Allie’s jaw dropped. “Oh my God.”
“Where is she?”
“Ups
tairs.”
When I made it up the stairs, the kids were in the playroom, playing and giggling. I leaned against the wall and watched them for a few seconds, wanting to imprint the image onto my brain.
“Hey guys,” I finally said. “Can you go find your mom while I talk to Lizzy for a minute?”
“Mom!” Lizzy groaned. “We’re still playing!”
“I know, sweetheart. But this is really important, okay?”
“Fine.” She rolled her eyes as her cousins ran downstairs. “What is it?”
“Come here.” I gestured for her to come stand in front of me, and then I knelt so I was level with her. I smiled and smoothed her curls down. She had grown up so much that there were times when I forgot how little she still was. She was just a child, after all; she hadn’t even started kindergarten yet.
“Mommy,” she said with a frown. “What’s wrong?”
“Do you remember when you asked me about your daddy?” I said slowly.
She nodded. “Yes. You said he was a brave soldier. You said he was busy fighting for our country.”
“Right. He was. And he did that for a long time, but now he’s done. He’s retired and he’s here to meet you. Is that something you want?”
Lizzy frowned for a second and took a step back. She looked down at her shoes. “Am I going to live with him now?” she asked.
“No, honey,” I said quickly. “You’ll stay with me. I promise.”
She looked back up at me, her worried expression disappearing. “Is he nice?” she asked curiously.
I smiled. “Yes. He’s very nice. You’ll love him.”
“Okay. Then, I want to meet him.”
CHAPTER 25
Alicia
Zane walked up the stairs slowly, looking like he was heading for trial. His hands shook as he stuffed them nervously in his pockets.
“She doesn’t bite. You don’t have anything to be afraid of.”
“Yes, I do—if she’s anything like you.”
“Ha. Ha.”
Zane reached the top step and turned into the playroom. I walked up behind him and waited until Lizzy turned around to face us. When she did, her eyes went straight to Zane.
“Lizzy,” I said, “this is Zane. This is your dad.”
“Were you really a soldier?” she asked immediately.
I chuckled.
“Yes,” he said. “I was one of the Savage Soldiers. A pretty important one.”