Sunrise Point

on that melted Berry’s heart and when she touched it she said, “Ohhhhh.” So Nora put it on her. While Berry was a long way from letting her brand-new grandfather cuddle her, she did gently finger that butterfly and look up at him with a slight smile.
    He admitted that Susan helped with the shopping—there were even dishes and placemats for the girls. His gifts had not been extravagant. They were all necessities and he’d left the price tags on in case they should be exchanged. They were inexpensive, but so nice. And there was also a big bag of diapers, a case of formula, a box of wipes, a batch of bottles and sippy cups.
    Then he took them all to Jack’s Bar for Sunday night dinner and it was the first restaurant experience Berry and Fay had. But there could be no more perfect place because not only was the grill stocked up on high chairs, booster seats and mini-meals for children, but there were a number of families there, including Jack’s. Jack shook Jed’s hand excitedly. “Welcome,” he boomed. “I didn’t know Nora had family nearby—that’s great. Nora is one of our favorites around here, just so you know. She’s helped out at the clinic, at the new school—a real trouper. And this town is made of troupers.”
    A short time later Mel Sheridan came in with her kids and beamed when she saw Nora with her dad. Before even sitting down, she introduced herself and her children. “How fantastic you could visit! Nora’s become a good friend of mine. She reaches out to everyone, helping whenever she can—a godsend.”
    Nora had the strangest feeling of being normal, even admired. She hadn’t felt like that very often in her life.
    “And you thought I wouldn’t be proud of you?” Jed whispered.
    What she learned after six hours with Jed was that he was neither the perfect fantasy father she had hoped nor the beast her mother had tried to prepare her for. Reverend Kincaid would no doubt be hearing a lot about this later. Jed Crane was an intellectual, a success in his field, but he was clearly not a social dynamo. Those parenting and relationship skills he now had were probably developed during the time he spent with his girlfriend, Susan. When Nora was a baby and preschooler he was a gentle and attentive parent without an angry bone in his body, but he didn’t have the skills to deal with someone like Therese. In fact, Therese might have seen in him a man she could manage. If so, that would explain her many years of anger that he would leave her.
    He couldn’t protect Nora then. It was doubtful he could protect her now.
    But he had good qualities. He was sincere, for one thing. And unless he was a truly gifted psychopath, he wasn’t very deep emotionally. Nor was he malicious. And the way he acted toward Nora and the little girls was sweet and precious.
    He described his days; he could read for hours. He went to Germany or England or Poland for three months out of every year—he was a World War II scholar and had published two volumes and numerous papers on the war and the reconstruction after the war. He loved his field of study as much now as he had when he began his dissertation and had no desire to ever retire, however, his schedule was not strenuous, thanks to teaching assistants.
    When they were saying goodbye after a successful first family visit he said, “I’d be willing to help you with the girls if you need a babysitter on weekends when you work.”
    “With all due respect, I’ll need to know you better before that happens,” she returned.
    “Completely understandable. I’d like to come back for another afternoon, as soon as you’ll allow it. I’d also like to bring Susan sometime.”
    “Because she gives you credibility?” Nora asked.
    “Well, no. She does, though. I’d like to introduce you. I’m not that great at presentation—something you no doubt have noticed. But Susan? She’s a natural. She’s so good around people that it makes you wonder what she sees in me. When you say it’s okay, I’ll bring her along—she wants to meet you.”
    “You can bring her whenever you like,” Nora said. “But we’re sticking to just afternoons. Weekend afternoons.”
    “I can’t wait to tell her,” he said. And then when he smiled, it was as if he’d transformed. All his shyness seemed gone, replaced with confidence and happiness. “Thank you for this,” he said. “It was one of the best days of my life.”

Chapter Seven
    When Nora jumped in Tom’s truck