All three girls began reaching for his arms, trying to see where his henna tattoo was.
“Hey, get outta here,” he said, batting them away playfully. “Personal space!”
“Go on,” Julia urged. “Don’t be a sissy.”
Reluctantly, he pulled up his shirtsleeve, revealing a small brown animal. Pippa gasped. “A pony?”
Wendell scowled. “Not a pony! A horse. A big strong horse, like Raddy.”
Pippa was already howling with laughter. “No. It’s short and fat. It’s a pony! Wendell got a pony.”
Ginny couldn’t help it; she burst out laughing. The girls were beside themselves, and it was clear that Wendell was enjoying every second of it. In fact, she’d never seen him like this.
“Let’s go on the Ferris wheel,” she suggested. Before he could complain, the girls each grabbed one of his arms and dragged him toward it.
“You’re all going to be sorry!” he warned.
Toward the end of the night, the crowds thinned and the sky grew dark. Carnival rides and game booths blinked in neon as they made their way down the main strip. Julia, who’d gone off with some friends earlier, was meeting them at the exit gates. It was time to go home.
Pippa was so tired, Wendell had long ago picked her up and swung her over his shoulders. Now she slumped atop them, a half-eaten cotton candy in one hand, the other resting atop his head.
“There she is!” he said, pointing. Julia stood by the base of the Ferris wheel with a boy Ginny recognized from building the fence at Wendell’s house a few days earlier.
“Oh, oh,” Ginny whispered, leaning in. “Look at that.”
Wendell’s relaxed expression shifted. “Sam’s a good kid. But he’s standing too close.”
Ginny shrugged. “I think he’s fine. Besides, Julia’s the one who just reached for his hand.”
“What?” Wendell said, squinting into the distance.
“Relax, I’m kidding,” Ginny joked. She had to admit, Sam was cute. And she could tell by the awkward way they stood together that they liked each other. “To be young again,” she said softly.
When Wendell glanced at her sideways, she pretended she didn’t notice. But before they got any closer to Julia, she grabbed his hand and squeezed it, then just as quickly, she let it go.
“Come on, Julia,” he called, waving. “Time to go.”
Ginny almost added “home” but caught herself. She wondered what the girls thought of as home these days. And she wondered what it was about tonight that had almost made her say it out loud.
All night, Ginny couldn’t help but notice the looks they drew as they walked together through the fairgrounds. Saybrook was small, and although many of the people they passed smiled and waved to them, Ginny was sure they were at the heart of a lot of chatter. What did people think when they saw her walking with Wendell and the girls? What kind of picture did they paint?
She stole a peek at Wendell now, as he carried Pippa and listened to Julia’s excited chatter, noting the fatigue at the corners of his eyes. But also something else: the crinkle of happiness.
As they walked to the truck, Wendell asked both girls if they’d had fun.
“Yeah,” Julia said, glancing back at the carnival lights. “Tonight was a good one.”
Pippa nodded groggily from Wendell’s shoulders and murmured something incoherent.
With the bright lights and noise behind them, the sound of peepers began to fill in among the shadows. In the darkness, Ginny felt the warm press of a hand in her own. She glanced up at Wendell. “Tonight was a good one,” he said.
Thirty-OneRoberta
Jamie Aldeen’s call came early that morning. “The court appointed a guardian ad litem, and she’s meeting with all parties this week,” she explained, “but I could use your advice on something in the interim.”
From what she’d seen firsthand, Roberta had been truly surprised by how well it seemed to be going. Wendell was a good man with a good heart, she knew as well as anyone. But he’d shut himself off from so much for so long. Roberta had seen some wild things happen in the court over the years, but in her wildest dreams, she wouldn’t have predicted the series of events rapidly unfolding in his home. Now, hearing the concern in Jamie’s tone gave her pause. “I’m all ears.”
Roberta listened as Jamie explained her concerns. Julia’s file for emancipation was a two-part process. While her first wish was to be emancipated, her ultimate goal was to obtain custody of Pippa and to raise her. “As we’ve discussed, the emancipation is enough of a challenge. I don’t see the judge giving her full custody of her little sister. Despite her age of almost sixteen. Despite the family funds available to support them both and well. Not at age fifteen.”
