xton and his father, who had somehow managed to disappear in the last minute. Thankful for the small reprieve from glaring, Sebastian glanced back down at Mikey just as she managed to help herself to a Coke. Realizing just how thirsty he was, Sebastian plucked the soda out of her hands and finished it off.
“Jerk face,” Mikey mumbled, making him smile as he reached back to place the empty can on the counter only to see Aunt Haley trying to soothe Hunter, who was crying softly in her arms.
“What’s wrong?” Sebastian asked as he placed his plate on the counter.
“Hunter’s blankie. I can’t find it,” Aunt Haley said, worrying her bottom lip as she glanced around the kitchen.
“It’s probably outside in his playpen. I’ll go get it,” Sebastian said, already making his way toward the back door where they’d spent most of the afternoon swimming.
“Thank you, sweetie,” Aunt Haley said as she tried to distract Hunter with a small slice of cake, but he simply shook his head and buried his face against her neck.
Sebastian walked into the living room and headed for the patio doors when a hand on his shoulder stopped him. Frowning, he looked back to find Uncle Jason handing him a blank white envelope.
“What’s this?” Sebastian asked, sending Uncle Jason a questioning look.
“Look for yourself,” Uncle Jason said, gesturing to the envelope in Sebastian’s hands.
Frowning, Sebastian opened the envelope and–
Was forced to reach out and slap his hand against the wall when his legs threatened to give out as he read the first line again. Latin Scribe High School was giving him a chance with a full academic scholarship and absolutely no mention of probation.
“Is this real?” Sebastian asked, praying that this wasn’t some kind of sick joke.
“It better be. I had to fight with your aunt and Grandma over who got to give it to you,” Uncle Jason said with a chuckle only to add, “You’ve earned it.”
“Thank you,” Sebastian said, feeling his lips pull up into a smile. Feeling like he was in a dream, he headed outside to find Hunter’s blankie as he stared down at the letter in his hands.
God, this couldn’t be real, he thought as he grabbed Hunter’s blankie before he turned around and quickly made his way back to the door so that he could show Mikey when he heard it.
Curious, Sebastian walked around the house only to come to a stop when he saw Mr. Taylor moving closer to Braxton, who was…trembling?
“You’ve wasted my time with this!” Mr. Taylor snapped.
“I’m sorry,” Braxton said, staring down at the ground.
“You’re sorry?” Braxton’s father asked in disbelief. “Do you know how much time I’ve wasted on you? You had one job, Braxton! One job! You were supposed to spend more time with your great-grandmother and make her like you! But instead, you got into a pissing contest with some charity case. Do you think that’s why I let you come home? To waste my time?”
“No,” Braxton said hollowly, but Mr. Taylor wasn’t done yet.
“You’re nothing but a disappointment. If you can’t get the job done, then I’ll find someone else who can and send you back to that boarding school and get you out of my hair.”
“I’m sorry,” Braxton said again only to flinch when Mr. Taylor moved closer.
“If you don’t get this done, then I promise you that you will be very sorry,” Mr. Taylor said coldly before he turned around and Sebastian found himself stepping behind a large hedge before he spotted him.
Sebastian waited until Mr. Taylor went inside before he stepped out from behind the hedge. He glanced over his shoulder to make sure that Mr. Taylor wasn’t coming back before he looked around the corner and realized why Braxton seemed so damn miserable all the time.
“I hate him,” Braxton bit out as tears rolled down his face and his hands clenched into fists.
“I don’t blame you,” Sebastian said, throwing Hunter’s blankie over his shoulder and shoved the letter from Latin Scribe into his back pocket as he moved closer.
“Did you know that they only had me because of Cole?” Braxton asked, wiping the back of his arm across his eyes.
“What?” Sebastian asked, wondering if he’d heard him right.
Nodding, Braxton said, “They knew that Aunt Haley was Great-Grandmother’s favorite, but they figured that Aunt Haley’s marriage wasn’t going to last and she’d come running back only she never did. Instead, she got pregnant with Cole and they panicked.”
“And that’s where you came in?” Sebastian guessed, wondering what the hell was wrong with these people.