But lying in the sun with her friends was the perfect time to share what she really wanted in life. It was time to decide since Hope and Libby were getting close to finishing high school.
“I’m applying to culinary school.”
She blurt it out.
“Is that like college?” J.J. was the youngest of them and the furthest away from making that decision.
“Yeah, except it isn’t. You essentially learn the job you want. The Culinary Institute of America is in New York State. That’s my top pick.”
“Ooh, cool. Yeah, I want to go to beauty school.”
“It’s not called that. It’s called cosmetology. And you can do that while you’re in high school, my high school has that anyway,” Viv edified them.
“This is big news. Is your mother okay with culinary school?” Libby asked. Libby was headed to college too, name a ritzy one, and she could get in. Her grades and her parent’s bank account would ensure that Libby could go just about anywhere.
“Well, seeing as I haven’t told her, she’s great with it,” Hope said. She was sure her mother would have a total conniption.
“I’m skipping college altogether. Straight to Hollywood for me,” Goldie announced.
“Why wouldn’t you get a degree in fine arts, drama?” Libby questioned Goldie’s plan.
“Because I will learn on the job. Do you think Farrah Fawcett has a drama degree? Or Demi Moore? No, they do not. Waste of time.”
“You’re going to need a backup. You should go to college, even in California,” Libby said.
Goldie rolled her eyes at the suggestion. Goldie did haveCharlie’s Angels’good looks. But more Cheryl Ladd than Farrah, Hope thought.
“Well, your parents aren’t going to have a conniption. Mine will,” Hope said.
“Yeah, they will,” Viv agreed.
But it was settled in Hope’s mind. She loved cooking and baking, and she had seen every episode of theFrugal Gourmet. While the rest of the girls were obsessed withGeneral Hospital, Hope was locked on PBS andEveryday Cooking with Jacques Pepin. She’d watched her VHS tapes of Julia Child’sThe Way to Cookover and over and over. Thanks to her grandparents, she’d come to learn about fresh food, how to grow it, prepare it, and why it was so important to create with it!
Food was her calling. She knew it.
Goldie interrupted the deep thoughts about their careers with a sighting of floating hunks.
“Oh, look, those guys that came from Ann Arbor with Henry, is that their boat?”
The conversation about Hope’s plan to thoroughly disappoint her parents was quickly abandoned as they were thoroughly distracted by a boat full of college guys.
ChapterSeven
Hope, Present Day
A victory party at the Stirling Las Vegas Grand was in the category of Things That Did Not Happen to Hope.
“Everyone was overwhelmingly nice. It’s almost easy to forget that this isn’t my actual life.”
“Are you kidding? I just saw you actually win this entire food competition. Nothing pretend about it,” Libby said.
“I’m in shock over that and other recent events. And I appreciate what you’ve done tonight; you made me seem much savvier about this stuff than I am.”
Another agent had given Hope a business card and said something about a book. Hope’s jaw dropped for the millionth time, and Libby Quinn saved the day.
“She’s fielding several offers. We’ll keep a hold of this,” Libby said.
Hope tucked the card into her cellphone case. “I am not fielding several offers.”
