Now Until Forever (21 page)

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Authors: Karen White-Owens

BOOK: Now Until Forever
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“No. Ryan's not mad at you,” Keir said. He felt as if he were walking on shifting sand. That much was true. Her pain was directed at herself.
“This is my fault,” Adam decided in a dull and troubled tone.
“No, it's not. Son, you didn't cause this.”
“Is she coming back?” Emily asked. Hysteria touched her words.
“I think so,” said Keir. “She just needs a little alone time. We have to give her that.”
“Dad-dee, I want to talk to her. Can we call her?” said Emily.
Fighting the pounding in his head, Keir thought,
Jesus!
This was harder to do than he'd expected. The kids had gotten really attached to Ryan, and he wasn't answering their questions effectively.
Hell!
He didn't know how to respond.
“Not yet. Soon,” said Keir. “I want you guys to understand, Ryan isn't mad at you. There's a lot going on, and she needs a break.” Keir turned to the range and flipped the sausage. “Ryan will be back. I'm sure of it.”
At least I hope I'm right,
Keir thought, grabbing a loaf of bread and removing several slices.
If I'm wrong, I'll have to find some way of convincing her to return to us.
Chapter 31
Adam had a plan. At night, in the quiet of his bedroom, he mapped out the details.
Since the baseball game, they hadn't seen Ryan. He felt really bad about what happened that day and how it changed his father and Ryan's relationship.
Dad was a wreck. Although he tried to pretend everything was fine, Adam knew different.
And he missed Ryan. She was so cool. When he first asked her to come to his baseball games, he thought she'd make up some excuse, but she hadn't. She always showed up to cheer him and the team on.
She was family, his family, and he wanted her back in his life. Even Emily kept questioning Dad about Ryan and asking him to take them to visit Ryan. Dad talked and talked, but he never gave them a straight answer. Dad needed Adam's help. It was his job to help his father make up with Ryan and put things back on track.
His father looked so sad all the time. He tried to hide it. But, Adam saw how Dad gazed at Ryan's picture. And he kept it on the nightstand next to his bed.
Adam blamed himself for the breakup. His father kept telling Adam that he hadn't done anything wrong and repeating that Ryan would return to them after she had time to consider things. But Adam knew better. If he'd stayed cool at the baseball game and hadn't fought with Malcolm, things would be different. Dad wouldn't feel so alone.
The next morning, Adam felt the time had come to put his plan into action. In exchange for baseball, Mom and Dad made him attend a summer school enrichment program. He didn't mind because summer school lasted only a few weeks. Although what he really wanted to do was sleep late, stay home, and watch TV.
Monday morning, Mom pulled the car up to the front of the school. Adam hopped out of the car and waved good-bye. His mother waited at the curb while he strolled up the long concrete stairs, opened the red double doors, and entered the private school building. The central hallway was cool, dark, and practically empty.
Adam started down the hall to the community room. Each morning the students and faculty met there before classes began. The teachers took attendance, described the day's program, and then sent the students on their way to the appropriate classrooms.
The principal dismissed the students, and they dispersed to their classrooms. Adam shot down the hall to the lavatory. He listened at the lavatory door for the halls to clear. Once the halls emptied, he planned to sneak out of the building through the side door. He leaned against the door, listening. It took forever for the laughing and screaming to fade and eventually die away. Adam pushed the door open a crack. The halls were deserted.
Cool!
Easing out the lavatory door, Adam raced down the hall, slowing as he neared the school's main office. Ducking away from the door, he tiptoed past the office and out the side door. He let out a sigh of relief when the alarm didn't go off.
Once he made it to the street, Adam pulled out his cell phone and called a taxi from the list he'd made yesterday. Ten minutes later a yellow sedan pulled up to the curb. He climbed into the backseat and said, “One Leaf Studio.”
The driver studied him from the rearview mirror. One eyebrow rose skeptically. “Kid, how do you plan to pay for this trip?”
Adam considered showing the driver the money he'd siphoned out of his piggy bank. But, the driver didn't need to see it. For now all the cabbie needed to know was if Adam could pay the fare. And he could. Using his fiercest voice, Adam responded, “Don't worry about me. My dad is meeting me at the studio. He'll pay the bill when we get there.”
The driver scratched his head, examining the boy in the mirror. “Okay, kid. Just so you know, if you don't pay up, I'll call the cops.”
Adam leaned back in the seat and placed his book bag on his lap. “It's not going to be a problem.”
Nodding, the driver pulled into traffic, and they made the drive to the studio in silence. Adam didn't care. The less said, the better. Besides, he wanted to rehearse his speech in his head before doing it aloud.
Thirty minutes later, the cabbie braked outside the main gate of One Leaf. The man behind the wheel turned to face Adam, saying, “What's your father's name?”
“Doesn't matter.” Adam shoved the money into the slot and left a twenty-dollar bill for a tip. He scooted out of the backseat and stood on the curb for a moment before tossing the book bag strap over his shoulder and approaching the guard's shack.
“Hi, Clay,” Adam called.
The uniformed man smiled down at the boy. “Hey, Adam. What's going on?”
“Nothing. I'm here to see my dad.”
Nodding, the guard pulled out a computer printout and scanned the pages. “You're not on the list, but that's okay. That sometimes happens. Do you want me to get you a cart and driver? Or call your dad to come and pick you up?”
Shaking his head, Adam shifted the book bag from one shoulder to the other. “Nah. I'll walk. I know how to get to the Eiffel Tower. Besides, I don't want to disturb him.”
The guard studied the distance between buildings. He clipped a badge to Adam's polo shirt. “I don't know. I'll watch you, okay? That way I'll know you made it safe.”
The guard stepped out of the shack and locked the door. “Be careful. Watch for cars. I don't want your dad on my back if something happens to you. And I'll see you on the way out.”
“Thanks, Clay. Bye.” Waving, Adam hurried up the driveway toward the studio. Before he entered the building, he glanced back at the gate and saw the guard waiting, with his hands on his hips. Adam waved and darted inside the door.
He strolled through the studio like he owned the place. No one questioned his right to be there. Kids were a common sight on the sets. Plus, most adults were too busy doing their own thing to worry about one lone child.
Dodging construction workers and camera people, he finally reached Ryan's office. He stood outside the room, mentally rehearsing his speech. Pacing, Adam crossed his fingers, hoping Ryan would be alone. The possibility of having to talk personal stuff around Glo bothered him. Besides, the old lady might take it into her head to call his dad, and the whole trip would be messed up.
Biting his bottom lip, Adam softly knocked on the door and then turned the doorknob, peeking inside the office. Ryan sat at her desk, with a sketch pad in her hands, facing the window.
“Come on in.” She swiveled the chair toward the entrance. She gasped, and her eyes grew large. “Adam!” Standing, Ryan dropped the pad on the chair and hurried across the room to the door. “What are you doing here?”
“I came to see you,” Adam answered simply.
Ryan's look of surprise quickly shifted to suspicion. “Does your father know you're here?”
He shook his head.
“Where are you supposed to be?” asked Ryan.
Adam looked away as heat warmed his cheeks. She'd put him on the spot, and he was embarrassed. “Summer school.”
“Then why aren't you there?”
He hunched his shoulders but remained silent.
Ryan took his hands and drew him to a chair against the side of her desk and patted the cushion. “Sit down,” she said as she sank into her spot and then reached for the phone.
Obeying, Adam dropped the book bag on the floor and sat. “Don't,” he said a moment later. “Please.”
She replaced the receiver without dialing. “Okay, Adam. Come on, honey. What's going on?”
“I came to talk to you.”
“With me? About what? Why didn't you use the phone?”
“I wanted to tell you in person that I'm sorry.”
Ryan's forehead became crinkled. Leaning back in her chair, she said, “I'm confused. Sorry? About what?”
“Fighting with Malcolm and letting him say those bad things about you. I didn't mean to cause trouble between you and my dad.”
“I know you didn't. Don't worry about that. It's all forgotten.”
“But you don't talk to Dad or Emily and me. So I thought you were mad at me, and I needed to tell you, I was sorry.”
She took Adam's hand. “Honey, listen to me. You didn't do anything wrong.”
“If I didn't do anything wrong, then why did you leave us?”
“I didn't leave you,” Ryan denied quickly. “Keir and I decided to cool things down a bit.”
All the words rushed out of his mouth at once. “You don't come over to Dad's anymore. We miss you. And Dad's so sad. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cause trouble. Please come back.”
Grimacing, Ryan shook her head. “No. Not now. Everyone will be fine. Just give the situation a chance.”
“Emily and me, we miss you. Dad needs you.”
Tears appeared in Ryan's eyes. She cleared her throat and turned away, brushing at her cheeks. “Your dad and I decided to spend a little time apart. This will give your dad more time with you and your sister.”
Ryan's version made Adam mad. She had never treated him this way. He jumped to his feet, sending the chair flying against the wall. The cushion went in one direction, and the steel frame teetered back and forth on its back legs before righting itself. “Don't talk to me like I'm a baby. I know how things are going between you and my dad. Emily and me saw the same thing happen with my mom and dad.”
This time Ryan's cheeks flashed red. “No, honey. You're wrong. It's not the same.”
“Then what is it?” he demanded.
“I'm sorry. You're right. I shouldn't treat you like a baby. You're not. So I'll be honest with you.”
Nodding, Adam returned to his chair, waiting.
She brushed her bangs from her eyes. “After the stuff at the game, I got really upset. I didn't want you and Emily to be hurt that way. It wasn't fair. I talked with your dad and explained to him that I felt you and Emily needed more time alone with him. We agreed to stop seeing each other for a while.”
“How long is a while?”
“I don't know.”
“That's not right,” Adam declared.
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“Nobody asked us. Everybody's making decisions about us without talking to me or Emily. How would you feel if somebody did that to you?”
Ryan swallowed loudly before admitting, “Not real good.”
“Maybe I didn't want you to stop coming around. Maybe I had something real important to tell you. You should have talked with Emily and me before running away.”
For a moment, Ryan sat, fidgeting with the sketch pad. She turned to him and said, “You're right. I shouldn't have left without explaining the situation to you and your sister. I left the explanation in Keir's hands. I believed your father could do a better job than me.”
“Ryan, do you love my father?”
“What?”
“You heard me? Do you love my dad?”
Ryan looked away. When she spoke, her voice trembled. “Yes.”
“Then why can't you be together?”
“Things are complicated. There's more involved than your dad and me. I don't want you guys to be hurt by things people say about me. You were defending me when you should have been having fun.”
“You're my family. My dad taught me to take care of the people I love. And I love you.”
“Oh, honey.” She pulled him to her and hugged him close. “I love you, too.”
Adam wrapped his arms around Ryan. He'd missed the hugs and kisses she always gave him. “Please come back,” he requested softly. “We miss you.”
“I miss you, too.”
Adam took a step away, holding Ryan's gaze with his own. “Then why won't you be with us? Having fun, going to the park or movies?”
“I just can't right now.”
“When?” he pressed.
“I don't know.”
“You don't like us anymore, do you? Because I did a really bad thing.”
“No. It's not you. It's me. I can't talk about this anymore.” She rose and held out her hand. “Come on. Your dad needs to know where you are.”
He took her hand. “Ryan, will you at least call sometime so I can talk to you? I have a cell phone.”
“We'll see.”
“Which means no,” he mumbled bitterly.
“No. It means we'll see.”
Following her out of the office, Adam fought the urge to cry. He'd failed. He hadn't been able to convince her to give them a second chance, and he didn't know what to do.
Adam pulled his emotions together and made another promise. There had to be another way. He'd find it and bring his dad and Ryan back together.

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