Read Online The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B by Teresa Toten - Free Book Online

you. The next big bead is the Our Father.”
    “I know that one!” She beamed.
    “Great, then three Hail Marys followed by a Glory Be.”
    Robyn groaned politely.
    “Okay, so it’s a bit complicated until you get going, you know? Like you’re supposed to meditate on the first mystery on that large bead there and then do the Our Father again. And, well, thing is, you’re supposed to meditate on different mysteries on different days of the week.”
    He glanced up, fully expecting her to look dispirited. Instead she nodded eagerly.
    “It’s perfect! The perfect thing for me, perfect! I’m going to be a Catholic. I swear to God, I’ll study my brains out. I can’t wait to get at that confession stuff. Do I bring it to confession?”
    “Uh, not usually.” Adam could tell she was lost—eager but lost. “I’ll get you a pamphlet or something on how to do the rosary thing. They have them at school, in religion class.”
    Robyn cupped the rosary in her hands, brought it to her face and kissed the beads. “It’s so, so beautiful, but you really shouldn’t have.”
    “No, it’s okay, I got it from home. We have a million of them.” Adam winced remembering the drawer full of rosary beads. “Literally.”
    Robyn turned to him.
    “My mom’s a collector.”
    She didn’t even blink.
    “An intense collector.”
    “Hey,” she said. “I should have gotten
you
a present. Wasn’t it your birthday last week? How did it go at the restaurant with your dad and everyone?”
    “Good,” he lied. “Mainly. Sweetie and me were born, like, not even a week apart. So we always get these combo deals. Last year we were at Warhammer Day at the BattleCraft store in the mall, and this time it was a private room at La Tourangelle. My brother is like this pint-sized gourmand.” Robyn smiled while fingering the rosary. “Brenda, that’s my stepmom, arranged everything, but it’s cool of my dad to get into it the way he does. He makes it a big deal.” Adam paused. “He tries—we all try—but we just miss, you know?”
    Robyn nodded but didn’t interrupt. Adam remembered summoning up the requisite enthusiasm for the Plan B skateboard plus the helmet and pads that his dad had given him at the restaurant. It was the latest and greatest. “Wow, unbelievable, Dad … Too much!” His father had almost bought it. And once again, more than anything, Adam wished that he was
that
guy, the guy who would have loved all that fresh stuff. Sweetie, on the other hand, was not quite as polished about faking his enthusiasm over killer hockey skates.
    “Poor guy,” Adam sighed, thinking of his dad. “All he wants is a kid that will kick around a soccer ball with him, and he’s struck out with both his sons.”
    Robyn nodded. “And then …?”
    “And then Brenda got a bit frazzled and my mom got a bit tipsy. I mean, she was fine—you wouldn’t know unless you knew, you know?—but I was freaking out for the rest of the night about whether she was going to have another glass of Chardonnay, which may have put her over the limit. But other than that, it was
outstanding
!”
    “So Brenda
and
your mom …”
    “Can both be a little intense, I guess.” He said this more to himself than to her. “My mom way, way more than Brenda, to be honest.”
    “Hmm.” Robyn smiled. “You Ross men seem to like your women complicated. Come on, I’ve got to go. Tonight is a ‘Dad dinner night.’ He tries for one every week or so and complains about it nonstop while trying. It’s soooo
almost
, you know? Tonight he cooks his not-so-famous lasagna. It’s like your dad and the birthdays.”
    “They try,” he said.
    “Sort of,” she said.
    It wasn’t until he was halfway home and replaying every word, gesture and touch that it hit him. What did she mean back there?
You Ross men seem to like your women complicated. You Ross men!
She was including him. Robyn was complicated. Did that mean she knew? She knew, right? She had to know. Girls