Chapter Four

As the morning turned to afternoon, Madison’s stomach started to make rumbling sounds. She clutched her stomach and blushed.

Kevin laughed and hugged her. “Why didn’t you say you were hungry?”

She shrugged.

“I can make us lunch. Do you like tunafish sandwiches?” Christy asked.

“Yummy,” Madison said.

“Wanna help me?”

“Sure!”

Christy and Madison went off to the kitchen. Kevin sat on the couch while Chad colored in an activity book.

“So, Chad, anything interesting going on here?” he asked. So far, he had been semi successful in getting the boy to talk to him. He wondered if he was just shy or if there was something bothering him.

“Nope, nothing interesting,” Chad answered. He continued to color.

Kevin chewed on his lower lip and moved from the couch to the floor. “Mind if I join you?”

Chad shook his head. “Sure.”

Chad passed him some crayons and ripped a page from his book. Kevin began coloring. “I haven’t done this in a long time,” he said. “I forgot how fun it was.”

“Uh huh,” was the uninterested response.

“Does Kyle spend time coloring with you?”

“No. He’s not here much at all.”

“He’s not?”

“He goes on business trips a lot.”

“Oh,” Kevin said. “Do you like him? I mean, does he treat your mom right?”

Chad pressed down on his paper harder with the crayon. “He treats Mom great,” he said. “He loves her, and me.”

Kevin watched the boy press the crayon so hard against the paper that it broke. He frowned at this.

“Lunch is ready!” Madison called proudly.

Chad and Kevin entered the kitchen. The girls had set the table with sandwiches, a bowl of chips and soft drinks.

“I’m starved,” Kevin said.

“Help yourselves,” Christy said, waving her hand over the table.

They all sat down and started to eat. Kevin talked about life on the road, and Chad seemed intrigued. He even asked questions and became more outspoken. Halfway through their meal, the front door opened and in walked Kyle Bloomfield.

“Well well well, looks like a party,” he said, tossing his jacket into the nearest chair and joining them in the kitchen. “Nice to see you again, Kevin.”

Kevin just nodded. He suddenly had lost his appetite. Chad slumped down in his chair.

“Kevin and his niece Madison stopped by for a visit. They wanted to meet Chad,” Christy said.

“Ahhh, I see. Yeah, Chad is a great kid,” Kyle said, ruffling his hair. Chad ducked away. “So, what’s planned for this afternoon?”

“Actually, Madison and I should be going. I promised my mother I’d help her out today,” Kevin said, backing his chair away from the table and ignoring the puzzling glance from Madison.

“Oh, so soon? I thought we’d go for a walk in the park after lunch,” Christy said. “It’s so nice outside...”

“Maybe tomorrow. Maddy, you ready?”

The little girl nodded slowly. “But I haven’t finished my sandwich.”

“You can take it with you,” Kevin told her.

Within minutes, they were walking to the car. Kyle stood in the doorway and watched Christy run after them.

“Please don’t leave because of him,” she begged. “He’s not that bad, really.”

“Anyone who yells at you in public, and then drags you away from your friends, that’s bad,” Kevin said, buckling his niece into her seat.

“You saw that?”

“Me and everyone else in that gym. Give me a call later, we’ll talk.” He closed the passenger door and turned to say goodbye to Chad. “See you later, bud. Keep practicing that basketball, you’ll be as good as my cousin Brian.”

Chad grinned. “Brian is awesome! I’ve seen videos of him playing. Will you come back and help me play better?”

“Sure thing. Bye.”

Kevin hugged Christy and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. “Call me,” he whispered.

“I will. Bye, thanks for coming. Tell Ann I said hi.”

“Will do.”

Kevin walked around the car and climbed in. As he started the ignition, Madison turned to him and frowned.

“I’m sorry, sweetie, I know you wanted to stay.”

“That’s okay, Kyle gives me the creeps anyway.”