Emma was making breakfast when Charlotte appeared in the kitchen doorway, clutching her stuffed bunny and looking smaller than her four years.
"Mama, I need to ask you something important."
"What is it, sweetheart?"
Charlotte climbed onto her usual chair at the breakfast table, arranging her bunny carefully beside her plate.
"Why doesn't Daddy live with us anymore?"
Emma's hands stilled on the orange juice pitcher. "What do you mean? Daddy is just traveling for work."
"No, he's not." Charlotte's voice was matter-of-fact in the way only children could manage. "Tommy's daddy travels for work, and he comes home every Friday. Daddy's been gone for three weeks."
Emma sat down across from her daughter, searching for words that would be honest but not terrifying.
"Daddy and I are having s
