Chapter 13
It was unbelievable that a thrill-seeking girl could change overnight into a woman. But Ida realized she had made the transition, and her violation by Yankee had been the clincher. She sat on the lawn outside the book-store as Maurice rested on one knee beside her, caressing the honey blond hair at her shoulder.
"We men are pretty dumb," he said. "It takes forever before the scales drop from our eyes. I've thought out the angles, Ida. What other conclusion can I reach, if I call myself an intelligent being?"
"You make the alternative sound negative. Ellen's not that bad."
"We can rationalize until the cows come home.
You're the one I love-please believe that, regardless of the setting around us."
"It's not what you'd call romantic." She smiled in triumph and gazed at th
