Page 47 of The Deadbeat Next Door

“We could,” he said. “But don’t you usually go for a morning-”

His words stopped as I slid down his body and took him in my mouth, showing him just how much I’d rather play than run.

***

I couldn’t stop smiling. I smiled while I broke up a fight between two freshmen girls in the hall before class and I smiled when Freddy Rosten said fiction was a waste of time and paper and I even smiled when Missy Melcher complimented me on my taste in men, saying it was better to have a good-looking man than a smart one. I don’t know how she concluded that Cody was dumb, but I’d come to the same conclusion after seeing him for the first time, so I couldn’t really argue with her. There was just something counter-intuitive about the idea of a man that good-looking also being smart. I no longer cared if Cody was smart or sweet or an unemployed deadbeat, as long as he kept putting this smile on my face, I was pretty sure I’d forgive him just about anything.

I didn’t stop smiling until Kayla wasn’t seated in my third period class. Her homeroom teacher had marked her as absent, so she hadn’t just skipped my class. She was probably out sick. But a bad feeling crept into my gut, and I couldn’t help worrying about her.

I was still worried when I pulled into my driveway at five that evening. I stepped out of my car and smiled at Cody who waved from his porch. My smile fell when I saw his serious expression. He met me at my car. “Some kids showed up on your doorstep this afternoon. They wouldn’t tell me much more than their names, Kayla, Simon, and Jenny. I brought them inside and fed them, but they don’t trust me. They’re upset about something, but they won’t tell me what.”

My heart sank and tears sprang to my eyes. “Thank you for taking care of them. I’ll be over in five minutes.”

He nodded and went back inside. I ran to my own house and changed into jeans and a sweatshirt. I hurried back to Cody’s with no earthly idea what to do. I stepped inside and saw Kayla seated on his couch, Simon and Jenny curled up next to her. Kayla saw me and her face crumpled and tears sprang to her eyes.

I wrapped my arms around her and held her until her sobs slowed. She sniffled and sat up. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

“It’s okay. What’s happened?”

Her expression went carefully blank. “Nothing. I just came by to pick up any assignments I might have missed today. I had a bad headache and couldn’t make it to school.”

Good smells were coming from the kitchen and I could hear Cody banging around in there. I was certain that Kayla was lying, but if I called her out on it, the next time she needed help she might not come to me.

“I’m hungry,” Jenny said.

Kayla brushed a few errant strands of hair out of the little girl’s face and smiled at her warmly. “You just had a snack that Mr. Cody fixed for you.”

“But I’m hungry and there’s no food at home.”

My heart banged hard against my chest cavity and tears pricked my eyes. “You all should stay for dinner,” I said. “I’m sure Cody is making plenty.” And if he wasn’t, they could have my food.

“Thank you,” Kayla said, not meeting my eyes. “That would be really nice.”

“I’m just going to step into the kitchen and speak to Mr. Cody,” I said. “Then Kayla and I will go next door to get her assignments.”

“Can we watch T.V., please Miss Harrison?” Simon asked. He was a small boy with big glasses and a wide, thin-lipped smile.

“Of course you can.” I grabbed the remote and handed it to Kayla. She gave me a weak smile and turned on the television, flipping right away to the cartoon network.

In the kitchen, Cody stood in front of a big pot, adding some spices and stirring. “Do you have enough there to feed the kids, too?”

He smiled. “I’m already ahead of you. I’m making spaghetti and there’ll be plenty for everyone.” He stepped closer and pressed a quick kiss to my lips. The action made my belly flop, because it felt too personal, too intimate, like a husband kissing his wife after a day at work. “Is she okay?” he asked in a low voice.

I sighed. “Not even a little bit. I’m going to try to talk to her alone, but she doesn’t seem to want to talk.”

He returned his attention to his pot. “I think she needs someone to talk to.”

I left him to his cooking, pulled Kayla away from the T.V. and walked next door with her. “Come on in.” I opened my door and let her inside, following closely behind. In the light of the setting sun, it’s full strength on the front of my house, I could see how thin Kayla had gotten over the last month, her cheeks hollowed out and her eyes bigger in her thin face.

I pulled a couple of sheets from my bag, essay questions about the latest book I’d assigned, and handed them to her. “This isn’t due until the end of next week.” I doubted she’d gone to any of her other teachers’ houses to get her assignments, but maybe she didn’t feel as comfortable with them. Kayla had eaten her lunch in my room on more than one occasion and we’d talked about books while she ate. She was a bit of a loner. Her best friend was a tenth-grade boy who lived next door to her, but she hadn’t gone to him either. I didn’t know a lot about him. He was a good kid, but I’d heard things weren’t very good for him at home.

She took the papers from me and gave me a weak smile. “Thank you. I’m sorry if we’re messing up your night with your boyfriend. We can go.”

“You aren’t messing up anything. I’d very much like for you to stay. Is it true what Jenny said? Do you not have any food at home?”

Kayla rolled her eyes, every bit the teenager annoyed with her baby sister. “We’ve got plenty of food. Just nothing she wants to eat. Dad…Um, he hasn’t gone grocery shopping yet this week, but he’s going tomorrow.”

“Does your father know the three of you are over here?”

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