Page 122 of The Manny

My stomach clenched because I knew her questions would be about Jules. I cleared my throat. “You can ask me anything, Mia.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“But… you said you didn’t want to talk.”

“I did?” I frowned.

“Uh, huh. When I first got here.”

I guess I had been reticent to talk to her about anything personal. Was that fair to her though? I was her only link to Jules, and she was mine too. It was natural she’d have questions. “I suppose I said that because sometimes I don’t like to remember things.”

“Cuz it hurts?”

“It can.”

“Because you were alone growing up?”

I grimaced. “I didn’t mind being alone.”

“Not even when Mommy left?” She peered at me over the top of the book.

Shrugging, I said, “I’ll admit, I was sad when she went away.”

“Did you want to go with her?”

I swallowed hard. “I… I didn’t know she was leaving until she was… gone.”

“Oh.”

“I didn’t blame her though.” I studied Mia’s serious little face. “Our daddy was… a bad man. He was especially awful to your mom.”

“What did he do?”

I shook my head. “If your mom didn’t tell you, I’m not going to.”

“He hurt Mommy?”

Wincing, I said, “Best not to think about that stuff, Mia. It’s the past.”

“Okay.” She fell silent, but she continued to watch me.

I patted her little legs and started to stand. “You should go to sleep.”

“Wait,” she said in a panicked voice. “I still want to talk.”

I hesitated, but then sat back down. “You do?”

She nodded.

Clenching my jaw, I forced myself to stay put. Mia obviously had things she needed to ask me, so I had to just suck it up. Talking would bring us closer, and that no longer seemed like a horrible thing to me. “What else do you want to talk about?”

“What was your mommy like?”

I winced once more. The kid really knew how to go for the jugular. “She wasn’t around much.”

“Was she dead?”

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