Don't Be Afraid
Page 36
“You’ve got classes today, right?” Ash said suddenly.
Mark looked up. “Yep. All day. Why?”
“Your mom called while you were in the shower. She left a message.” He got up from the table and walked into the tiny kitchen to refill his coffee.
Mark got up and hit the button on the answering machine. His mother’s voice filled the room, sounding hesitant. “Hi, it’s Mom, um, I mean, Elena.” She cleared her throat and Mark grimaced. “I know this is last-minute notice, but I decided to hold a family dinner party tonight to celebrate your father’s success—wait until you hear him, he is doing lots of talking. Anyway, I was hoping that maybe you, that is you and your . . . er . . . you and Ash would like to come.”
Mark’s mouth fell open and he turned to look at his partner. Ash had his arm wrapped around his own waist and his head ducked over his coffee cup.
“Did you hear that?” Mark said.
“Yeah.” Ash avoided his eyes.
Mark walked over to him. “So what do you think?” he said gently. “Do you want to go?”
Ash lifted his head, his eyes now wide with surprise. “Really?”
Mark smiled. “Really.”
Amy hustled Emma into her light jacket and set the security alarm before carefully closing and locking the door behind them.
“Who’s going to meet me after school, Mommy?”
“I am.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yep.”
“But what if you have to show a house?”
“I won’t.”
“So I’ll see you after school?”
“Yes. And I know, don’t—
“—be late!” They finished together. Emma giggled. She did this little question-and-answer every morning. It was obviously a comfort ritual and Amy would continue to offer that security as long as it was needed.
She strapped Emma into her car seat and walked around to the driver’s side, pausing to admire the tulips and daffodils the warm weather had finally forced up from the flowerbeds. This was her handiwork and it bordered her small frame house beautifully. Her house. Hers and Emma’s. It had taken some time, but it finally felt like home.
“We’re going camping with Ryan this weekend, right?” Emma asked as Amy drove down the block.
“Right.”
“Do you think he knows how to skip rocks?”
Amy smiled. “If not, I’ll bet you could teach him.”
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