The Unexpected Wedding(29)

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Becky Lee bought way more groceries than she intended and found out just what Scotty liked and didn’t when it came to food. She dropped off Josh with Holly, then she and Scotty went to the cottage and she put the groceries away.

“Want to make your own grilled cheese sandwich?” Becky Lee turned to Scotty.

“Really? Me?” Scotty hopped from foot to foot. “Yes. I’ll know something that Uncle Cal doesn’t know how to make.”

“He doesn’t make grilled cheese?” Becky Lee couldn’t fathom not knowing how to grill a cheese sandwich.

“Well, he made grilled cheese one time. It was burnt so bad we threw it away and he opened a can of chicken noodle soup for dinner instead.”

“I see. Let’s see if we can do better than that.”

Becky Lee had Scotty get out two slices of bread, butter one side of each, and grab two slices of cheddar cheese. After teaching him about safety around stoves, no pan handles hanging off the edge, be careful of the hot burners, they proceeded to grill his sandwich.

Scotty carried the plate with his sandwich like it was a priceless treasure and placed it on the table. She gave him a handful of chips and some slices of apple. He finished every bite of his dinner. They worked together on cleaning the skillet, wiping up the counter, stove, and table, and doing the dishes.

“There. All finished.” Becky Lee looked around the tidy kitchen. Might as well teach the boy to clean up his cooking mess, along with his cooking lessons. “How about you get your shower and in your pj’s. I’ll read you a story after that.”

“Really? You’ll read to me? Mom always did that. Read to me every night.”

“Doesn’t Cal?”

“No.”

“I bet he would if you’d ask him to.” Becky Lee made a mental note to talk to Cal about bedtime stories. “Now run and grab that shower.”

Twenty minutes later Scotty was clean, the bathroom was a disaster of towels and dirty clothes, and Scotty had climbed into bed and handed her a book. She’d deal with the bathroom after she read to him. One lesson at a time on cleaning.

She read to him for a while until she could see his eyes starting to droop and a big yawn escaped him. “I think that’s enough for tonight. I’ll mark our place, so Cal can pick up there tomorrow night if you want him to.”

Scotty scooted down beneath the covers. “Leave the light on. I’m not afraid of the dark, but well, I like to be able to see. Thanks for reading.”

“You’re welcome. Goodnight, Scotty.” She so wanted to bend over and kiss him goodnight. To promise him everything would be all right. But she just pulled the cover up over his shoulders.

She took one last look at him as she walked out of the room. She went and tidied the bathroom and put his dirty clothes in the hamper. The hamper that was bulging with dirty clothes. She decided to throw a load of clothes in the washer. As she finished up, she thought she heard a noise. She stood perfectly still, then she knew exactly what she’d heard.

Scotty. Crying.

She walked back down the hallway and entered the boy’s room. She sat on the side of the bed and brushed the hair away from his face. She handed him a tissue. “You okay?”

The boy sobbed again. “I miss my mom. I mean Uncle Cal is nice, but I miss Mom. I know Dad is never coming back, but Mom can. If she’d just wake up.”

Becky Lee’s heart broke into a million pieces. She gathered the boy into her arms and patted his back. His small arms wrapped around her neck as he clung to her. “Oh, Scotty, I’m so sorry. I’m sure your Mom wants to come back to you. I think she needs some more time to get better. I know she loves you very much.”

“I know she does. She tells me she loves me to the moon and back times twenty.”

Becky Lee was instantly ported back in time. How her own mother had said that to her every night when she tucked her in. She held the boy until his sobs began to subside, stroking his hair and wishing she could do more to take away his pain.

He lay back on the pillow and wiped at his face. “I’m not really a baby like this.”

“It’s not being a baby to cry about someone you care about and miss.” This time, she did lean over and kiss his forehead. “Try to get some sleep. I’ll be right down the hall if you need me.”

Scotty nodded and slid down under the covers again.

She walked to the doorway and stood for a moment, her heart filled with compassion for all Scotty was going through and how brave he tried to act.

Theresa Jean, you have a really fine son. Becky Lee walked down the dark hallway, brushing away tears of her own.