad. Or just sit for a bit.”

Sophie considered that. Essie waited, resisting the urge to try harder.

“Okay,” Sophie said finally. “We can go.”

Essie nodded, careful not to show how much that meant to her. “All right.”

They got into the car. Essie pulled out of the lot and turned toward the road that led into town. She talked about traffic, about the new café that had opened near the square, about nothing in particular.

Sophie said nothing, just stared out the window, her arms crossed loosely now instead of tight against her chest.

Essie kept driving, hands steady on the wheel.

Essie chose the small café near the square, the one with the mismatched chairs and the chalkboard menu that changed from week to week. Frank loved the place, mostly because their key lime pie was homemade.

Essie ordered the lunch special of tomato bisque and half a grilled cheese. Sophie asked for the same, then added a lemonade. Essie asked for one, too. They sat by the window, sunlight coming in at an angle that caught dust in the air and made the light feel soft.

For a few minutes, they didn’t say much.

The lemonades arrived and Essie watched Sophie give hers a stir, flecks of pulp whirling around with the ice.

“The service was nice, don’t you think?” Essie asked. “Pastor John is so easy to listen to.”

Sophie didn’t say anything, just sipped her lemonade and looked lost in her own head.

Talking would come when Sophie was ready. Or maybe it wouldn’t. Essie knew that was a possibility. Didn’t stop her from wishing differently.

Their food arrived. Steam rose from the bowls, the smell of tomatoes and basil familiar and comforting.

Essie said grace, then picked up her sandwich and dipped the end into the soup.

Sophie spread her napkin on her lap, tasted her soup, then put her spoon down and looked up. “I’ve been thinking,” she said. Her voice was quiet, but filled with resolve.

Essie nodded, ready for anything. “Okay.”

“I want to have the baby.”

Essie almost gasped. If this wasn’t an answer to prayer, she didn’t know what was. A rush of feelings rose up in her: joy, relief, gratitude, love. But she didn’t let any of it spill out of her just yet. This wasn’t her moment.

And she did not want to shut Sophie down again. She nodded and reached for her napkin, spreading it across her lap as Sophie had done. “All right,” she said. “That’s wonderful.”

Sophie watched her carefully, as if waiting for Essie to say something she didn’t like.