Forty Five

After climbing the stairs and entering the room, I close the door behind me and move to sit with my back against the wall, my legs stretched out in front of me and a stuffed yellow bear cradled against my belly.

With no idea whether this baby is going to be a boy or a girl, we’ve tried to stay neutral with a soft buttercup yellow paint for the walls, a white crib that I watched Mack build, and a matching baby changing table and dresser set up on the wall near the window.

As the window overlooks the backyard, I hear Faith laughing as Mack explains his gardening process. My attempt at tuning it out goes so miserably that I regret not escaping into the forest.

I know this is Mack being friendly so Faith will open up about why she’s come to Winter Lake in pain, but that doesn’t make it any easier to listen to when I also know how easy Mack is to love.

When there’s a soft knock at the door, I turn to it with a smile. “You can come in, Moses.”

A second later, the familiar lean figure of the