Dinner was already waiting when my mother led us into the dining room.
“You both must be tired,” she said, smiling at Julian. “Sit. Eat before you disappear.”
Julian pulled out a chair at the head of the table. Kai sat across from me. I kept my hands in my lap.
My mother turned to him again, brighter this time. “Sloane attends your university, by the way. She’s in one of the business programs.”
Julian’s eyes moved to me. “I know. We already met. This afternoon.”
My mother’s smile slipped. “Oh. How was she?”
My fingers tightened around my fork. I stared at the plate in front of me and waited for him to say it. The remote. The wet chair. The way I’d sat there and come while he watched.
He picked up his water. “Her grades are failing. She’s missed assignments and did poorly on the last
