Page 36 of Wishing Hearts

Harrison looks at his daughter for a moment before saying, “Sure, Pumpkin.”

Winnie grabs my hand, giving me a strong tug, and, slightly bewildered, I follow her out of the kitchen. I glance back before we turn the corner, and Harrison is wearing some sort of expression I’m not sure how to decipher.

When we get to the entrance of the fort, Winnie drops my hand and climbs inside. I hold the sheet open, following her as Tigger brushes past me. The dog settles immediately on a big, flat pillow, and I let loose a “Woah.”

Inside the patchwork of strung-up sheets is a night-light of sorts, projecting soft yellow stars all along the walls and top of the fort. There are pillows and blankets covering the ground, and a few books stacked in one corner. Winnie takes a seat, legs crossed in front of her, and grabs a book.

“Do you like stories?” she asks me.

“I do,” I answer, deciding to lie down on my back instead of staying hunched over. The fort is pretty wide but not that tall. The pillows are plenty soft beneath me, though, and the stars flicker above as Winnie opens her book.

Without hesitation, she starts to read. She stumbles on a word every once in a while but always manages to correct herself, and I watch the little blonde girl, wondering how, in the span of a single evening, I’ve managed to find myself in such unexpected company.

“Sam,” she says, stopping suddenly.

“Yeah?” I ask, hands folded on my chest, head turned her way.

“Are you and Daddy friends?”

I don’t know exactly how to answer her. I want to be more than that, and I think there’s a good chance Harrison and I are headed that way. But this does complicate things, the fact that Harrison is a single parent. The fact that he didn’t tell me.

In the end, I answer her as truthfully and simply as I can. “Yeah, we’re friends.”

Winnie nods slowly at that, eyes on her book. “Does that mean we’re gonna be friends?”

My lips pull at the corner. “Well, I dunno. D’you wanna be?”

She ponders that for a long moment. “I’m not sure yet.”

“That’s all right,” I tell her.

After a moment, she says, “If I’m your friend, will you bring me more cake?”

I huff a laugh. “I could do that.”

“Okay,” she replies, voice like a whisper.

“Okay, then.” When Winnie doesn’t say anything else, I bop her knee. “How about we finish that story? I wanna know how it ends.”

Winnie nods and continues to read, and I look up at the blanket of stars shimmering all around us. Spotting one that’s brighter than the others, I make a wish.

Chapter 11

Harrison

When I find Sam and Winnie in the living room, they’re inside Winnie’s fort. Sam’s feet are sticking out of the end, and the sight is so damn endearing, I have to cover my mouth, lest I let some sort of sound escape.

My hands are shaking slightly, adrenaline still heightened like it’s been ever since Sam arrived. The moment I saw him on my doorstep with that big smile and those warm, brown eyes, my gut swooped, and I knew I’d made a mistake.

Just not the one I thought I had.

I’m glad Sam wasn’t upset that I didn’t warn him about Winnie. Glad he didn’t hoof it out of here the moment he found out. But most of all, I’m glad he called me on it. Because it was an insensitive fucking thing to do, inviting him over here without preparing him for what he’d find.

He has every right to be mad at me. Maybe that’s even what I wanted. I can’t lose the man if we’re never in a relationship to start with, right?

But Sam… No, Sam is inside my daughter’s fort, feet sticking out because he’s too tall, voice quiet and rumbly as he tells Winnie he liked her book. He didn’t run.

I clear my throat. “Winnie, it’s time to get ready for bed.”

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