The Problem With Mistletoe by Kyle Baxter

Author:Kyle Baxter [Baxter, Kyle]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-10-17T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirty-Two

Telephone

Alex was unpacking the shopping bags when the house phone rang. Eric sat at the counter, working on his homework, and glanced up as he grabbed the cordless off the wall.

“Hey,” David said.

“Checking on us already?”

“Hardly. I forgot to tell you something.”

Alex cradled the phone between his face and shoulder. “Hit me.”

“Today is my night to man the CYA help line.” There was that telltale wince in David’s voice. “Obviously I can’t do it from here. We don’t get many overnight calls, but there has to be someone to transfer it to.”

“Okay . . .”

“There’s about fifteen of us, so we only have to do it twice a month. Most of it is referring people to local resources or national groups like the TREVOR Project,” David said. “Can you answer the phone tonight? It’s only until I get home.”

“The TREVOR project.” Alex recognized the name. It was a national group that helped LGBTQ+ youth. He was impressed, and though Tandi provided him with a CYA FAQ sheet, he’d only given it a cursory glance.

David paused. “This is too much, isn’t it?”

“It’s fine,” he snapped. “Sorry, it’s fine, honestly.”

“Thank you. I’ll have them transfer the calls there. There’s a script in the computer desk in the living room. Follow what it says, and you’ll be fine—if you even get a call.”

“Will do.” Alex gave a thumbs-up and Eric grinned.

“What are you boys up to?”

Alex leaned against the back counter. “Mini Coop is finishing his homework and then we’re going to make cookies. He said he wants to be a baker. I figured we should bake some Christmas cookies.”

Eric applauded, jumping in his seat at the table.

“I’ll look forward to eating some.” The smile in David’s voice was sunshine in his ear.

“Okay, we’ll talk to you later.” Hanging up, Alex walked to the desk in the living room. He pulled the telephone script out of the drawer and set it on the desktop. Staring at the phone, he half-expected it to ring. He was a little let down when it didn’t.

Back in the kitchen, Alex took tonight’s dinner container out of the freezer and placed it in the microwave to defrost. He thumbed open his phone, pulled up a file, and handed it to Eric.

A line formed on the boy’s forehead. “What do you want me to do?”

“That’s Mama’s sugar cookie recipe. You read off the ingredients and I’ll get them out.”

Eric climbed onto his favorite barstool and slowly recited the recipe. They went to work, and in a short time, the dough was mixed.

After they put it in the refrigerator to chill, Eric asked, “Why do you walk dogs?”

He stared at the boy. “What?” Alex cleared the countertop and started washing their dishes.

“The other day, in the park my dad said he remembered why you walk dogs.”

“Oh, yeah. You have a good memory, nugget.” Alex turned to face him. “After my mom died, my dad started drinking too much. He was mean. I used to go walk dogs when it got too much for me.

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