Let's Be Crazy (Oh Captain, My Captain 4)

Brooke looks at me, and then Sadie, who is looking at the ground.

“Please, Brooke. Let me speak to Reed.”

“He’s in my bedroom.” Ashton walks up behind her, and his face is almost scary. He doesn’t even look this pissed off on the ice. “But, if you upset him–”

“I promise I won’t.” I pull Sadie with me and head to the bedroom.

Reed is lying in the middle of the bed. He looks so small in Ashton’s huge bed. His face is blotchy, and his hazel eyes are puffy and bloodshot.

“Hi, Reed.”

He looks up, and his bottom lip is quivering. My heart feels like it’s being stomped on. “Hi,” he squeaks out.

“I bought chicken nuggets. Can Sadie and I come in and eat them with you?” I hold up the bag, showing that I’m telling the truth. He shrugs. I set the bag down on the edge of the bed and lift Sadie up to sit next to Reed. I open the bag and lay out the chicken nuggets and the ketchup.

“Now, I want to know what happened today.” I hand them each a piece of food.

“Sadie doesn’t want to be my friend.” A tear rolls down his face.

“Why, Sadie?”

“Because you hate Mr. Ashton, and I don’t want you to cry anymore.” She sniffs.

I can feel my heart pounding. She must be hearing me cry at night. “Okay, first off, I don’t hate Mr. Ashton.”

“But, my mom said that you did, and my dad loves you.” Reed’s hazel eyes are wide.

I try to rein in my gasp. These kids rea

lly hear everything. “I was very upset with Mr. Ashton, but I never hated him. Your dad is so kind and sweet. I could never hate him.”

“Do you love him?” Sadie asks.

I swallow back my emotions. “I care a lot for him. Like I said, Mr. Ashton is a wonderful person. But, none of this is a reason for you two to stop being friends.”

“Why are crying all the time, Mommy?”

“Because,” I pause trying to figure out how to explain this. “Sometimes Mommy cries. It happens. You cry sometimes, right?”

“When I fall down or get hurt.”

“Well, Mommy cries for different reasons.” Because I’m a fool and I don’t know how to tell Ashton the truth. “But Reed is your best friend, and you two need to stay friends. No matter what is going on with the grownups.”

They both nod.

“Can you both promise me that you will always be friends?”

“Yes,” they say together. They both start to eat their nuggets, and I feel a little at ease.

“My dad doesn’t usually let me eat in his bed.” Reed takes another nugget.

“It’s okay this time.”

I whip my head to see Brooke and Ashton standing in the doorway. Brooke has a small smile on her face, but Ashton still looks mad at the world.

Crap.

Chapter Twenty-Four