Chapter 10: Chapter 10
With a warm smile, Mrs. Gregory said, “Of course. Little boys can be a handful sometimes. You just come back when you get a chance.”
Reid nodded. “Thank you,” he said and hurried out of the room and up the stairs to get his tools and head over to Melody’s house. Michael hadn’t been the only one thinking about Melody these past few days. There was just something about her smile, the light in her eyes, that had drawn him to her. Even though he hadn’t even thought about dating for as long as he could remember, Melody was different. While he’d been too timid to attempt to run into her again, his son had been bold and taken matters into his own hands. Michael would certainly hear about how his behavior was unacceptable, but as he put his last tool into his toolbox and dialed Karen’s phone number, Reid felt butterflies in his stomach thinking about seeing Melody again.
***
Michael was sprawled across from her on her father’s favorite oriental rug, studying the checkerboard with the scrutiny of a general poring over his battle plans. She’d called her mother to let her know Michael’s dad was on his way so she wouldn’t worry. Now, Melody couldn’t help but smile watching Michael stick his tongue out of the side of his mouth in concentration as if that would help him to decide which move to make next.
“I think you’re stalling,” she said with a wink. It had been a long time since she’d played checkers, and while she intended to let him win, she at least wanted to make it a challenge.
“I’m not stalling,” he replied, looking up at her with those big blue eyes. “I’m thinkin’.” He finally made a move, and Melody began to contemplate what she should do next to set him up for subtler success. “Do you really think Santa will be mad at me?”
Melody didn’t have a whole lot of experience with children, though she occasionally volunteered in the nursery at church and had taught a few Sunday school lessons. “I don’t know,” she said thinking Santa had to be a pretty big deterrent to bad behavior this time of year. “But I’m guessing you should probably be on your best behavior for the rest of the month.”
Letting out a sigh like a January breeze, Michael sat up so that he was cross-legged. It was his move now, but he suddenly seemed disinterested in the game of checkers. “I try to be good,” he said, running his hand through the textured rug, “but sometimes it’s hard. All week, I’ve been asking Dad if I could come and see you. You said we are friends now, right? So how come I can’t come to your house?”
Offering him a smile, Melody tried to explain, “Honey, coming to my house wasn’t the part that wasn’t okay—it was that your dad and Ms. Karen didn’t know where you were. And I think you lied to the bus driver, didn’t you?” Michael’s blond head slowly bobbed up and down. “I tell you what, when your dad gets here, I’ll make sure he has my phone number. He can call me the next time you want to come over, and if I’m here, I’ll be more than happy to have you over anytime. You are my friend. I just don’t want people to think you’re lost.”
A weight seemed to lift from Michael’s shoulders. “Thank you, Miss Melody,” he said with a smile. “You’re nice. I knew you would be nice. That’s why I talked to you in the hardware store.”
Melody couldn’t help but beam at the sweet compliment from such a cute little boy. “Thank you, honey. You’re nice, too. And you’re always welcome here, so long as your dad says it’s okay.”
“You’re pretty, too,” Michael continued without missing a beat. He picked up a checker and moved it on the board, jumping over one of hers. “My dad says you’re pretty.”
Melody froze, not sure she heard him correctly. Trying to hold back her racing pulse, she took a breath and swallowed before she said, “What’s that?”
“Oh, yeah. My dad said you are pretty. You think my dad’s handsome?” he asked, peering up at her with his blue eyes wide.
Stammering, Melody said, “I, uh, I guess I never really noticed,” and cleared her throat, not sure what to think about his first comment, let alone the question. Had Reid actually said he thought she was pretty—or was it a trick, like the question she’d just been asked?
“I bet you think he’s handsome, too,” Michael said, eyeing the board again. “It’s your turn.”
Returning her attention to the game, Melody moved one of her pieces to a position where he could easily jump it on his next move. “Why do you think that?” she asked, trying to keep her voice nice and light.
Michael jumped her black checker with his red. “Because he looks like me!” he replied, enthusiastically, with a laugh.
Melody couldn’t help but laugh along with him. “Well, that is true,” she said. “And you are definitely handsome.”
The sound of his high pitched laughter filled the room. “I’m glad I met you, Miss Melody. Ms. Karen is nice but she’s old. And Mrs. Gregory and the other ladies Daddy works for are nice, but they’re mostly way old. You’re pretty and nice. And you have cool stuff to play with at your house.”
Trying not to laugh at his innocence, Melody bit the inside of her cheek and finally managed to say, “Thank you, Michael.” She made her next move and was waiting for him to decide what to do when she heard the doorbell ring.
“Aw, man! Already?” Michael exclaimed. “We aren’t even done with the game yet.”
“You make your move, and I’ll go let your dad in,” Melody said. “Maybe he’ll let us finish the game before you go.”
Michael’s face lit up at the thought and he puzzled over which checker to move as she pulled herself up off of the floor and made her way to the front door.