And it was beside the point. She’d been his lab partner enough times to know his hands were always steady and his actions were measured. He did it once and he did it right. He often helped Mr. Gardener set up the experiments because Hudson never messed up.
“I’m not buying it.” She shook her head. “You could dismantle a bomb without a drop of sweat falling.”
“Not that day.” He lowered his eyes, then let out a sigh. “It was the morning my parents told me about the divorce.”
Via swallowed down her gasp.
She’d heard his parents had split up, but not when it had happened.
Not that it had been on the same day as the science fair.
“I didn’t know.” Guilt lodged in her throat.
“I don’t like talking about it. Which is probably why I made such a mess of fixing the capacitor. And when I saw flames, all I could think was you might get burned. Crappy day all around.”
A brush of wind swept past, trying to loosen the maps on the table and sending her hair flying into her face. She pushed it aside, her mind whirling. All he’d ever said was sorry. He’d never defended himself, and she’d assumed he’d done it on purpose.
It really had been an accident?
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Her voice came out as a croak. Probably trying to get past the guilt. He rubbed his chin. It was a habit he had when he wasn’t sure of an answer. Because he always considered things before he spoke. Unlike her.
“I tried…but, Via. In case you haven’t noticed, you can be a little intimidating. And you were pissed. Very, very pissed. I figured I should give it some time. I didn’t expect it would take so long.”
The guilt in her throat expanded.
She opened her mouth and then shut it again, not sure what to say.
They sat there in silence. Finally he tilted his head, a pained expression on his face.
“I know you don’t like being the center of attention. I messed up.”
“I’m sorry it took so long to hear you out,” she admitted, still not sure how she’d managed to get everything backward. He’d really been trying to help. He’d been upset about his folks and probably needed a friend. Instead, he got her cold shoulder. For two years.
“I’m pleased you did,” he said. “Because trying to avoid all your favorite hiding spots was getting a bit exhausting.”
“You knew I was hiding?”
“Not all the time. But you often went to that outcrop of rocks, then there were the shrubs by the lake. Oh, and behind the woodshed. And of course the tree. It wasn’t hard. You like to read, so you always went somewhere you could get comfortable.”
Via let out a reluctant laugh. “And here I was thinking I had all the makings of a secret agent.”
“You should probably stick to using your brilliance for the good of science.” He grinned and cautiously held out his hand. “What do you say? Truce?”
He wanted to be friends again?
She’d spent the last two years convinced he was her enemy. But that was no longer true. And he was right. Hiding was exhausting. If she didn’t have to avoid him, it meant the next thirteen days might even be tolerable. She slowly took his fingers in hers.
“Truce.”
xxxx
Hudson shielded his eyes against the sun as Via carted the trash bag back to Ruth’s car. Her bra strap was showing, and the heat of the day made her T-shirt cling to the swell of her chest. It was the second time he’d seen her bra. The first was at the science fair when her shirt had been dripping wet.
Pink with tiny cats on it, the only thing covering her skin.
He shook the image from his mind.
Thinking about Via’s chest probably wasn’t the best way to rebuild their friendship.
Neither was sitting around with a sprained ankle while she did all the work. He balanced his weight and stood up, reaching for his crutches. If he hooked the bag of empty drink bottles to his belt, he could manage it. It was light enough.
He swung his way across and fumbled to loop it over. Success.
“Really? Your alpha gene goes that deep?” Via said, and he turned around. Her arms were folded, and a bemused expression was on her mouth. In the process the bag flew from his belt and empty water bottles tumbled out onto the dry grass.
“Apparently not.” He sighed. “Sorry. Being sidelined sucks.”
“It’s okay.” She dropped to her knees and gathered them all up. “Zac broke his leg last year, and I once caught him trying to skateboard using his crutch like a paddle. Though that was less alpha gene and more the stupid one.”
“At least I’m in good company,” he said.
Via and her twin brother were poles apart, but underneath their teasing he knew they were close. And Zac was one of the few jocks he liked. Sure, when it came to girls, he had a magnetic pull to rival Jupiter, but he was actually nice to everyone. After the science fair, Hudson had expected Zac to beat him up. But he’d shrugged and said Via could fight her own battles.
He hadn’t been wrong.
“What are you smiling at?” She finished with the bag and began to walk to the car. He followed her, the crutches jabbing into his armpits as he went.
“Nothing,” he quickly said, eager to change the subject. “So…what are you doing tomorrow?”
She swung back to face him, her long dark hair tumbling over her shoulders and glinting in the afternoon sun. “I might not be avoiding you, but I’ll be avoiding my crazy parents. There was talk of another canoe adventure. You’re lucky. You have the perfect excuse.”
“I don’t think you need your ankle to row a canoe. But I won’t be here. The nurse wants a second opinion, so I’m going into Shallow Falls for an X-ray.”
“Lucky you. I miss towns. And shops. Make sure you get a coffee from that place on
