Spotlight & Excerpt: This Time & Time For Love + Giveaway


Brad
Charlie has my full attention as she sits beside me on my couch. Her head is down, so her eyes are hidden from me. Completely freaking out about what she has to say, I try to appear relaxed when she starts to talk.
“To explain this in detail will be hard for me. I’ve not had to tell anyone or talk about it for over a year. And depending on your reaction, I’m… willing to try to tell you.” Lifting her head, her eyes snap up to mine. “The brunt of what I have to say though is the fact that I am a single mother.” For a few moments, the room is silent because it takes me a second to wrap my head around what Charlie just said.
“What?” I ask.
Her eyes sparkle with something fierce. “I have a baby boy, but the father is not in the picture. At all.”
A million questions race through my head. Who is the father? Where is he? Why isn’t he in the picture? How long has she had the baby by herself? What does he look like? How old is the baby? I absolutely love kids; my sister has twins and I spoil them as much as she allows me to. I contemplate how fitting it is that what we both have to talk about revolves around children. Choosing one of my many questions, I break the silence with a small smile. “How old is he?”
Charlie’s eyes widen. “What?”
“How old is your baby, Charlie?”
“A-about eight months now.”
“Is he as beautiful as you?” My words are obviously the wrong thing to say because her eyes start to water. “What is it, baby? What did I say?” Heart beating faster than ever, I reach for her hand and grasp it in mine.
“Nothing.” She sniffles and smiles. “He is beautiful.”