Right in Front of You

26. Sophie & Max

Kay woke up on her final day at the ranch with a twist in her stomach. Truthfully, she'd felt so at home at Kyle's place, she never wanted to leave. Sure, his family was borderline crazy, but they were so affectionate and familiar towards her, she couldn't help but love them.

Over the course of her stay, she'd learned a few things. Like that French music was beautiful. Or that the bigger and scarier the horse, the more beautiful it was. Or that Kyle unconsciously sang along to every song he knew, which was a lot. At first, she'd thought he was showing off, but after observing him, she realized he usually did it when focused on something else. His brain seemed to be an endless supply of song lyrics in a million languages. He even sang along to her work out music.

She'd miss that. She would also miss Sophie and Max fighting over Carcassone, Kyle and Max arguing about the history of modern music or history and politics in general, Sophie's home cooked meals and her tales from France... She'd even miss doing the course in the morning.

Trying to fight the doom and gloom surrounding her and to ignore the fact that Joey and Kelly could show up any minute to take her home, Kay got out of bed and started her day with her chin up. She'd slept in, once again a peaceful, dreamless sleep, so she was surprised to find Sophie in the kitchen, making omelet.

"Good morning," Sophie wished her cheerfully, and hurried to place a plate and cup for her on the table.

"Good morning, and thank you, but I don't think I should eat before my course," Kay answered, though her stomach rumbled.

Working out made her feel hungrier for one thing. Or maybe it was all the time spent avoiding food while she'd pathetically cried her eyes out at home.

"Balivernes," Sophie scoffed. "Kyle always eats before his workouts. You need energy to burn."

"Okay then." Kay didn't need more convincing so she sat down and started gobbling omelet.

Sophie sat acrpss from her, a mug in her hand, and watched her like a proud grandmother. Kay gave her a smile and focused on her food again.

"I hear you're leaving today," Sophie started conversationally.

"Yes, unfortunately. I mean, don't get me wrong, I don't want to impose, but I had a really good time here."

"Then you should stay."

Kay dropped her fork and stared at this woman who was offering her a place in her home, in her family. And the possibility made her feel even worse about going home. There would be none of that there. Just pretending everything was fine and lamenting over Donnie's condition. No more kind Sophie, no more crazy Max and no more Kyle. Staying had never sounded more appealing.

"I can't," she said instead. "My parents are expecting me and I have to get ready for school. I'm very behind on homework."

Sophie scoffed again. "Kyle can help you with your homework. He is very smart, you know. Even if all these physical things he does might not make it seem so."

That was an understatement. "Yes, I know, and I would love to stay, but I really can't." And it almost made her cry. But it wasn't like she could move in. She had her own family.

Sophie nodded once as though accepting her argument, then looked inside her cup. "I will be leaving soon, too. I just want to be sure I leave Kyle in good hands." Kay just gawked, so she continued, "Max does an excellent job, but mon cheri needs a woman in his life too, and since my daughter is..." She frowned and looked away for a moment then turned back, her expression once again serene. "He just needs a good woman by his side."