Page 35 of Never With You
“Well, I’m at work and can’t come. You’ll have to call one of my other siblings.”
“For safety reasons, nobody else besides you and your parents is authorized to pick Caroline up from school.”
“We’ll be right there,” Nate interjects, prompting me to hit his arm again. “What did you say is the name of the elementary school?”
“Brookside,” Wendy answers. “In Gilbert.”
“Okay, tell little Caroline to hang tight. We’ll be there soon.” He clicks off the call before I can say anything else.
I twist my body to face him. “We are not picking up my little sister from school.”
“She’s throwing up. You can’t leave her there.” He punchesBrooksideinto his navigation.
“My mom can get her. Let me text her.”
“We’re only eight minutes away. Why wouldn’t we just grab her?”
“Because she’s my mom’s problem.”
Nate laughs. “She’s your little sister, not an ant infestation in your house.”
I soften, recognizing how harsh I sound. “I just mean, my mom is the one who wanted so many kids, so she’s the one who can take care of them when they need something. It’s not our responsibility to drop everything and save the day.”
“How many kids does your mom have?”
“A lot.” I glance out the window, hoping Nate’s curiosity is satisfied there.
“Like four or five?”
Giving my enemy the inside scoop on theScattersonsis not something I want to do, but the second Caroline gets in the car, she’ll blab to Nate whatever information he wants. It’s better to just take care of it myself—control the narrative.
I slowly turn my head. “Ten.”
“Ten!” His jaw drops. “That’s counting your parents, right?”
“Nope.”
“Your mom had ten kids?” His gaping mouth hasn’t decreased at all.
Sucking air through my nose, I reluctantly answer. “Yes.”
“What are you, Mormon or Catholic? Like, originally from Utah?” he adds as if I need more context.
My head tilts with blazing eyes meant to scorch. “No. My parents just really wanted a big family.”
“And where do you fit in?”
“I’m the oldest.”
“That explainsa lotabout you.”
I smile sweetly back at him. “I hope Caroline throws up all over your fancy truck.”
“Nah.” His amused expression only adds fire to the flame. “I’m sure the nurse has a vomit bag we can bring along for the ride.” He clucks his tongue. “All this time, I never knew you were part of the Duggar family.”
“We arenotthe Duggars!” A murderous glare accompanies my words.
“That’s to be determined.”
