Breath of Scandal(12)

That trend had to be reversed. Perhaps she and Gary would be the forerunners, the first generation of a new South, the pioneers of-

"Oh, shit!"

The expletive yanked Jade from her noble daydream. "What's the matter?"

"We're out of gas."

"What?" She glanced at the gauge with disbelief. "Did I stutter? We're out of gas."

Donna Dee let the car coast to the narrow shoulder of the road and roll to a standstill. Jade gaped at her friend incredulously. "How can you be out of gas?"

"In all the excitement, I forgot to check the gauge before we left town."

"What'll we do now?"

"Wait for somebody to come along, I guess."

"Oh, great!" Jade flopped back against the seat and pinched the bridge of her nose between two fingers.

After a brief silence, Donna Dee said, "Look, I made a mistake, okay? Everyone in the world except you is entitled to make a mistake now and then. I know you're eager to see Gary, and I understand why. I'm sorry."

Her apology made Jade feel ashamed. If it weren't for Donna Dee, she wouldn't even know about her scholarship yet.

"No, I'm the one who's sorry. " She nudged Donna Dee's arm until the girl turned her head and looked at her. Jade smiled in apology. "I didn't mean to sound critical."



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Sandra Brown



Breath of Scandal



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A grin tugged at Donna Dee's mouth, which was much too small for her teeth. "That's all right." Then the two began to laugh. "This is a hell of a fix!" Donna Dee exclaimed. Poking her head through the open window, she yelled theatrically, "Help, help! Two beautiful damsels are in distress!"

"You idiot, get your head back inside this car. Your hair's getting wet."

Donna Dee turned off the headlights so as not to run down the car's battery, and they settled down to wait for the first passerby. The sun had set before they left town. It was dark on the country road. After fifteen minutes without a single car coming by, Jade began to worry.

"It's not that cold, and it's stopped drizzling. Maybe we should walk back to town."

Donna Dee looked at her as though she'd lost her mind. "That's several miles."

"We can at least go to the nearest house that has a telephone. "

Fearfully, Donna Dee glanced over her shoulder. "You want to go sashaying up to one of those nigger shacks? Unuh. No way. We might never be seen again."

"Just because they're black doesn't mean they're dangerous. It's no more risky than hitching a fide. You don't know who'll stop."

"I'll take my chances."

They continued arguing about it until Donna Dee pointed down the road. "Headlights!" She shoved open her door and stepped out into the middle of the road, waving her arms above her head and shouting. "Whooo-eee! Hey! Stop! "

The sports-car driver accelerated deliberately. Donna Dee's feet straddled the center stripe of the highway and held their ground. The car skidded to a halt inches from her.

"Neal Patchett, you son of a bitch," she yelled. "You could've killed me."

Neal let his foot off the brake and the car rolled forward until the grille bumped into Donna Dee's skinny shins. She



fell back a few steps, cursing him. Inside the car, Hutch and Lamar were howling with laughter.

Neal spotted Jade through the open windows of Donna Dee's car. "Whatre you two young ladies up to?"

"We were headed out to Gary's house, but my car ran out of gas," Donna Dee explained. "Have you got some gas?"

Hutch's belch was as loud as a cannon blast. "Not anymore. "

Donna Dee shot him a withering glance. "Then can you give us a lift into town and drop us at the filling station? I'll call my daddy from there and he'll bring us back."

Hutch opened the passenger door and stepped out, unfolding his long body from the bucket seat. "Say 'pretty please,' " he taunted.

Lamar, riding in the back, as usual, leaned forward. "We don't give free rides, you know."

"You're all so cute," Donna Dee said with heavy sarcasm. "I can hardly contain myself."

Jade watched with dread as Neal got out of his car and swaggered around the front of Donna Dee's. Disregarding the mud that bordered the shoulder of the road, he moved to the passenger door and opened it.

:'Get out."

'You smell like a brewery," she remarked as she alighted.

"We've tipped a few beers since school let out. Went fishing. "

"Catch anything9" "Not till now."

Jade didn't like the sound of that but chose to ignore it. Being careful not to touch him, she walked around him and picked her way toward the others. Ever since that night at the Dairy Bam, Neal had been provoking her more than usual, calling her house frequently and deliberately placing himself in her path in the hallways at school. She avoided him as much as possible. He made her skin crawl, and, after what had happened that Sunday night several weeks ago, she no longer attempted to hide her dislike.



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