“Have you seen the pictures?”
Morgan shook her head. “I didn’t want to.”
“I need to see how bad they are. I don’t want to cause an uproar over a bra strap.” Jaclyn’s thumb moved over the screen. Her eyes widened for a moment before she closed them and put a hand on her stomach. She blew out a shaky breath and sat down. “Austin, I’m not mad at you. I was very relieved to hear that you didn’t further circulate them.”
“What are you gonna do?” he asked lowly.
Jaclyn swallowed hard. “I need to go talk to Rylee’s mom. She’s been a friend of mine for a long time. She’d do the same for me if it involved you.”
Austin nodded with resolution on his face. “Am I gonna lose my phone?”
“No,” Jaclyn said with a shake of her head, “but we’re going to have to talk about this a lot tonight when I get back from Glenda’s.”
Morgan stood and collected her notebook. “I’ll take a rain check on dinner. I have some groceries I need to eat before they go bad anyway.”
“Austin, why don’t you go up to the house and let me talk to Morgan for a minute?”
“Okay.” He got up and looked at Morgan. “We’ll get started tomorrow, I hope.”
Morgan smiled and nodded. “If your mom says it’s okay, I’ll be waiting on you.”
“I’m sorry about dinner,” Jaclyn said regretfully when Austin walked out the door. “And I want to thank you for how you handled this situation. I heard most of the conversation you had with my son. I’d like to believe folks around here would’ve advised him to do the same, but maybe they wouldn’t have to keep the kids from getting into trouble.”
“I think I may’ve been channeling my dad,” Morgan said with a slight smile. “He always laid out the facts and led me to make the right decision. I hope things go well with Rylee’s mom.”
“So do I. You never know how someone is going to react when confronted with something like this.”
“Well, if you need to talk afterward, you know where I live.”
Jaclyn smiled wanly. “Thank you.”
~~~
A couple of hours later, Jaclyn dragged in, feeling drained. Glenda, also a single mother, took the news hard and cried when she looked at the photos on Austin’s phone. Jaclyn hated to be the bearer of bad news, but had she been in Glenda’s place, she would’ve wanted a parent to prepare her for what was going to come out eventually. Rylee and her sisters had not been home when she met with Glenda, and Jaclyn was grateful she didn’t have to witness whatever conversation Glenda was going to have with her daughter.
The kitchen was spotless. Austin had eaten, then cleaned up. The chicken pot pie had been covered and left on top of the stove. Jaclyn found him showered and shooting hoops with a foam basketball in his room.
“Was Rylee’s mom mad?”
Jaclyn sighed as she sat on his bed and kicked away a foul-smelling pair of sneakers. “She was devastated. Things like that not only anger a parent, they break their heart.” Jaclyn pulled the phone from her pocket and set it on the bed. “I deleted the pictures after Glenda looked at them. Your phone is a very useful resource, that’s why I got it for you. I can call and check on you when you’re with friends, and you can call me when you need me. The negative side to that is it can also be used for things like you got today.” Jaclyn ran her fingers through Austin’s hair as he sat next to her. “I’m glad you confided in Morgan, and I’m glad she gave you the advice she did, but you know you could’ve come to me.”
“I didn’t want it to be a big deal.”
“But it was and is. I think you knew that because you didn’t forward the pictures. Rylee chose to share something intensely personal, but that doesn’t mean it was right for you to do the same.”
Austin’s eyes were wide when he said, “But I didn’t, I swear.”
“I know you did the right thing. And, bud, this is not the last time you’re going to have to make
Morgan shook her head. “I didn’t want to.”
“I need to see how bad they are. I don’t want to cause an uproar over a bra strap.” Jaclyn’s thumb moved over the screen. Her eyes widened for a moment before she closed them and put a hand on her stomach. She blew out a shaky breath and sat down. “Austin, I’m not mad at you. I was very relieved to hear that you didn’t further circulate them.”
“What are you gonna do?” he asked lowly.
Jaclyn swallowed hard. “I need to go talk to Rylee’s mom. She’s been a friend of mine for a long time. She’d do the same for me if it involved you.”
Austin nodded with resolution on his face. “Am I gonna lose my phone?”
“No,” Jaclyn said with a shake of her head, “but we’re going to have to talk about this a lot tonight when I get back from Glenda’s.”
Morgan stood and collected her notebook. “I’ll take a rain check on dinner. I have some groceries I need to eat before they go bad anyway.”
“Austin, why don’t you go up to the house and let me talk to Morgan for a minute?”
“Okay.” He got up and looked at Morgan. “We’ll get started tomorrow, I hope.”
Morgan smiled and nodded. “If your mom says it’s okay, I’ll be waiting on you.”
“I’m sorry about dinner,” Jaclyn said regretfully when Austin walked out the door. “And I want to thank you for how you handled this situation. I heard most of the conversation you had with my son. I’d like to believe folks around here would’ve advised him to do the same, but maybe they wouldn’t have to keep the kids from getting into trouble.”
“I think I may’ve been channeling my dad,” Morgan said with a slight smile. “He always laid out the facts and led me to make the right decision. I hope things go well with Rylee’s mom.”
“So do I. You never know how someone is going to react when confronted with something like this.”
“Well, if you need to talk afterward, you know where I live.”
Jaclyn smiled wanly. “Thank you.”
~~~
A couple of hours later, Jaclyn dragged in, feeling drained. Glenda, also a single mother, took the news hard and cried when she looked at the photos on Austin’s phone. Jaclyn hated to be the bearer of bad news, but had she been in Glenda’s place, she would’ve wanted a parent to prepare her for what was going to come out eventually. Rylee and her sisters had not been home when she met with Glenda, and Jaclyn was grateful she didn’t have to witness whatever conversation Glenda was going to have with her daughter.
The kitchen was spotless. Austin had eaten, then cleaned up. The chicken pot pie had been covered and left on top of the stove. Jaclyn found him showered and shooting hoops with a foam basketball in his room.
“Was Rylee’s mom mad?”
Jaclyn sighed as she sat on his bed and kicked away a foul-smelling pair of sneakers. “She was devastated. Things like that not only anger a parent, they break their heart.” Jaclyn pulled the phone from her pocket and set it on the bed. “I deleted the pictures after Glenda looked at them. Your phone is a very useful resource, that’s why I got it for you. I can call and check on you when you’re with friends, and you can call me when you need me. The negative side to that is it can also be used for things like you got today.” Jaclyn ran her fingers through Austin’s hair as he sat next to her. “I’m glad you confided in Morgan, and I’m glad she gave you the advice she did, but you know you could’ve come to me.”
“I didn’t want it to be a big deal.”
“But it was and is. I think you knew that because you didn’t forward the pictures. Rylee chose to share something intensely personal, but that doesn’t mean it was right for you to do the same.”
Austin’s eyes were wide when he said, “But I didn’t, I swear.”
“I know you did the right thing. And, bud, this is not the last time you’re going to have to make
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