Chapter 2
Megan saw a commercial on TV. She didn’t know what they were trying to sell, but she was fascinated by the little boy who heard his father say he would miss the boy’s face while he was gone on a trip. The little boy promptly loaded every picture of himself he could find into his father’s luggage for him to find when he checked into the hotel room at his destination. Megan wanted to do that too.
When Kyle found her, Megan had the two albums full of pictures of her and her little brother’s earliest days ready to put into one of her mother’s suitcases, along with a dozen framed portraits of the two children. Kyle smiled, instantly recognizing what the little girl was up to. He explained to Megan she had a great idea, but all of these photographs would be too heavy for her mother to carry.
The youngster understood “heavy.” A slender little girl, almost everything was too heavy for her. She quickly gave up on her desire that her mom take all the pictures with her. Instead, they decided on one framed 8X10 of each child. Kyle was holding the one of Todd in his hand while he reopened one of Peggy’s bags. Megan demanded hers go into the other one, the larger of the two pieces already packed and sitting on the bed, and Kyle couldn’t think of any reason why not, though he would have put both in a single case had he been doing it. He ran the dual zipper back on both bags so the photos could be included in his wife’s luggage.
He turned over several items of clothing to find a nesting place so the glass front on the picture would be cushioned. He was patting some lacy undergarments back into place when a thought struck him. He looked closer. The suitcase contained virtually every one of Peggy’s delicate, sheer nightgowns folded precisely and placed carefully in neat stacks. There was a big mound of bikini panties and her only two thong panties, one of which she hadn’t yet worn, to his knowledge. Thigh stockings, sexy bras, and a variety of small clutch purses filled the case to the brim.
Suspiciously, he unzipped and looked in the garment bag hanging on the closet door and found three evening gowns and cocktail dresses along with several business outfits. In the small overnight case, he found all of Peggy’s makeup and her jewelry case with her best necklace–the one she almost never wore for him, though he thought the string of pearls looked fantastic nestled against her tanned neck. There was a small plastic bag tucked into one corner of the jewelry case.
“Mommy, mommy…come an’ see what I did.” Megan ran downstairs calling for her mother. “I put my and Todd’s pictures in your suit…case,” she proclaimed proudly.
Kyle could hear her all the way back upstairs in the bedroom. He stood and walked to the chest of drawers. There was an easy chair against the wall just there and he sat down, waiting for his wife to appear in the doorway. He could hear her coming. Peggy was scolding Megan for messing with her luggage. Her voice sounded anxious.
When she came into the bedroom, she didn’t see Kyle at first. He was partially hidden by the bulk of the chest of drawers and he held himself still. Peggy’s voice altered, becoming more conciliatory when she didn’t see her husband beside the open luggage.