Could a place like this even have cable?
We carry our suitcases in and stop at the front desk, where the guy is on the phone. College dude. Sandy hair, lanky build. He smiles at us and holds a finger up to Dad— Just a minute!
I put my skateboard down and push one foot on it. Nice! Great wood floor. “I’m going to look around,” I say.
Dad’s shoulders drop. “Just stay here.” He glances at the guy, who is now flipping through paperwork, still on the phone.
I kick up my board and hold it. The hall stretches for miles. It’s dark, lit up by chandeliers, and carpet covers the wood floor beyond the lobby. I see all kinds of alcoves and stairwells. “I’m going to check it out,” I say, already wandering away from Dad.
“Chase!” he says, but he’s using the voice that means he’s already given in. He knows he can’t hold on to me.
This place is cool. The hallway is like a little street with tiny shops on both sides—ice cream store, a restaurant, a bakery. I’m not buying anything, though; I want to explore. I stop at a staircase that spirals up into darkness. Leaning against the handrail, I peer through the balusters.
“Dad!” I yell. He’s still standing at the desk, waiting. I motion to the stairs. “I’m going up there!”
I can see his frown from here.
“I’ll be right back!” The stairs are calling me. Come on!
He rolls his eyes. “You be right back,” he yells.
I’m taking the stairs two at a time when I hear him add, “And don’t get in trouble!”
I just laugh.
DANETTE HAWORTH held a number of writing jobs, including positions as a technical writer and a travel writer, before turning to fiction. Growing up in a military family, Danette lived up and down the East Coast and in Turkey and England; she now calls Orlando, Florida, her home.
www.danettehaworth.com
Books by Danette Haworth
Violet Raines Almost Got Struck by Lightning
The Summer of Moonlight Secrets
If you liked Violet Raines,
you’re sure to fall for Gianna Z.
Walker & Company
Praise for
violet raines
almost
got struck
by
lightning
“Danette Haworth creates characters so real they stand out on the page. They tell a story of friendship on the cusp of adolescence so full of spunk and humor, I read more slowly as I approached the last page.”
—Audrey Couloumbis, author of Getting Near to Baby
“A coming-of-age tale that is as full of sass as its uniquely named protagonist. . . . Violet is a worthy ally for readers navigating their own stormy evolution.” —Kirkus Reviews
“Haworth takes on coming-of-age dilemmas with spunk, innocence, and a cast of believable, well-developed characters.” —SLJ
“Danette Haworth’s work is strikingly comparable to that of the great Judy Blume.” —Curledup.com
Copyright © 2008 by Danette Haworth
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
First published in the United States of America in September 2008
by Walker Publishing Company, Inc., a division of Bloomsbury Publishing, Inc.
E-book edition published in September 2010
www.bloomsburykids.com
For information about permission to reproduce selections from his book, write to Permissions, Walker BFYR, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10010
The Library of Congress has cataloged the hardcover as follows:
Haworth, Danette.
Violet Raines almost got struck by lightning / Danette Haworth.
p. cm.
Summary: In 1970s Florida, eleven-year-old Violet’s world is upturned by the arrival of a girl from Detroit who seems bent on stealing Violet’s best friends, but by summer’s end, Violet’s relationships have only gotten better.
ISBN-13: 978-0-8027-9791-9 • ISBN-10: 0-8027-9791-1 (hardcover)
[1. Best friends—Fiction. 2. Friendship—Fiction. 3. Neighbors—Fiction. 4. Summer—Fiction. 5. Lightning—Fiction. 6. Florida—History—20th century—Fiction.] I. Title.
PZ7.H31365Vio 2008 [Fic]—dc22 2007049129
ISBN 978-0-8027-2240-9 (e-book)