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Is he wearing an apron?
I struggled up the three steps leading to the front door. Everleigh released my hand once we were standing in front of Carter.
He stepped closer and clapped me on my shoulder, the friendly slap jarring my ribs. “Let’s go inside before my neighbor sees us. She always has jobs for me to do.”
Puzzled by the warm reception, I stumbled after him. But my legs refused to move any farther when the kitchen came into view. Sofie was standing on a stool by the sink, dusting a liberal amount of powdered sugar on a cake sitting on the counter.
She looked up when she heard us approach. Her hair was longer, and she’d grown at least a few inches. But her cheeks were still as chubby as I remembered, and her eyes were mirror images of mine.
With a loud bang, the container she was holding to dust the cake tumbled to the floor, and she stared at me.
Lifting a hand, I gave her a tentative wave. “Hello, preciosa.”
Sofie got off the stool and ran up to Carter, hiding behind him. Her obvious distrust nearly brought me to my knees, pain lacing through me so sharp, I would fee the echo of it for a long time.
Carter shot me a grimace and put his hand on my daughter’s unruly hair. Bending down on one knee, he got eye level with my daughter. “Honey, don’t you want to see your dad? You tell me every day you want him to come back.”
Shaking her head, she leaned in and whispered in Carter’s ears. Pulling back, ruffled her hair. “He didn’t want to go away. But sometimes we don’t have a choice.”
“Sofie,” I said, my voice cracking. “I missed you so much. I’m so sorry for leaving.”
She made no move to come closer, instead leaning into Carter.
Everleigh stepped forward. “Hey Sofie, remember me?”
She nodded at Everleigh. “You’re Ever. And you said you’d play Uno with me again.”
Laughing, Everleigh took another step forward. “That’s right. You up for a game now?”
“I’ll get the cards,” Sofie called out, racing out of the room.
Carter got back up, facing me. “She’ll come around. This is a lot for her. She missed you every day. Asked for you all the time.”
I couldn’t respond, afraid my voice would waver.
Sofie came back, taking Everleigh’s hand but stopped when she noticed Santino hovering at the entry to the kitchen. She shrank back behind Everleigh’s leg, her excitement from seconds before replaced with wariness.
She’d never been good with strangers, though I thought she must have grown out of it from the way she greeted Everleigh. But maybe it was just Everleigh doing what she did best, putting everyone around her at ease, no matter the nightmare she’d endured herself.
Everleigh hugged Sofie to her side. “This is Santino. He’s a friend.”
But Sofie didn’t react.
Instead of forcing a response or getting frustrated, Everleigh took her hand and led her to the living room. “Maybe we can say hi later. How about that game of Uno you promised me?”
Sofie whispered something in Everleigh’s ear, which made Everleigh grin at me. “Of course your dad can play with us. If he dares.”
Not wanting to appear to eager I forced my steps to slow down instead of running into the other room.
Carter joined in as well, and we even convinced Santino to play. Turned out he was a terrible loser, his tantrums making Sofie giggle.
Everleigh had gone to the kitchen to help Carter with dinner, and Santino was outside, licking his wounds—and hurt pride—for losing to a seven-year-old, when I sat down with Sofie.
“Are you going to go away again?” she asked softly.
“Never again. I promise.”
I’d never had a problem talking to Sofie, but now the words failed me. Her constant chatter was also absent, my regret over leaving her growing with each silent minute we spent together.
