Page 24 of Hit the Ground
As soon as she closed her office door, I tossed the papers she’d given Jesse onto her desk.
“You shouldn’t have told him about that camp. That wasn’t your place.”
She glanced down at the papers then back at me. For once, she didn’t have any trouble holding my gaze.
“I would have brought it up to you or his mother, but neither of you ever comes inside.” She tapped the stack with a well-manicured fingernail. Did she always have polish on her nails? I’d never noticed.
Christ, I was getting off track. Alice was talking, and I was looking at her nails.
“—told me about his robotics club, and I knew he’d love this camp. I’ve spoken with the program director. He graduated from MIT—”
“I don’t doubt it’s a great camp,” I interjected before she got too far. “The fact of the matter is, you overstepped your bounds. You’ve got it in Jesse’s head he’s going to be going awayfor nearly a month. He’s only thirteen. What thirteen-year-old leaves home for that long?”
She raised her chin, pulling her sweater tight around her. “Plenty, actually. Many kids go to camp for entire summers—at much younger ages and farther away. This program is only three weeks, and you could easily go see him, or he could come home for the weekends. If you would’ve read the information, you’d know that. It’s not about taking Jesse away. This is about giving him an incredible opportunity to explore interests he, quite frankly, cannot do while hanging out on a ranch all summer.”
I inhaled sharply. “Have you got something against ranch life, Ms. Clark?”
She didn’t back down. Not even a little bit. “Absolutely not. I’m sure Jesse’s learned a lot growing up on a ranch. But he needsmore. Why would you not want him to have that?”
I crossed my arms over my chest. “Because he’s thirteen, Alice. Thirteen. He doesn’t need to be off living in dorms, surrounded by strangers. He’s a kid. He should be at home.”
“Hewillcome home,” she reminded me, like I needed it. Hell, maybe I did. “On weekends, if he wants to. And he’ll call you every day. They have strict check-in policies. Did you read any of the packet Jesse gave you?”
“I don’t need to read it,” I bit out. “I know what’s best for my son.”
She flinched almost imperceptibly, and regret instantly twisted in my gut. I hadn’t meant to be harsh with her. Sure didn’t like making her flinch. Especially when she didn’t deserve it. This was a sore spot Shelby and Kent had already danced all over. It was difficult not to lash out.
She didn’t let it stop her.
“Do you?” Her voice was gentle, but her gaze was unflinching. “Seems to me you’re thinking about yourself right now.”
I bristled, heat creeping up the back of my neck. “Don’t do that. Don’t stand there and act like you know what’s going on in my mind or house. Jesse’s fine right where he is.”
“Of course he is. He’s a wonderful boy,” she said, like she was stating a simple fact. I liked that. “He’s alsomorethan fine. He’s brilliant, Caleb. He wants to build things and program things and understand how the world works. Don’t you see that spark in him?”
“I couldn’t miss it,” I said gruffly. “But he’s still a kid. He’s got his whole life to be away from home. Why rush it now?”
“Because heisa kid. And kids grow. Their worlds get bigger. Their minds stretch to places we can’t always follow. That’s what’s supposed to happen. We should encourage it.”
I swallowed hard, my jaw tight. “I don’t want him to go,” I said lowly. “I just…don’t want him gone.”
She blinked, and for the first time, her expression gentled with understanding. “I know. But holding him back won’t keep him close. It’ll only teach him he has to shrink to stay loved.”
That cut deep, sharp and clean. I didn’t say anything. Couldn’t. My tongue felt too heavy in my mouth.
She reached across her desk and laid her hand over the papers. “Take these home. Read them. Talk to Jesse. And…please think about it.”
I did what she’d said: read the papers and questioned myself.
Would I have had the same knee-jerk reaction if I hadn’t just come away from a confrontation with Kent?
The god’s honest truth was probably not, and that pissed me off. Kent shouldn’t have been in the equation at all.
I picked up the phone and called the most levelheaded person I knew. I would’ve walked over to his house if Jess weren’t in the other room brooding, but a call would have to do.
My dad answered on the first ring. “Hey, Cay.”
“Hey. Got a minute to let me bounce some thoughts off you?”
