Claudia And The Terrible Truth Read Online Free Page B

brought today isn't a puppy. It's this." I brought my Kid-Kit out from behind my back. "Ta-da!" I said. The boys looked at the box, which I had just finished redecorating with pictures cut out from a nature magazine. The best one was of a charging elephant.
    "What is it?" asked Joey.
    'Are there lions inside?" Nate asked, edging away from the box.
    "Nope," I said, opening it up. "Just toys. And books. And games and stickers and markers and all kinds of good stuff." "Excellent!" cried Joey. "Can we see it all?" "Definitely." We were in the living room, and I poured the contents of the box onto the rug, which made Joey look nervous. "Don't worry," I said. "Well clean it all up before your parents come home. I just wanted you to see everything." At that, Joey and Nate seemed to forget their worries. They started going through the pile, exclaiming over each "find." "Check it out!" cried Nate, holding up a Star Wars figure. "It's See-Threepio." "Can I read this?" asked Joey, picking out an old Encyclopedia Brown book.
    The boys had a blast going through my Kid-Kit. Finally, we settled down to play a game of checkers, me against both boys. Joey was a good player, and before long the boys' team was way ahead. Then Nate started whispering to Joey — I could have sworn he said something like "Better let her win" — and soon after that the game turned around and I ended up with about eight "kings" in five minutes.
    After I won, the boys rummaged through the books and games again. Nate picked up a dogeared, ancient copy of The Runaway Bunny and began to look through the pages, while Joey chose some markers. "Do you have any paper?" I asked him.
    "There's some in the desk over there," he said, "but I'm not sure — " "It's just paper," I said, interrupting him. "Nobody's going to be upset if we take one piece." We went to the desk together, and Joey showed me which drawer to open. I pulled out a sheet of plain paper, noticing that Joey was busy rearranging a small bowl of paper clips I'd nudged out of place. He put it back in its original spot, very carefully. I realized that Mr. Nicholls must like a tidy desk as much as he liked a tidy kitchen.
    "Oh, no!" Nate suddenly cried. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" "What is it?" I asked, rushing to him to see what was wrong.
    He looked up at me and I saw fear in his eyes. "I — I tore your book," he said, showing me a page with a tiny tear in it. "I'll buy you a new one as soon as I can save up my allowance, I promise. Please, I'm really sorry." He truly seemed to think I'd be furious with him for making a small tear in an old book. I reached out to pat his shoulder, and he jerked back. "Nate," I said, pulling my hand away and speaking ,as gently as I could. "It's really all right. That book is so old it would be hard not to tear the pages while you read it. I am not mad at all." What was going on here? Had the boys had some terrible experience with a baby-sitter? Or was it me? Maybe I had done something to upset them. I watched the boys as they returned — carefully — to reading and drawing. I couldn't figure out what was making them so nervous.
    "How about a snack?" I asked finally. 'Are you two hungry?" Nate nodded. So did Joey. They followed me into the kitchen. I opened the cupboard over the fridge and began to pull down boxes.
    "Not those crackers," said Joey, "We're not allowed to have those." "We can't have those cookies either,” Nate said, pointing to a bag. "Those are for Dad." "Okay," I said. "How about some fruit?" A bowl full of apples, pears, and oranges was on the counter.
    "That's for after dinner," Joey said. "But we could have some carrots or celery." Finally I'd found something they could eat. But celery didn't sound too exciting. Unless — "Do you have any peanut butter?" I asked.
    Nate pointed to another cabinet next to the fridge. "It’s in there," he said.
    'And is it okay to use some?" I