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Jeff sat on the edge of the bed. “Your mom’s on the phone, Max.” He held the phone out toward the boy.
Max shook his head. “She’ll be mad,” he whispered.
He stared at his son. “Why would she be mad?”
He could dimly hear Kia speaking from where he held the phone out toward Max but couldn’t make out what she said. Pushing the speakerphone button, he spoke, “Kia, I put you on speaker.”
“Hey buddy, what’s going on?”
Max sucked in a sob. “I forgot Pickles.”
“Oh, Max, I thought you checked to make sure you had him.”
“I did, but…” His voice broke on a sob.
“Alright, bud, do you want me to come get you and bring you home or just bring you Pickles?”
Jeff held his breath as he waited for Max to answer.
“Can you stay here, too?” Max asked her.
“I can’t, Max, it’s not my house.” Kia paused. “Your dad will understand if you want to come home.”
“No, he won’t,” Max sobbed.
The fist around Jeff’s heart tightened. “I totally get it Max, it’s weird staying in a new place.”
“No, I…I.” Max sniffed. “I…I’m a big kid.”
“I’ll grab Pickles and be there soon and we’ll figure it out, okay?” Kia’s calm voice instantly soothed them both.
How the hell did she sound so relaxed? Every muscle in Jeff’s body was tense. Seeing his son crying made him want to cry, too.
“Thanks, Kia, see you soon.” He flicked off the phone and dropped it on the bedside table. He ran his hand along Max’s back, hoping the touch would be calming. He used to like it when his mom rubbed his back as a kid.
“Do you want me to snuggle up and read to you or something while we wait for your mom?” Kids liked that kind of thing, didn’t they?
Max sat up and crawled onto his lap and wrapped his arms around Jeff’s neck.
Emotion clogged his throat, making it hard to swallow.
Max blinked at him. His hazel eyes were bloodshot and glassy from the tears as he nodded in agreement.
“Do you have a favorite?”
Max nodded. “I like Junie B.”
Jeff wracked his brain for what that was. “Sorry, I don’t know what that is.”
“She’s really funny. Mom says she’s sassy.”
“Sassy is always good.” He rooted around in the backpack and pulled out a handful of books. He sifted through them until he found one with a little girl with glasses on the front. “She looks like you.” He tapped the toothless grin on the cover.
Max dragged his pajama sleeve along his nose and sniffed. “Yeah.”
Jeff eyed the snotty sleeve as Max dropped his arm onto his dad’s chest. Oh well, the shirt was going in the wash anyway. Jeff settled deeper into the chair and shifted Max’s weight, so he was tucked up against his chest. “You comfy?”
Max nodded.
