Read Online Losing Nuka (Litmus Book 1) by Kayla Howarth - Free Book Online Page A

listen in. Whatever,” I say inarticulately.
    Dialling Declan’s house, I feel self-conscious talking to him in front of Brett, who’s standing there with his arms crossed just watching me. Declan picks up on the first ring.
    “Hello?” he says with a certain tone of urgency.
    “Hey, it’s m—”
    “Nuka? Oh, thank God. Where the hell did you disappear to? Why didn’t you come home? What the hell happened last night? Are you okay?”
    “Calm down. I’m fine. I’m … I found my mother.”
    “What? Where are you now?”
    “At her house.”
    “Why didn’t you call sooner?”
    “I was getting to know my sister.  Why—”
    “You have a sister?” There’s a smile in his tone now.
    “Yeah, pretty crazy. I meant to call, but everything happened so fast. Why were you all panicky?”
    “Are you kidding me? Why? Maybe because the last time I saw you, you were talking to some random guy at the bar and then you disappeared for … oh I don’t know … eight hours?” He lets out an exasperated sigh. “I didn’t know where you were. I was worried. Where are you, Nuke?”
    “At my mother’s house.”
    “Yeah, I got that. Where is that?”
    “I don’t actually know the address. Hang on …” I turn and look at Brett.
    “He won’t be allowed in,” he says. “Not approved guest.”
    “Who was that?” Declan asks.
    “Uh, the guy from the bar,” I answer absentmindedly while looking at Brett, my facial expression asking him why Declan can’t come over.
    “What?” Declan screeches.
    Breaking eye contact with Brett, I throw my head in my hand. “It’s not like that. He works for my mother.” There’s a long silence, and if I had to guess what he was doing, I’d say he was pacing back and forth, trying to calm down again. “I’m sorry I made you worry. I kind of got carried away with the fact that I have a mother and a sister and … well, I figured you were at Cassia’s last night anyway, so I couldn’t go back to yours if you weren’t there.”
    “I’m glad you’re okay, Nuke,” he says calmly. “When I didn’t know where you were, I kind of freaked out. I wish I could’ve been there for you when you met her. And about Cass—”
    “I kind of wish that too,” I say with a smile. I don’t want to hear about Cassia. “It didn’t exactly go as well as I was hoping.”
    “Oh?”
    Brett clears his throat behind me.
    I grumble. “I should go. I just wanted to let you know where I was.”
    “Are you coming back here tonight, or?”
    “Uh … maybe, but I’m not sure just yet. I’ll see how the day pans out and will let you know, okay?”
    “When can I see you then?” he asks. “I think we need to talk about … some stuff.”
    My stomach churns, making me feel queasy. I know what he wants to say. He wants to tell me that he’s back with Cassia and we can’t be as close anymore. He’s such an idiot for going back to her. I may as well get the conversation over with.
    “You got uni in the morning?”
    “Yeah. Free arvo though.”
    “Late lunch? Usual spot?”
    “Deal.”
     
     
     

-6-
    SUSPICIONS
     
    From what I’ve learnt about Sasha so far, she’s insanely smart. She’s like some kind of mathematical genius child. While I was trying to work out how much discount thirty-five percent off would be on the sales rack, she’d look at the price and spout the answer like it just popped into her head. I’m not talking an approximate guess, she’d tell me right down to the cent. It’s no wonder she has the smarts to home school herself.
    There’s a knock on my door not long after we get home from our long, exhausting day of shopping.
    “Your mother has requested your company,” Brett says as I open the door.
    “Really?” My eyebrows shoot up and I find myself smiling. I tell myself to act cool, but it’s not happening.
    “Yup, she wants you to meet Jonas and have dinner with you.”
    “Should I change? Do I look okay?”
    He laughs. “You look fine. Come on,”