Free Choices(Waiting for Forever BK 1) by Jamie Mayfield Page A

darlin’, Jamie called again. I don’t know what kind of disagreement you boys had, but he wants you to meet him tomorrow before school so y’all can talk.” She came over and sat on the bed next to me before continuing. “You and I know I’m not your real mama, but I love you just the same.” I looked up at her, startled. It was the first time she had ever said those words to me. “I know I’m not supposed to get attached to the children who stay with us. Richard says that only leads to a broken heart for me, but with you, I can’t help it.”
    Deep down, I really wanted to tell her about Jamie and me, to finally be able to let it out. I just couldn’t stand to see the disappointment in her face, especially right after her admission.
    “You’re the only person I can remember ever wanting to call Mama, Carolyn. I don’t remember my own mother at all, and you’ve treated me better, with more care and respect, than I’ve ever had,” I told her sincerely, because I meant every single word. “I wish I could talk about what’s been wrong lately, but I just can’t bring myself to do it.”
    “I can understand that. We all have our demons, Brian. When you’re ready, I’ll be here.” I nodded, and she gave me a quick hug before leaving the room and heading back downstairs.
    Shuffling through my room aimlessly, I got my school bag ready for the next day, changed into my pajamas, and lay down on my bed. The cracks in the ceiling were almost mocking me as I tried in vain to sleep.
     
     
    T HE night felt like it had lasted an entire week, but eventually Monday morning dawned with muggy slowness. As I watched, the sun rose outside my bedroom window, creeping higher and higher, obliterating the darkness where I could hide my insecurities. Finally, I rolled out of bed to escape its bright and cheery implications of the new day. I knew Jamie wanted me to meet him at the tree house, so I planned on getting there about an hour before we had to leave for school.
    When I was dressed, I grabbed my backpack and headed downstairs. Reaching the first floor, I saw Carolyn sitting at the table, waiting to make me breakfast. I was surprised; I thought for sure she would still be asleep.
    “You’re up early,” I commented as I shuffled into the kitchen and tossed my bag onto one of the empty chairs.
    “Jamie wanted to talk to you before school. I figured you’d be up early.” Too tired and full of trepidation to make small talk, I stared morosely at the smooth, polished tabletop. In no time at all, it seemed, a plate of bacon and scrambled eggs appeared in the spot at which I had been staring. As she passed to go back upstairs to wake Richard, she ruffled my long, barely controlled hair.
    “Whatever it is that’s going on with you and Jamie, just remember that some misunderstandings look entirely different in the light of a new day.”
    I nodded, knowing she was right. Looking back at the situation yesterday with Jamie and Emma, I had probably overreacted and let my jealousy get the better of me. It was just so unsettling not to be sure of his feelings for me, or his intentions. While he had said he wanted us to be together, if the stress got to be too much, he could easily change his mind about me. He could decide the foster kid charity case just wasn’t worth the hassle.
    That thought was like a stabbing pain in my chest.
    After scraping and rinsing my breakfast dishes quickly, I headed out the back door and took a left into the alley at the end of the sidewalk. My feet instinctively knew to take me to Jamie’s house; it was the place I went more often than any other.
    Occasionally, I saw men heading for their cars, going off to work, and I saw Karen Simmons’s kid brother delivering the morning paper on his old dirt bike. Mostly though, it was very quiet on the short walk to the Mayfields’ house. The silence was broken only by the sound of early morning sprinklers in their perfectly synchronized watering of