“Good, because I’m sick of people telling me what a bitch my mother is.”
“Nev!” I’m shocked by her language, and even more shocked that she’s talking about Mona Stone so publicly.
It hits me then… Charlie isn’t the cause of her expanding social circle—Mona is.
She hoists her backpack higher onto her bony shoulder. “What?”
“We’re not talking here,” I tell her.
“Why not?”
I narrow my eyes. Who is this girl? Certainly not the one who crawled into my bed because she was scared of the dark. I tow her away from the others by force, and even though she tries to fight me, I’m stronger.
Charlie jogs after us, attempting to break Nev free, but I whip around on him and bark, “Get lost.”
I’m the angry one now. No, not angry…livid!
I only let go of her once we’ve circled the brick building and made some headway into the thicket of myrtles.
“What the hell was that?” I bet smoke is curling out of my nostrils.
Nev rubs her wrist. “You didn’t have to pull me!”
“Who are you and what did you do to my friend?”
She scowls.
I scowl harder.
“What’s gotten into you, Nev? Since when are Jenny and Crystal your friends?” I half shout, half roar. “Since they found out you’re Mona’s daughter?”
“What’s it to you? You told me I should make friends!”
“I told you to makerealfriends, not sycophants!”
“They’re not sycophants.”
“Really? Since when have they been your friends?”
She shrugs.
“Since when?” I screech. “Let me guess. Since Monday.”
“It’smylife. If I want to be friends with them, it’smychoice. At least now you don’t need to pity-hang with me anymore.” Her eyes are pinkening and turning shiny.
My anger shrinks like a popped balloon. “Pity-hang?I never hung out with you out of pity. Nor did I do it to get closer to Tenorto get an in with your mother,” I add, in case those thoughts have crossed her mind.
As tears dribble down her freckled cheeks, Nev knots her arms in front of her chest.
“Oh my God, you really thought all of that?” My shrill voice hangs in the air between us.
She scrubs her cheeks. “I don’t know what to think anymore. Who to trust—” A sob lurches out of her.
“Me! Trustme.”
Her bottom lip wobbles.
“Oh, Nev.” The cry that surges up her throat is so pained that I enclose her in a fierce hug. “Never doubt me.”
