Read Online Prince Tennyson by Jenni James - Free Book Online

was I in, anyway?
    Mom dropped her hand that held the picture and turned around to face me. “What? Chelsea, no.” She shook her head. “No, no—I’m not mad at you at all.” Her mouth broke out in a smile. “I’m—I’m happy. I’m so happy you found these pictures and saved them.” She grabbed me and wrapped me up in a huge bear hug. My whole body was pressed and squeezed. It felt really good.
    When she set me down again, I stepped back and looked right up to her eyes. They were wet, but more than that, deep, deep down in the way back of them there was a small spark. Her eyes were trying to smile again.
    I smiled.
    â€œReally? You’re happy I saved them?”
    Mom threw her head back and laughed and hugged me to her again. “Are you kidding me? Of course I am! I’m—I—it’s a miracle they’re here.” She let me go and walked slowly around the room, her arms spread out. The picture of Dad was still in her hand as she made a circle, looking at the pictures. “They’re all here, aren’t they? You saved every one, didn’t you?”
    I nodded my head, but Mom wasn’t looking. “Yeah, I did.” I stepped toward her with the box. “They were here. I kept them a secret so you wouldn’t throw them away again.”
    â€œReally?” Mom’s mouth was open and she just stood there and shook her head at me. “I’m baffled, Chelsea, completely baffled.”
    â€œI thought that maybe later you would want to see them again, when you weren’t trying to forget Dad anymore. So I snatched them up, right out of the garbage can in your room, and saved them.”
    â€œThere isn’t anything in this world I have been hoping to see more.” Mom held her arms out for the box, so I handed it to her. I thought she was going to start picking up the pictures, but instead she sat the box on the bed and wrapped me in another hug.
    That was three hugs in just a few minutes.
    I liked that.
    â€œChelsea, you are the smartest, most wonderful girl ever!” She squeezed me extra tight and I felt my hair get wet from Mom’s tears.
    â€œReally?” I smiled. I couldn’t believe it. I just couldn’t believe my mom was this happy.
    â€œYes.” She sniffled. “I will love you forever and ever and ever for what you have done for me—for us—by saving those pictures.” Her hand came up and rubbed my back. “I was so stupid, honey. I never should’ve thrown away our prince.” She sniffed again. “And do you know what? You’re never going to guess, so I’ll just have to tell you.” She pulled back a little bit to see me better.
    â€œWhat?”
    Her smile choked off the sob that tried to come out. Instead, she just shook her head. She couldn’t talk for a minute.
    After a little bit, I got impatient and asked, “What is it?”
    Mom took a deep breath and blinked her eyes a whole lot before she brought her wavering smile back to me. “I’ve been praying and praying that God would bring those pictures back to me somehow.”
    â€œY-you have?”
    Mom nodded. “Uh-huh. And guess what? It was you. He used you to answer my prayer, Chelsea. It was a miracle. God worked through you.” Then she squeezed me to her again and asked, “Isn’t that the most wonderful thing you’ve ever heard?”

Chapter Fourteen
    IT WASN’T THE MOST wonderful thing I’d ever heard. But I didn’t tell my mom that. Or my grandma later when she came in the room and my mom announced how great I was and how God worked through me and saved the pictures.
    I didn’t even tell Hannah that I wasn’t happy with that idea. In fact, I waited until everyone had sat around and looked at all the pictures of our prince, and then I waited until they were all put back in the secret box—the box Grandma called our