Emma's Secret: A Novel by Steena Holmes Page A

for her the day she was born. When she’d first disappeared, Peter was able to find a little bit of comfort knowing that the lion was with her.
    “You know this is really a lion, right?” He winked at her.
    Emma shrugged. “I know.” She tucked her lion beside her, beneath the covers.
    Peter picked up Emma’s clothes from the floor and dropped them into her hamper. The closet door stood open, and he couldn’t help but notice the pile of clothes on the floor. The other day, Megan had mentioned that Emma’s room was always so neat. She must not have seen her closet.
    “Emma, why are all these clothes on the floor?” He glanced over his shoulder and saw a flash of anger on his daughter’s face. Anger?
    “I don’t like them.” She crossed her arms over her chest and pouted.
    Peter knelt down and picked up a shirt from the pile. “But this is a nice top your mommy bought you. What’s wrong with it?”
    She gave him a look he would have expected from Alexis. “I like dresses. I feel pretty in them.”
    Peter dropped the shirt and picked up a skirt. “Will you wear a skirt then?”
    Emma shook her head.
    “Why not?” Peter reached for another top in the pile and stood. He paired the two together and held them up for Emma to see. “It’s just a dress cut in half.”
    Emma frowned as she glanced from the outfit in his hands to the dresses hanging in her closet.
    Peter reached for a hanger with two clips on the bottom. He struggled to clip the skirt onto it before adding the shirt on top, pushed some dresses aside, and hung it in the middle.
    “I remember Mommy coming home with bags and bags of clothes for you. Don’t you? She was so excited to buy you new clothes and couldn’t wait to see them on you. How about if you try to wear one new outfit for Mommy?”
    Emma’s eyes widened. He knew she was about to panic. She clutched the blanket in her hands, and her nose flared as she tried to breathe.
    “Not every day, Emma. How about…” Peter tried to think of a day when they had nothing going on. “Sundays? How about on Sundays you try to wear something Mommy bought you? The rest of the time it can be one of your dresses.” He didn’t like seeing Emma this way. Even now, two months later, that woman still had a hold over Emma. He felt helpless.
    It wasn’t until Emma released her grip on the blanket that Peter relaxed. And when she nodded her head in acceptance, he struggled to keep the smile off his face. It was a step in the right direction, at least. He sat back down on the bed and put both of his arms on either side of Emma’s legs. He waited for her to lie back on the pillows before he leaned forward to kiss her forehead.
    “I love you, Emma.” There was so much more he wanted to say. Like how she was the glue that put him back together, and that every time she smiled at him, his heart melted. That all he wanted was for her to be happy and loved, and he would do anything, anything to make sure she was always happy. But he couldn’t say it. He didn’t know how to say it.
    But when she reached up and touched his cheek, he knew that she already knew the words he couldn’t say. He patted the dog gently before leaving the room. He switched off the light and was about to close her door when she called out.
    “Daddy?”
    He turned the light back on.
    “I made a picture for Papa today. I think he misses me.”
    Peter leaned against the doorframe.
    “Could you give it to him?”
    He wanted to say no. But when he saw the look in Emma’s eyes, he realized that was the last thing he could say to his daughter.
    “Tell you what. Why don’t you and I go out for breakfast tomorrow and on our way home, we can drop it off at the mailbox.”
    When her eyes lit up, he knew he’d just said the right thing.
    “Really, Daddy? A date, just you and me?”
    Peter winked. “Just you and me, kiddo.” He should have done that a long time ago.
    “Daddy? Thank you.”
    “For what?”
    “For making Papa happy. I