Healing Hearts (New Hope Falls #6) - Kimberly Rae Jordan Page 0,17
for lying…even though he had rarely actually told a lie. Sometimes, he’d given the answer he thought the person had wanted to hear, and then gotten into trouble for it. Other times, he told the truth, but some of the older children in the compound would make it seem as if he’d lied.
“He doesn’t know how to read yet,” Sophia said. “But we’ve read this story together so often that he has it memorized.”
“That’s amazing, Bryson. Most children your age couldn’t remember all those words. You did a great job.”
Bryson’s shoulders relaxed slightly, but he’d had a bait and switch played on him too often for him to take Ryker’s words at face value.
“It’s great that you love books and that your mom reads to you,” Ryker continued. “I’m sure you’ll be reading on your own in no time.”
Sophia thought the same, and she’d told Bryson that whenever he got frustrated that he couldn’t read all the words in a book. That usually happened when she was tied up with something else and couldn’t read to him when he wanted. Usually he was willing to watch kids’ shows on television in the meantime, but she didn’t want him glued to the TV.
“Do you have other books that you know the words for?”
Bryson nodded. “Short ones.”
“Maybe next time I come, you can read me one of those, okay?”
Sophia had no idea why Ryker was going the extra mile with Bryson, but she was super grateful for it. Hopefully this would help Bryson get over his fear of Vivianne leaving with Ryker each afternoon.
“I’d better go,” Ryker said, leaning forward to put Vivianne into the car seat. “Michael might be wondering where we are.”
“Thank you for coming inside,” Sophia said. “You didn’t have to stay this long.”
Ryker glanced up at her as he strapped Vivianne in. “It wasn’t a problem. If I can help alleviate a child’s fear, it would be wrong of me not to do it.”
“Do you have kids of your own?” she asked, unable to contain her curiosity.
“Nope, but I do have a niece and nephew that I enjoy spending time with. Though they’re a bit older that Bryson.” Ryker got to his feet and lifted Vivianne’s car seat, then took the diaper bag from Sophia.
If he was that way after just dealing with a niece and nephew, then he had a bit of a natural affinity with children. Too bad not all men had that.
She and Bryson followed him to the door, then after he said goodbye, they watched him walk to his truck. Bryson’s hand tucked into hers, and she looked down at him, hoping she wouldn’t see fear or worry on his face this time around.
“I think Vivi will be okay, Momma,” he said.
With a rush of relief and not a small amount of gratitude, she smiled at him. This was definitely the answer to prayer she’d been hoping for. “Yes, baby. I think she will be.”
“Can we have pancakes for supper?” he asked as she closed the door.
“Let me guess. You want peanut butter and bananas on them.”
He grinned at her then, something he hadn’t done much since Ryker had started picking Vivianne up.
“Just remember, if you have peanut butter and bananas for supper, you can’t have them for a snack.”
He seemed to consider that before saying, “still want pancakes.”
“And you’re going to help me, right?”
“Of course, Momma. You need my help.”
That was something else he’d started doing since they’d come home to New Hope. For most of his life, he’d been told that cooking was women’s work. It was just one of the many horribly wrong messages he’d been fed.
Thankfully, his devotion to her was as complete as hers to him. That meant that she’d been able to undo a lot of those erroneous messages, and she took great pleasure in doing so.
“I definitely need your help,” she agreed as they made their way into the kitchen.
The recipe she used was the one Nana had taught her, so she was able to do it without looking it up in a book or online. In turn, Bryson was memorizing it, and she hoped that some day he would make the same pancakes with his children.
Her heart was filled with happiness, and with more hope than she’d had in a long time. If Bryson’s life could just be filled with people who were as kind and patient as Ryker, maybe the trauma of the first years of his life could be healed.