Even Ruby seemed to sense something had gone wrong.

My father looked back at me. “Her entire paycheck?”

Travis answered before I could. “Most of it. My mom’s behind on her mortgage. Family helps family.”

Dad’s gaze moved from Travis’s jersey to the brand-new gaming console visible through the living-room doorway. “And your daughter eats dry cereal?”

“She isn’t starving,” Travis said. “Julia worries too much. She gets paid again in two weeks.”

Heat climbed into my face, because the truth was worse than what he’d admitted.