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"Because he's a butthead, and I hate him."
Ethan had been counseling troubled people for years, and he forced himself to detach so he could rephrase the boy's words. "Sounds like you don't like Gabe too much."
Edward shook his head vigorously. "My mommy shouldn't like him either."
Ditto to that, buddy. "I guess it upsets you that your mother likes him."
"I told her she can touch me instead, but she said she wants to touch a grown man, too."
I'll just bet she does. Especially a grown man with a hefty bank account and a casual attitude toward his money.
"I even said you'd let her touch you, Pastor Ethan, but she said you was my friend and Gabe was hers, and she said she wanted to kiss him and I had to stop hitting him."
Kissing him? Hitting him? It took a moment for Ethan to figure out which question to ask. "You were hitting Gabe?"
"I jumped on his back when he was kissing her, and I kept hitting him with Stellaluna
till he let her go."
If he'd been hearing this story about anyone else, he would have been amused, but not about his brother. He knew he shouldn't ask, but he couldn't help it. "Where was Gabe when you jumped on his back?"
"Squishing my mommy."
"Squishing her?"
"You know. On top of her. Squishing her."
Damn.
Edward's brown eyes filled with tears. "He's a bad man, and I want you to make him go away, and I want you to let my mommy touch you instead."
Ethan pushed aside his own concerns and moved to the couch where he slipped his arm around the boy's shoulders. "It doesn't work that way with grown-ups," he said gently. "Your mom and Gabe are friends."
"He was squishing her!"
Ethan forced himself to speak evenly. "They're grownups, and that means they can squish each other if they want to. And Edward, that doesn't mean your mom doesn't love you just as much as always. You know that, don't you?"
The child thought it over. "I guess."
"You might not be getting along with Gabe right now, but he's really a good person."
"He's a butthead."
"He's had some bad things happen to him, and it makes him grouchy, but he's not bad."
"What bad things?"
Ethan hesitated, then decided the child should know the truth. "He had a wife and a little boy he loved very much. They died in an accident a while ago. He's still very sad about it."
Edward didn't say anything for a long time. Finally, he slid closer and let his head slump against Ethan's chest.
Ethan rubbed the boy's arm and thought about the mystery of God's ways. Here he was comforting the son of a man he'd despised and a woman he disliked, so why did he feel comforted himself?
"Gabe really is my brother," he said quietly. "I love him very much."
The child stiffened, but didn't draw away. "He's mean."
It was difficult for Ethan to fathom how his gentle brother could be unkind to this precious little boy. "I want you to think really hard. Isn't there anything nice Gabe has done for you?"
