Page 117 of Lee

His hand rubbed up and down her arm, and for a moment, Rori wondered if she could just stay like that forever. But no… there was a little girl waiting for her to open her present.

She took a deep breath and straightened. Thankfully, Lee’s arm stayed around her as she quickly swiped at the moisture beneath her eyes.

“Are you ready?” Amelia asked, concern on her face.

“I certainly am.”

“Great!” The girl bent to pick up a flat package that was wrapped in bright pink Barbie paper. “This is from me.”

When she took it from Amelia, Rori could tell that it was a book of some nature. Placing it on her lap, she carefully unwrapped it.

Since it was still fairly light thanks to the long summer days, she could see right away that it was an adult coloring book of Bible verses, and along with it was a package of colored pencils.

“I like to color,” Amelia announced. “So I thought you might like to as well.”

Rori hadn’t done anything like that before, but she could see the appeal in it. “I think I will. Thank you so much, Amelia. It was very thoughtful of you. I’ll give you the first picture I color.”

That made Amelia beam as she turned to Layla. “Do you want to give her yours or can I?”

“You can,” Layla said.

The package that Amelia handed Rori was smaller than Amelia’s had been, and it was wrapped in pretty floral paper. “This is from Layla.”

Rori looked at the older girl and smiled as she took it. Once again, she was careful in how she unwrapped it. Once the paper was gone, she saw a flat, square box. Lifting the lid revealed a pair of drop earrings with a heart dangling from each of them and a dainty silver chain with a matching heart.

She only had one necklace and a set of earrings, and she wore them every day. Now that she’d been gifted more, Rori would have to remember to wear them, especially when Layla was around.

“Thank you so much,” Rori said, looking up at the young teen. “They’re beautiful. I can’t wait to wear them.”

“I couldn’t remember if you wore silver or gold.”

“Well, as it turns out, the few pieces I have are silver, so these are perfect.”

Layla’s smile grew, then she bent to give Rori a hug. “Happy birthday again.”

The love and affection Layla and the other kids had showed Rori was in direct contrast with how her own sisters and brothers had acted toward her when they’d been Layla’s age. Everything they’d done had been a reflection of their parents’ attitudes toward Rori.

Her own parents hadn’t shown Rori any love or affection, so their children hadn’t either. But here, all of the Halversons treated her kindly, and so, too, did their children.

“Here’s another present for you,” Amelia said, as she held out a large package.

It was a big package, but as Rori took it, she realized it wasn’t super heavy.

“Layla, I think you need to show Rori how we open presents around here,” Charli said with a laugh.

“Can I?” Layla asked Rori as she gestured to the present.

Uncertain, Rori glanced at Lee. He grinned and nodded. “Go for it.”

And boy, did she.

Strips of wrapping paper went flying as Layla ripped it open. Rori laughed as Amelia got in on the action. By the time Peyton had joined them, the wrapping paper was all gone.

In her lap, Rori now held a wonderfully soft blanket that would no doubt be cozy and warm come winter. Thankfully, she’d gotten a look at the tag before the wrapping paper had been demolished, so she knew who to thank.

By the time she finished unwrapping everything—with the kids’ help—Rori also had a new set of bath towels, a pillow that was fluffier than any she’d had before, and a double picture frame.

In the space on the left of the frame was a picture of Lee, his eyes sparkling with laughter, and on the right was a photo of her and Lee. Rori had no idea who had taken it, but they’d captured a moment when they’d been turned toward each other, smiles on their faces.

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