Page 36 of A Heart of Little Faith
All the air left his lungs. “I’m not mad at you, Claire. I know it was an accident. Do you think you could help me clean it up?”
Claire jumped off his lap, and led him into the living room. Together, they discarded the lamp and moved the table into place.
“Will you put the chair back where you found it, Claire?”
“Okay. But this time I’m going to push it. It’s too hard to steer.” And she pushed it into his office.
“Now, why don’t you tell me what you want for dinner?” His hands shook from relief.
Afterward, they played board games and drew pictures. Gideon showed her how to draw a castle, and Claire spent almost an hour cutting out princesses and princes for it. Lily arrived when she finished.
“Hey guys? How’re you doin’?” Lily leaned to give Claire a hug. She caught Gideon’s eye and smiled. Her eyes resembled moss today—cool and deep. Her lips were full and curved and moist, and he could taste their sweetness in his mind. He wanted to drag her onto his lap and give her a proper kiss.
“Claire, can you go put those things away for me?” As the girl complied, he told Lily about Claire and the wheelchair. “I didn’t handle it well, and I’m sorry. I realize now I shouldn’t have yelled at her, but the image of her sitting there…” He searched for the words to explain how he felt. His throat constricted and his mouth dried up. He gulped and shook his head, unable to form the words.
“It’s okay, Gideon. I understand.” She touched his shoulder, her warmth permeating his shirt. “Can I pay for the lamp though?”
He shook his head. “It was ugly anyway. Don’t worry about it.”
“Listen, about last night.”
“What about it?” He wasn’t going to tell her how seeing her with Tony made him feel. If she wanted to spend time with him, well…
Before she could respond, Claire ran in and hugged her.
“It was fun playing with you today, Claire,” he said, grateful for the distraction. “Lil, Claire and I talked about her coming to the center again one day after camp. What do you think?”
“Please Mommy, please?” Claire begged.
“I think that would be great. Give me a call and we’ll set it up.”
Claire climbed on Gideon’s lap and hugged him. “I had fun today Gideon. Bye!”
Lily mouthed a thank you, and shut the door, but not before he saw regret in her eyes.
****
Once again, Lily waited for the phone to ring; only this time, it was for Tony.
By Wednesday morning, she still hadn’t heard from him. She’d spent two sleepless nights driving herself crazy as she tossed in bed. Each morning, her bed looked like a cyclone hit it—her sheets bunched up, her blanket half off like some lounging harlot. She dismissed her resolve to be patient, never a strong suit with her anyway, as she entered the office, closed the door and reached for the phone. As she was about to dial Tony’s number, it rang. She jumped and answered before the ring finished.
“Lily Livingston,” she squawked.
“It’s Tony. They got them.” His voice was scratchy, etched with relief.
Lily sank into her chair in relief. The tension in her back and neck loosened and she felt supple again. “Really? Who was it?”
“I couple of young guys posing as handymen in different buildings. They’d case the apartments, figure out which ones were the easiest to target, and make off with as much stuff as they could.”
“Why’d they pick mine?” If these guys thought she was an easy target, who else agreed with them? Would it happen again?
“Actually, yours was a mistake. They thought you had more valuables than you did. And, it turns out they left the most evidence in your apartment, so the cops were able to catch them quickly.”
“Oh, that’s just great. Now, how come no one called me?” She drummed her fingers on her desk in annoyance as she remembered how worried she’d been.
“The cops are busy collecting evidence, waiting for lawyers, and wrapping up their investigation,” Tony reassured her. “I know one of the detectives on the case, so he gave me a heads up a little early. They’ll be calling you shortly. The important thing is, it’s over.”
Lily agreed and a huge weight lifted from her shoulders.