little green men who travel the universe in a saucer-shaped ship? No. But there's probably some thing or some one out there somewhere amongst the stars."
"There's a man in our building who looks like an alien."
Natalie stretched out her legs and leaned her back against the couch. "What makes you say that?"
"Well, he's got very little hair and his head comes to a funny point. Even his ears are enormous!"
"That does sound rather odd."
"Here, you pick one."
Natalie took the iPad from Frankie and held it out in front of her. Frankie leaned in close and rested her elbow on Natalie's thigh, her attention transfixed on the starry spectacle before them.
"Okay, let's see."
Together they perused the solar system, reading aloud descriptions of well-known star systems and learning about the origins of constellations named by ancient peoples, the in-app music scoring the soundtrack of their relative silence.
"How long have you known my dad?"
Natalie's finger hovered over the iPad screen as she absorbed the completely out-of-the-blue question. She should have known the girl would have questions - what child wouldn't - but she was so taken aback by her extraordinary intelligence she almost forgot Frankie was a child.
"I met your dad..." she trailed off as she counted backwards through her memory. "Let's see, it was about seven or eight months ago." Please don't ask me where or how I met him. Please.
"Do you know my mom, too?"
"No, I don't. I met her once, but it was very brief."
Natalie couldn't help but wonder just how much of James and Celine's situation Frankie understood. She didn't quite know what to say to her; Natalie's parents had been married her entire life, were perfectly happy. Did Frankie know why they were no longer living together? Surely they wouldn't have told her that James wasn't her real father. Could she comprehend the concept of divorce at her young age?
And what exactly had James said to Frankie to explain Natalie?
Snap out of it , she chided herself. She cleared her throat and swiped through the iPad screen to find a new star to look at.
Then, Frankie asked, "What's a sleepover?"
For a moment Natalie considered the possibility that Frankie was more self-aware than she let on, and that the sudden line of questioning was an attempt to disarm her. She's a child , Natalie had to remind herself. She tried to brush off the question as though it weren't the most startling thing the girl had said so far that evening.
"A sleepover is when someone spends the night at another person's house. Haven't you ever stayed the night at your best friend's house? Or had your best friend stay at yours?"
"No. Sometimes when my dad visits he sleeps over. Is that the same thing?"
Natalie glanced sideways to get a read on the girl's face. She just looked like a curious kid, nothing more. Still, a cramp twisted somewhere deep in Natalie's stomach. She adjusted the position of her legs beneath her to encourage blood flow and keep them from falling asleep.
"Well your dad used to live there, so it's kind of different." She thought he stayed in hotels when he went to New York. He never mentioned staying in the house he once lived in, but she guessed that wasn't entirely abnormal.
Frankie looked up at Natalie, her big brown eyes bright and inquisitive. "Do you have sleepovers?"
Natalie chuckled uncomfortably. She adjusted the neckline of her dress, feeling just slightly too warm all of a sudden. "Sometimes," she replied. Where is James? She glanced up and around the room but didn't see him anywhere.
"Are you going to marry my dad?"
Oh my god ! She was starting to sweat. Why did the sudden thought that she was being interrogated by a six year old make her want to dissolve into a fit of hysterical laughter? "Why do you ask?"
"He smiles a lot when he talks about you. And he said you were really pretty. And he said you were his special friend."
Natalie could practically envision it in her mind: her in a white dress, James in
"There's a man in our building who looks like an alien."
Natalie stretched out her legs and leaned her back against the couch. "What makes you say that?"
"Well, he's got very little hair and his head comes to a funny point. Even his ears are enormous!"
"That does sound rather odd."
"Here, you pick one."
Natalie took the iPad from Frankie and held it out in front of her. Frankie leaned in close and rested her elbow on Natalie's thigh, her attention transfixed on the starry spectacle before them.
"Okay, let's see."
Together they perused the solar system, reading aloud descriptions of well-known star systems and learning about the origins of constellations named by ancient peoples, the in-app music scoring the soundtrack of their relative silence.
"How long have you known my dad?"
Natalie's finger hovered over the iPad screen as she absorbed the completely out-of-the-blue question. She should have known the girl would have questions - what child wouldn't - but she was so taken aback by her extraordinary intelligence she almost forgot Frankie was a child.
"I met your dad..." she trailed off as she counted backwards through her memory. "Let's see, it was about seven or eight months ago." Please don't ask me where or how I met him. Please.
"Do you know my mom, too?"
"No, I don't. I met her once, but it was very brief."
Natalie couldn't help but wonder just how much of James and Celine's situation Frankie understood. She didn't quite know what to say to her; Natalie's parents had been married her entire life, were perfectly happy. Did Frankie know why they were no longer living together? Surely they wouldn't have told her that James wasn't her real father. Could she comprehend the concept of divorce at her young age?
And what exactly had James said to Frankie to explain Natalie?
Snap out of it , she chided herself. She cleared her throat and swiped through the iPad screen to find a new star to look at.
Then, Frankie asked, "What's a sleepover?"
For a moment Natalie considered the possibility that Frankie was more self-aware than she let on, and that the sudden line of questioning was an attempt to disarm her. She's a child , Natalie had to remind herself. She tried to brush off the question as though it weren't the most startling thing the girl had said so far that evening.
"A sleepover is when someone spends the night at another person's house. Haven't you ever stayed the night at your best friend's house? Or had your best friend stay at yours?"
"No. Sometimes when my dad visits he sleeps over. Is that the same thing?"
Natalie glanced sideways to get a read on the girl's face. She just looked like a curious kid, nothing more. Still, a cramp twisted somewhere deep in Natalie's stomach. She adjusted the position of her legs beneath her to encourage blood flow and keep them from falling asleep.
"Well your dad used to live there, so it's kind of different." She thought he stayed in hotels when he went to New York. He never mentioned staying in the house he once lived in, but she guessed that wasn't entirely abnormal.
Frankie looked up at Natalie, her big brown eyes bright and inquisitive. "Do you have sleepovers?"
Natalie chuckled uncomfortably. She adjusted the neckline of her dress, feeling just slightly too warm all of a sudden. "Sometimes," she replied. Where is James? She glanced up and around the room but didn't see him anywhere.
"Are you going to marry my dad?"
Oh my god ! She was starting to sweat. Why did the sudden thought that she was being interrogated by a six year old make her want to dissolve into a fit of hysterical laughter? "Why do you ask?"
"He smiles a lot when he talks about you. And he said you were really pretty. And he said you were his special friend."
Natalie could practically envision it in her mind: her in a white dress, James in
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