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The second problem took only twenty-five minutes. Progress.
By the end of two hours, he’d worked through eight problems. He wrote the number 9 on his paper just as a peal of thunder rolled overhead. Layne reached out and closed the textbook.
He looked up. “We’re not done.”
“I should check on Simon.” She stretched her shoulders.
“And you should quit while you’re ahead. Do the other two tomorrow.” They hadn’t heard a sound from the living room the entire time they’d been in here. Not like Simon was a noisy kid, but she was surprised he hadn’t come looking for a soda. A snack. A bathroom, for goodness’ sake.
But when they looked in the living room, the PlayStation was turned off, the television silent and dark. She turned around, but the powder room door was wide open, the lights off.
No one was in the front yard, either, when they leaned out the front door. Overcast sky, prestorm humidity thick in the air.
But no Simon.
Then a repetitive smacking echoed from the driveway. Followed by a long pause.
Gabriel smiled. “Come on.”
Simon was tossing a basketball at the hoop over the garage.
To her utter surprise, Gabriel’s older brother was playing with him.
Michael caught the ball Simon passed to him, then pointed at her and Gabriel. “Math done?” he asked.
“Mostly,” said Gabriel. He gave Simon a grin. “You’ve been practicing.”
Simon’s hair was a little damp, but he grinned in return the first smile Layne had seen on his face all day. He nodded.
“Coach still won’t let you play?” said Gabriel.
The grin vanished. Simon shook his head.
Gabriel nodded at the basket. “Keep playing like that, and he’ll be an idiot not to.”
The smile was back. Simon held out a fist. Gabriel hit it.
“Thanks for playing with Simon,” she said to Michael, signing as she spoke, out of habit. “I’m sorry if you were trying to get work done.”
“Nah.” He didn’t quite smile, but his expression was easy.
Amiable. Again, it made her wonder about Gabriel’s fights with him. He’d been nice enough to drive her over. And then play basketball with her deaf brother. Kara had an older sister in college who’d barely give Kara the time of day, much less Layne.
Honestly, after the way her mother practically ignored them, it was nice to see a family member act like family.
It was funny all along she’d thought Gabriel was the jock thug, when all he’d ever done was protect her and Simon. And then a charmer like Ryan Stacey turned out to be as bad as Taylor and Heather.
It made her wonder what else she was missing about the people around her. Whether their motives were truly hidden, or whether she just chose not to see.
“What time did you say you needed to be home?” Michael asked her.
She shrugged and glanced away. “I told my dad we’d be back by six.”
A complete lie, of course. She hadn’t mentioned a word of this to her father. But Michael had caught her off guard when she’d first climbed into his truck, asking if it was okay with her parents. She hadn’t expected him to do more than give her a passing glance and roll his eyes about playing chauffer.
Really, considering the guys Kara’s older sister hung out with, she wouldn’t have been surprised to find Michael passing her a joint and asking if she felt like making brownies.
Thunder rolled through the sky again, sounding like a warning. Layne tapped Simon’s arm and signed as she spoke. “We should probably go.”
