Chapter 58

fifty-eight

LIAM

I turned into Paul's driveway. For most of the night, I'd been tossing and turning, worrying about this morning. I was looking forward to seeing Amy again, to sharing one of the major milestones of her life. But I had no idea what was going on between Paul and me.

When Paul had called me yesterday with his new address, we chatted easily, as though I'd never been away. I still couldn't understand why he didn't want us to live in the same town. It wasn't as if I was the type of person who'd stop him from achieving his dreams. I would have given him the shirt off my back if it made his life easier. By now, he must know who I am and what's important to me. But maybe that wasn't enough.

I turned off the ignition and stared through the windshield. Perhaps coming back wasn't such a great idea.

The front door of Paul's house flew open and Amy rushed down the stairs.

"Liam! You're here."

Taking a deep breath, I stepped out of the truck and opened my arms wide. "Happy first school day."

Amy launched herself into the air, landing hard against me. "I knew you'd come. I've got everything ready. We made cookies last night and Uncle Paul made my favorite sandwiches."

I kissed the top of her head before placing her gently on the ground. "Let me guess…peanut butter and jelly?"

Amy's eyes widened. "How did you know?"

She was looking at me as if I was a magician who'd just pulled a white rabbit out of my hat. "Let me see…you had peanut butter and jelly sandwiches whenever you could. And when we had dessert, you chose raspberry jelly over everything else."

"I love peanut butter and jelly. Come inside. Uncle Paul's nearly ready."

I smiled as I stepped into the entryway. Dolly sat beside Amy's backpack, waiting for their big adventure.

Amy's gaze followed my eyes. "Uncle Paul said I could take Dolly to school. Do you think the other kids will laugh at me?"

"I don't know. They won't if they've brought special things from home."

"What if they haven't? Dolly goes everywhere with me, but Krista said school is for big girls." Amy's bottom lip trembled. Dolly had always been her safety blanket, the one thing she could count on when her world was falling apart. The thought of leaving her at home must be terrifying.

I frowned. "Who's Krista?"

"She lives next door. She's eight."

As hard as it was, I kept my mouth closed. Amy was close to tears. I hated to admit it, but Krista could be right. Children could be ruthless. Taking a rag doll to school could be asking for trouble, especially on your first day.

"I've got an idea. It's probably crazy, but I think Dolly will approve. Where are your crayons and paper?"

Amy took me into the kitchen. "Here they are." She opened a cupboard and showed me her art supplies. "But we need to go soon. I don't want to be late."

I checked my watch. "We've got ten minutes before we need to leave." I pulled out a sheet of paper and some crayons. "We can do this."

"What are we doing?"

"We're making something special." I waited for Amy to sit at the table before I told her my idea. With any luck, it would stop the other children from making fun of her.

Amy would be happy, and Paul wouldn't be stressing about his niece's first day at school. And I could go back to Jacob's house without planting listening devices in Amy's classroom.