Page 42 of Heart of a Hero

“Yummy,” she said before starting eating.

“Be sure to thank Forrest. He got it for us,” he told her.

“Fank you,” Lizzie said, her mouth full, but she was smiling. “I was starved,” she told him between bites.

Forrest sat next to him and put a slice on his plate. “Lizzie. You know your grandma and I talked about you moving to Mrs. Wood’s class.”

She nodded. “Do I have to?”

“No. But you see, Forrest and I like each other.” Conrad took his hand.

“Like, kissing like?” she asked and scrunched her face.

“Yes. I like Forrest, like in a kissing way, and that means you can’t be in his class anymore. Now if you want to stay in his class, then he and I can’t like each other anymore.”

Lizzie tilted her head to the side, like she was trying to work things out. “You’ll still be my daddy?”

“Yes. Nothing is going to change that.” He wasn’t sure how to put it so she would understand.

“Are you going to get married? Bethany says that boys can marry boys and girls can marry girls if they want. Bobby says that you can’t because it’s a ’bomination, but he’s a dumb boy, so he doesn’t know anything.” She crossed her arms like she knew and that was all there was to it.

Conrad turned to Forrest. “I don’t know if that’s what is going to happen. But if you’re okay with it, I’d like Forrest to be my boyfriend.”

She put her finger to her lips. “And he can’t be your boyfriend if I’m in his class?” she asked. Conrad nodded.

“Okay. I like Mrs. Wood. She’s nice.” Lizzie went back to eating her pizza as though everything was fine and there hadn’t just been a big decision made. Still, if Lizzie was okay with it and he hadn’t pressured her, then everything was fine.

Conrad took a minute to find The Little Mermaid, and they watched it while they ate. As usual, Lizzie was enthralled, and once the movie was over, he took her to clean up and get ready for bed. Once she was in bed, he read her a story and said good night before leaving her room with the door partway open.

“She’s a smart one,” Forrest said when he returned.

“Yeah, she is. Though she keeps asking if tomorrow is Christmas.”

“A lot of the kids do that. I always have a calendar in the room so they can get an idea of how days pass and how dates and months work. I think she is so excited she can’t wait.”

“I know that. Her mom passed away a few months before Christmas of last year. I did my best for her, but it wasn’t much of a celebration. We were both grieving at the time. I tried to give her a good Christmas. This year a lot of that grief has subsided. She and I have built a life, and yes, I still miss my sister, but it isn’t a daily hurt. Lizzie has moved on too.”

“I can see that.” He smiled and leaned closer. “So you want me to be your boyfriend.”

Conrad laughed. “Yeah, I do.” He swallowed hard. “Because I love you.” God, all he could do was hope that saying the words didn’t send Forrest running for the door. Not that he really thought that would happen. “You don’t have to say it back if you….”

Forrest drew closer. “But I feel the same way. You took my heart almost from the beginning and you held it. I will never forget that day when you stood up for Lizzie at school like you were a guardian angel. No one was going to accuse your daughter of anything without all the facts. You were so worked up and beautiful. Parents often fight for their kids, but quite often their kids are in the wrong. I got the feeling that if Lizzie had done something wrong, you would have stood by us, but she had been defending herself. It was impressive.”

“I see.”

“No, I don’t think you do. You’re smart, and warm, and you have a heart as big as anyone I have ever met.”

Conrad snickered. “I think you stole my line. I was going to say the same thing about you.”

Forrest kissed him and wrapped Conrad in his arms. “You know, we can say the same things about each other.”

“I know. But I don’t want you to think that I lack imagination.”

“Oh, I think that we can clear that up easily. Just give me a few minutes.” Forrest gathered the plates and took them to the kitchen. Then he turned off the television, grasped Conrad’s hand in his, and led him toward Conrad’s bedroom.

“Oh, you want me to use that kind of imagination,” Conrad whispered, so they didn’t wake Lizzie.

Forrest stopped. “What did you think I meant?”