Laurie was struggling for words, but it wasn't because she didn't know what to say. Rather, she just didn't want to actually say it. "Maybe I'm just not feeling up to it . . ."

"No more bullshit," Heather said. "What is going on?"

Laurie realized that things had gotten out of hand, and that it was time to come clean. "It's no big deal. Before we left I got a call from my dad and he was telling me that there's a good chance he'll be the Senate minority leader in the next year." Laurie stopped and waited for Heather to say something like "great" or "congratulations," but it...