Dreadful Sorry Read Free

vision of grace is the best friend I was telling you about, Molly Teague."
    Molly removed her hand from his.
What is wrong with me?
Her blue eyes met his brown ones, and her stomach felt hollow. "I'm so sorry," she whispered.
    The salt wind receded. Kathi stared at her, incredulous. There was an uncomfortable silence. Then Jared reached down and picked up Molly's backpack. "Here you go."
    "Thanks." Molly stood there awkwardly. She slung the pack over her shoulder. "Sorry—I mean, I was just in a hurry." The inexplicable guilty, hollow shame—the same feeling in the pit of her stomach that she'd felt in the headmistress's office—was gone, and now she felt like a complete idiot.
I could die! Wasn't plowing into him bad enough? Do I have to sound like an idiot, too?
    Kathi began chattering about her weekend plans. "I want Jared to meet everybody," she said, "but he'll have to wait till later because our whole family's going to Lake Pymatuning for the weekend. But when we get back, I'm going to have a party. And now that the seniors have had their exams, they'll be giving graduation parties, too. Jared's probably going to be here the whole summer, isn't that great? His parents are archaeologists, and they've gone to Israel for a summer dig. Jared wanted to get a summer job instead. So he'll be with us."
    Having regained her composure, Molly gave Jared her most dazzling smile. "I don't know—it seems Israel would be a lot more exciting than Battleboro Heights! What are they digging for?"
    "Oh, ancient city foundations. Fragments of broken pots. Old shoes—you name it!". He pushed his dark hair off his forehead and grinned at her. "I've already been there and back again more summers than I can count. So I begged off for this summer. My mom and dad have dragged me around the world with them so many times, I have permanent jet lag."
    Molly made her voice casual. "Have you visited Kathi before? I'm
sure
I've met you."
    "Now there's a line!" teased Kathi. "I bet you say that to all the guys."
    Oddly flustered again, Molly stared down at Jared's feet in large, dirty basketball high-tops. Why was she being such a jerk around this guy? Chalk it up to the overall bad week she'd been having. Well, at least it was Friday.
    "Listen, I've got to get home." Now she was eager to be away. "I'll see you guys when you get back from Lake Pymatuning. Bye, Kathi. Bye, Hob."
    Oh, God, I've done it again!
"I mean Jared." Face flaming, Molly flapped a hand at them and took off at a run across the lawn in front of the school. She could feel Jared's eyes watching her. She didn't slow down till she reached Mill Road, then walked with her long-legged lope down the big hill to Route 21.
    Molly didn't notice her mother's red sports car until her mother tooted the horn and pulled up to the curb. Molly looked up, startled. Her pale cheeks flushed as she approached the car.
    "I left the office early today," Jen told her daughter in greeting. "So I thought I'd wait at the school till your swim lesson ended and give you a lift. But you're early today, too."
    "Coach Bascombe let me out early." The lie slipped out effortlessly. Molly slid into the front seat and snapped her seatbelt. She glanced nervously at Jen, who was dressed immaculately in cool beige linen, her blond hair, just the color of Molly's own, moussed into careful disarray. Jen always looked radiant. "I think Coach Bascombe had a dentist appointment," Molly improvised, then felt a flash of anger at herself for lying.
Why can't I just tell Mom the truth? I'm never going to swim, and that's that.
    Molly's mother was a partner in a downtown law firm. She was very successful and enjoyed both her high-powered job and the fact that she was one of very few women in her firm who had risen so fast and so far. She used her maiden name, Deming, and was pleased that her secretary was a man. Her hours were usually long, and she brought casework home every night. She often left the house early in