Commitments by Barbara Delinsky Read Free Book Online Page B

ously, that their financial status was better than r, but somehow none of those arguments gave her mfort. Dipping her head, she looked into Nicky's face. t would give her comfort would be his looking @`hack at her, reaching up to grab her hair, maybe calling ! inama. Hell, she wasn't fussy; he could call her y ing his little heart desired, if only he would make th e connection between his vocal cords and speech. But he didn't make that connection. The sounds he made were involuntary, brought on by discomfort or displeasure or - on the rare occasion - delight. A Page 18
    Barbara Delinsky - Commitments
    helpless gurgle when his tummy was tickled. A reflexive gasp when he was tossed into the air. But he 55 seemed to have no knowledge that he'd produced that sound himself, and he had no inclination to reproduce it at will. Yet he was beautiful. Sabrina never failed to think it, and she knew that far more than matemal pride was at play. People stopped her on the street or in elevators or in stores to tell her. Nicky Stone was a beautiful child. No heat rashes for him, no eczema, no chafed skin. His complexion was smooth, his cheeks soft. He had eyes that were large pools of mocha, fringed by unfairly long lashes. His hair was a cap of loose, pecancolored curls that caught and reflected the nearest light. Sabrina dressed him in the most adorable clothes she could find - even now he was wearing a bright sweatshirt, pint-sized Guess jeans and tiny Reeboks - but she knew that with or without the duds, he'd catch the eye. It was a cruel paradox. A beautiful shell housing a limited mind. A cruel, cruel paradox. She'd have traded looks for mental health in a minute. But it wasn't to be. He was a slight child. Aside from the baby fat that gave his face a slightly rounded look, he carried no extra weight - no mystery, given the trauma of meals. Sice he couldn't learn to swallow, his food had to be strained, and even then it was all Sabrina could do to massage half of it down his throat. He fought her. He could be famished - and she feared that half the time he was, which was why, on doctors' orders, he was fed six small meals a day - but he still object@d to the intrusion of foreign matter in his mouth. He lacked all understanding. He couldn't make the connection between eating and survival, satiation or pleasure. For all the times Sabrina had seen exasperated mothers trying to clean up chocolate-covered children, 56
    VIC the world to see Nicky like that once, just Thone rang, jarring her from wistfulness. Know-Mrs. Hoskins would answer it, she gathered into her arms and pushed herself to her feet. sed she was lucky that he was fight for his strain on her back from holding him for hours day was bad enough; had he been heavier, she'd been in serious trouble. about a bath, bud?' she asked, nuzzling his He was facing outward, sitting in the chair fashioned out of her -arms and her hip, and the ' in her step was designed for play. ''ll add bubbles and bring ducky in and you can stretch m. Sound good? I was halfway to his room when Mrs. Hoskins up with her. ' was your husband Stone. He didn't want to disturb you, but he forgot A you to pick up his new tuxedo. it's ready and ng at the shop. He couldn't remember whether Id ordered a dress shirt, but he said they had his size file. Also, he's out of shave cream and deodorant. s of some sort for d he suggested picking up sweet ,'the Taylors." Sabrina stopped in her tracki, dropped her chin to chest and squeezed her eyes shut. Pick up his new .!'Medo. Pick out a new dress shirt. Pick up shave cream, deodorant, sweets, a new cordless. Nicholas ';.@'had a knack for tossing off little orders, totally oblivious of the effort required to carry them out. Errands that would have been simple three years ago weren't so simple now. She sighed against Nicky's head as she atinued into his room. A short time later, he , in the tub. Sabrina had a ,."firm grip on hun, which put her practically in the tub