Nicholas Sparks - Safe Haven

Unfortunately, she’d spent too much time dwelling on the way the fine lines at the corners of his eyes crinkled when he grinned or the graceful way he’d emerged from the surf. She thought about how Kristen would reach for his hand and the absolute trust Katie saw in that simple gesture. Early on, Jo had said something along the lines that Alex was a good man, the kind of man who would do the right thing, and though Katie couldn’t claim to know him well, her instincts told her he was a man she could trust. That no matter what she told him, he would support her. That he would guard her secrets and never use what he knew to hurt her.

It was irrational and illogical and it went against everything she’d promised herself when she’d moved here, but she realized that she wanted him to know her. She wanted him to understand her, if only because she had the strange sense that he was the kind of man she could fall in love with, even if she didn’t want to.

Butterfly hunting.

The notion had popped into his head soon after waking on Saturday morning, even before he’d gone downstairs to open the store. Strangely, as he’d been pondering the possibilities of what to do with the kids that day, he’d remembered a project he’d done in the sixth grade. The teacher had asked the students to make an insect collection. He flashed to a memory of running through a grassy field at recess, chasing after everything from bumblebees to katydids. He was certain that Josh and Kristen would enjoy it, and feeling proud of himself for coming up with something exciting and original to occupy a weekend afternoon, he sifted through the fishing nets he had in the store, choosing three that were about the right size.

When he told them at lunch, Josh and Kristen were less than enthusiastic about the idea.

“I don’t want to hurt any butterflies,” Kristen protested. “I like butterflies.”

“We don’t have to hurt them. We can let them go.”

“Then why catch them in the first place?”

“Because it’s fun.”

“It doesn’t sound fun. It sounds mean.”

Alex opened his mouth to respond, but he wasn’t sure what to say. Josh took another bite of his grilled cheese sandwich.

“It’s pretty hot already, Dad,” Josh pointed out, talking as he chewed.

“That’s okay. Afterward, we can swim in the creek. And chew with your mouth closed.”

Josh swallowed. “Why don’t we just swim in the creek now?”

“Because we’re going butterfly hunting.”

“Can we go to a movie instead?”

“Yeah!” Kristen said. “Let’s go to a movie.”

Parenting, Alex thought, could be exasperating.

“It’s a beautiful day and we’re not going to spend it sitting inside. We’re going butterfly hunting. And not only that, you’re going to enjoy it, okay?”

After lunch, Alex drove them to a field on the outskirts of town that was filled with wildflowers. He handed them their nets and sent them on their way, watching as Josh sort of dragged his net while Kristen held hers tucked against her, in much the same way she held her dolls.

Alex took matters into his own hands and jogged ahead of both of them, his net at the ready. Up ahead, fluttering among the wildflowers, he spotted dozens of butterflies. When he got close enough, he swung his net, capturing one. Squatting down, he carefully began to shift the net, allowing the orange and brown colors to show through.

“Wow!” he shouted, trying to sound as enthusiastic as he could. “I got one!”

The next thing he knew, Josh and Kristen were peering over his shoulder.

“Be careful with it, Daddy!” Kristen cried.

“I will, baby. Look at how pretty the colors are.”

They leaned in even closer.

“Cool!” Josh shouted, and a moment later, he was off and running, swinging the net with abandon.

Kristen continued to study the butterfly. “What kind is it?”

“It’s a skipper,” Alex said. “But I don’t know exactly what kind.”

“I think he’s scared,” Kristen said.

“I’m sure he’s fine. But I’ll let him go, okay?”

She nodded as Alex carefully pulled the net inside out. In the open air, the butterfly clung to the net before taking off in flight. Kristen’s eyes went wide with wonder.

“Can you help me catch one?” she asked.

“I’d love to.”

They spent a little more than an hour running among the flowers. They caught about eight different kinds of butterflies, including a buckeye, though the vast majority were skippers like the first. By the time they finished, the kids’ faces were red and shiny, so Alex drove them to get ice cream cones before heading to the creek behind the house. The three of them jumped off the dock together — Josh and Kristen wearing life preservers — and floated downstream in the slow-moving water. It was the kind of day he’d spent as a kid. By the time they got out of the water, he was contented by the thought that, aside from going to the beach, it was the best weekend they’d had in a while.

But it was tiring, too. Afterward, once the kids had showered, they wanted to watch a movie, and Alex popped in Homeward Bound , a movie they’d seen a dozen times but were always willing to watch again. From the kitchen, he could see them on the couch, neither one moving in the slightest, staring at the television in that dazed way particular to exhausted children.

He wiped the kitchen counters and loaded the dirty dishes into the dishwasher, started a load of laundry, straightened up the living room, and gave the kids’ bathroom a good scrubbing before finally sitting beside them on the couch for a while. Josh curled up on one side, Kristen on the other. By the time the movie ended, Alex could feel his own eyelids beginning to droop. After working at the store and playing with the kids and cleaning the house, it felt good to simply relax for a while.

The sound of Josh’s voice jarred him awake.

“Hey, Dad?”

“Yeah?”

“What’s for dinner? I’m starved.”

From the waitress stand, Katie peered out at the deck and then turned back again, staring as Alex and the kids followed the hostess to an open table near the railing. Kristen smiled and waved as soon as she saw Katie, and hesitated only a second before scooting between the tables and hurtling directly for her. Katie bent down as the little girl threw her arms around her.

“We wanted to surprise you!” Kristen said.

“Well, you did. What are you doing here?”

“My dad didn’t want to cook for us tonight.”

“He didn’t?”

“He said he was too tired.”

“There’s more to the story,” Alex announced. “Trust me.”

Katie hadn’t heard him come up, and she stood.

“Oh, hey,” she said, blushing against her will.

“How are you?” Alex asked.

“Good.” She nodded, feeling a bit flustered. “Busy, as you can tell.”

“It seems like it. We had to wait before they could seat us in your section.”

“It’s been like that all day.”

“Well, we won’t keep you. C’mon, Kristen. Let’s go to the table. We’ll see you in a few minutes or whenever you’re ready.”

“Bye, Miss Katie.” Kristen waved again.

Katie watched them walk to the table, strangely excited by their visit. She saw Alex open the menu and lean forward to help Kristen with hers, and for an instant, she wished she were sitting with them.

She retucked her shirt and glanced at her reflection in the stainless steel coffeepot. She couldn’t make out much, only a blurry image, but it was enough to make her run a hand through her hair. Then, after a quick check to make sure her shirt hadn’t been stained — nothing she could do about it, of course, but she still wanted to know — she walked over to the table.