Emma's Secret: A Novel

shot from one corner of the room to another before resting back on her. She caught the way his fingers turned white as he clutched the coffee mug. Good. Maybe now he understood. Maybe now he would listen to her.
    “You what?” His voice lowered about ten decibels, the anger she’d read on his face clear in his tone. No, he didn’t understand.
    “I wanted to see. I called her name a few times and didn’t get a response. So I called her Emmie.” Megan toyed with her coffee cup, turning it in circles. “That’s all it took, for her to hear her old name. It scared me.”
    Peter’s brows shot up. “Scared you? What do you think you did to her? How do you think she must have felt to realize you called her by that other name?” Peter stood, his chair scraping along the floor again as he pushed it back.
    “What is wrong with you? What will it take for you to be happy?”

CHAPTER FIVE
    A ugust 5
    I burned the bread again today. I never do that. It’s the second time this week. Such a waste.
    I laid Emmie down for her nap and fell asleep with her again. She doesn’t like to take many naps; sometimes I have to read her more stories than I prefer before she’ll settle down. Today I had to threaten to turn off her fairy lights if she didn’t fall asleep.
    Jack brought her home some balloons today. I made him use the tire pump we used to use for Mary’s bike. I swear, that man is so stubborn sometimes. What does it matter if he blows up the balloons with his lips or with a pump? She has this fascination with red balloons—says they look better in the sky. For a girl who prefers pink, yellow, and white, I would never have thought she’d want only red balloons. Good thing the bag had plenty of red ones; otherwise, knowing him, he’d have gone back into town to buy more.
    Jack commented that I’ve been more tired lately, so he made an appointment with Dr. Stewart. Meddlesome old fool, but he won’t listen to me. I’ve always been healthier than I should be for my age. Perhaps raising a child is catching up to me. There are times I don’t understand how Mary could do this to me—have a child and never tell me, her mother. Emmie is a sweet girl, so I know Mary did something rightdespite her addiction, but that child of mine never thought of the consequences. She never did. It was her one big fault.
    I blame myself. Mary always blamed me too.

    Peter leaned against the doorway into the living room. He could never get enough of the image before him: their family complete again after so much time. He choked up and softly cleared his throat, not wishing to disturb the scene.
    A movie played while Hannah sat on a beanbag chair, her back against the couch and her long legs stretched out in front of her. She was going to be tall; he could see it. Alexis was sprawled on the couch, her back against the corner of the sectional with her legs crossed and a large bowl of popcorn in her lap. Emma sat in Peter’s favorite chair, the drawing pad he’d bought her last week against her bent knees. Her tongue was stuck out, a sure sign of concentration. Every so often, she’d reach down with her free hand and grab a piece of popcorn from a bowl beside her. Not once did he catch her watching the movie.
    That didn’t surprise him, though. From what he understood, she didn’t watch a lot of television at the farm. They sheltered her, and a part of him was thankful for that. She remained a sweet little girl, full of innocence and love.
    She must have noticed him watching her. She lifted her gaze, her soulful eyes measuring him—something he’d noticed her doing lately. It was unnerving. What did his five-year-old see in him? Did he measure up? Somehow, he didn’t think so.
    “Come sit beside me, Dad.” Alexis moved her legs to make room. Peter smiled at Emma, who watched as he crossed the room.Hannah stuck her hand out for a high five. He went to smack her hand, but she quickly lowered it in a fit of giggles.
    “Hey, no fair,” he teased her before pretending to sit on Alex. They had a mini tickle fight without spilling the popcorn before Peter repositioned her legs over his. He nudged Hannah with his foot until a slight smile appeared.
    “So what are we watching?”
    Alexis sighed before pointing to the screen. “A movie about a dragon, duh.” The sarcasm in her voice was overwhelming. Typical Alexis.
    “Haven’t we already seen this?”
    “Only like a thousand times. But there’s nothing else on,” Hannah