That seemed to settle the matter for them, and any further protests I might have made were pushed aside when the front door squeaked open. I nearly leapt out of my chair at a potential invasion, but the Reeds’ casual attitude kept me in check.

“Hello?” a voice called. “Anyone home?”

A guy my age came into the kitchen. Candace hurried up from the table to grab a clean plate and immediately began piling it with food. “Sit down, Evan,” she told him. “Before it gets cold. You can meet our houseguest.”

“I’m Evan,” he said, in case I’d missed that. He flashed me a grin and held out his hand. Before I could take it, he hastily wiped it on his blue jeans and then offered it again. “Sorry,” he said. “I’ve been working outside all day. Sweat and dirt everywhere.”

“Why didn’t you say so right away?” exclaimed Candace. “Wash your hands then. We run a civilized house.”

Evan complied meekly and walked over to the counter. “I’m Eugenie,” I told him.

“Evan is Charles’s nephew,” Candace explained, taking her seat again. “Lives a couple miles away.”

Evan returned with clean hands and joined us. “I just came by to return Uncle Chuck’s tools,” he said. “But you can’t just stop by here and leave without eating—especially around dinnertime.”

“So I’m learning,” I said.

This made him smile again, and he dug into his food with enough enthusiasm to please even Candace. She started back in with her domination of the conversation, though Evan was a good match for her and kept trying to draw both me and Charles in as well. Evan wasn’t quite as lanky as his uncle but had the same blond hair and blue eyes. He had a muscular build that confirmed his earlier statement about “working outside all day,” as well as the start of a sunburn, which Candace was quick to scold him about.

“What do you do, Evan?” I asked, when a rare pause in the talking came up. I fully expected anything from farmer to mechanic. I guess I hadn’t entirely let go of my stereotypes.

“High school teacher,” he said, between bites of potatoes. “At least, I am during most of the year. I’ve still got another month or so off.”

Surprising answer. “What do you teach?”

“Physics,” he said. “And shop.” Seeing my astonished look, he added, “It’s a small school. Some of us do double-duty.”

“I guess,” I said. “Those seem like polar opposites.”

He shook his head. “You’d be surprised. Plus, it gives me an excuse to make lots of field trips to the space center.”

“You should take Eugenie there,” said Candace. She turned to me. “He’s there so much that they should be paying him to give tours. You should talk to them, Evan. You could make a little extra money this summer.”

“I’m sure I could take her without seeking compensation from the space center,” said Evan patiently. “If she even wants to go.”