He often read her stories about the ocean.
« You just want to hear the good part. »
« The ocean part is the best part. »
He chuckled.
Then he started over from the beginning.
I stood in the doorway, watching them.
I pressed a hand over my mouth so they wouldn’t hear me cry.
He started over from the beginning.
Later, when Sophie had drifted off with her stuffed bunny tucked under her chin, my father found me in the hallway.
« She’s a fighter, that one, » he said.