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“Amen!” Lucas said. “If we paid attention to what our heart tells us, we wouldn’t make nearly as many mistakes.”
“What is your heart telling you right now?” Vada asked.
“That’s a silly question,” Theron piped up from the back seat. “A heart pumps blood. It doesn’t talk.”
Lucas winked again, and Vada smiled. Just having someone who understood and accepted her child was beyond any miracle the universe could boast about.
Chapter Seven
“There’s a tree stand in the storage room, so we can set up the tree, but I’ll have to go to Mama’s to get some decorations,” Lucas said as he hauled the bigger tree into the bunkhouse and laid it on the floor.
Theron took a deep breath and blurted out, “May I go with you?”
Vada almost hyperventilated. “Are you sure about this?”
Theron nodded. “I’m not ready for a big crowd with lots of people around me, but I’d like to talk some more to Sonny and Pearl. They were nice to me.” His hands trembled, but he didn’t shove them into his pockets or get out one of the fidget toys that calmed him. “I researched the idea of going around people, and from what I read, if I try just a couple at a time, it’s better.”
“Baby steps,” Vada said.
“I’m not a baby, Mama,” Theron protested. “I’m ten years old and very smart.”
“Yes, you are,” Lucas agreed as he brought out the tree stand that had been red at one time but now the paint was chipped, “but baby steps just means that you take one little step at a time in this journey to get better.”
“I see.” Theron nodded again. “I agree that it has to be a slow process so as not to overwhelm the patient—that’s me in this journey. So, are we going now or are we going to put the tree up first?”
“Let’s set the tree up and water it real good so it doesn’t dry out,” Lucas said. “This is the first Christmas tree I’ve ever put up.”
“You didn’t have one when you were a boy like me?” Theron asked.
“Yes, but that was for our family,” Lucas explained as he worked. “We helped decorate it, and we all loved Christmas, but this is the first one I’m putting up that’s kind of like for my own little family.”
“I like that,” Theron said.
“You reckon you could hold the tree real steady for me while I get the screws into the bark to hold it upright?” Lucas asked.
“Yes, sir, I can do that,” Theron reached into the limbs and grasped the tree firmly. “I am glad that I’m wearing gloves. These things are kind of prickly.”
When they finished getting the tree in position, Lucas and Theron waved goodbye to Vada and disappeared outside. She grabbed her phone and called Stevie.
Stevie answered the phone with, “Hey, girl, how are things going? I’ve been dying to get over to the bunkhouse for a visit, but I didn’t want to spook Theron.”
“I’m in total shock,” Vada said and then told Stevie about all the progress Theron was making. “I’m so proud of him, but I can’t help but be afraid he will revert back to his hermit lifestyle. I don’t want to ever leave the ranch for any reason for fear that the magic lies right here. What if I take him home and…” She paused for a breath.
“The difference in the way things were and the way they are is that he wants to be helped,” Stevie reminded her. “I don’t think that will change one bit. How about you, Vada? How are you doing living out here in the boonies?”
“After living in the small house and seldom getting outside, I feel like a bird let out of a cage,” she answered. “When Theron and Lucas go to the barn, I have time to myself. I’m getting my work done in a shorter time because I’m not constantly worried about my son. I love cooking for three. Theron is eating more, and Lucas is so sweet. He compliments me and thanks me for every meal.”
“That’s a Ryan thing for sure,” Stevie said. “Cody does the same thing, and I love it. I understand you’ve agreed to stay until after Christmas, right?”
“I’d stay forever, but…” Vada said and then clamped a hand over her mouth.
“I bet it could be arranged,” Stevie told her.
“Do you think the family would sell me an acre of ground to put a double-wide trailer on?” Vada asked, but in her dreams, she and Theron and Lucas lived right there in the bunkhouse.
“One never knows,” Stevie said with a giggle.
“They’re back with the decorations. Give us a couple of hours and then come see our tree,” Vada said.
