CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
Dinner was an interesting change from what it had been at the Wilsons’ house. For one thing, no one forced me to pray before I ate. And there was laughter. Lots of it. The two foster kids seemed to actually enjoy being around Sarah and Edward. And Sarah and Edward listened with great interest to Charlie and Jake.
The food was different too. Mary Wilson’s cooking was…okay. Nothing memorable. Meat and potatoes with very little seasoning to spice it up.
But Sarah clearly loved to cook. She had filled the table with bowls of mouthwatering Indian food. Butter chicken. Piles of naan on a plate. Basmati rice. And a vegetable curry that was full of cauliflower and chickpeas and smelled absolutely heavenly.
“This is amazing!” I shoveled another forkful of chicken into my mouth. My stomach was full, but I couldn’t stop eating.
Sarah looked pleased.
“Thank you, Lucky!”
“Make sure you leave room for dessert.” Edward smiled.
I groaned. Dessert too?
“She made carrot cake,” Jake said.
“I helped!” Charlie elbowed him.
“Yes, you did.” Sarah smiled gently at him. They genuinely liked each other. It was kind of surprising after my first experience with a foster home.
I helped clear the dinner plates despite being exempt from chores for the night. I sat back down and accepted a piece of amazing looking cake.
“So, I was hoping I could visit my grandmother,” I blurted out. I didn’t know how to ease into it.
Edward looked up from his piece of cake and nodded.
“Can you figure out the bus route?” he asked.
“Yes.” I was surprised he didn’t ask any questions. Clearly he already knew about her.
“Then you can go after school. Just be home for dinner,” he said.
“I will. Thanks.” It was that simple. No pleading or arguments or sneaking out.
I dug into my dessert. It was almost as good as Grandma’s carrot cake.