much time for Shirlene or sex. Which explained her volatile reaction to Bubba. She was just coming off a dry spell, was all. She would’ve reacted the same to any man who had saved her from a watery grave.
It was close to sundown when she and Sherman pulled onto Grover Road. Sherman looked about as excited to be back there as Shirlene was. He snorted with disdain as the SUV bounced over every rut and bump.
“This coming from an animal that just ate someone’s leftover, sand-encrusted peanut butter sandwich,” she said.
At the mention of food, he snorted even louder. But before she could soothe him with the promise of Josephine’s tater tots, she noticed the three kids standing by the side of the road. Kids who looked as if they’d just had all their Halloween candy stolen. Dust flew as she pulled to a stop. She barely made it around the front of the Navigator when Jesse met her.
“It’s all your fault!” he screamed as he shoved the baby at her. “We don’t got a mama, and now we don’t got Mia, neither!”
Chapter Nine
M IA WASN’T GOING BACK . She wasn’t. She’d done everything she could to try to keep their ragtag family together, and she couldn’t do any more. It was someone else’s problem now. Maybe the pretty, blond Ms. Dalton. Although the woman hadn’t exactly looked like she liked kids. The entire time she had been at the trailer, she’d looked like she was going to throw up on the stained carpeting. Of course, it wasn’t kids as much as poverty that probably had Ms. Dalton looking that way.
Poverty could do that to a person. Settle in your stomach and make you feel as if you couldn’t keep a thing down. Mia had felt that way ever since she could remember. Nauseous bordering on deathly ill.
She glanced in the rearview mirror of the Impala she’d stolen from “Auntie Barb” and eased her foot off the accelerator. She didn’t like to drive the car, which was why she’d kept it under a tarp and a pile of garbage for most of their stay in Bramble. Even if she and Jesse had switched out license plates, all it would take was a cop pulling her over for her to be sent back to Houston. Andjust like she wasn’t going back to Bramble, she was never going back to Houston.
She’d been there and done that. All she had was nineteen more months. Nineteen months before she would turn eighteen and could go where she wanted to go and do what she wanted to do without worrying about Children’s Services breathing down her neck. But for now, she just wanted to drive and try to forget Jesse’s accusing brown eyes. And Brody’s tear-streaked face. And Adeline’s loud screams.
If she could just get far enough away, she could forget. She knew she could.
Unfortunately, in order to get far enough away, she needed gas. She had hoped she would be able to get out of Bramble before she stopped. Now it looked as if she would barely make it to Jones’s Garage. She rolled up to a pump with the car jerking and sputtering.
Stepping out of the car, she reached in her purse and pulled out the brown wallet with the scrolled Ls and Vs. She’d planned on giving the wallet back to Ms. Dalton after Jesse had discovered it on the front steps. She didn’t believe in stealing from complete strangers, just from horrible foster parents who had no business taking in kids. But after buying the groceries that morning, she only had a few dollars left.
She pulled out the gold American Express and stared at the name. Shirlene Grace Dalton. One day, Mia would have an American Express card with her name on it. And when she did, she’d pay back Ms. Dalton every cent she owed her.
Until then, she needed to borrow some.
Except when she slipped the card in the slot it wasdenied—as were five others. Had the woman already canceled them? Mia glanced around, waiting for a sting operation to jump out and grab her. But no Feds showed up, just the football hero of Bramble, Texas.
Which was almost worse to a skinny girl with
It was close to sundown when she and Sherman pulled onto Grover Road. Sherman looked about as excited to be back there as Shirlene was. He snorted with disdain as the SUV bounced over every rut and bump.
“This coming from an animal that just ate someone’s leftover, sand-encrusted peanut butter sandwich,” she said.
At the mention of food, he snorted even louder. But before she could soothe him with the promise of Josephine’s tater tots, she noticed the three kids standing by the side of the road. Kids who looked as if they’d just had all their Halloween candy stolen. Dust flew as she pulled to a stop. She barely made it around the front of the Navigator when Jesse met her.
“It’s all your fault!” he screamed as he shoved the baby at her. “We don’t got a mama, and now we don’t got Mia, neither!”
Chapter Nine
M IA WASN’T GOING BACK . She wasn’t. She’d done everything she could to try to keep their ragtag family together, and she couldn’t do any more. It was someone else’s problem now. Maybe the pretty, blond Ms. Dalton. Although the woman hadn’t exactly looked like she liked kids. The entire time she had been at the trailer, she’d looked like she was going to throw up on the stained carpeting. Of course, it wasn’t kids as much as poverty that probably had Ms. Dalton looking that way.
Poverty could do that to a person. Settle in your stomach and make you feel as if you couldn’t keep a thing down. Mia had felt that way ever since she could remember. Nauseous bordering on deathly ill.
She glanced in the rearview mirror of the Impala she’d stolen from “Auntie Barb” and eased her foot off the accelerator. She didn’t like to drive the car, which was why she’d kept it under a tarp and a pile of garbage for most of their stay in Bramble. Even if she and Jesse had switched out license plates, all it would take was a cop pulling her over for her to be sent back to Houston. Andjust like she wasn’t going back to Bramble, she was never going back to Houston.
She’d been there and done that. All she had was nineteen more months. Nineteen months before she would turn eighteen and could go where she wanted to go and do what she wanted to do without worrying about Children’s Services breathing down her neck. But for now, she just wanted to drive and try to forget Jesse’s accusing brown eyes. And Brody’s tear-streaked face. And Adeline’s loud screams.
If she could just get far enough away, she could forget. She knew she could.
Unfortunately, in order to get far enough away, she needed gas. She had hoped she would be able to get out of Bramble before she stopped. Now it looked as if she would barely make it to Jones’s Garage. She rolled up to a pump with the car jerking and sputtering.
Stepping out of the car, she reached in her purse and pulled out the brown wallet with the scrolled Ls and Vs. She’d planned on giving the wallet back to Ms. Dalton after Jesse had discovered it on the front steps. She didn’t believe in stealing from complete strangers, just from horrible foster parents who had no business taking in kids. But after buying the groceries that morning, she only had a few dollars left.
She pulled out the gold American Express and stared at the name. Shirlene Grace Dalton. One day, Mia would have an American Express card with her name on it. And when she did, she’d pay back Ms. Dalton every cent she owed her.
Until then, she needed to borrow some.
Except when she slipped the card in the slot it wasdenied—as were five others. Had the woman already canceled them? Mia glanced around, waiting for a sting operation to jump out and grab her. But no Feds showed up, just the football hero of Bramble, Texas.
Which was almost worse to a skinny girl with
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