“For a little while.”
“Will you come back?”
The question was simple. Her trust was not.
I looked at Daniel.
He waited without answering for me.
“I’ll try,” I said.
Emma considered that. “Trying is good. Daddy says trying is how people learn.”
She took the star from Mrs. Alvarez and held it out to me.
“Can you put it up?”
I walked into the room.
Daniel moved the footstool beneath the tree while I climbed carefully. The star was lighter than I expected. I placed it at the top,
