but my father isn’t home, and he doesn’t allow boys in the house while he’s not around.”
“Oh,” I said dejectedly, “that’s okay. We can talk out here, I guess.” If I’d had my
way, I would have done this inside.
“Would you like some lemonade while we sit?” she asked. “I just made some.”
“I’d love some,” I said.
“I’ll be right back.” She walked back into the house, but she left the door open and I
took a quick glance around. The house, I noticed, was small but tidy, with a piano against
one wall and a sofa against the other. A small fan sat oscillating in the corner. On the
coffee table there were books with names like Listening to Jesus and Faith Is the Answer.
Her Bible was there, too, and it was opened to the chapter on Luke.
A moment later Jamie returned with the lemonade, and we took a seat in two chairs
near the corner of the porch. I knew she and her father sat there in the evenings because I
passed by their house now and then. As soon as we were seated, I saw Mrs. Hastings, her
neighbor across the street, wave to us. Jamie waved back while I sort of scooted my chair
so that Mrs. Hastings couldn’t see my face. Even though I was going to ask Jamie to the
dance, I didn’t want anyone—even Mrs. Hastings—to see me there on the off chance that
she’d already accepted Carey’s offer. It was one thing to actually go with Jamie, it was
another thing to be rejected by her in favor of a guy like Carey.
“What are you doing?” Jamie asked me. “You’re moving your chair into the sun.”
“I like the sun,” I said. She was right, though. Almost immediately I could feel the
rays burning through my shirt and making me sweat again.
“If that’s what you want,” she said, smiling. “So, what did you want to talk to me
about?”
Jamie reached up and started to adjust her hair. By my reckoning, it hadn’t moved at
all. I took a deep breath, trying to gather myself, but I couldn’t force myself to come out
with it just yet.
“So,” I said instead, “you were at the orphanage today?”
Jamie looked at me curiously. “No. My father and I were at the doctor’s office.”
“Is he okay?”
She smiled. “Healthy as can be.”
I nodded and glanced across the street. Mrs. Hastings had gone back inside, and I
couldn’t see anyone else in the vicinity. The coast was finally clear, but I still wasn’t
ready.
“Sure is a beautiful day,” I said, stalling.
“Yes, it is.”
“Warm, too.”
“That’s because you’re in the sun.”