Read Online Jaden Baker by Courtney Kirchoff - Free Book Online Page A

through the window. The light scorched his eyelids and put his sweat glands into overdrive. He pushed himself up in bed and reached for the shutter louvers, but like the door yesterday, they closed without his touch.
    He checked the room, searching for spying eyes. He thought he was alone until the toilet flushed. When he heard Jenny turn the faucet for the sink, Jaden jumped out of bed and rubbed his head.
    He had to stop doing that. Whatever it was would get him in trouble. Thankfully she hadn’t be in the room when it had happened. Granted a reprieve.
    Jenny came from the bathroom, yawning.
    “You’re up,” she said, going to him and brushing his hair off his forehead. “Did you sleep okay?”
    “Yes,” he said, which was perfectly true. He’d had a dreamless sleep and was feeling great this morning, except for his sore head and leg, stinging hands, and strange dilemma of spontaneous moving objects.
    “Oh good,” she said. “I’m going to go change and make breakfast. French toast again?”
    Jaden nodded and she left, leaving him alone, giving him time to think.
    Last night had been good news bad news. On the one hand, he’d proven to the Kauffmans he could interact with other people his age, and wasn’t so damaged he’d need intensive therapy sessions for the rest of his life. He got along great with Ryan.
    On the other hand, he’d been violent, something he hadn’t done before. Finn deserved exactly what he got, but now the Kauffmans knew he was a) sensitive about his mommy issues, and b) a little unstable, as he nearly strangled someone.
    He pulled off his shirt and blue jeans from yesterday and decided to take a shower. Telepathy would be a nice skill to have, so he could read the Kauffmans’ minds. They said they wanted to keep him, but trying to kill someone was probably on the con side of the pro and con list when it came to taking in an older child. A squishy baby they’d raised themselves might not have tried to kill Finn.
    Derek had said that he understood, that Finn was a prick and a jerk. Did his violent display show his human side? Maybe it was a good thing he’d reacted as he did. Maybe it proved he was a normal human being.
    He’d been trying so hard to play the role he thought Derek and Jenny wanted, he’d forgotten to try and make himself comfortable. Since arriving, all he’d done was put on a show, worried that if he slipped up or did something not in line with their image of who he should be, they would send him back.
    Jaden washed and rinsed, then turned off the water. He decided it was not time to panic. He would play it cool, try to relax, not bring up what happened last night and pretend it didn’t happen. He would look ahead, not behind.
    The mirror was foggy, so he wiped it with his hand and stared at his reflection. They knew what they were getting, didn’t they? They knew he would be a challenge, not as easy as a fresh human. He combed his wet hair then dried himself, tossed the wet towel in the bin, and dressed in his new clothes.
    Derek and Jenny had gone to a lot of trouble, he thought as he stared around his room. His room. They had gotten him his own bed, bought him new clothes, asked him what he wanted for breakfast and had tried to get him to make friends. To fit in.
    And how had he repaid them? He ran at the first sign of trouble, after he’d done something bad, assuming Derek or Jenny would hurt him, when they had given no sign of that kind of behavior before.
    They assumed the best of you, and you assumed the worst of them.
    Jaden felt guilty. He had looked for their past sins, thinking they were hiding something, that one day or night they’d harm him. Yet they had shown nothing but trust and affection.
    A clinking sound came from downstairs. Jenny was beating eggs for French toast.
    Because she likes you.
    Priorities had to be set. Looking at it scientifically, the more worried and panicked he was, the worse the issue became. Reason dictated that if he was