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His brown eyes narrow. “Don’t do that,” he says sharply.
I walk backward until there’s at least three feet between us. His proximity was clogging my brain.
“Don’t do what? Talk to you like I’m nothing more than your kids’ nanny.”
He sighs, running his hand through his hair. “I didn’t mean it like that, okay?”
“Then what did you mean? That was harsh, Xander.”
“I realize that. I’m just pretty stressed right now.”
It isn’t until he says it that I notice the lines around his face. He does look tired.
“What’s wrong?”
“I went to get the kids’ IQs tested today. I’ve always noticed how smart they were, especially Mason, but I wanted an exact figure. They took the Stanford-Binet test.”
I have no idea what that means but I’m sure it’s rich-people speak.
“And?” I ask curiously.
“Well, Madison has an IQ of eighty-five. The average IQ for 12-year-olds is between fifty and seventy-five. Mads is a little above average. Mason had an IQ of a hundred and fifteen.”
“Damn, so the little man’s practically a genius?” I question.
“Yeah, mostly.”
I’m a little confused by the expression on his face. “Isn’t that a good thing?”
Xander shrugs. “Being a genius isn’t necessarily a good thing. You’re the one that called my attention to it, actually. You were on the phone with them a few days ago and Mason was telling you about a test he didn’t partake in.”
I nod. “Yeah, I remember. Madison mentioned that he doesn’t really have any friends.”
“Mason’s a quiet kid. He’s pretty opinionated, but most of time, he prefers his own company. We knew our kid was gifted pretty early on,but I didn’t think it could affect him adversely—or his relationships with his peers.”
I let out a breath. I’m not particularly sure what to say. Xander sighs.
“I would have just preferred it if he was an ordinary kid. I talked to his teacher today and she informed me that Mase has dissociative tendencies. He can’t seem to connect with anyone around him. Maybe because his brain works twice as fast as his peers’. The things that interest them don’t particularly interest him.”
“So, what’s the plan?”
“Two options. Either I leave him be and try to encourage him to make friends and engage with his peers, or I let him skip one or two grades.”
My eyes widen. “You can’t separate the twins.”
Xander gives me a small smile. “I realize that. Which means it would be better I leave him be. At least for the time being.”
I move closer and, after a second’s hesitation, place my hand on his shoulder comfortingly. “He’ll be okay.”
“I know. Being smarter than everyone else isn’t a disease. If anything, it’s a gift, and I can’t wait to see exactly what Mason does with it.”
“I’m sure he’ll do great things. He’s a Callahan, after all.”
Xander smiles. “Exactly.”
We’re so close, I can smell his cologne. A soft, masculine scent, subtle and intoxicating at the same time. I can see the dark ring around his pupils. He had the sort of eyes that lure you in and suck you under before you could even blink. I could get lost in them forever.
No, I can’t.
