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I guess he found a way . . . just one his mom doesn’t know about.
“What time is everyone coming for the movienight this Sunday?” Helen joins us at the table, gathering plates and cups into a pile.
“Oh, I can’t.” Kaleb shakes his head. “I’m driving one of the trucks for the timber yard. Leaving tonight.”
“Again? Can’t one of the other drivers go?”
Kaleb shrugs, grabbing another muffin. “It’s a heavy load. Plus, there’s nothing to stay for. Something tells me this Halloween will be just as quiet as last year.” He and Michael share a look.
Shit, do they know about the party at their campsite?
A loud clang startles me.
Helen leaves the plate where it fell, the ceramic chips littering the end of the table.
Straightening, she stands behind Christopher, her hands settling onto his shoulders. “Chris, tell the boys they need to stay here this weekend.”
“They aren’t boys anymore, Helen,” he tells her, patting the back of her hand. “Daniel and Charlie are joining us here, so you’ll have Belle. Sam will be here, too.”
“Nuh-uh,” Sam mumbles around her muffin. “There’s a Halloween party on Sunday.”
My eyes bulge at her words. There’s only one party I know of, and this is the one table it does not need to be announced at.
“You’re grounded,” Christopher reminds his daughter.
“I’m twenty-one.”
Their dad opens his mouth to argue more, but Kaleb beats him to it. “Old enough to be arrested for grand theft auto, assault with a deadly weapon, and just being a general pain in my ass.”
Her lips pinch. Kaleb’s lucky that looks can’t kill.
I slouch further into my seat, not wanting to be seen. My mom and I go at each other’s throats whenever we’re in the same room, but this sibling rivalry is a whole new ball game.
“Grand theft? It was your fucking car, and I didn’t assault anyone.” Sam points a finger at her own chest.
Kaleb points down the table toward me. “You hit her with a tree.”
So much for not being seen.
Michael sits up straighter beside me. “Yes, you did.”
“The road was slippery, and I was in the car, too, not that you care. You two are the fun police.”
“That’s what happens when you drive like a moron,” Michael adds.
“Oh, and I have fun.” Kaleb sneers. “It just doesn’t involve jumping on the nearest college dick.”
“Hey!” both their parents yell.
My eyes widen.Holy shit.Breakfast with my mother doesn’t seem so bad right about now.No, I take that back. Nothing’s that bad.
Reaching over, I snag the piece of muffin trapped in Michael’s hand. His eyes flit to me, then back to his now empty hand.
Blueberry, meh.I thought it was chocolate chip.
He doesn’t say anything, but his hand drops to my knee, giving it a small squeeze. My insides melt. The small gesture means so much more for him than I’ll ever understand.
Silence settles over the room, no one willing to break it first.
