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she tell you?”
    “I accidentally saw her records.”
    As the implication of Dullas’s confession sank in, Katie caught her breath. “You
read
her file? Good grief, Dullas, you can’t go peeking into anybody’s records. What were you thinking? It’s illegal.”
    Dullas sniffed, not the least put out by Katie’s reprimand. “It was an accident, I told you. I was in Kimbra’s office and saw Sarah’s file and accidentally knocked it on the floor, and when I picked it up, I just happened to read some stuff.”
    Katie could imagine how the file had “accidentally” hit the floor. “Well, what if she
is
adopted? It’s none of your business.”
    “But don’t you see? Me and Sarah are alike. We both have had cancer and we’ve both been adopted.”
    Katie started to tell Dullas that she and Sarahweren’t anything alike, but Dullas looked so impassioned, she held her tongue. “So what’s your point?”
    “Well, from now on, I’m going to be her special friend.”
    “Does she want a special friend?”
    “You’ve never been adopted, Katie. You don’t know what it’s like to always wonder who your real parents are and why they dumped you.” Dullas sounded serious.
    Katie was pricked by her confession. “You’re right, Dullas, I don’t know what it’s like. Both my parents love me very much. But I met Sarah’s adopted parents and her brother and sister. They acted as if they love her very much. When it was time to go, her little brother cried like he was losing his dearest friend. Besides, Kimbra cares about you. So what does it matter who your real parents are? Parents are people who hang around and take care of you and love you.”
    Dullas nodded. “Sure, that’s true, but still a person wonders. You wonder where your real parents are, what they’re doing, if they ever think about you. I know my old man’s in jail, but my mom, what about her? Where is she? And you wonder if you have grandmas and grandpas, or other brothers and sisters. You wonder a lot of things.”
    Katie felt the emotional impact of Dullas’s words. Of course a person would wonder. It was natural to want to know about your family, your roots. “You may be right,” she said slowly. “But don’t go making too many assumptions about Sarah. Maybe she doesn’t think about it much at all. Maybe she’s dealt with her feelings and moved on.”
    “No one moves on, Katie. You always think about it, and I know Sarah does too.”
    Katie couldn’t dispute what Dullas was saying, so she tried a different tack. “Just remember, if somebody wants you to know something about them, they’ll tell you. And that includes Sarah. So my advice to you is, MYOB.”
    “You’re one to talk. Don’t you want to know who the girl is that’s writing to Josh?”
    Dullas didn’t wait for Katie’s answer. She grinned impishly and skittered away.
    Meg sat on a blanket by the lake watching her girls swim and splash. Katie, Lacey, Chelsea, and all their girls were playing keep-away with a giant beach ball. Meg was glad she could sit and watch and didn’t have to go into the water. Actually, she was glad she didn’t have to be in her bathing suit. She’d tried it on, and even though it was actually a littlelooser than she remembered, she still hadn’t wanted to venture out in it. Especially if there was a chance that Morgan might see her.
    “Why aren’t you swimming?”
    Eric plopped down beside her on the blanket.
    “Oh … I just didn’t feel up to it,” she answered.
    He studied her for a moment, then grinned. “Oh, it’s that girl thing, huh?”
    She gave him a blank stare, then reddened. He thought she was having her period. How embarrassing. “Can’t a person just not want to go into the water?”
    He leaned back on his elbows and offered her a lazy smile. “You’re cute when you’re mad.”
    “I’m not mad.” Why was she having this conversation? It was so junior high school, and she was almost a college sophomore!
    “All