“How did you lose your dad?” He sniffled.

“He was a firefighter. He died trying to save someone. He was a hero.”

“My dad didn’t die trying to save someone.”

“That’s okay. He’s still your hero, right?”

Heath nodded. “I guess so.” He scooted over, closing the foot between us, and wrapped his arms around my waist. I hugged him close and let him cry, possibly for the first time since his father had died.

~~Caroline~~

Because of my controlling nature and tendency to believe no one else could possibly know what to do in this situation better than me, my first inclination was to insist that I talk to both children. Mark had let me do all the hard parenting, while he’d been the fun parent. The fact that Easton wanted to help with the good and bad stuff was something I should encourage, not discourage, so I curbed my initial reaction and agreed to let Easton talk with Heath while I spoke with Hailey.

I opened the door. She was facedown, her head buried in her pillow, and her arms wrapped around the teddy bear Mark had bought her last Christmas.

I sat down on the bed and put my hand on her back. She jerked away. She was going to be a tough cookie. She’d been Daddy’s girl and had also been overly attached to her grandmother.

“I know you miss him, honey. I know this is hard. Easton doesn’t want to replace your dad. He just wants to be part of your life. He loves you too. It’s okay to like him. You’re not being disloyal. Your dad would want you to be happy first and foremost.”

Hailey shook her head and kicked her feet.

I sighed, wishing I had all the clever answers, but right now I was floundering. Hailey was crying again, her body shaking once more with sobs. I placed a hand on her back, and this time she didn’t pull away. I stroked her back and sang one of her favorite songs, “When You Wish Upon a Star.” Eventually, she was quiet, and I thought she’d fallen asleep.

She surprised me when she sat up and rubbed her eyes. She gazed up at me and blinked several times. Her expression was one of fear and sadness, but not anger.

“Oh, honey.” I pulled her into my arms and held her tightly. She hugged me back, still sniffling. “It’s all going to be okay. You have lots of people who love you.”

“I know.”

I stroked her hair and held her against me. She hugged me tight.

A few minutes later, we walked into the living room, hand in hand. Easton and Heath were completely immersed in a video game. Easton glanced up briefly and winked at me. I winked back.

I knew right then everything was going to be okay.

Chapter Thirty

Routines

~~Caroline~~

By mid-February, we were settling into a routine. Easton pretty much lived in our condo, and I wasn’t about to complain.