Near the end of the evening, Georgia’s phone buzzed again. She read the message and rolled her eyes. Her father wanted us to visit his office the following morning because he had something important to discuss. I immediately wondered whether another test was waiting for me. Georgia admitted she didn’t know. I drove her home shortly before midnight. Before getting out, she thanked me for treating her like a person rather than a favor. She said I hadn’t made the evening easy, but I had made it real. Then she warned me that whatever her father offered the next morning, I needed to make sure it was something I actually wanted. Her words stayed with me all the way home.

The following morning, I arrived at Pryce Supply early. Sheldon’s office door was open. He stood beside his desk without his usual sunflower seeds or jokes, while Georgia sat in a chair near the window. Sheldon motioned for me to come inside and began by saying he owed me an explanation. I crossed my arms and told him he could have started with one the previous evening. He accepted the criticism without arguing. Then he explained that the company was expanding and he needed someone to manage operations. He had considered outside candidates, but none had demonstrated the judgment he had seen in my everyday work. He wanted to know whether I could enter a room where I didn’t feel I belonged. But, he admitted, he had handled the situation badly. I was beginning to understand that this meeting wasn’t about prom at all.