Page 9 of A Heart of Little Faith

When they got home, Lily sat to make a list of the things she had to get done the next day. She groaned to herself—this was one of the worst parts of being a single parent. There was no one to delegate the chores. Claire came in as she wrote the last item.

“Can you read me this book, Mom?” Claire plopped on the sofa next to Lily and handed her a library book. Lily cringed.Chicka Chicka Boom Boomwas one of Claire’s favorites. She took it out of the school library every week, and Lily had read it often enough she could do it with her eyes closed. It was her least favorite book and she was sick of it.

Then she had an idea. “Why don’t you read it to me,” she suggested.

“I can’t read this book, Mom. It’s not an easy reader,” Claire protested and pushed the book at her mom.

Lily gently pushed the book toward her, setting her jaw. “It’s not hard, and I’m sure you’ll remember the words that are harder to sound out since we’ve read it so many times.”

“What if I can’t do it?” she whined.

Claire’s whining set her teeth on edge, but she pushed through her distaste. “I’ll help you if you need it,” Lily reassured, “but why don’t you give it a try first.” Lily loved to read, and she was dying for Claire to feel the sense of accomplishment that came from reading something yourself.

Claire stared at the cover for a moment before she opened the book. She rubbed her palms along the page and looked at Lily for reassurance. With a nod, Lily encouraged her, holding her breath. She knew Claire could do it. Slowly, Claire tried the first words. At the end of the first page, grinned.

“I did it! I read the whole page!”

Lily hugged her, bursting with pride at the milestone. “I knew you could do it. You did a great job. Now why don’t you try the next page?”

Claire snapped the page and continued reading. Soon, she’d finished the whole book. She jumped off the sofa and twirled around as she chanted, “I read the book! I read the book!” Lily joined her, dancing. Soon enough, Claire sat down, turned to the beginning of the book and started over again. “Listen to me read it again, Mom,” she insisted.

This time, the repetition didn’t bother Lily. “Okay, but just one more time. I have things to do, and you have to get to bed.”

Claire read the book again and repeated it to herself while Lily tidied the apartment. As she left the room, her daughter become completely absorbed in the book, and Lily smiled with satisfaction.

Soon it was time to get ready for bed. By the time Claire finished her bath, brushed her teeth and straightened her stuffed animals, she could barely stay awake. “I had fun today, Mommy,” Claire said with a yawn as she went to bed.

“Me too, sweetie. Me too,” Lily replied. She kissed her on the head and turned out the light, wishing once again that Daniel was here to see this.

****

A deep, gravelly voice among a clatter of dishes greeted Lily the next morning as she and Claire entered Samantha’s apartment for their weekly Sunday brunch.

“Gideon’s here,” Claire whispered. Lily was at a loss for words. Her palms began to sweat. He was everywhere.

They entered the kitchen, and Gideon froze, gave them a brief nod and glared at his sister. The hot glare would have melted Lily into a puddle on the floor. But Samantha remained where she was and tipped her head at her brother. She greeted Lily and Claire with her usual hug. As Lily squeezed her friend and pecked her cheek, she glanced over Samantha’s shoulder. Gideon’s back was to them and he cooked at the stove. She didn’t know which burned hotter – the omelets sizzling in the pan, the sight of the man cooking, or his temper. His spatula made angry scrapes against the frying pan, his arm abrupt with circular motions through the eggs. Since when did he join them for brunch? Would their encounters always be this fraught with anger and confusion?Maybe we should leave.She sighed.

The noise made Gideon look up. His gaze skipped over Lily as his face reddened, and met Claire. “Hi, Claire.”

“Hi.” She remained by Lily’s side as she fingered her soft cotton pants and refused to meet his eye. His gaze softened as he watched her and he went over to set the table. “Would you mind getting me the napkins?” he asked her.

“Okay.” She took them off the counter and brought them over to him.

“Thank you. Samantha has some art paper and colored pencils around here somewhere,” Gideon said. “Maybe you can draw me a picture after we eat.”

Claire chatted to him about drawing rainbows and people and houses, her previous shyness all but gone. Lily didn’t say a word.Why is he ignoring me? What did I do now?She stood in the middle of the kitchen. Sweat trickled down her spine and her shoulders slumped. Words swirled around her, delicious aromas of bacon and eggs wafted through the air, but all she wanted was to melt into the floor. Despite the mouth-watering odors, the hunger she’d felt earlier abated. Before she could announce they were leaving, Samantha brought the eggs to the table.

“Okay, everyone, brunch is ready,” she said. The four of them sat and passed platters of food. Fluffy yellow omelets, crisp smoky bacon and fresh bagels made their way back and forth, and tempted everyone. “Gideon, your omelet looks amazing, as usual. Oh shoot, I forgot the salt. Gideon, you’re closest, can you get it?”

“I’ve got it, Samantha,” said Lily as she jumped up, happy for any reason at all to get out of the tense room. Normally an event she anticipated, today’s brunch would be excruciating if Gideon didn’t snap out of his mood.

“It’s okay, Lily.” Gideon kept his voice hushed, but his hardened stare froze her in place. “I’ve got it.”

Treating his sister like this was one thing. But doing it to her? No way. “While you’re up, can you get the orange juice too?” Forcing a bite of food into her mouth, she refrained from groaning. The omelet didn’t just look delicious. It tasted divine. A man with such a harsh attitude should not be able to make such a luscious meal. The buttery egg and cheese concoction melted in her mouth. Refusing to give him satisfaction, she chewed silently. Samantha covered a giggle with her napkin.

Gideon wheeled over to the refrigerator, maneuvered to swing open the door, retrieved the orange juice, slammed the door shut, picked up the salt off the counter and banged the juice and the salt on the table. “Would you like me to pour it for you as well?” His tone dripped with saccharine politeness.

“Why that would be lovely. Thank you.”Two can play this game.His shoulder brushed hers. The contact sent shivers along her arm and the clean scent of his aftershave tickled her nose. When he finished, she smiled at him. His jaw bulged from clenching his teeth. He returned to his place at the table, nostrils flared and fists clenched.