Page 113 of To Catch a Firefly

“At Grandma Cole’s,” he says, turning us onto the road. The sun hits my eyes, and I squint at the cornfields as we drive past. Brother kicks his foot in the seat next to me.

“What’s he doing at Grandma’s?” I ask.

Papa hums. “He had a lot of feelings this morning. He wanted to work on some glass.”

“What kind of feelings?”

Papa’s blue eyes meet mine in the mirror at the front of the car. “The good kind.”

“’Cause of your anniversary?” I ask. I heard Papa talking about it yesterday.

He smiles. “Yeah, Luna. Because of that.”

When we get to Grandma Cole’s, Papa unbuckles me, grabs Brother, and heads toward the house. I bounce on my toes, feeling antsy, but Papa catches my eye.

“We’ll go in a sec,” he says. “Let’s say hello to Grandma first.”

Grandma is waiting for us inside with a smile and a plate of fresh lemon bars. I eat one, legs kicking, as Brother walks around Grandma’s wheelchair.

“Watch your fingers,” Papa reminds him, but he doesn’t say anything back. He’s only one.

“How’re you doing, hon?” Grandma asks Papa.

He gives her a smile. “Good. Did Ellis stop by on his way through?”

She nods. “Of course he did. Had a big smile on his face, too. Ten years today, can you believe it? Happy anniversary.”

Papa looks like he has feelings, too. He squeezes Grandma’s arm. “Thanks. Do you want to come to the festival with us?”

Grandma shakes her head, reaching down to play with Brother’s hand. “Not this time. Cora invited me next door. Yourdad is cooking steaks on the grill tonight. I’m going to stick around for that.”

Papa chuckles. “All right. Grocery shopping tomorrow?”

“It’s a date,” Grandma says.

Papa’s eyes meet mine. “Ready?”

I nod, jumping down and licking the crumbs off my fingers. He picks up Brother as I give Grandma a quick hug. She tucks my hair behind my ear when I step back.

“These curls,” she says, sounding happy. “Just like your father’s.”

I look up at Papa. He’s smiling down at me.

“I got his eyes, too,” I tell Grandma. “That’s what Daddy told me.”

“That you did,” she says, pinching my cheek, but not hard enough to hurt. “Have fun today, sweetie. Bring me back some caramel corn.”

I promise, crossing my heart and everything, before running outside. Papa laughs from behind me, but he doesn’t tell me to slow down as I hop down the steps and race toward the silo. I hold my hand out as I go, but when the leaves on the corn stalks start to sting, I pull my palm back.

I stop running when I get to the silo. I stand inside the door and call for Daddy, letting him know I’m here because that’s the rule. He turns, smiling, and sets down the metal pole in his hand. When he walks my way, I run again, and then he’s hugging me.

My daddy is tall, and my feet dangle off the ground as he pulls me into his arms. He feels hot, like the fire, and he hums, the sound tickling my cheek.

“Hi,” I say, laughing as I squirm. “Did you get your feelings out? Papa’s here to take you to the corn festival.”

He chuckles. It’s one of my favorite sounds. Daddy doesn’t say much, but his laughs always sound nice.

“One minute,” he says, setting me down. I stay back from the fireplace as Daddy finishes up. I look around at all the colored glass to keep myself busy. It’s like a rainbow in here.

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