Keeping the Tarnished Read Online Free PDF Page A

from the small girl and turned to Jackson.
    “Bryce? That’s a really pretty name. I like it,” he said, as the girl reached the car.
    “Well, I like it too, sir. I like it too,” Jackson replied as he continued watching his daughter.
    “Daddy!” the girl shrieked happily. “Daddy, I wanna see the new boy, I wanna see him.” Her little fingers appeared on the window seal of her father’s car door as she tried to pull herself up to see.
    The new boy . Jackson thought the title almost sounded permanent. He certainly didn’t want to give the teenager any misguided impression that the one-night offer would become anything more. “Hold on there, little bit,” Jackson said sternly, “that new boy has a name; Johnny,” Jackson said to the chipper little girl.
    She let go of the door and raced around to the other side of the car to open Johnny’s door. She vigorously attempted to open the door, but she didn’t have the strength.
    Johnny, smiling, opened the door from the inside.
    She looked at his face briefly, and then wrapped her arms around his waist, seatbelt and all. “You’re very cute,” the little girl said with an innocent smile.
    “Well, so are you, Bryce,” Johnny replied.
    “You boys hungry?” asked a lovely voice from the doorway of the house. “You better be!” the voice continued.
    Jackson looked up to see his beautiful wife in the doorway of the house. The sun was beginning to set and the string of yard lights on either side of the white porch stairs began to light up. The woman looked angelic while walking down the stairs of the porch. She was slender, had dark brown hair, and a gorgeous, welcoming smile. She was wearing an oversized, white t-shirt and red basketball shorts, and she was barefoot as she walked across the plush, green grass toward the car.
    Jackson could sense Johnny appeared understandably overwhelmed. The boy smiled and seemed to be making a valiant effort to connect with each member of the family, yet he appeared tense and uneasy. The tension seemed to almost lift from the boy’s shoulders as Graye approached him.
    “You must be Mr. Johnny,” the woman said, looking down at the sitting boy.
    “Yes, ma’am,” Johnny said, smiling back at her.
    “Well, it is certainly a pleasure to meet you.” The woman was still smiling as she extended her hand to shake his.
    As Jackson watched the interaction, he couldn’t help but wonder of Johnny’s mother; what she was like, and how she could have simply lost touch with her son. Jackson was typically always aware of Jared’s whereabouts and couldn’t imagine the boy being halfway across the state without his knowledge.
    The interaction between his wife and Johnny felt easy and unforced. This began to settle Jackson’s nerves too. He was thankful that Graye was receptive to the idea of assisting the young man. He imagined his own boy, lost, broke, and crying at gas station far from home. The thought broke his heart.
    “Come on, sweetheart, supper’s waiting inside,” Graye said sweetly with a comforting tone.

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter Seven
     
     
    Clean
     
    Graye
     
    As she removed the clothing from the book bag, she noticed not one, but two live roaches crawling about in the bag. The clothes were truly pathetic. There were so many stains, and the shirts were worn and faded. The bag, and its contents, smelled like a stale ashtray. The shirts had several burn holes in them as well. Even if the boy smoked, there was no way he accidently burned himself that many times.
    The laundry room, like the rest of the house, was white, bright, and beautiful, and the bag of disgusting clothing was in total contrast. The room was off the kitchen, and boasted a beautiful granite countertop just above both of the front load appliances. The granite matched that of the kitchen and three bathrooms, a dark brown. It contrasted well next to the bright white walls. The entire house, both stories and the basement, had dark