Little Lost Things

by Eleanor Chance

  "It's the Saturday after Thanksgiving," Ryan said. "Time to decorate for Christmas."

  “You still want to do that with me after the way I treated you?” She took the box he held and set it on the couch before pulling him into her arms. "Forgive me for last night. I felt betrayed, but you weren’t the cause. That said, I don't like that you kept secrets from me. As much as I've kept from Johnny, I have nothing to hide from you. You’re not hiding anything else, are you?”

  "How can you ask that? You know how I feel about secrets. It's been killing me to hide it from you."

  She gave him a tender kiss. "I am sorry. Is it too late to make up for lost time? The decorations can wait."

  Ryan led her to the sofa and pulled her onto his lap. "I've always wanted to make love to you in my man-cave but never dared with Johnny and his friends always coming and going. Would you mind?"

  In answer, she laced her fingers in his hair and gave him a deep, lingering kiss. "Does that answer your question?"

  Chapter Five

  Grace and Ryan showered and took a nap after making love. She woke more rested than she'd felt in days. They ate a leisurely lunch of Thanksgiving leftovers, then went back to the Christmas decorations.

  They'd used an artificial tree for the past few years, but Grace had pressed Ryan to get a live one. He agreed but wanted to get it at a lot in town. Grace insisted on going to a tree farm in the country where they could cut one down. They drove to a farm just west of Richmond and found the perfect tree. Ryan wasn't thrilled at all the work it took to get it home and into the house, but once it was set up, he agreed it was worth it. He strung the lights, but Grace said she wanted to wait for Johnny to decorate it.

  Grace's phone rang as she was getting the leftovers out of the fridge for a second round. It was Darnell's mom, Jayda.

  "Happy Thanksgiving," Grace said. "How was your holiday? We missed you at our game night."

  "As much as I wish I could make my own Thanksgiving, it's worth it to go to Jordan's mom's, so we don't have to go for Christmas. It wasn't too terrible. Better than usual. I bet yours was amazing with Alec cooking."

  "Indescribable. I had to put on my stretchy pants. What are you and Jordan doing tonight? Did you know we’re supposed to get snow?"

  "They were just calling for a dusting. Whenever the weatherman says that we get two feet. We're just staying in and getting out the decorations. I was calling to tell Darnell we're going to pick him up before the roads get too bad. He's not answering his phone. Would you mind asking him to call?"

  "Darnell's not here. I think he's at Ty's with Johnny."

  The line went quiet. "The boys aren’t at Ty's. I was just talking to Ashley. They haven't been there. She said the kids were at your house, and Darnell told me he was spending the night with you."

  Grace's gut twisted into a knot. "Hang on," she said and muted the phone. "Have you talked to Johnny today?" she asked Ryan.

  He shook his head. "What's wrong?"

  She unmuted the phone without answering him. "I'll hunt them down and call you right back. Don't worry. They're probably at Damien's."

  She hung up and told Ryan what was going on. She opened the app and wait for the results to appear. It showed him in Charlottesville.

  "What's he doing there?" Ryan asked.

  "Call him," she said.

  Ryan tried but Johnny didn't answer. "Maybe they're at Sonya's."

  Grace hadn't thought of that. Darnell's older sister went to the University of Virginia. She hoped the boys had driven up there to spend the day with her.

  "I need to call Jayda, but how do I explain that I know where Johnny is without telling her about the tracker? She'll think I'm nuts."

  "Tell her the truth. We need to know what's going on and quick. If we have five inches of snow here, there must be twice that in Charlottesville."

  Grace dialed Jayda. She explained about the tracker, and said, "Is Sonya still home for the break or did she go back today?"

  When Jayda didn’t respond, Grace had her answer.

  "She's still here. She's going back in the morning if the roads are clear.” Grace heard Sonya and Jordan in the background, asking what was happening. After Jayda explained, she said, "Sonya didn't know anything about the boys going to Charlottesville. She thought Darnell was at your house. Jordan wants to know if he can ride up there with Ryan in your 4X4."

  Grace had put the phone on speaker, so Ryan said, "Tell him I'll be there in five minutes."

  "Thanks so much. Don't worry, Grace. I'm sure they're fine. They probably went to the game and got stuck. They'll be home safe in a few hours. I'll let Ashley know."

  Grace thanked her and sank into a chair after hanging up. Just when she thought things were back to normal with Johnny, he pulled this stunt. “Keep me posted,” she said as Ryan rushed past on his way to the garage. She covered up with an afghan and settled in for the long night ahead

  * * *

  Grace checked her watch while she paced the living room. Only two minutes since the last time she checked. Alec had offered to sit with her, but Grace told her to stay home. She didn't need to be worrying about Alec out in the storm along with everyone else. Ryan had called two hours earlier to say they were on their way back. The trip normally took less than an hour, and Grace had imagined all kinds of terrible scenarios.

  Grace had tried to watch a favorite Christmas movie and read a book she'd bought the week before, but she couldn't focus. Only pacing helped. Just when she thought she'd go out of her mind, the garage door opened. She ran to the kitchen to greet her men, not sure if she wanted to hug Johnny or shake him.

  They went into the living room to talk after Johnny dumped his belongings in the bedroom. Grace had tried to plan what she would say, but all she knew was that she had to control her temper. Advice from the child-psychology books she’d read over the years flooded into her mind but none of it seemed to apply to her situation. In her opinion, the books would be most effective for thumping him over the head.

  She was about to lecture him when he said, "I'm so sorry, Mom. What I did was stupid and selfish. I put myself and other people in danger, including Dad. I deserve whatever punishment you give me."

  She was shocked into silence until she realized that Ryan had probably practiced that speech with him on the way home. Rather than question it, she said, "I appreciate the apology, but sometimes a simple sorry isn't enough. Help me understand why you did it? Why were you there?"

  Johnny stared at the carpet and said, "Jason has a friend at UVA. He had extra tickets to the game, and I've always wanted to see them play. Jason drove us up last night, and we stayed in his friend's dorm. It was an early game, so we were going to watch it and be back before our parents knew we were gone. We didn't know it was going to snow."

  "Whose brilliant idea was this?" Ryan asked.

  "Let me guess," Grace said. "Darnell."

  Johnny squirmed. "Why do you blame everything on him. Maybe it was my idea?"

  "Was it?" Grace asked. Johnny shook his head. "It doesn't matter whose idea it was. Why didn't you just ask if you could go? Dad and I would have driven you and your friends this morning. You didn’t have to lie."

  Grace caught Ryan raising his eyebrows. She ignored him but the irony wasn’t lost on her.

  "We wanted to see what college was like with no parents. That's all. We didn't do anything bad. We could've drank, but we didn't."

  "Am I supposed to congratulate you on that? I'm glad you made that choice, but in your case, you would have ended up in a coma if you drank," Ryan said.

  Johnny nodded. "I know." No one spoke for several seconds. "So, what's my punishment?" He cringed while he waited for their answer.

  "Dad and I need to talk about that, but I have one more question. Are you sorry because you got caught or because you feel bad about it?"

  Johnny raised his chin and looked her in the eye. "Both. I do wish I hadn't got caught, but I swear I was going to tell you when I got home. I fe
lt sick about doing it, especially after our talk last night, but I didn't want to look like a momma's boy. I’m sure you don't believe I was going to tell you, but it's the truth."

  "Thanks for your honesty. Go in the other room and give us ten minutes to decide your fate," Ryan said.

  Johnny started for the hallway but stopped after a few steps. "How'd you know where I was? We didn't tell anyone."

  Ryan looked at Grace, waiting for her to answer. She'd dreaded that question, but since he'd been honest with her, he deserved the same.

  "I put a parental tracker on your phone several weeks ago, so I’ll always know where you are. I didn't do it because I don't trust you. I did it because it's a dangerous world, and I want you to be safe. And because of your medical issues."

  Ryan's mouth dropped open, and Johnny's face reddened. "What do you mean a tracker? Like you can read my texts and stuff and see what I do on my phone?"

  "No, it's only a GPS tracker so I can see where you are." Johnny breathing quickened, and his face got redder. He glanced at Ryan, who held up his hands. "Don't blame your dad. He tried to stop me, but I bet he's glad now that I did it. You'd still be stranded in Charlottesville."

  "You put a tracker on me like I'm a dog? How could you do that? You always talk about trust. Where's your trust now?"

  Grace stood and glared up at him. "You're questioning my trust after what you just did? This night could have ended much worse. You should be thanking me."

  "Thanking you?' He spat the words. "I hate you." He turned and stormed down the hallway as fast as his crutches would carry him.

  "Johnny! Come back here!" Ryan said, but Johnny ignored him and slammed his door.

  It was Grace's turn to stare openmouthed. Her precious little man, her Johnny, hated her.

  She started to go after him, but Ryan grabbed her around the waist. “You’ll only make it worse. Give him time.”

  Grace struggled to get free, but she was no match for Ryan. She slumped against him, and a sob escaped her lips. “You heard what he said? He hates me.”

  Ryan turned Grace to face him and pulled her to his chest. “He doesn’t mean it. You know he loves you. He’s just mad. You remember how it was to be that age. Teenagers always hate their parents. If not, you’re doing it wrong. That’s what Mom used to say.”

  “My parents were long gone before I was Johnny’s age. My grandparents were overwhelmed by having my brothers and me thrust on them when Mama died. I did my best to be the perfect little girl to ease their burden. After they died, and I was sent to my aunt and uncle, I thought it was my chance to be a normal teenager, but I was just in their way. They were glad to see me go when I was forced to marry Danny at sixteen.” Grace pulled away and looked into Ryan’s eyes. “We’ve sheltered Johnny from the brutalities of the real world. That’s mostly my doing. He has no idea how good he has it.”

  Ryan tenderly brushed a lock of hair from her forehead. “Sometimes I forget what your life was like before we met. Let me deal with Johnny. I’ll get him to see some sense. You two can hold a peace summit tomorrow when you’re calmer.” Grace nodded and leaned back into his arms. “Are you willing to remove the tracker? You were right about it this time, but it might be a good gesture for initiating the peace process.”

  Grace gave a weak smile. “You missed your calling. You should work at the UN. I’m sure I’ll regret it, but I’ll get rid of the tracker. I should have talked to Johnny before I put it on his phone. He’s never given us a reason not to trust him until tonight.”

  “I know it’s not easy to be the bigger person after what he did.”

  “It’s not, but I’m the adult. Maybe we’ll revisit the issue once things are back to normal, if they ever are.”

  “They will be, and sooner than you think. Johnny doesn’t hold grudges.”

  Grace pulled away and gazed down the hall. “We should postpone the big talk about Johnny’s past for a week or two until our relationship is on a stronger footing. If I tell him the truth now, he will hate me forever.”

  “As anxious as I am to get it over with, I agree with you. No more than a week or two, though, please.”

  Grace reached her hand out to Ryan. “I’m ready to get it behind us, too. I’m tired of carrying this weight. I just want to be a typical family doing everyday things.”

  “Not sure what a typical family is, but we’ll get there.”

  “I’m going to bed and pretend to sleep. Good luck in there,” Grace said, gesturing toward Johnny’s room.

  Ryan smiled and kissed her. “This will be forgotten by tomorrow night.”

  Grace watched him go, doubting his prediction but wishing more than anything for him to be right.

  * * *

  Johnny dropped onto his bed and started pulling stuff out of his backpack and tossing it to the floor. He didn’t care if his mom wanted him to keep his room clean or not. Darnell was right, what did he owe her? He was still shocked that she’d had the nerve to put that tracker on his phone. She’d violated his personal space and proved she thought he was a baby who couldn’t take care of himself.

  He stared at his phone lying beside him on the bed. The sight of it disgusted him. He wanted to text Darnell and tell him what his mom had done, but he wasn’t convinced that she couldn’t read his messages. He wondered what other ways she’d devised to spy on him. He considered searching his room for hidden cameras but didn’t get the chance before his dad walked in and motioned for him to move over and make room on the bed.

  Johnny scooted back and leaned on the headboard. “What do you want?”

  His dad’s look warned him to lose the attitude. “Your mom and I aren’t the ones at fault. We’ll get to the tracker in a minute, but first we need to talk about whether or not your apology was sincere.”

  “Everything I said was true. I was going to tell you. I did feel guilty. That’s the first time I’ve done anything like that. Mom should know that since she’s been spying on me like I’m some drug dealer.”

  His dad studied him for several seconds. “I’m choosing to believe you. Did you mean what you said to Mom? Do you hate her?”

  Johnny raised his chin and was about to say yes, but it wasn’t true. He was furious and felt betrayed, but he didn’t hate her. He let out his breath and lowered his shoulders.

  “Of course not, but what she did was wrong, and it made me mad. I love Mom, but don’t ask me to forgive her. She broke my trust.”

  “Fair enough, and she happens to agree with you on that. I tried to stop her, but you know how she is when she’s determined.”

  Johnny rolled his eyes. “More than anyone. Why did she do it? Was it really because she’s worried about my safety? Seems like a cop-out.”

  “She did do it for safety reasons. She could have handled it better, but she did it for the right reasons. She worries about you. Being your mother hasn’t been easy for her, but she loves you more than her own life.”

  Johnny sat forward. “Why is she so worried? I know I’ve been sick a lot. That tracker doesn’t change that.”

  “She has her reasons. Leave it at that. She’s agreed to remove the tracker, but you have to offer up a compromise, too. What you said destroyed your mother. Her actions didn’t deserve that. No one deserves that, and you’re going to fix it. I’m tired of you being at each other’s throats.”

  Johnny crossed his arms and leaned back. “I’m pretty pissed.”

  His dad got up and kissed the top of his head before he could duck away. “Think about how she feels.”

  Johnny watched him go, not wanting to think about his mom’s feelings. She’d always been a great mom, even if she did baby him too much, but what she did went too far.

  Since he was off the hook until morning, he let it go and finished unpacking his clothes. The receipt from the food he bought at the game fluttered to the floor when he pulled out the last handful. Seeing it reminded Johnny that his dad hadn’t handed down his punishment. Maybe apologizing to his mom would get him
a lighter sentence. He flopped back on the bed, willing to give it some thought.

  * * *

  Steph’s ringtone blared in Johnny’s ear the following morning. He glanced at his phone. It was only nine. On a Sunday morning. What was Steph thinking? When he shook his head to clear it and sat up, memories of the previous night flooded his brain. He was tempted to chuck his phone at the wall, but it wasn’t Steph’s fault, and if he broke his phone, his parents would make him pay for a new one.

  He groaned and tapped the answer button to get it before it went to voicemail. “What do you want, Sis?”

  Steph laughed. “I was calling to see if you’re still alive. I was afraid either the storm or your mom did you in.”

  Johnny gritted his teeth. Did the whole family always have to know his every move? “How’d you find out so fast?”

  “Are you kidding? You had us all scared to death. Dad called after you went to bed to let me know you were okay. Why’d you take off like that? I’d have driven you and your friends to Charlottesville.”

  Johnny felt guilty all over again. He hadn’t thought about anyone else when he’d left with his friends. “I had a ride. I didn’t want to bother you, but I should have told Mom and Dad. Did Dad tell you about the tracker?”

  “He did. I tried to get your mom to talk to you first. She wishes she had, but maybe she did the right thing after the stunt you pulled.”

  “I’ve learned my lesson.”

  “Hope so. Good luck today. You’re going to need it.”

  Johnny could hear Steph laughing as she hung up. He didn’t see anything funny about it. He rolled onto his back and was about to cover his head when his text alert buzzed. He picked the phone up and saw that it was his other stepsister, Jen.