The Rose Bargain

Faith narrates, explaining that she grew up poor in a boarding house with her mother. When Faith was four, her father visited, and she learned that her mother lied; he was not really “a sailor who died at sea” (299). This revelation caused Faith to distrust people. When she was 10, her mother admitted that she once worked as a maid for Faith’s father, who refused to publicly claim Faith as his daughter. At age 14, Faith started studying at the Royal Ballet School, pursuing her love of dance. Her mother died when she was 16, and the following summer, she met Emmett, whom she kissed when he gave her roses after a performance.

Emmett and Faith became close as they talked about their broken relationships with their parents. Although their kisses didn’t inspire any romantic desire and their bond remained largely platonic, people started to gossip about them. Six months later, Faith’s father visited her dressing room and demanded that she quit seeing Emmett and stop dancing entirely in order to avoid disgracing his family. Faith countered that her activities could never disgrace his family because he never claimed her as his child.