Chapter 51

“I feel,” I said, “like I might let a smart-ass kid hang around me for a while, just to see if he really likes me as much as he thinks he does.”

I cocked an eyebrow as he leaped to his feet. “But you’re going to have to start picking up after yourself. We’ll make a cleaning schedule and post it on the fridge.”

“You still haven’t shown me how to run the washing machine.”

“I may never let you run the washing machine, kid. I’m not convinced you know how to separate your whites from your colors.”

“I can learn all that stuff. And I’ll go to school if you want me to.”

“What I want,” I said, giving him a little shake, “is for you to figure out what you’re going to do with your life. School will give you some ideas, give you an edge. But if you really don’t want to go, I won’t make you. I’m through playing daddy.”