“I was actually thinking about your application.”
“Oh. That.” She waved it aside. Which again shot him back to earlier days, and how Bailey could verbally fence her way out of any tight spot. “Shall we now return to the question you’re not answering?”
Dillon felt intimately connected to Elena’s mother. Glimpsing what Bailey probably saw every day, her daughter captured in that incredibly brief moment between child and woman. “I’m supposed to prepare a major ask for the feds. Miramar wants Washington to pay for structural rebuilds and replace some damaged equipment. We’re talking sums approaching outer orbit.”
“So, can I volunteer a few boringly idle hours?”
“Absolutely.” Dillon shifted over enough to let Elena move in beside him. “I would pay you, if I had the money.”
He sketched out what he needed her to do, sorting and collating items that were tied to loaned equipment. Dillon found a distinct comfort in working alongside this brilliant young woman. He fielded a few questions, then when silence reigned he again lost himself in puzzling out what the feds needed. When he was ready, Dillon began filling in the massive forms.
Sometime later, he straightened, stretched, and discovered Elena was watching him. Her gaze was solemn, her expression almost sad. “What’s the matter?”
“You know how equations are split into two basic elements.” It was not a question.
Dillon had no idea how to respond. This woman-child looked ready to weep, but she was talking about math. He shut the laptop and swiveled around so as to face her. And waited.
“Even the most complex equation can be broken down into definable parts. Constants, terms, operator. I’m not telling you anything you don’t already know, right?”
Dillon remained silent. Motionless.
“One-step equations. That was my second true love. Mom being the first. Dad too, but Daddy . . .” Something about speaking about Dillon’s former best friend caused Elena to stop and wipe her face. “I don’t even remember when my love of math really took hold. Mom says I was four. At least, that’s when she first saw me trying to copy out equations from a program on educational TV.”
Dillon forced himself to breathe. Waited.
“What I do remember is how amazing it felt. One set of symbols or numbers, connected by operators. Add, subtract, multiply, square roots, whatever. And then the equal sign. And on the other side of that sign . . .” Another impatient swipe at tears. “The outcome was truth. That’s how I saw it. A question on the left, a truth on the right. Before, mystery. After, something new. Something awesome.”
It seemed the most natural thing in the world to reach over and take her hand. Elena’s fingers were still damp from her tears.
When Elena looked down, the motion was enough to release another tear. As it landed on the back of Dillon’s hand, he feared his heart would break without understanding why.
“People are so different. The math doesn’t work out. The answers aren’t there.” She spoke to his hand now. “But the before and after is still very clear. The before, Mom was alone and it hurt her. The after, she meets you. But what is waiting for her on the other side of this equation? I can’t figure out . . .”
Dillon remained silent.
“She doesn’t see how it’s already moved to the other side of the equation. The transition is real and it’s happened. For me too. I know it has, and I can’t help it.” A hard swallow, another dislodged tear. “I don’t know who’s more scared, me or Mom.”
Dillon gave it as long as he could manage, then asked, “Would it be okay if I hugged you?”
She did not raise her head. “I think I would like that more than just about anything.”
Dillon had no experience when it came to hugging a girl this age. When Elena’s slender form slipped into his arms, he felt his heart expand. Like he had been waiting for this moment, yearning for this chance. Which was impossible, of course. But still.
And then the mother walked in.
Dillon’s mind went from utterly content to full-on panic. He wanted to step back, say something, do anything to defuse what might have been a major wrong move. But his arms refused to unlock, and his mind remained a frantic blank. So he just stood there, trapped in his own version of the deer in headlights, when . . .
Bailey gave the two of them a purely feminine smile, then asked, “Is there room for one more?”
Elena shifted a fraction to her left and released half her hold on Dillon. While her face remained pressed firmly to his chest, she waved her right fingers in Mayor Mom’s general direction.
“Oh goodie.” Bailey shifted forward and melted into position, holding them both with surprising strength.
Dillon felt the pair take a long, unified breath. In. Out.
Bailey murmured, “I needed this. Sooo much.”
Elena rubbed her face against Dillon’s shirt. Back and forth. “Bad day?”
