The Presence of Grace (Love and Loss #2)(58)

Again, she was quiet for a few moments before she spoke. “It’s not that I don’t want him to know, I just can’t imagine telling him. Like, I don’t really want to talk to him about it. Ever.”

I laughed because I understood. When I was eleven, I would never have told my dad about my period. I was sure my mom took care of that.

“Do you want me to tell him?”

“You wouldn’t mind?” she replied, as if she were asking so much of me. My heart leapt at the idea of her trusting me to tell her father.

“Of course not, Ruby. I’d do anything for you. And your brother. You guys have to know that.”

“Thanks,” she replied shyly, and I felt some of the tiny cracks in my heart seal up, filled in by this girl and her ability to let me be a part of her life. “But can you do it when I’m not around. And make sure Jax doesn’t hear. The last thing I need is him bugging me about this.”

“Done and done.”

We pulled into the Target parking lot and I gave her a big smile. “Come on, time to get you stocked up.”

The store wasn’t terribly busy, which I was thankful for. It was about lunchtime and the middle of the week, and I was glad there wasn’t anyone else in the feminine hygiene aisle when we arrived.

“Okay, so you’re going to need two different kinds of pads to start, one for the day and one for the nighttime.”

“Really?” she asked, looking overwhelmed.

“Yeah, but only because you roll around in your sleep, so you need something with a little more protection.”

“Oh.”

I grabbed the pads I thought would be best and tossed them in our cart.

“Now we need Midol.”

“What about tampons?”

“Tampons are more for older girls. Maybe when you’re fifteen or sixteen.”

“Why do I have to be older? What’s the difference?”

“Well, pads just sit in your underwear, and tampons actually go inside your body. It’s better to wait until you’re older before trying them.” I prayed she took my answer and didn’t pry any more. I didn’t want to explain hymens and tampon usage to her in the middle of Target.

“What’s Midol for?”

“Midol is medicine for women and it’s specially made to treat the symptoms of your period.”

“So it’s different than just Tylenol?”

“Yeah. And you don’t have to take anything if you don’t want to, but it’s nice to keep around just in case you need it.”

“Like if I get cramps?”

“Yeah.”

I found the Midol and threw it in the cart, then headed toward the clothing. We picked out a new package of underwear and a few swimsuits she liked, and then I pushed my cart toward the ice cream and threw a few cartons in as well.

“We’ll need that later,” I promised.

As we headed toward the checkout, I tried to impart all my womanly knowledge. “Always look for a woman cashier if you’re embarrassed to buy pads. You shouldn’t be—it’s a part of life for everybody—but it’s okay if you are. If there’s a woman working, go to her line. If you can’t find a woman, find an older man, they usually know what’s up.” We found a nice woman who rang up all our items and even though Ruby looked embarrassed and as red as a tomato, the woman never gave away whether she’d figured out our situation. I felt for Ruby though and remembered those moments where you were sure everyone on the planet knew you were on your period. After I paid, I took her to the restroom and was glad to see the private family bathroom was available. I took her in, got her situated, explained how the pad adhered, then I stepped out to let her take care of it.

A few minutes later, a shy and slightly embarrassed Ruby emerged.

“Everything all squared away?”

“I think so,” she said with a shy smile.

“All right.” I took the bags from her and we walked out to the car. As I buckled I said, “I’m supposed to take you to your grandparents’ house now, but if you’d rather go home and watch movies and eat ice cream, I could be persuaded to extend our girls’ day.”

Finally, a genuine smile appeared on her face and I couldn’t help but smile back.

“That would be awesome,” she said enthusiastically.

I grabbed my phone and dialed Devon’s number.

“Hey, babe,” he said as a greeting, making my pulse speed up. “How’d girls’ day go?”

“It went fine, although Ruby’s not feeling so great at the moment, so I thought I’d take her back to your house instead of to your parents’. Would that be all right?”

“Of course. Is she all right?”

“She’ll be fine, just a little under the weather. Do you think you could let your mother know not to expect her?”

“Sure. Can I talk to Ruby?”

“Yeah, here she is.”

I handed the phone to her, giving her a supportive smile.

“Hey, Dad.” She paused and I could hear Devon’s voice through the phone, though I couldn’t make out what he was saying. “No, I’m okay, I just don’t feel well.” She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and gave me another smile. “I will, Dad. Okay. Here you go. Love you too.”