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“I’m sure he does, Sean,” Sheila agreed, silencing Noah with her eyes. “And I don’t intend to change that.” Knowing that Noah was about to break in on the conversation, and hoping to avoid another confrontation, Sheila changed the topic. “Emily made some brownies for you earlier, but she must have forgotten them with all of the excitement about fishing.” She rose from the table and began putting the chocolate squares on a plate. Noah entered the room, but Sheila ignored him. “Why don’t you take this into Emily—cheer her up?”
“Do you think she’ll want to see me? She might be sleeping or something.’”
“She’s awake,” Noah stated. “I just left her, and believe it or not, I think she’s hungry.”
Sean grabbed the plate of brownies and, balancing them between two glasses of milk, left the kitchen in the direction of Emily’s room. Without asking if he wanted any, Sheila poured Noah a cup of coffee.
“How’syourleg?” Noah asked, eyeing Sheila skeptically.
“Never better. I cleaned it and it’s okay. A little of the skin is scraped off, that’s all.”
Noah took an experimental sip from his coffee as he looked dubiously at her white slacks. “Did Dr. Embers look at it.”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“I told you I cleaned it and bandaged it. Look, it’s really no big deal.”
Noah didn’t look convinced. “I’m just sorry that you and Emily had to suffer because of Sean’s neglect.”
“Noah, please. Don’t blame him. He’s just a child himself.”
“He’s sixteen and has to learn responsibility some time. He should have been more careful.”
“He knows that—-don’t reprimand him. It would be like rubbing salt into his wound. He feels badly enough as it is.”
“He should.”
“Why? Because he was careless? Noah, accidents will happen. Give the kid a break, will you?”
Noah set his cup down on the table and walked over to the sink. For a few silent moments he stared out the window into the night. “It’s not just the accident, Sheila. It’s his attitude. You were there the night he came home drunk. It wasn’t the first time.” He breathed deeply and tilted his head back while squinting his eyes shut. “He’s in trouble at school and I’ve even had to pick him up downtown. Since he’s a minor, he hasn’t been in jail, but he’s been close, damned close. He missed a couple of probation meetings, and so now he’s walking a very thin line with the law.”
“A lot of kids get into trouble.”
“I know. I should count myself lucky that he doesn’t use dope, I guess.”
Sheila approached Noah and wrapped her arms around his waist. How long had he tortured himself with guilt for his son? “Sean will be all right, Noah. I’ve seen more kids than you’d want to count in my job, some easier to deal with than Sean, others more difficult. Sean will come through this.”
He put his large hands over hers, pressing her fingertips into his abdomen. “Why did you let him lie to you?”
“About what?”
“His mother. You know how I feel about Marilyn.”
“Sean probably does, too. But he can’t admit it to me, not yet. He still considers me a threat.”
“I think you’re reading more into this than there really is.”
“Adolescence is tough, Noah, or don’t you remember? Add to that the fact that Sean knows his mother rejected him. It makes him feel inferior.”
“Lots of kids grow up without one parent . . . even Emily.”
“And it’s hard on her, too,” Sheila sighed against his back.
Noah turned around and faced her. One hand pushed aside her hair as he studied her face and noticed the thin lines of worry that dimmed her smile. He pressed a kiss to her forehead. “You’re a very special woman, Sheila Lindstrom, and I love you.” He traced the edge of her cheekbones with his finger. “It’s times like these that I wonder how I managed to live this long without you.”
Sheila warmed under his unguarded stare. “I guess you must have a will of iron,” she teased.
