Page 22 of Ruined
I tilted my head to the side. With a squint I pretended to study the image a bit more. “Well,” I finally said. “You have some great coloring skills. How ‘bout we grab pancakes from the diner before school?”
“Pancakes! Yay.”
While Molly rushed to get ready, I was still staring at the drawing in my hand, her question to Zoe ringing in my ears. ‘Can you teach me?’ When Molly had first shown an interest in painting, coloring, and drawing I’d searched for someone to help her hone her skills. There was nobody in Willow Creek able to do it. What if—
“I’m ready!”
Dropping the paper to the floor, I pushed to my feet. “Really? Did you brush your teeth?”
Flashing a toothy grin, Molly nodded. “Mmm hmm,” she opened her mouth and blew out a breath. “Smell, it’s minty.”
With a chuckle, I strode to her. “Come on, smartypants, let’s go.”
There were about two seconds of silence in the truck before Molly spoke, “Daddy, Miss Zoe is Miss Kenzie’s friend, right?”
After a quick sideways glance, I answered, “She is.”
“Do you know how long she’s visiting?”
I knew where this was going, and I didn’t like it. “Why?”
“I dunno,” Molly shrugged.
“Mols.” As much as I didn’t want to hear the question, I would hate it even more if my daughter thought she couldn’t ask me anything.
She took her time, possibly deciding whether she wanted to ask me at all. It bothered me that it was something she had to think about, but I knew where her hesitation came from. When she’d brought up the subject on the way home last night, I’d shot it down without even listening.
She might have said, “I really want to learn how to draw pictures as pretty as the ones we saw yesterday,” but my ears heard,‘Can Zoe teach me to draw and you how to feel.’
How could I explain to my daughter not only did we know zip about this woman and her reason for being in town, but the way my mind and body reacted around her scared the shit out of me? I couldn’t; that’s why I reached over and gave her knee a gentle squeeze. “I’ll see what I can do.”
