The Glass House People Read Online Free

to have her dog. And Hannah gave in once she saw the look on Beth's face.
    Beth wandered after Tom and Romps, enjoying the sights of a real neighborhood again after so many nights with only motel parking lots to stare at after dinner. She heard the swish of wheels on pavement and turned to see a slim, dark-haired girl about her age roller-skating toward her, eating a frozen yogurt bar. She braked neatly in front of Beth and flipped her long hair over her shoulders.
    "Hi. You must be new around here."
    "That's right. But just for the summer."
    "You don't look very happy about it."
    "It wasn't my idea to come."
    "I'm Monica Clements," the girl said, finishing her yogurt bar and wiping her fingers on her shorts. "I'm fairly new around here, too. Just since January. Maybe we should start a club."
    Beth looked at her with interest. "I'm Beth Madigan. We're staying at my grandparents' house on Spring Street."
    "I live around the block, next to the Waverley." She shook her hair back again. "Where are you from?"
    "California. We live in Berkeley—across the bay from San Francisco."
    "I went camping in Yosemite once," Monica said. "And then we went to San Francisco for a few days. It was foggy."
    "Yeah, but at least it's never humid like this!" Beth held her arms away from her sides. "I'm dripping."
    "You get used to it." Monica bent down to adjust her roller skate. She stood up again and threw back her hair. "Listen, I work every day, but maybe we can get together when I'm off and do something, if you're going to be around all summer. It's pretty tame around here, but there are movies."
    "That would be great!" Beth smiled at Monica with relief. Things wouldn't be so boring if she had somebody to do things with.
    "I've got to go now, but I'll have time on the weekend. Wait a sec," Monica said, and skated up to the little window of the ice-cream van. She borrowed a pen from the vendor and scribbled on a paper napkin.
    "This is my phone number," she said, handing the paper to Beth. "Give me a call when you want to get together."
    "Great!" Beth took the slip of paper. "I'd give you my phone number, but I don't know it yet. We just got here this afternoon."
    They said good-bye, and Beth watched Monica roll down the street, admiring her skill. For all that roller skating was a big deal in California, she'd never been able to skate more than a few feet without crashing onto her knees.
    Beth started walking around the block after Tom and Romps and caught up to them on the corner. They were still panting from their run. "Time to go back, you crazies," she said.
    Tom chewed on his ice cream stick. "Romps likes long runs. What's your hurry?"
    "We'll be late for dinner and Mom will be mad. You know she's trying to make a good impression." She took the dog's leash and set off with Romps prancing at her heels. "Come on. Mom's a basket case already." Tom shrugged and moseyed along a good ten paces behind.
    ***
    At dinner Beth found herself only picking at the food, hoping Grandmother wouldn't be insulted or think she didn't like it. Maybe the fudge bar had taken away her appetite, or else the heat had. There was an enormous spread—a real feast—on the table, but Beth didn't want any of it. Maybe, Beth thought briefly, Grandmother meant to welcome them with food rather than words, for most of what she'd said so far had been cool and distant.
    Tom ate steadily. Hannah kept complimenting Grandmother on the delicious chicken stew. It was thick with vegetables and had big, fluffy squares of dumplings floating on top. Grandad ate his dinner upstairs in his air-conditioned room. Beth watched covertly as Aunt Iris carefully picked half a potato, one tiny piece of chicken, and five peas from the stew tureen, and then plucked a single tomato wedge from the salad bowl. She arranged the food in a circle on her plate. She adjusted each pile with her fork, making sure the different kinds of food were equidistant from each other. She nibbled with her