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Kayleigh drove through town to Janessa and Charli’s, where they were meeting for pizza. Following that, most of them were going to the basketball game at the high school.
After the conversation she’d had with Hudson about putting aside work at the end of the day, she’d impulsively invited him not just to the pizza night, but also to the basketball game that followed. Now that Cole wasn’t part of the team, Kayleigh hadn’t been to a game.
When Janessa had mentioned the plans for pizza and the game, Kayleigh had decided that perhaps Hudson would enjoy the experience since it had no link to work. It was possible that Hudson wasn’t a sports fan, but Kayleigh hoped that even if he wasn’t, he’d have fun.
Kayleigh wasn’t really into professional sports, but high school sports were different. At least in her mind. These kids were playing because of a love and passion for the sport, not a million-dollar paycheck.
When she reached Janessa’s house, Kayleigh parked, then headed for the front door. She knocked, then let herself in.
She found several of her siblings already in the kitchen. Janessa came over to give her a hug while Will called out a greeting. Layla abandoned the salad she was helping assemble to give Kayleigh a tight hug.
“How was your week, sweetie?” Kayleigh asked as she bent to brush a kiss to her forehead.
Layla wrinkled her nose. “One of my teachers gave us homework for the weekend. Not cool.”
Kayleigh laughed. “Yeah. That’s not fun.”
“You never had homework on the weekend,” Charli said with a huff. “You’d do all your work before you even left school.”
“You were smart, Auntie Kay?” Layla asked.
“Smart enough, I guess.”
“She was smart, but she also worked hard.”
“Not as hard as Gareth,” Kayleigh reminded Charli.
“That’s true.”
“School isn’t fun,” Layla moaned. “And now my weekend isn’t fun.”
“If you get up and do your homework first thing in the morning, then you can enjoy the rest of the weekend.”
“Maybe.” Layla returned to where she’d been working on the salad. “It still would have been better if she’d never given us the homework.”
“Might as well get used to it, kiddo,” Charli said. “There’s a lot more to come in the years ahead.”
The front door opened, and Peyton came running in. Jay and Misha followed with Ciara, and they also had Hudson with them.
“Found this guy wandering around outside,” Jay announced as he set the pizza boxes he was carrying on the counter. “Decided we’d invite him for dinner.”
Hudson grinned. “Small town courtesy at its best.”
“You know it.” Jay laughed, then held out his hand. “How’re you doing, Hudson?”
“I’m doing good.” He gave Jay’s hand a shake. “I was gifted this shirt and told that the most exciting thing happening in town tonight is a basketball game.”
“It certainly is,” Jay agreed. “Are you a basketball fan?”
Hudson shrugged. “I played on the junior varsity basketball team in high school, but I’m not really into sports now. But Kayleigh said she isn’t either, and yet she still enjoys the high school games.”
Kayleigh watched as Hudson interacted with her family, happy that he seemed relaxed and comfortable with them. At work, he always seemed intense and focused, and she could understand why he might have trouble unwinding or disconnecting from work.
However, it seemed that, given the opportunity, he could do it. Seeing that made her more curious about his life. He didn’t seem to have family, but did he have friends? Guys who he hung out with?
She wasn’t one to talk about friends, as her friendship group was extremely small. But with her family relationships and her job, along with her workaholic personality, Kayleigh just didn’t feel like she had the emotional capability to build more friendships of any depth.
When Gareth and Aria showed up, Gareth prayed for the meal, then everyone dove right in. They couldn’t linger over the meal that night since Jay had to be at the gym by six-thirty.
