Mother Road Ch. 08 – Lost Highway by NewOldGuy77,NewOldGuy77

After explaining it to the boys, they understood. Since Connie was also staying there, Del seemed pleased. David’s reaction, however, was melancholy. I can’t say as I blamed him, as finding out your older half-brother might want you dead was more than a teenager should have to bear.

The 7th of July was David and Delavan’s 18th birthday. Trent, Jackie, and Athena were delighted because they welcomed any excuse for cake and ice cream. TJ and Ruthie were also excited about cake, but their older sister Pearl seemed to have an ulterior motive for showing up: David.

Ever since they’d danced together at Eli and Natty’s wedding, my daughter Pearl and my stepson Liam’s stepson Hunter had been sort-of an item (strange, I know, but love is love). They’d gone on dates and to school dances together, but it never seemed to advance beyond the friendship level. When Sal dropped the boys off with us, though, Pearl transformed. The minute she arrived, she was by David’s side, any thoughts of Hunter banished as she attempted to lift his spirits.

Now 19, Pearl was her own woman. She was confident and outgoing like her older sister Ava, but whereas Ava was a near-clone of Laura, Pearl didn’t inherit her mother’s shapely Terhune girl figure; instead she was a little on the thin side, like my mother. She did have the Terhune family’s red hair and green eyes, though.

The night I’d proposed to Laura was also the night she’d revealed she was pregnant with Pearl. All of my step-children were attractive, of course; it may have been just fatherly ego, but in my eyes, my daughter provided conclusive proof that Laura and I made babies of unparalleled good looks. Now I could only watch as my daughter proceeded to put a full-court press on this tall blonde young man.

To his credit, David didn’t respond as any normal teenage boy might; instead of pawing at her, he just smiled and spoke to her respectfully. It was then I realized that as the days had gone by, I’d become quite fond of Quiet Sal’s two sons. I’d miss them when they left for Harvard.

For her part, Connie was warm to everyone, even Laura. She’d volunteered to act as hostess for the party and was overseeing things like a professional caterer. The food was perfect, the cake delicious, and the little ones repeatedly squealed with delight throughout the day. TJ seemed to take a shine to his new aunt, and volunteered to supervise the party games she’d set up for the younger siblings. This, in turn, allowed her to lightly canoodle with Del.

His response was respectful, but unlike his brother, Del didn’t avoid physical contact. At one point, I’d walked into the kitchen to find the two of them engaged in a ‘warm embrace’, for the lack of a better term. I’d quickly done a 180 and left, leaving the boy to his birthday kiss. After all he’d been through, he deserved a lip-lock from a beautiful woman like Connie, even if she was 8 years older.

After the party ended, Laura, Walter and I cleaned up since Connie had done all the prep work. Pearl gathered up TJ and Ruthie to drive them home in our van, since it had Ruthie’s child seat, leaving us her little Fiesta, while Dotty put Trent, Jackie, and Athena ready for bed.

Then Walter asked, “Where are David and Delavan?”

I hadn’t been paying attention, but in thinking about it, David disappeared about the same time that Pearl left. “Maybe David rode home with Pearl,” I offered, “he seemed to be warming up to her.”

Laura picked up her phone and called Pearl, spoke for a minute and confirmed, “Yes, David’s at our place.”

Walter shook his head, not pleased. “He needs to understand he can’t run off like that.”

“Walter, when you were 18, you were on your own in the Army,” I explained, “but David’s a kid who’s been sheltered all his life. It’s understandable if he wants to be let off the chain. He’s got a good head on his shoulders, I’m sure he’ll be fine for tonight. Besides, he’s with Pearl, she’s not exactly a wild child.” As soon as those words left my lips, I realized I was probably full of shit.

Laura arrived at the same conclusion, and chided me, “Sweetheart, did you just hear the words that came out of your own mouth? Mixing that emotionally vulnerable young man with our strong-willed daughter is a sure-fire recipe for a grandchild! We need to get home!”

I saw her point, and stood to leave. Then Dotty asked, “What about Del?”

“Check Connie’s room,” I responded, “the way Connie and he were carrying on earlier in the kitchen, I’m guessing the two of them are doing some cooking of their own in there.”

Laura and I left, driving home in record time. As we pulled up in front of the farmhouse, I glanced at the cabin. I saw the curtains were open and no light was on, and breathed a sigh of relief. It would have been really ironic if the lovebirds were going at it in the same place Pearl was conceived there 20 years ago!

Instead, we found Pearl and David in the TV room; an old movie was playing with the sound down. Pearl was seated on the couch, and David lay his head in her lap, asleep.

“After the little ones were out to bed I found him in here crying,” she explained. Her hand reached down and stroked his forehead as she went on. “He’s been through so much, he was already missing his parents, and then finding out his older brother hates him was too much. I held him until he fell asleep.”

I felt myself getting a little choked up. This empathy and caring was her mother, through and through.

“We should wake him and take him back to Walter’s,” I said. The anger that flared in Pearl’s eyes showed me I should have kept my mouth shut.

“David is staying the night in my room,” she said matter-of-factly, “and you two can’t say no because you let Ava and Ashley sleep together, and Eli used to spent the night with Natty before they were married.”

I could have argued that Ava and Ashley started doing that before we knew they had a relationship, and that Natty was already pregnant when she came to stay with us, but one look at Laura told me to keep my mouth shut.

Laura said quietly, “Pearl, you’re 19, so we can’t really tell you not to. But can you please make sure if you have sex, that you use protection? You’re still a college student and David’s going to college in Boston soon, this isn’t a good time for you to get pregnant.”

“Not that it’s any of your business, but we’re both virgins, Mom. If we decide to have sex, it’s up to us what we do.” That didn’t surprise me about Pearl, since she lived with us while attending Sooner State University and commuted into campus every day. Knowing how protective Quiet Sal had been of his boys, I wasn’t surprised to hear that about David, either. I was kind of relieved, actually. Then Pearl hit us with a curveball.