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Mom’s eyes bore into me, but I don’t want to look up. I’ve been pushing the food around, removing the carrots. Now I take a bite, filling my mouth with food in lieu of words.
She sets her tools aside and leans across the bar toward me, putting her warm, floury hand on mine. “He’s not Benson.”
I slide my hand free to scoop up another bite I no longer want. “I just wanted to see him.”
“He won’t be long,” she says. “We weren’t sure when you’d get here.”
Zach struts into the kitchen, shoulders back and head high, and rescues me.
“How’s life, little man?” I ask, tousling his hair.
“Good, when there’s no school,” he says, grabbing an apple out of the fruit bowl, taking a huge, crackling bite, and talking around it. “How’s college? You need me to help you with your math?”
I chuck a carrot at him, but he catches it easily and pops it into his mouth with a thank-you.
“Stop throwin’ food in my kitchen,” Mom says. She’s smiling, though, so I toss another carrot, higher this time, and Zach catches it in his mouth.
“I mean it. Y’all won’t be gettin’ any pie tomorrow if you keep this up.”
“Want to pepper?” I ask Zach.
“Volleyball’s for girls. Besides, my arms are tired.” His eyes brighten, and he pulls up one sleeve to show me his still-developing bicep. “Kaden let me lift with him this morning.”
“Girls?” I squeeze the offered bicep. “I guess you’ll fit right in, then. Where’s the volleyball?”
“Hey!” he says, slugging me in the shoulder.
“I’m kidding!” I laugh. “Bring those big biceps of yours and hit some balls at me, manly man.”
He grabs me around the waist, and I put him in a headlock.
“Out-out-out!” There’s some real irritation creeping into Mom’s voice, so I wrestle Zach into the family room and let him think he might win a few times before I manage to pin him. It won’t be long until my baby brother passes me in strength and height. I’m not ready for him to grow up.
The door slams, and before I can release Zach, we’re attacked by a sweaty, blond Kaden.
“Hiya, Gracie!” Strong fingers dig into my ribs and send me into a paroxysm of laughter and squealing.
Zach yelps and groans beneath the combined weight of two older, bigger siblings. I let him out so we can gang up on Kaden, but somehow Kaden manages to wrap Zach up with his legs and simultaneously pin me with his upper body.
I pull away from Kaden’s armpit—thankfully, he’s wearing sleeves—long enough to voice my protest. “Ugh, you smell like a gym rat! Gerroff!”
“Can’t take your little brother anymore, can you?” Before he lets me up, he tousles my hair much like I did to Zach, destroying the minimal effort I made this morning. “Must really suck to get so old and useless!”
“Nothing little about you but your brain.” I give his huge frame a good-natured shove and reach down to help Zach to his feet. Once Zach passes me up, I’ll only be taller than Claire. It’s a hard pill to swallow. I liked being first, oldest, biggest.
“Ha!” Kaden takes the jab in stride, though his chest swells to show me how big he is. “Tell that to Mr. Therman.”
“Aw, how is old Thermy?” Our high school’s chemistry teacher is an eccentric relic, a fixture at every home sporting event and a favorite among the students. “He let you blow anything up yet?”
“Nah, but he’s shown us a few things. We won’t get into exothermic reactions until third term.”
“I miss that stinky coot. Smells like you’ve been seeing a lot of him. Remedial?”
“Hey!” He pauses to sniff an armpit. “That’s just good, clean sweat. Besides, you probably wouldn’t smell much better than him if you spent all your time in a room full of sulfur. And, just so you know, I set the curve on our last test. So I guess everything about meisbigger than you, including my brains.”
“Well, you definitely have a big head.”
Zach worms his way under my arm and into the conversation, half-wrestling, half-hugging me as he laughs at Kaden. “She got you!”
