Read Online Hannah's Joy by Marta Perry - Free Book Online

No movie theater and a bowling alley that closes at eleven.”
    “Not even a bowling alley. And I wouldn’t have time to bowl if we had one.”
    “Is that aunt of yours working you too hard?” Megan’s tone sharpened a little. “You know you can always come back here and stay with us if you don’t like it there.”
    Hannah’s heart clutched at the thought. Life on an army base had been, oddly enough, similar in some ways to living in Pleasant Valley. They’d all been in the same boat, and they’d supported each other.
    But that had ended for her when Travis died, and she couldn’t go back.
    “Nothing like that.” She put some energy into her voice, almost feeling Megan’s concern through the phone, as if she sat next to her. “My aunt is the kindest person in the world. But working in the bakery and watching a toddler at the same time takes all my attention, believe me. Now that Jamie is walking, I can’t take my eyes off him for a minute.”
    “My goodness, you ought to see the twins.” That deflected Megan, as Hannah had known it would. “Cindy’s walking all over the place, and Becca refuses to try. Thinks she can get where she wants to go by crawling faster, I guess. Yesterday she pulled every single thing off the end table. Lucky she didn’t knock herself in the head with it.”
    “Did she get hurt at all?” Hannah could tell the baby hadn’t by the half-laughing tone of Megan’s voice.
    “Not a scratch. She sat there laughing until she saw me, and then she crawled away as fast as those fat little knees would move.”
    Hannah laughed with her. She and Megan had gotten through their pregnancies together, shared tears over colic and fears over fevers, helped each other through every step. Megan was the closest friend she’d ever had, and she missed her.
    “I wish I could see all of you,” she said impulsively.
    “Come for a visit,” Megan said promptly. “Your aunt can get along without you for a week, can’t she?”
    “She could, but I couldn’t.” Hannah’s throat tightened, her voice went husky. “I’m not ready to be back on the base. You understand.”
    Megan gave a wordless murmur of sympathy. “Well, then, I guess I’ll have to come to you.”
    “You what?” She’d never thought . . .
    “Come to see you,” Megan said. “Listen, I deserve a break, don’t I? Just give me some time to set it up and then get ready for fun, girlfriend. I’m coming to see this new life of yours for myself.”
    By the time she hung up, Hannah was finally convinced that Megan meant it. She’d really come. Hannah suspected she’d be walking around with a silly grin on her face for days.
    But there was an edge to her excitement. Megan was a friend, a good friend. Hannah touched the prayer kapp on her hair. But could Megan possibly understand the life Hannah was living now?
    She shook off the unwelcome thought. Megan would understand. Or if she didn’t, she’d accept. That was the kind of friendship they had.
    She went back into the kitchen, and Aunt Paula glanced up from giving Jamie his snack. She obviously expected to hear about the call.
    Privacy was a missing element here. Hannah knew her aunt’s curiosity arose from love, but she wasn’t used to sharing quite so much. Sometimes the sense that other people knew so much about her made her uneasy. There was something to be said for the anonymity of a city.
    “That was my friend Megan, calling to see how we are.”
    “Ja, you mentioned her before, I think. She is the one who has twins?”
    Hannah nodded. “Girls, just a little older than Jamie. We were pregnant at the same time, so we’ve been through plenty. And Megan has a little boy who’s five, so she was the one I turned to when I needed advice.” She smiled. “Which was often. It’s tough to read an answer in a book when you’re juggling a crying baby.”
    “And all on your own.” Aunt Paula wiped applesauce from Jamie’s face. “That must be so hard, not having