This afternoon, Jack had a meeting that ran late, so he called Hannah in something of a panic.  “I’d ask my mom, but she’s out of town this weekend, and I know today’s your day off,” he told her.  “Could you please get Lily from school?  I swear, I’ll be done in an hour.”

“Relax, Jack,” she said, laughing.  “I’d love to get her.  Just give the school a call and let them know to expect me, and I’ll be there.”

He thanked her several more times—I think he did not believe her when she said she was happy to do it.  Hannah meant it, though.  She loves Lily, and she was glad to help Jack.

When she pulled up to the curb, she had to lean out the passenger window before Lily recognized her.  Once she had, however, her face lit up, and she sprang into the car and right across to hug Hannah.  “What are you doing here?” she asked, bouncing with delight.

“Your uncle had to stay on to argue some more with his clients,” Hannah answered, laughing.  “Go on, hop in the back, and we’ll go home and play some games until he gets home, okay?”

“Yes!” Lily exulted and clambered into the back seat without leaving the car.  Hannah laughed again and pulled the door closed, waving to Lily’s teachers.

On the way home, they talked about Lily’s day—Lily had a science test, which she felt went well, and she started reading a book about unicorns during quiet time.  Hannah was relieved to hear her talk about her friends and about how easy the work is; she has worried that with the time Lily missed, she might have trouble catching back up.  That would not seem to be a problem for a clever girl like Lily.

At Jack’s house, Lily had to show Hannah where the hide-a-key was.  “Uncle Jack should give you a key,” Lily said.  “That way you can come pick me up more often.”

“Well, if I’m not working, I’d love that,” Hannah said, though her heart jumped a little at the thought of taking such a big step.  “Okay, you want a snack?”

“Ice cream!”

“What?  No, that’s dessert, that’s not a snack.  What about an apple?”

They compromised with yogurt, and then they played a couple of games of Go Fish before Hannah decided that Lily should get started on her homework.  As Lily was unpacking her bag, however, she suddenly went quiet, looking uncertainly up at Hannah.  “What’s wrong?” Hannah asked.

Lily looked down at a folded piece of paper in her hands.  Then, without a word, she handed it to Hannah.

Hannah took it, and I could feel her heart twisting.  It was a handmade card, covered with glitter and stickers, and bearing the message inside “you’re the best!”

“Ms. Carrigan said that I could just make a card to give to Uncle Jack, but I didn’t want to,” Lily said.  “All the other girls were using such pretty stuff…”  She took a deep breath.  “And then I thought, if you wanted it…”

Suddenly Hannah’s eyes were burning.  She was entirely at a loss.  Jack had told her some things about Lily’s mother, his sister, but she knew very little about what Lily knew or remembered about her.

It was in this moment that I was very glad to be there.  I bent down over Lily, wrapping her in my wings.  “Hannah loves you,” I whispered.  “And you love Hannah.  These are good things, and neither of them means you don’t love your mother anymore, or that she doesn’t love you.”

Children hear us so much more easily than adults do.  Lily started to cry, but I could see that it was out of relief, not sadness or fear.

Hannah could not see this, and she slid hurriedly across the couch to take Lily’s hand.  She was enormously relieved when Lily threw herself into her arms, and she just held the girl for a while.  I spoke to her a bit, too, and by the time Lily had calmed herself a bit, Hannah knew what to say.

“I’m very happy to take the card, Lily,” she said.  “It’s so sweet of you to think of me.   I think your mom would be happy that we’re friends.”

Lily nodded, gulping.  Hannah grabbed a few tissues from her bag, keeping her arm around her shoulders.   “Will you tell me about her?” she asked.

Wiping her nose, Lily managed a little smile.  “She used to sing to me,” she said.  “She had a really pretty voice.”

That made Hannah smile.  “My mom used to sing to me too.  She was really bad at it, though.”

Lily curled up against Hannah’s side.  “What kind of stuff did she sing?”

So Hannah sang Lily a Spanish lullaby that her mother had loved.  She, too, was not a very good singer, but Lily still said that she liked the song.  They were still lying on the sofa talking about mothers when Jack finally came home.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” he groaned, prostrating himself dramatically before the both of them.  “I’m a terrible man, I’m a failure, I’m a worm.”  He groaned aloud until both of them were laughing.

“We didn’t even notice how late you were,” Hannah said while Lily jumped up to hug him.  “Lily and I were talking about her mom.”

Now Jack noticed the traces of tears on Lily’s face, and his face turned serious.  He sat Lily on his knee.  “Now that’s nice.  We miss her a lot, don’t we, Lily?”

Lily nodded, blinking back fresh tears.  “Uncle Jack, can we take her a flower on Sunday?”

“For Mother’s Day?  I think that’s a great idea.”

“Can Hannah come?”

Hannah’s heart jumped again.  “If you want me to,” she said, and her voice shook a bit too.  Lily nodded again, and Hannah smiled.  “Then I’ll be there,” she said.  “But now, you really need to get your homework done, and your uncle Jack needs to get started on dinner.”

Lily jumped up and grabbed her books, while Jack motioned for Hannah to come with him.  On her way out of the room, though, Hannah made certain to grab the mother’s day card and held it close against her stomach.

In the hall, Jack simply put his arms around Hannah and drew her close.  “Thank you,” he said, and his voice was hoarse.  “I know it’s soon for this kind of thing—”

“It is, but I don’t mind,” Hannah said.  She stepped back and studied Jack’s face, deciding what to say.  “You and Lily…you’re not temporary in my life.  Whatever happens with us, I’m not going anywhere, I don’t think.”

Jack smiled.  “You don’t know how relieved I am to hear you say that.”

Needing some lightness now, Hannah poked him in the stomach.  “Well, you’re a package deal, Uncle Jack.  I wouldn’t dream of falling for you if I didn’t love Lily, too.”

He laughed, and in his heart was a wordless prayer of thanks for her.  “Will you stay for dinner?” he asked.

Hannah nodded, and he kissed her lightly.  And in the doorway, Lily covered her face with glee, until I shooed her back to her homework.

I know that it is early, that nothing is certain, that anything can happen.  But I do have hope that these people can make a beautiful family together.  We shall see.