delicate platinum settings. “Are they real?”
Barrie barely resisted the urge to pull away.
“Need a refill yet, Bear?” Eight reached between her and Cassie for Barrie’s Cherry Coke and shook the cup to see if it was empty. It wasn’t, but the gesture made Cassie drop the pendants.
The way Cassie stared at the keys made Barrie want to tuck the necklace under her shirt or apologize for wearing it. She’d never thought about what the keys were worth. Not in terms of money. They’d been Lula’s gift to her for winning the state and national Scholastic art awards, one key for each of the three prizes, which had been the first time Lula had shown any interest in Barrie’s work. Barrie had given up pushing drawings under Lula’s door in kindergarten. She liked to think the keys had been Lula’s way of making up for that.
Sadness swelled inside Barrie’s chest, filling her up until she thought that she would burst.
“Come on, Bear. We’d better get you back.” Eight unfolded his legs and made the table wobble as he rose. “Your aunt will cut off my visiting privileges if I keep you out much longer.”
“You don’t have to leave so soon, do you?” Cassie bit her lip. “My shift is almost over. I can run you home. Or wait”—she reached over and grabbed Barrie’s hands—“I’m meeting some folks at the Resurrection later. You could come. We can have dinner, and I can introduce you to a few of my friends. It’s my last free night until Monday. Please say yes! It’ll be so much fun!”
Barrie stood up slowly. She should want to go with Cassie. But she didn’t.
Eight shook his head at her as if he wanted to will her to say no. Why was he always telling her what to do? Meeting a few friends would be manageable. Cassie deserved at least that much. And the more people Barrie met before school started, the fewer stares she would have to face in the halls and cafeteria on the first day of class.
Hadn’t she promised Mark she would have adventures? Put some wear on her shoes? She needed to push herself. “Thank you,” she said, “that sounds like fun.”
Cassie gave her a quick, tight hug. “Great. I’ll pick you up at six.”
“No need. I’m already coming back into town for dinner around then. I’ll drive her,” Eight said, with a smile that wasn’t as much a smile as the promise of impending argument.
CHAPTER NINE
It was strange for Barrie to raise her voice, let alone to have a no-holds-barred fight with someone she had never even heard of twenty-four hours before. She and Eight argued all the way to Watson’s Landing in a way that reminded her of Mark and Lula’s fights. By the time they reached the small bridge over the creek, Barrie felt as though every word in her vocabulary had been wrung out of her body. She turned up the radio to drown Eight out. He had the bass turned too high again, and the beat pounded along with her headache. She stared out the open window.
“Dinner with Cassie is a stupid idea. Dumb as a box of rocks.” Eight turned down the volume again. “Admit it. What if Wyatt shows up? Running into him before might have been an accident, but by dinnertime Cassie will have had time to tell him you’ll be with her at the Resurrection.”
“Which is a restaurant. A place full of people. So, what is he going to do? Anyway, Cassie is great. She’s family. My family. Do you have brothers or sisters?”
“A sister—Kate. She’s sixteen. She’s at camp, or we would have brought her over. But you’ll meet her soon.”
“You love her; I can tell by the way you said that just now. Do you see how lucky you are? I don’t have a sister or a brother. Cassie and Sydney are the closest things I’ll ever have to that—and Cassie is asking me to dinner in a public place, not hauling me off to a secret lair to be tortured by her minions. How am I supposed to say no? Anyway, you’re the one who thought it was a good idea to introduce us.”
“To introduce you.
Barrie barely resisted the urge to pull away.
“Need a refill yet, Bear?” Eight reached between her and Cassie for Barrie’s Cherry Coke and shook the cup to see if it was empty. It wasn’t, but the gesture made Cassie drop the pendants.
The way Cassie stared at the keys made Barrie want to tuck the necklace under her shirt or apologize for wearing it. She’d never thought about what the keys were worth. Not in terms of money. They’d been Lula’s gift to her for winning the state and national Scholastic art awards, one key for each of the three prizes, which had been the first time Lula had shown any interest in Barrie’s work. Barrie had given up pushing drawings under Lula’s door in kindergarten. She liked to think the keys had been Lula’s way of making up for that.
Sadness swelled inside Barrie’s chest, filling her up until she thought that she would burst.
“Come on, Bear. We’d better get you back.” Eight unfolded his legs and made the table wobble as he rose. “Your aunt will cut off my visiting privileges if I keep you out much longer.”
“You don’t have to leave so soon, do you?” Cassie bit her lip. “My shift is almost over. I can run you home. Or wait”—she reached over and grabbed Barrie’s hands—“I’m meeting some folks at the Resurrection later. You could come. We can have dinner, and I can introduce you to a few of my friends. It’s my last free night until Monday. Please say yes! It’ll be so much fun!”
Barrie stood up slowly. She should want to go with Cassie. But she didn’t.
Eight shook his head at her as if he wanted to will her to say no. Why was he always telling her what to do? Meeting a few friends would be manageable. Cassie deserved at least that much. And the more people Barrie met before school started, the fewer stares she would have to face in the halls and cafeteria on the first day of class.
Hadn’t she promised Mark she would have adventures? Put some wear on her shoes? She needed to push herself. “Thank you,” she said, “that sounds like fun.”
Cassie gave her a quick, tight hug. “Great. I’ll pick you up at six.”
“No need. I’m already coming back into town for dinner around then. I’ll drive her,” Eight said, with a smile that wasn’t as much a smile as the promise of impending argument.
CHAPTER NINE
It was strange for Barrie to raise her voice, let alone to have a no-holds-barred fight with someone she had never even heard of twenty-four hours before. She and Eight argued all the way to Watson’s Landing in a way that reminded her of Mark and Lula’s fights. By the time they reached the small bridge over the creek, Barrie felt as though every word in her vocabulary had been wrung out of her body. She turned up the radio to drown Eight out. He had the bass turned too high again, and the beat pounded along with her headache. She stared out the open window.
“Dinner with Cassie is a stupid idea. Dumb as a box of rocks.” Eight turned down the volume again. “Admit it. What if Wyatt shows up? Running into him before might have been an accident, but by dinnertime Cassie will have had time to tell him you’ll be with her at the Resurrection.”
“Which is a restaurant. A place full of people. So, what is he going to do? Anyway, Cassie is great. She’s family. My family. Do you have brothers or sisters?”
“A sister—Kate. She’s sixteen. She’s at camp, or we would have brought her over. But you’ll meet her soon.”
“You love her; I can tell by the way you said that just now. Do you see how lucky you are? I don’t have a sister or a brother. Cassie and Sydney are the closest things I’ll ever have to that—and Cassie is asking me to dinner in a public place, not hauling me off to a secret lair to be tortured by her minions. How am I supposed to say no? Anyway, you’re the one who thought it was a good idea to introduce us.”
“To introduce you.
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