Three Good Things Read Online Free Page B

bit.”
    It’s a quiet morning, almost peaceful. Three crows cackle at each other in a tree
nearby. A small man with a big dog wanders across the other side of the park without
looking our way. “Did you ever have a pet?” I ask, thinking of Jake and Bandit.
    “A cat that got run over outside our house. Don’t even remember its name.” Mom frowns.
“My mother…” She looks at me as if she expects me to finish her sentence. “She…”
Mom frowns again. Shakes her head. “Dad took care of it when he came home.”
    “What did your mother do?”
    She glances at me, then away. “Nothing. She didn’t do anything.”
    “You started to say…”
    “I don’t remember. Anyway, I’ve told you often enough. We can’t have a dog until
you’re old enough to take care of it.” It’s funny how normal things sound crazy when
they come out of my mother’s mouth.
    “I thought I would go over to the library.” I stand up.
    “I’m headed back. My shows come on soon.”
    I should persuade her to come. Anything to get her out of that grim motel. But Jake
might be there. “Sure you’re okay?”
    “We’ve paid for the room. Might as well use it,” she says. “You get the groceries,
would you?” She scrabbles in her purse and hands me her bank card.
    I don’t really need it. That’s something else she doesn’t know. Let it be our secret ,
Grand said when he slipped me my own card. It might be useful sometimes . Who was
the adult here? Her or me? Talk about blurred lines.
    “Do you remember the way back?” I ask.
    “I’m not a child. If I get lost, I can ask,” Mom says. She frowns at me. “What’s
the name of our motel again?”
    I’d like to think she’s making a joke. I know she’s not.

C h a p t e r S e v e n
    I skulk around the library for a while, hoping to run into Jake, trying not to look
too obvious. Both computers are busy. So I settle down with the Architectural Digest .
    I’m wondering who looks after the fancy fountain in front of Rod Stewart’s mansion
when someone nudges my foot. I try to quash the jolt of pleasure when I see Jake.
“We meet again,” he says.
    “Hi.”
    “How’s things?”
    “Good.” Now that he’s here, I can’t think of a single thing to say.
    “I thought you might show up,” Jake says.
    “You did?” To distract myself from the heat rising in my face, I check the front
of his jacket. “No ferret?”
    “Bandit’s at home with a cold.”
    “You kidding me?”
    He grins. “You could say.” He holds out a plastic bag. “Libraries are one thing.
But I can’t take him into the grocery store. Anyway. He needs his sleep. Ferrets
are supposed to be nocturnal, though he can’t tell time. But I’m headed home now.
You could come and visit. I know he misses you.”
    “Right.”
    “Actually, he hardly knows you. So why not come and get better acquainted?” He’s
the one blushing now. I like how it brightens his pale face. He looks toward the
computers. “Or maybe you’re waiting your turn.”
    “I’m good.”
    He leans forward. “My mom’s home. You’ll be quite safe.”
    “Oh. I know. I mean…”
    “I have kettle corn.” He shakes the bag.
    “Well…can we stop somewhere on the way?”
    “Sure. What do you need to do?”
    I show him the ticket. “My mom says it’s a winner. Thought I could check this out.”
I shrug, as if it’s a totally normal thing to do. As if it really doesn’t matter
to me.
    Before he can answer, my phone rings. “Hello.”
    “Good morning, pet. How are you? Your mom there?”
    “She’s at home. In our room. I’m at the library.”
    “Ah, yes.”
    Jake pokes me in the back. “You can’t use that in here.” He points at the librarian
watching us.
    Outside, I lean against a huge cement planter that has been used as an ashtray.
    “Everything okay there?” asks Grand.
    I watch Jake through the window. “It’s good.”
    “And your mom?”
    “She’s okay. What are you up to today?”
    “Tidying up. Got