Read Online A Reason To Stay by Julieann Dove - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Julieann Dove
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advertising a high school car wash to support a trip to Paris for the French class. The farthest she’d gone on a field trip was to the nearby amusement park to sing with her chorus group. It was the only reason she signed up for the class. Her mother never would take her and Melanie to any places like that growing up. You either found a friend whose family was normal and did those kinds of things and took you along, or you joined chorus.
The lit up Dairy Queen did seem to have added seating on the right side of the modest building. Maybe to better accommodate the Sunday crowd. After all, it was the only hang-out in town when Elise was growing up. Probably still was. Families sat under the red canopies waiting for their food. Her stomach grumbled with the thought of salty fries on her tongue.
“All right, I suppose I’ll wait until tomorrow to get me some real southern food, then.” Elise needed an excuse to get out the house she knew she’d be trapped in with her mother for the next week. Fried chicken and white gravy might just help in the cause.
“So?” Melanie tilted her head, waiting for Elise to catch on to the vague question that could’ve addressed anything from what time it was to what’s been going on for the last month with her.
“So, what?” Elise looked in the backseat, wondering why the kids weren’t louder than they were. She looked to the ceiling and saw a movie playing on a tiny screen that hung there. Wow, entertainment in a car, too? She marveled how times had changed from when she was younger. A car ride, back then, meant staring out the window and counting how many red cars had passed by versus blue ones.
“So, what about your love life? Did he take you to the airport?”
It was nice having a sister around. Elise missed the midnight giggles about boys and discussing how their tongues could manage to choke you with one bad kiss. So much had happened between them, though, she just wasn’t sure she was ready to confide all her secrets. “He did. But we arrived very late and I wasn’t sure we’d make it. I’m not even sure I packed my makeup bag, hairbrush, and toothpaste. It was all such a blur.”
Melanie laughed. “Last night was that good? You couldn’t manage to wake up on time, huh?”
Elise looked in the back seat, making sure the kids were not receptive to their mother’s innuendoes. “Melanie!” Elise said, giving her a sideways glance to keep her voice down.
“They have no clue what we’re talking about. Now, spill it.”
“He’s the same guy I told you about a few months ago. No biggie.” Elise shrugged her shoulders and searched for red cars going by.
A light caught Melanie and she shot a look to Elise. “Get out! That serious?”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about. It’s nothing.” She avoided eye contact, hoping her sister would stop her interrogation. It wasn’t an easy subject, seeing she was having a difficult time identifying exactly what it was. “We date a few times a week. You’re making it sound as though it’s something big.”
“And if I asked him, would he say the same thing?” The SUV picked up speed as Melanie turned her attention back to the road.
“I’m not sure what he’d say.” Too much information for the East Coast. Keep the West Coast west and the East Coast east. “And you? Are you seeing anyone new?” She asked but figured the answer to be the same as every time she had asked in the past. Nothing new, here.
Melanie’s eyeballs grew wide and circled around in her head. “Actually, there is someone.”
Elise pushed her sister’s shoulder. “Get out! Who? How long? Oh, my gosh.”
Melanie pulled into the driveway of their childhood home and parked. The kids began pulling at their safety belts in a fit to get out as though it had just caught on fire. “I will have to tell you about him later,” her sister said, trying to stay one step ahead of her quick little tikes.
“No fair,” Elise said, pouting
The lit up Dairy Queen did seem to have added seating on the right side of the modest building. Maybe to better accommodate the Sunday crowd. After all, it was the only hang-out in town when Elise was growing up. Probably still was. Families sat under the red canopies waiting for their food. Her stomach grumbled with the thought of salty fries on her tongue.
“All right, I suppose I’ll wait until tomorrow to get me some real southern food, then.” Elise needed an excuse to get out the house she knew she’d be trapped in with her mother for the next week. Fried chicken and white gravy might just help in the cause.
“So?” Melanie tilted her head, waiting for Elise to catch on to the vague question that could’ve addressed anything from what time it was to what’s been going on for the last month with her.
“So, what?” Elise looked in the backseat, wondering why the kids weren’t louder than they were. She looked to the ceiling and saw a movie playing on a tiny screen that hung there. Wow, entertainment in a car, too? She marveled how times had changed from when she was younger. A car ride, back then, meant staring out the window and counting how many red cars had passed by versus blue ones.
“So, what about your love life? Did he take you to the airport?”
It was nice having a sister around. Elise missed the midnight giggles about boys and discussing how their tongues could manage to choke you with one bad kiss. So much had happened between them, though, she just wasn’t sure she was ready to confide all her secrets. “He did. But we arrived very late and I wasn’t sure we’d make it. I’m not even sure I packed my makeup bag, hairbrush, and toothpaste. It was all such a blur.”
Melanie laughed. “Last night was that good? You couldn’t manage to wake up on time, huh?”
Elise looked in the back seat, making sure the kids were not receptive to their mother’s innuendoes. “Melanie!” Elise said, giving her a sideways glance to keep her voice down.
“They have no clue what we’re talking about. Now, spill it.”
“He’s the same guy I told you about a few months ago. No biggie.” Elise shrugged her shoulders and searched for red cars going by.
A light caught Melanie and she shot a look to Elise. “Get out! That serious?”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about. It’s nothing.” She avoided eye contact, hoping her sister would stop her interrogation. It wasn’t an easy subject, seeing she was having a difficult time identifying exactly what it was. “We date a few times a week. You’re making it sound as though it’s something big.”
“And if I asked him, would he say the same thing?” The SUV picked up speed as Melanie turned her attention back to the road.
“I’m not sure what he’d say.” Too much information for the East Coast. Keep the West Coast west and the East Coast east. “And you? Are you seeing anyone new?” She asked but figured the answer to be the same as every time she had asked in the past. Nothing new, here.
Melanie’s eyeballs grew wide and circled around in her head. “Actually, there is someone.”
Elise pushed her sister’s shoulder. “Get out! Who? How long? Oh, my gosh.”
Melanie pulled into the driveway of their childhood home and parked. The kids began pulling at their safety belts in a fit to get out as though it had just caught on fire. “I will have to tell you about him later,” her sister said, trying to stay one step ahead of her quick little tikes.
“No fair,” Elise said, pouting
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