simply accept him as a new friend, a heavenly gift, and became satisfied with waiting for the Lord reveal his plan.
“What do you think of Evan? For your name?” she asked one night. “It means ‘God is gracious.’ I was thinking it’s also short for evangelic, and it rhymes with heaven. Too cheesy?”
He smiled. “Not too cheesy. I like it. It’s nice to meet you, Maggie. I’m Evan.”
Chapter 6
W ITH E VAN’S V ISITS C ONFINED to Maggie’s alone time at night, she found it wasn’t difficult at all to continue with life as normal while keeping her secret. The only difference was her greater sense of satisfaction as she moved about her days. The riddle of the angel’s appearance had been successfully set aside for the time being, and without Maggie realizing exactly how it had happened, she’d begun opening up to him regarding certain personal struggles, namely Melissa.
Talking it out had helped Maggie accept the new woman in her children’s lives as more than simply the price she’d have to pay for refusing to fix her marriage. Evan’s patient listening and wise counsel led her to be truly happy that Carl’s girlfriend had taken an interest in the kids. It was much preferable to the alternative—a shrew who tried to separate them from their father.
On a Sunday evening in mid-May, Carl brought the kids home after a weekend at his place. When Kirsten and Liam ran upstairs to dump their bags, he walked into the kitchen and took a seat by the island, waiting for them to come back down to give him a kiss goodbye. As usual, Maggie offered him a drink.
“A water would be great,” he said.
His deep voice was flatter than usual, leading Maggie to take a closer look at him. He exhibited all his usual vitality as he perched on the stool, and nothing in his handsome features seemed drawn or tired, but his eyes, which almost always glinted with a hint of mischief, were dull, and something about him looked lost.
“Rough week?” she asked as she handed him a bottled water.
“Mediocre.” He downed half the bottle in one swig.
The kids reappeared and gave their dad a hug before Liam barraged Maggie with an account of what he’d done all weekend. It seemed to come out in a single, indecipherable word. Ever since he’d started speaking full sentences, Maggie and Carl had joked that he must somehow absorb oxygen through his freckles, because he rarely stopped to take a breath.
“We went to the batting cages, and Liam here has a wicked swing,” Carl translated.
“Yeah, wicked boring ,” Kirsten grumbled.
Maggie wrapped her arm around her daughter’s shoulder and pulled her close. “Don’t worry. Liam’s outnumbered by the girls now that you’re back here. What do you say we all go get our toenails painted this week?”
“Cool!” Liam shouted. “I’m gonna get Yoda painted on mine.”
Maggie’s eyes moved to Carl, who she knew would rather be publicly flogged than have a drop of nail polish touch his precious son’s toes.
Her ex-husband cocked a teasing eyebrow. “I think we’re going to have to revisit our custody arrangement and stipulate what is and is not allowed during our respective visits.”
As if on cue, Kirsten’s phone buzzed with a text message. “Yeah, I’ve got a few retroactive stipulations I’d like to get in there,” Maggie retorted. The cell phone had been an unauthorized purchase during one of the weekend visits with Daddy. But that battle had been fought and was over, as reflected in Carl’s smile, and Maggie thought about how nice it was to be able to joke about these things rather than scream at each other, as they’d done for so long. Kirsten disappeared into the next room, returning the text, and Liam asked to use the computer.
“Half an hour for both of you,” Maggie called out loudly enough for Kirsten to hear. “Then it’s up to bed. School tomorrow.”
Maggie turned to Carl as Liam scampered down the hall to the computer cabinet in the front
“What do you think of Evan? For your name?” she asked one night. “It means ‘God is gracious.’ I was thinking it’s also short for evangelic, and it rhymes with heaven. Too cheesy?”
He smiled. “Not too cheesy. I like it. It’s nice to meet you, Maggie. I’m Evan.”
Chapter 6
W ITH E VAN’S V ISITS C ONFINED to Maggie’s alone time at night, she found it wasn’t difficult at all to continue with life as normal while keeping her secret. The only difference was her greater sense of satisfaction as she moved about her days. The riddle of the angel’s appearance had been successfully set aside for the time being, and without Maggie realizing exactly how it had happened, she’d begun opening up to him regarding certain personal struggles, namely Melissa.
Talking it out had helped Maggie accept the new woman in her children’s lives as more than simply the price she’d have to pay for refusing to fix her marriage. Evan’s patient listening and wise counsel led her to be truly happy that Carl’s girlfriend had taken an interest in the kids. It was much preferable to the alternative—a shrew who tried to separate them from their father.
On a Sunday evening in mid-May, Carl brought the kids home after a weekend at his place. When Kirsten and Liam ran upstairs to dump their bags, he walked into the kitchen and took a seat by the island, waiting for them to come back down to give him a kiss goodbye. As usual, Maggie offered him a drink.
“A water would be great,” he said.
His deep voice was flatter than usual, leading Maggie to take a closer look at him. He exhibited all his usual vitality as he perched on the stool, and nothing in his handsome features seemed drawn or tired, but his eyes, which almost always glinted with a hint of mischief, were dull, and something about him looked lost.
“Rough week?” she asked as she handed him a bottled water.
“Mediocre.” He downed half the bottle in one swig.
The kids reappeared and gave their dad a hug before Liam barraged Maggie with an account of what he’d done all weekend. It seemed to come out in a single, indecipherable word. Ever since he’d started speaking full sentences, Maggie and Carl had joked that he must somehow absorb oxygen through his freckles, because he rarely stopped to take a breath.
“We went to the batting cages, and Liam here has a wicked swing,” Carl translated.
“Yeah, wicked boring ,” Kirsten grumbled.
Maggie wrapped her arm around her daughter’s shoulder and pulled her close. “Don’t worry. Liam’s outnumbered by the girls now that you’re back here. What do you say we all go get our toenails painted this week?”
“Cool!” Liam shouted. “I’m gonna get Yoda painted on mine.”
Maggie’s eyes moved to Carl, who she knew would rather be publicly flogged than have a drop of nail polish touch his precious son’s toes.
Her ex-husband cocked a teasing eyebrow. “I think we’re going to have to revisit our custody arrangement and stipulate what is and is not allowed during our respective visits.”
As if on cue, Kirsten’s phone buzzed with a text message. “Yeah, I’ve got a few retroactive stipulations I’d like to get in there,” Maggie retorted. The cell phone had been an unauthorized purchase during one of the weekend visits with Daddy. But that battle had been fought and was over, as reflected in Carl’s smile, and Maggie thought about how nice it was to be able to joke about these things rather than scream at each other, as they’d done for so long. Kirsten disappeared into the next room, returning the text, and Liam asked to use the computer.
“Half an hour for both of you,” Maggie called out loudly enough for Kirsten to hear. “Then it’s up to bed. School tomorrow.”
Maggie turned to Carl as Liam scampered down the hall to the computer cabinet in the front
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