“Can we at least come back and visit him? I really like it here.”
Her eyes slide to mine for a brief second before going back to him. Her voice lowers when answers. “We’ll see.”
Her words send a spark to my chest. The thought of them possibly coming back has my stomach tightening in both anticipation and dread.
“You ready to go?” Jeremy asks, getting up from his chair and pulling his keys from his pocket.
Again, Gwen glances my way before looking at Jeremy. “We are.”
Gigi comes trotting into the kitchen and Daniel drops to his knees and hugs her around the neck. Gigi licks his face a few times, and when he pulls back, there are tears swimming in Daniel’s eyes. It makes my heart hurt, watching the exchange.
“I’m going to miss you, girl,” Daniel says gloomily. “Take care of your babies.”
With a sniff and a wipe to his nose, he climbs to his feet. I wait to see if Kelsey will say goodbye next, but she just keeps her head forward, not even looking at Gigi. Gwen scratches her head a few times and murmurs her own goodbye.
I push off from my perch against the counter and grab a couple of things off the bar as I pass by it. My feet feel like lead as I lead everyone to the front door. Gripping the knob with my hand, it takes me a minute to twist it and pull the door open. My jaw hurts from clenching it so tightly.
I turn around once we’re off the porch, and I’m pushed backwards a couple of feet when a small body barrels into me. Looking down, I see Daniel has his face buried against my stomach. My hands settle on his shoulders.
“I’m going to miss you,” he mumbles against my shirt.
I clear my throat, then say, “I’m going to miss you too.”
He pulls back and looks up with sad eyes. It takes everything in me to not drop to my knees and hug him and not let go.
“We can come back, can’t we?”
I glance over to Gwen to find her watching us. Unsure what to say, I repeat her words to him. “We’ll see.” When his face drops with disappointment, I hold out my hand to him. “I want you to have this.”
He reaches out and takes the wooden horse. “Wow,” he breathes. “This is so neat.”
“My grandfather made it for me when I was your age.”
He looks up. “Really?”
“Yeah.”
“Thank you!” He wraps his arms around my waist again. “I promise I’ll take good care of it.”
Gwen walks up and sees the small horse. “What do you have there?”
Daniel pulls back and thrusts his hand out, looking at the horse likes it’s worth a million dollars. “Alexander gave it to me. He said his granddad made it for him when he was my age.”
Gwen’s surprised eyes dart to mine. “Are you sure?”
I look down at Daniel and see the awe on his face as he looks at the horse. “I’m sure.”
“Thank you,” she says quietly.
My eyes go to Kelsey, who’s standing behind Gwen. I take a step toward her and hold out a notebook. Her eyes slide to mine before going to the notebook. Hesitantly, she reaches out and grabs it. Her eyes stay glued to it as she opens it to the first page, then the second, then the third. Gwen, who’s now standing beside her, gasps.
“You did this?” she asks, lifting her eyes.
I nod. “Yeah. I know her other crossword book is full, so….” I trail off.
“This must have taken you hours.”
Shrugging like it’s no big deal, which it really wasn’t, I say, “I spent a few hours each night on it. It didn’t take me too long.”