happened when I was older. I didn’t have to see my mom’s
crushed, broken body. I did watch my dad die a slow, horrible
death, but he was positive the whole way through. He wasn’t
just keeping up appearances for me. That’s truly the way he
was. We haven’t had the same experiences and we certainly
aren’t the same people. I guess what I’m saying is that…” Her
throat worked hard, and it was nearly impossible for Giana to
hold herself back when she watched Coralyn struggle. She
grasped the door harder, like she needed it to stay standing, but
she held herself together. “I guess what I’m saying is that we
can’t begin to be anything if you’re always going to shut
down. I want to be let in. I want kindness and laughter. I
appreciate that you’re here. You have no idea, Giana. I can’t
believe you came. But if I open this door and offer you
breakfast and believe me it’s not going to be roast caliber, it’s
only going to be because you want to move forward too.” She
blinked rapidly, and there it was, the crack of sunshine peeking
through the clouds in her eyes. “I think you’ve punished me
enough now to accept my apology.”
Giana found herself grinning widely. “I don’t think I’ll ever
have punished you enough, Coralyn Anderson.”
Coralyn groaned. “Maybe not, but there are different kinds
of punishments.”
“What if I can’t be that cheerful, bubbly, happy person that
you’ve invented in your dreams?” She very much doubted she
could. She might as well walk away now if that’s what
Coralyn was demanding.
It wasn’t. “I don’t need the person that I’d like to invent, or
even the person I married, who didn’t know any other way to
be. I just want you. The way I had you between the hours of