No Way Out by Fern Michaels (great books for teens .TXT) 📗

Mitchel was as sincere as he could be. He knew that little encounter with Lucinda had put his mother over the top. But in the past few hours, her entire demeanor had changed. Maybe it’s a magical scarf. He snickered to himself.

“It’s OK, son. I know you’re going through a rough patch. Remember, my house is always open to you and Jackson. At some point, you might have him for an entire weekend. It would be nice if he had his own room. You don’t want to impose any further on your brother, now, do you?”

Mitchel could hardly believe this was his mother talking in such a kind and compassionate manner. He was going to savor it even if it was only temporary.

Jackson returned to the table and showed both of them how clean his hands were.

“Good job, my man. C’mon, let’s get rolling,” Mitchel said.

The three left the shop and got back in the car. “Are you sure you don’t want to bowl with us, Mother?” Now Mitchel was teasing her.

“What? And use stinky shoes that were on someone else’s dirty feet. No, thank you.” She looked into the rearview mirror and grinned at both of them. “I’ll be just fine watching the two of you.” She turned on the radio and put the volume on low. She found a classic rock station and sang along with Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline.”

Jackson nudged his father, and whispered, “I didn’t know Grammy could sing so good.”

“She used to be in the church choir but quit after your grandfather died,” Mitchel explained.

“Hey, Gram! You sound really good!” Jackson yelled over the seat.

Vivian turned the volume down. “Sorry, boys. I was reminiscing about my youth. Bap-bap-baa,” she continued to sing along.

Mitchel often forgot that his mother had once been a young woman. He was only ten when his father died, so he didn’t have a lot to go on. Ever since that terrible day, his mother had been morose and dour. But since dropping them off at the movie theater, she was a different person. He decided that whatever it was, he was glad. It was as if a heavy cloud had been lifted. At least one of them.

Jackson joined in the singing. “Bap-bap-baa!”

Mitchel felt his shoulders relax for the first time that day. He realized he hadn’t had a cigarette since he left the house that morning. Maybe things were turning around for him.

The ride to the bowling alley took about twenty minutes, with Vivian singing along to all the songs she recognized. By the time they arrived, the three of them were in a fine mood.

Jackson grabbed her hand. “You sure you don’t wanna put on some stinky shoes?” He giggled. She laughed. Mitchel was in a state of disbelief.

The rest of the afternoon went smoothly. No ex-flings, no more beer. Mitchel was on his best behavior. At least for the moment. They bowled a few games, then headed for home.

When they finally reached Gregory’s house, Jackson was a bit teary-eyed. This was the dad he wanted. This was the dad he needed. As they got out of the car, he wrapped his arms around his father’s waist. “I miss you.” Then he burst into tears.

Elaine heard Jackson crying and flew out the front door. “What’s going on?” she demanded.

Vivian took the reins. “We had a lovely day. I think Jackson is upset that he has to leave his dad now.”

“He’ll be all right, won’t you, Jackson?” Mitchel spoke softly to his son.

Jackson sniffled and wiped his nose on his sleeve. Vivian dug into her purse and retrieved a tissue. “Here you go.”

She motioned for her and Elaine to go inside to give the boys some private time.

Elaine was a bit apprehensive, but Vivian nodded, indicating it was OK to leave them alone for a few minutes.

When they got in the house, Elaine couldn’t help but ask, “So how did it go?”

“Very well. They had burgers, went to a movie, had ice cream, and then we went bowling.”

“How was the movie?” Elaine asked innocently.

Vivian caught herself just in time before revealing she had gone shopping. “Oh, I . . . I dozed off. Those kinds of pictures don’t interest me.”

“Dozed off? With all that noise?” Elaine was half-serious.

“I guess I was tired from the drive,” Vivian said, keeping up the ruse.

“New scarf?” Elaine couldn’t help but notice that Vivian wearing something cheery.

“Oh, yes, I bought it at one of the outlet shops.” Vivian realized she was about to give her secret away and continued, “I got it a few weeks ago but didn’t have an occasion to wear it. I thought today would be a good one.” She was getting rather good at thinking on her feet. Must be the scarf, she thought to herself, and smiled.

“What?” Elaine asked with a puzzled look on her face.

“What? What?” Vivian repeated.

“You had a funny smile on your face.” Elaine had noticed the change in Vivian as well.

“Must be the scarf,” Vivian finally said out loud.

Jackson and Mitchel sat on the front step while Jackson regrouped. “I’m sss . . . sorry, Dad.”

“For what?”

“Crying like a baby.” Jackson sniffed.

“It’s OK. To tell you the truth, I wanna cry myself.” Mitchel put his arm around Jackson. “But we’ll get together again next weekend. You can decide what you want to do, OK?”

“Sure. Does Gram have to come with us?”

“Yes, for the time being. But we’ll have fun. Maybe she’ll even sing to us again.” Mitchel ruffled Jackson’s hair. “C’mon. We gotta get you home.”

Mitchel opened the front door. “Mother, I think it’s time to get Jackson back home.” He put his hand on Jackson’s shoulder. “Right, kiddo?”

“Right-o, Dad.” Jackson gave his father another hug. “Bye, Aunt Elaine! Bye, Daddy!” He held back the tears until they got into the car. He was in the back seat, sniffling.

Vivian turned to him. “Honey, I know this is hard now, but it will get better. We just need to figure out a few things.”

“That’s what my mom said.”