Page 8 of Soldier's Chrismas Hope
“I’m River,” he told her, before Nora could make introductions. “And you must be Penelope.”
“Yes, but everybody calls me Pixie because I’m small for my age,” she said, thrusting out her little hand.
To his credit, River didn’t hesitate to take her hand and shake it firmly.
“Very nice to meet you, Pixie,” he said. “I’m an old friend of your aunt’s.”
John-John was approaching shyly now. It was clear that he liked the hand shaking, but wasn’t sure about interacting with someone new.
“This is my brother, John,” Pixie said. “But he’s called John-John. I’m not really sure why.”
“It’s because of you, Pixie,” Nora said, smiling at the memory. “When you were small, you liked his name so much that you always said it twice.”
John-John was so tickled at this new information that he promptly started chuckling and marching around the living room repeating his own name, so that he forgot all about shaking hands.
“Come on, John-John,” Pixie said. “We’d better put our stuff away so we can finish making dessert.”
That stopped the little boy’s laughter instantly. He was serious about his desserts. The two of them hurried off down the hall with their water pistols.
“They’re amazing,” River said softly, watching after them with the fondest smile on his handsome face.
She felt her heart squeeze at the idea someone else could see past the chaos to enjoy the kids just as they were.
“I’m really glad you came to visit,” she told him, wondering what was going on.
“I just heard what happened,” he told her.
“What is it?” she asked, suddenly worried that maybe something had happened to Edward. Just because theyweren’t together anymore didn’t mean she had stopped caring.
“You brought the kids home,” River said, looking stricken. “And heleft.”
Oh yeah. That definitely happened.
But it had been almost six months now. She guessed that if River had just come home from the Army, maybe it made sense that he was only finding out now. She also realized that it meant that Edward had never even bothered to tell him.
Nora wasn’t sure why that hurt so much, but it did.
“He never wanted kids,” she said calmly, repeating the words she had told herself time and time again, knowing that anger and sadness wouldn’t help her move forward. “He was clear about that from the beginning.”
“You didn’t do this on purpose, Nora,” River said, looking scandalized. “And they’re wonderful. How could he possibly say no to them?”
“He was gone before I brought them home,” Nora explained, feeling grateful for about the thousandth time that Edward had left so quickly. It had meant one less adjustment for the children. “But please don’t talk about all this in front of them.”
“Of course not,” River said, his eyes solemn. “And I want you to know that if there’s anything you need, I’m here.”
So many people had said those words. But somehow when River said them, shebelievedhim.
“Oh, we’re fine,” she told him automatically, like she told everyone. “Just figuring it out one day at a time.”
River nodded, but he didn’t look convinced.
Smart guy,she thought to herself.
Of course she and the kids weren’t fine. They had a long road ahead of them through grief and into accepting the life they now shared. But she appreciated that he wasn’t going to try and tell her how to handle it. Her parents were the only ones she really confided in, and they were full of dour predictions and micromanaging advice.
“The blasters are in the bathroom,” John-John panted as he sprinted back down the hallway. Pixie trailed him, letting him win the unofficial race.
“Would you like dessert and maybe some tea or coffee?” Nora asked River, realizing as she said it that she really hoped he would agree. “I can heat you up some dinner too, if you haven’t eaten. We had spaghetti, so it’s nothing fancy.”
