All the Days of Her Life by Lurlene McDaniel Read Free Book Online Page B

inside her. Terri was right. She needed to get out and have fun. And eating was fun. She’d been on this stupid diet much too long and it was time to take a break. “I like mine medium rare,” she said above the sound of the traffic. “With mushrooms smothered in butter.”
    The restaurant was everything Terri had promised. Lacey had never been in such a fancy place, or pigged out on such delicious food. She ate until she thought she would burst. “Save room for Bailey’s,” Terri cautioned.
    “I don’t think I can eat another bite,” Lacey groaned.
    “Don’t tell me that. This is a lesson in gluttony, and I expect you to be a good student.”
    Ramon checked on them and insisted they take home the remains of their dinner in doggie bags. Lacey thanked him while pushing aside the pangs of guilt for eating such a mountain of food.
    In the parking lot Terri traded cars and she andLacey headed down the quaint streets of the Grove. There was no persuading Terri to return to the play rehearsal, so against her will and better judgment Lacey ended up at the ice cream parlor facing an impossible mound of a gooey sundae made with three different kinds of chocolate ice cream.
    “It’s called Death by Chocolate,” Terri said, digging her spoon into her sundae. “Don’t be shy, eat up.”
    Lacey took a tentative bite and savored the sweet, sugary flavor. Although sweets were not forbidden to her as a diabetic, they were something that had to be planned for and worked carefully into her menu. Sweets by themselves could not cause diabetes, but real sugar did cause elevated blood sugars and needed more insulin to metabolize properly. Still, she loved the taste of desserts and found the huge bowl of ice cream irresistible. “I’ll bet I’ve gained ten pounds tonight.”
    “You needed the break,” Terri said, popping a plump red cherry into her mouth. “So tell me, who’s your best friend?”
    Immediately, Katie came to mind, then Chelsea, but to mention them might open up an area of discussion Lacey wanted to avoid. Her friends were sick, or had been sick, and that might lead Terri to wonder why Lacey knew them in the first place. “I guess you are after this.”
    “Good choice. I had a best friend, Sharon, but she moved away. That was last year. We write, but it’s not the same, is it?”
    “Not really,” Lacey said, rooting through her sundaefor an elusive cherry and hoping Terri didn’t ask any more questions. When your best and dearest friends were sick girls, it was difficult to talk about them.
    “Sharon wants me to come see her this summer. She lives in Houston. But I need to get a job. What will you do this summer?”
    Lacey thought about Jenny House, about the promise she, Katie, Chelsea, and Jillian had made to one another about meeting again at Amanda’s memorial on top of the mountain. In her mind’s eye she saw the stick tepee she’d constructed, the photograph fluttering in the breeze, the diamond stud earring Jillian had fastened to the picture. But Jillian was dead. And Chelsea’s transplanted heart could reject. For that matter, so could Katie’s.
    “Excuse me. Earth to Lacey.” Terri was rapping the side of her water glass with her spoon. Lacey started. “You checked out on me,” Terri added. “Is everything all right?”
    “Sure,” Lacey insisted. “My brain wandered. Probably too much food and it didn’t know how to react.”
    “Well, believe it or not, even I’m on food overload.” Terri stuck her spoon into the gloppy remains of her ice cream. “But I feel better. At least my emotions do. And you? Wasn’t I right? Didn’t you need to eat your way out of that run-in with Todd? I’ll bet you haven’t thought about him once all evening.”
    It was true. She’d completely forgotten about Todd. But memories of her friends crowded in anddisturbed her. They were doomed. All of them. No matter how well they did with their transplanted organs, their lifespans were shortened. So