“That was fun, wasn’t it?” I said to Stacey as we plodded through the sand back to the house, Mal at our side, the others in front of us.
“It was fantastic,” she said dreamily. “Who ever thought we’d see them again? It’s just perfect.” She paused. “Do you think they’ll ask us out?”
“I don’t know. I guess it depends on whether they can get any time off.”
Mal looked aghast, and I had a feeling she was thinking of Logan. I shook off pangs of guilt.
Stacey stretched out her arms to inspect her tan. “From the look on Toby’s face, he’ll make the time.”
I could feel the heat rising in my cheeks. I blush very easily, as any of my friends will tell you. “I’m not so sure about Alex.”
“Ha! Believe me, I am. He was staring at you so hard, I thought his eyes were going to fall out of his head. If I were Logan, I’d be worried right about now.”
“Logan has nothing to worry about,” I said stiffly. (Mal raised her eyebrows.)
Stacey considered what I’d said and then giggled. “Do you mean, what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him?”
I turned to look at her. “No, I mean Logan doesn’t have to worry because I will always be true to him. He’s my boyfriend and always will be.”
I raised my voice without meaning to, because I was feeling so confused. It was amazing, but I hadn’t even thought of Logan until now. I meant what I said about Logan being my boyfriend. But could a visit from Alex change all that? I didn’t have an answer. Suddenly nothing was making any sense at all.
There was a big mix-up Friday night. It wasn’t Stacey’s fault, but it wasn’t my fault, either. (And I’m the one who got stuck.) This is the way it happened. Mr. and Mrs. Pike said that Stacey and I could have one evening off each week, but they asked us to take the evenings separately. I could see their point. That way they could go out every evening if they wanted to, knowing that Mal and either Stacey or I would baby-sit. Stacey and I were a little disappointed with the arrangement because we liked evenings off together, but we didn’t say anything. We didn’t even talk about it, which was a shame, because we should have straightened out our nights off in the beginning.
The first inkling I had that something was wrong was when I saw Stacey drag out the iron. It was six-thirty on Friday evening, and we had just cleaned up the kitchen after an early supper. Stacey hates to iron, and I was amazed to see her spread a white cotton sundress over the ironing board in the corner of the kitchen.
“You’re ironing?” I said incredulously.
Stacey touched her finger to her nose like you do in charades when someone guesses the right word.
I felt a little silly. It was pretty obvious that she was ironing, the question was … why? “I meant, why are you doing that now?”
Stacey looked up, her blue eyes very bright against her tanned face. “Well, I can’t go out on a date with a wrinkled dress, can I?”
“A date?”
“With Toby.” She bent over the sundress, humming a little song. She suddenly looked a little pale, even under her suntan, and I wondered if she felt okay. Stacey’s diabetes is under control, but she has to watch her diet and medication. “We’re going to the arcade tonight. You don’t think this is too dressy, do you?” she asked worriedly. She didn’t wait for me to answer, which is just as well, because I was standing there with my mouth hanging open. “I want to wear white because it will show off my tan.”
“You’re going to the arcade?” I blurted out. “Tonight?”
“It will certainly bring back memories,” she said with a sigh. I knew exactly what she meant. The last time she went to the arcade, she and Toby had had what you would call a very romantic evening. He won a stuffed teddy bear for her, which she immediately named “Toby-Bear.” But the really big news was that they went through the Tunnel of Luv, where Toby gave Stacey her first kiss.
“I remember the last time we went to the arcade,” she began. “It was such an incredible evening —”
I could tell Stacey was revving up for a lot of mushy memories, but I had something more important on my mind. If Stacey was going out with Toby that night, I had to say something — fast!
“Um, Stacey,” I said, “I’m afraid there’s a problem.”
“A problem?” She blinked and put the iron on its end. At last I had her full attention.
“I’m going out tonight. With Alex.”
“What?!” She managed to put a lot of emotion into that one word, and it wasn’t surprise. It was outrage.
“That’s right. Alex. Tonight. At eight.” I didn’t want to mention that we were planning on going to the arcade. There was no point in making her feel worse than she already did.
I thought she’d head straight for the phone to cancel with Toby, but she surprised me. She went right back to ironing!
“Stacey, did you hear me?”
“Of course,” she said smoothly. “You’ll just have to cancel with Alex. What a shame.” She was very matter-of-fact about it.
Now it was my turn to be outraged. “Why should I cancel?” I demanded. “You had no right to make a date without asking me.”
Stacey’s eyes widened. “I don’t need your permission to go out with Toby.”
“You mean you just took it for granted that I’d stay home with Mal and the kids?”
“Well, one of us has to be here,” she said reasonably. “And anyway, all you have to do is tell Alex you’ll see him tomorrow night.”
She flounced up to our room to get changed and left me fuming in the kitchen. I couldn’t believe that Stacey was being so selfish.
I was still thinking about our fight as Mal and I helped the kids get ready for bed that night. I went into Vanessa’s room to close the window, while Mal helped Claire and Margo.
“Mary Anne,” she said, “can you stay and talk to me for a minute?”
“Sure.” I sat down on the edge of the bed. “What’s up?”
“I’ve been doing some writing,” she said. She reached under the bed and pulled out a notepad and a ballpoint pen.
“Poems?” I asked.
“Well,” she said, “yes. But different from the usual ones. I’m writing some poems for Chris. You know, the boy at Ice-Cream Palace.” I must have looked surprised because she added, “I have this big crush on him. I think he’s adorable, don’t you?”
“Well, yes. He’s really cute.”
“Here, read them and tell me what you think.” She shoved the notebook at me and I quickly scanned a page. It was obvious that Vanessa was crazy over Chris. How could this have happened? I wondered. She didn’t even know him!
“Very nice.” I handed her the notebook. What else could I say?
“I wrote eight all together. I just hope he likes them.” She snuggled down under the covers.
“You’re going to show Chris the poems?” A little warning bell went off in my head. Somehow I knew this wasn’t such a great idea.
“Of course not,” she said with a laugh. “I want to be his secret admirer. It wouldn’t be much of a secret if he knew who wrote them, would it?”
“I guess not.” I paused. “What exactly are you going to do with them?”
“I thought I’d leave them on the counter at Ice-Cream Palace, where he’ll be sure to find them.” She yawned and started to close her eyes. “He’ll be so surprised,” she said, her voice already trailing off.
“I’m sure he will be,” I replied. I got up quietly and tucked the quilt around her. First Alex and Toby (not to mention Logan and Pierre) and now this. Things were getting too complicated and the reason was obvious. There were just too many boys!
Dawn had almost forgotten how relaxing it was in California. She loved everything about the place. The sunny climate, the sparkling ocean, the big roomy house with the tile floors and slanted skylights. Life was so … carefree, she decided, stretching out on a chaise lounge on the redwood deck. Her father had a great housekeeper, Mrs. Bruen, who looked after everythi
ng and cooked all of Dawn’s favorite foods. And Dawn enjoyed seeing her younger brother, Jeff, again. He was much happier since he had left Stoneybrook to live in California with his father.
Life was almost perfect, she decided, munching on an avocado salad that Mrs. Bruen had prepared for lunch. There was only one nagging problem that wouldn’t go away, and her name was Carol. Carol was her father’s girlfriend, and she rubbed Dawn the wrong way. Dawn couldn’t say exactly why she didn’t like Carol, but there was something about her that was very annoying. For one thing, she was always there. She spent so much time at the house, you’d think she was part of the family. And Dawn didn’t like it one bit.
The doorbell rang later that afternoon, just as Dawn was heading inside to take a shower. She had spent the whole day soaking up the rays in her bikini, and she was covered in baby oil.
“Sunshine, get the door, will you?” Dawn’s father called from the kitchen. Sunshine was his nickname for her.
Dawn threw open the front door and felt like someone had doused her with cold water. Her good mood vanished as she tied her cover-up around her.
“Hi there!” Carol said brightly. “Look what I brought!” She was holding a baby in her arms, and a solemn-looking little girl clung to her leg.
Dawn’s father hurried into the foyer.
“Well, well, what do we have here?” Dawn knew he was surprised but was trying hard not to show it.
“Aren’t they adorable?” Carol said in a gushy voice that Dawn hated. “This is Gregory. He’s only eight months old. And this is his sister, Julie.” She pulled Julie out from the folds of her sundress. “Julie’s three.”
“But who are they?” Dawn said pointedly. She knew they weren’t Carol’s children.
“That’s a long story,” Carol said as they made their way into the living room. She tossed a diaper bag on the floor and settled Gregory on her lap. “One of my old friends from college is visiting California with her husband. They couldn’t get a sitter, so I told her I’d watch her kids tonight so they can go out.”
“That was very nice of you,” Mr. Schafer said slowly, “but it complicates things a little.”
“What things?”
Mr. Schafer sat down next to her. “Do you remember that musical you wanted to see at the Playhouse?”
“The one that’s sold out?”
“Well, it’s not completely sold out.” Mr. Schafer reached into his pocket and pulled out two tickets. “One of my clients got me two of the best seats in the house for tonight.”
“Oh, no!” Carol wailed. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I wanted it to be a surprise.”
Dawn stood watching this scene, wondering how she could make a polite escape. She was sorry if her father was disappointed, but it didn’t affect her, did it?
A moment later, she realized it did.
“Say, I’ve got an idea,” her father said suddenly. He turned around and stared at Dawn as if he were seeing her for the first time. “What are you and Jeff doing tonight?”
Dawn licked her lips nervously. She knew what was coming. “We’re, uh … going to rent a video, I think.”
“Perfect!” Mr. Schafer clapped his hands. “You and the kids can all watch the video together.”
Dawn looked at him. The idea of a little baby watching a video was so ridiculous she didn’t know what to say. “You mean you want me to baby-sit the kids?” she said tightly.
“Well, you’re not doing anything anyway,” Mr. Schafer said, looking very pleased.
“Oh, could you?” Carol said, jumping to her feet. “That would be wonderful!”
“And I’ll pay you,” Mr. Schafer said.
“Well …”
“Then it’s all settled.” Mr. Schafer reached for Carol’s hand. “Wait till you see what we’re cooking on the grill tonight….”
* * *
“This is not my idea of a great evening,” Jeff said a few hours later. He was trying to watch an Indiana Jones movie, but Gregory was crying. He was making more noise than the soundtrack. “What do you think is wrong with him, anyway?”
“Carol said he has colic,” Dawn replied. She really felt sorry for Gregory, because she knew he was in pain. His legs were doubled up and he seemed to howl no matter what she did. She had tried everything, rocking him, singing to him, but he cried louder than ever. The only thing that really worked was pacing up and down the floor with him.
It was a baby-sitter’s nightmare, and she knew she wasn’t being fair to Julie, who was wandering around the living room with nothing to do.
“Oh, let’s watch this tomorrow,” Jeff said, rewinding the video. He looked at Julie, who was staring blankly out the window. “Hey, Julie,” he said suddenly. “How about a game?”
“We don’t have any kiddie games,” Dawn reminded him. Naturally Carol hadn’t brought any toys for the kids.
“We have a deck of cards,” Jeff answered.
“She’s too young for cards.”
“Cards,” Julie repeated, walking over to him.
“We’re not going to play cards, we’re going to build a house of cards,” Jeff told Dawn.
For the next hour, Julie was fascinated as Jeff showed her how to place the cards on top of each other to make a house. “Gently, gently,” he warned, as she laid the top card in place. “If you even breathe on it, it will all fall down.” When they finished playing with the cards, Jeff made up a story about a cowardly dragon who wanted to be friends with a lion, and Julie giggled when he made funny faces. Then he showed her how to make shadow puppets on the white stucco walls, and invented animal voices to go with the shapes. Finally, a happy, tired Julie fell asleep on the rug.
Dawn was amazed. “You were great,” she whispered. “I had no idea you were so good with kids.”
“What can I say?” Jeff laughed. He put a blanket over Julie and looked at Gregory. “He’s asleep, too.”
“Can you believe it?” Dawn said wearily. “Let’s try carrying them and putting them both in my bed.”
“So far, so good,” Jeff said a few minutes later when they’d returned to the living room. He looked up at the ceiling, as if he expected to hear crying any minute.
“What do you think is going to happen with Dad and Carol?” Dawn said. She curled up on the sofa, hugging a throw pillow to her chest.
Jeff shrugged. He minded Carol just as much as Dawn did, but he felt a little uncomfortable talking about her. “He likes her, that’s all.”
“Are you sure it’s not serious? She’s over here all the time.”
“That doesn’t mean anything. Dad’s not going to go off the deep end and marry her or anything like that.”
“How can you be so sure?”
Jeff shrugged. “I just know he’s not. You worry too much.”
Dawn was about to say something else, but Jeff reached for the remote control. In a moment, Harrison Ford’s face filled the screen, and Dawn tried to put all her fears behind her.
* * *
“You did a great job tonight,” Mr. Schafer said a couple of hours later. He handed Dawn a wad of bills, and Dawn stifled a yawn. This had been one of the toughest baby-sitting jobs she had ever had.
“Thanks,” she mumbled, heading for her door. She was halfway to the doorway when she stopped and walked back to the kitchen. Jeff was at the counter, making himself an enormous sandwich of Swiss cheese and sprouts. “Here,” she said, offering him half of the money. “This is for you.”
“That’s okay.” He grinned and waved his hand.
“No way,” she said, tucking the bills into his shirt pocket. “You earned every penny of it.” As she headed for bed, a funny thought crossed her mind: Maybe someday Jeff would be a baby-sitter, too!
Talk about a guilty conscience! I had a terrible time trying to figure out what to say to Logan, because I was afraid he would read between the lines. I finally decided that the less said, the better. You’ll notice I didn’t mention Alex. How could I? I felt silly
leaving him out, but I didn’t dare tell Logan what was really going on….
I was so excited Saturday afternoon, I was practically floating. This is what happened. When I called Alex to explain that I wouldn’t be able to see him Friday night (all because of Stacey), he immediately asked me out for Saturday. We were going to have dinner at a seafood place, and I spent half an hour trying on every single outfit I had brought with me. Nothing looked right. I had plenty of casual clothes, but we were going to a “real” restaurant (unlike Burger Garden), and I wanted to be dressed up.
I had just decided to ask Stacey if I could borrow her red sundress when she walked into the bedroom, drying her hair. You can imagine how surprised I was when she pulled the red sundress out of the closet and tossed it on the bed!
“Wow, you must have read my mind,” I told her.
“Why’s that?” She ran her fingers through her damp hair.
“I was just going to ask you if I could borrow that.”
Stacey shrugged and peeled off her T-shirt. “Normally I’d say yes, but I need it myself tonight.”
“Oh, sure,” I said quickly. “I understand.” I really hate borrowing things, and I didn’t want to put her on the spot. Then it hit me! “Wait a minute,” I said, taking a step toward her. “Why do you need a dress for tonight?”
Stacey plunked herself down at the dressing table and started fumbling with bottles of nail polish. “I’m wearing it out to dinner.” She was absolutely calm. I couldn’t believe it.
“You’re going to dinner? On a date?” I squawked.
She hesitated, just for a second. “Um, yes, that’s right.”
“Stacey McGill, you are unbelievable!” I sat down on the bed and just stared at her. She refused to look at me and starting painting her long fingernails with a base coat. “You went out last night, remember?” Stacey opened her mouth to say something, but I didn’t give her a chance. “Here’s a news flash for you. I am going out tonight.” I paused. “You are staying home with the kids. That was our arrangement.”