Chapter 8

I gasped as the garage door started to open and I saw a couple of objects glowing red, in the back, near the door into the kitchen. Like something you'd see in an old horror film when they broke into a pyramid. Or a newly discovered mummy, just after everyone's turned away and the camera's still on it.

"What's that?" I gasped.

"It's Posie," said Laurie. "She always waits for us when we get home."

Sure enough, the overhead light came on and there she was, sitting on the rug, waiting patiently. Her tongue was hanging out the side of her mouth and her tail was thumping on the garage floor.

"The first couple of times she just came bounding up to us," said John. "That dog's got no sense of how dangerous a moving car is."

"She just trusts you," I said.

"Not since I blasted the horn at her a couple of times."

As soon as Laurie cracked her door open, Posie was off like a shot. Laurie just had time to get out of the car and go down on one knee before Posie was licking her face as if it was still covered in ice cream.

John went back to the trunk while I helped Billy out of his car seat. I turned around and the girls were gone. I swatted Billy on the rump and he ran off toward the kitchen as I went back to help John with all the stuff we'd picked up.

The ice cream was in round cardboard containers, similar to some of the premium brands in the store but with plain cardboard sides. The containers were in foil lined bags. When I put them into the freezer, I popped the lid on the larger container and the ice cream inside was still frozen.

"They did a good job packing the ice cream," I said to John. "That was really nice of you to take everyone out."

"Oh, it wasn't anything special."

"John, you need to stop putting yourself down. What you did tonight was special. With the ice cream, making sure Jamie and her grandmother got a ride home, both tonight and the rest of the nights she'll go to the hospital and especially getting her the treatment she needs in the first place. Their lives would be a lot worse off if you didn't do the extra things you do and it's about time you admit it."

"I know. It's just that I'm able to do those things and it doesn't seem like such a big deal to me."

"Fine. Then say 'I'm glad I could do it' or something like that. But don't insult yourself and me by saying it's not a big deal when I thank you for it."

He looked at me for a couple of seconds, then he said, "Aye, Aye, Sir. And thank you."

He leaned over and put a hand on each side of my head, pulling me closer to him, then he kissed me on the top of the head.

"It's late and you've had a busy day. Good Night."

"Good Night, John."

He was already on the stairs. I turned off the lights and went up to the second floor. The hall light was on and John was coming out of Laurie's room. He looked at me and pointed inside.

"They're all in there."

He turned and went down the hall to his room.

I looked inside Laurie's room and saw that it was dimly lit with a nite lite. Posie was on her bed, looking at me with her tail going. I leaned over and rubbed to top of her head.

"Good Girl," I said.

All three kids were in Laurie's bed. She was up against the wall, Annette was next to her, her head on Laurie's chest and her left arm across Laurie and up against the wall. Billy was on the other side of the bed, facing away from the girls, his thumb in his mouth and his body slightly curled up.

I went over to them and straightened blankets that didn't need straightening, then kissed each of them on the forehead. Rubbing Posie again on the way out, I said, "Watch over them for me, Girl."

I went down the hallway to my new home. I brushed my teeth and washed my face, then changed into a nightgown. White cotton with pink flowers, down to just above my ankles.

I got the light and lay down in the big bed and scrunched down under the covers with just my face showing. I could still feel where John had kissed me on the top of my head. I went over how much my life had changed since I had Thanksgiving dinner at June's. Two things stood out. First, the kiss by John. My parents weren't into showing affection so up till tonight, Jerry was the only person who ever kissed me. He was my husband and I guess I loved him, but to be honest, Jerry only kissed me because he wanted something else. And when he found out he wasn't going to get it, that was the end of the kissing.

John's kiss was different. He was just showing affection or appreciation with it. I'm sure there wasn't anything romantic about it. But when he thanked me and then he kissed me, it felt good. I felt valuable. Something I hadn't felt for a long time and had been feeling a lot since I found his daughter and everybody else she was associated with.

The other thing that stood out was that I was all alone in this big bed. I thought about the three little ones piled on top of each other and obviously loving it. And I wished I had that closeness myself.

I woke up in the same position I was in before I fell asleep. On my back, hands holding the covers up to my neck. I felt warm and cozy.