Things We Never Got Over (Knockemout, #1)

by Lucy Score

“Ow! I don’t mean nerd like bad. Nerds are good. Nerds are cool. Nerds are the ones who grow up to run companies and make bazillions of dollars,” Chloe said. She looked at Waylay. “Nerds are definitely good.” The tops of Waylay’s ears turned pink. “My mom always said nerds were losers,” she said quietly. She shot Naomi a look. “She said girls who liked dresses and doing their hair were…uh, bad.” I had the sudden urge to hunt down Tina and drop-kick her ass into the creek for not being the kind of mother her kid needed. “Your mom got a lot of things mixed up, kiddo,” Naomi said, running her hand over Waylay’s hair. “She didn’t understand that people could be more than one thing or like more than one thing. You can wear dresses and makeup and build rockets. You can dress in suits and play baseball. You can be a millionaire and work in your pajamas.” “Your mom doesn’t like dresses and hair?” Chloe scoffed. “She’s missing out. I had two wardrobe changes for my birthday last year, and I got a bow and arrow. You be you. Don’t let someone who doesn’t like fashion tell you anything.” “Listen to Chloe, who’s about to lose a hot dog off her plate— Get down, Waylon,” Liza said. My dog froze, mid-sneak. “We can still see you even if you’re not movin’, dumbass,” I reminded him. Waylay giggled.