Page 11 of Sunday Morning
The “farm stand” sounded simplistic, but it was a fully enclosed shed just off the road at the end of the Corys’ long lane. It had windows, a bathroom in the corner, a register, a deep freezer with meat and raw dairy products, and shelves of farm goods: eggs, jams, honey, beeswax candles, and baked goods Violet made fresh every morning.
“It would be easier to make this decision if I weren’t so distracted by my disappointment over missing my senior prom.” I dropped my chin and folded my hands, twiddling my thumbs.
“Sarah,” Dad said with a stern tone.
“Honey, let’s talk about this at home,” Mom suggested.
Was it okay for her to use Matt to guilt me into saying yes, but not okay for me to use my form of persuasion?
“Gabby and Eve are in the car, so we’re all adults. Let’s talk about it now.” My buzz was gone, but there seemed to be some residual bravery dictating my words. “If you all raised us so well, then where is your trust in us, in yourselves, and in God that we can handle a school dance? Newsflash: we drive cars with radios. Don’t you think we’ve heard all the sinful songs? And the dance will be chaperoned. No one’s going to get pregnant on the dance floor. And I’m sure I still have a curfew despite being eighteen.” I stopped short of rolling my eyes, but I wanted to.
Clap.
Clap.
Clap.
Our gazes shifted to the porch steps where Isaac sat, slowly clapping.
“Bravo. I think Sarah should go to law school instead of Matty. That was a brilliant case she made.”
“Shut up.” Matt smacked Isaac on the back of the head, and Isaac snickered.
“What if Mom volunteers to chaperone?” I added.
Mom squinted at me, but I kept a pleasant, unaffected smile.
“Janet,” my dad said her name in a rare moment of deferring a decision to her.
“I’ll volunteer too,” Violet added.
I bit back my grin, and so did Matt.
“Okay,” Mom murmured with a nervous smile.
“Okay,” I said. “Since that’s decided, I think I’ll accept the job at the farm stand.”
Everyone seemed happy with the state of affairs—except Satan.
CHAPTER FOUR
MADONNA, “LIKE A VIRGIN”
“Totally awesome!”Heather squealed as soon as I told her about prom.
I held the phone to my ear while doing sit-ups on my bedroom floor. “We have to go shopping next weekend for a dress. I bet there’s nothing left since everyone else has picked the good ones. And don’t you have weights? I need to do some butterflies to make my chest bigger.”
Heather laughed. “Why do you need a bigger chest?”
“If I tell you, you can’t tell anyone, and I mean anyone. Not even Joanna.”
“I swear. Now, tell me.”
I stopped exercising and untangled the phone cord from around my waist. “Earlier, when we were eating Easter dinner at Matt’s house—oh my gosh, Heather,somuchhappened. I don’t know where to start. First, Isaac still smokes.”
“Well, duh. He’s twenty-four, and he was in the Army. Of course, he still smokes.”
I deflated at my naivety. “Also, he poured some sort of booze from a flask into his glass of Coke, and he offered it to Eve, so I freaked out and took it from him, guzzling it down all at once.”