“We are going to the party,” Sasha agreed with Rachel, pointing out the fact to her siblings. “And we get to pick out new dresses, too.”
The parking lot of the mall was nearly deserted on this snowy night.
“I say we have some dinner,” Rachel said as she turned off the engine of her car. “Then we’ll hit the stores.”
“Look, Rachel won’t be gone for long,” Sydney told her sisters in the restaurant. “She’ll be back from the ladies’ room before we know it…so listen up, we need to talk.”
“About what?” Sasha asked, dipping a French fry in ketchup and nibbling the end. “This curfew thing?”
Sophie looked interested.
“Not just the curfew,” Sydney said. “But Dad in general. He’s so protective. It’s weirding me out.”
“Me, too,” Sasha agreed.
Sophie automatically whispered, “Me, three,” the onion ring she held in her fingers for the moment forgotten.
“We’ve gotta do something,” Sydney declared. “And we’ve gotta do it now. Or he’s going to ruin our lives. We’re going to be teenagers next month.”
The other sisters nodded, all three growing silent as they pondered. Any passerby would have gotten the impression that the girls were contemplating paradise.
“We need to find some way to get him to stop pestering us about where we’re going and who we’re with and when we’ll be home.”
Sasha’s mouth curled up derisively. “This is Dad we’re talking about. That’s never going to happen.”
Insulted, Sydney shot back, “It could happen. All we need is a plan.”
“What we need,” Sophie said, “is to present Dad with something other than us to concentrate on.”
“His patients have always taken up a lot of his time.” Another French fry disappeared between Sasha’s lips.
“It’s not nice to hope people get sick.” Sophie dropped the onion ring and wiped her fingers on a napkin.
“I’d never do that.” Sasha looked aggrieved. “I was just sayin’—”
“What we need,” Sydney said, “is a diversion for Dad.”
“Hey!” Sophie’s dark eyes lit up. “Remember when Dr. Greg hired that nanny a couple months ago? Miss Jane turned his life upside down.”
“We’re too old for a nanny,” Sydney said.
“Jeez, Sydney, you’re so infantile.” Sophie rolled her eyes. “I’m not talking about a nanny for us. I’m talking about a nanny for Dad.”
Her sisters looked at her as if they thought she had lost her marbles.
Again she rolled her eyes. “A woman…for Dad.”
“Eeewww!” Sasha’s face scrunched up tight. “What woman would want Dad? He’s old.”
“Wow, Sophie,” Sydney breathed, “you’re a genius. I remember Dr. Greg called Dad and Dr. Travis and asked them to come into the office for those emergency meetings of theirs lots of times. All about Miss Jane.”
Sophie looked more sure of herself. “And come to think of it, Dr. Travis is pretty shook up over having Miss Diana came to live with him, too.” She took a moment to ponder.
“How are we going to get a woman to come live with us?” Sasha was clearly baffled.
“We don’t really need to have some woman in our house…do we?” Trepidation weighed heavy in Sydney’s voice.
Sophie shook her head. “All we need is a distraction. Something that will take Dad’s focus off us. Like Miss Jane captured Dr. Greg’s attention. And Miss Diana has Dr. Travis’s. We need for Dad to get all worked up. Just like Dr. Greg and Dr. Travis. We need Dad to get so upset that he’ll call special meetings and stuff.” Her brow furrowed suddenly. “Wonder why men can’t work out their woman troubles by themselves?”
“That’s what we need!” Sydney said. “Or rather, that’s what Dad needs. Woman troubles.”
“Okay,” Sasha agreed, “but we’re right back to where we were before. Where are we going to find a woman who would be the least bit interested in our father?” Again, her face screwed up as if the mere idea was downright repulsive.
“Lots of kids at school have parents who are divorced,” Sophie said.
Sasha blurted, “Hey, Debbie’s mom is single.”
“Don’t even go there!” Sydney shivered. “Could you imagine Dad hooked up with Debbie’s mom? That woman is too snobby for her own good.”
“I’m with you,” Sophie said. “I don’t mind going to Debbie’s party, but I don’t want her to be my step-sister.”
“Jeez,” Sasha said, anxiety lighting her eyes, “you never said this woman-trouble thing would turn into anything permanent. I don’t know…” She was obviously having some serious second thoughts.
“Hey,” Sophie said, “I don’t want Dad to get married…or…or even have a steady girlfriend any more than you do. But if we’re going to have any fun during our teenage years, we’ve gotta do something!”
Sydney spoke again, “And if there’s any chance of Dad gettin’ married, I sure don’t want to be related to any of the kids from school. Talk about weird.”
All three were silent as they thought about their dilemma.
Finally, Sasha said, “Well, I hate to keep bringing this up, but we still haven’t solved the problem of finding a woman.”
Just then Rachel arrived back at the table.
The clear and obvious solution smacked all three of the girls in the face at the same instant. Their eyes widened as they looked at one another.
And then they burst into gales of giggles.
Rachel cocked her head to one side. “What scheme are you girls hatching now?” she asked.
The girls laughed all the harder.
“I’m so glad you saved me a few of those onion rings,” Rachel said, swiping one from the plate and popping it into her mouth. Then she slid into the booth next to Sophie, like an innocent lamb strolling into a butcher’s shop.
Chapter Two
Something odd was going on. The girls’ behavior was…fishy. They seemed to be arguing among themselves, Rachel thought. However, their voices never rose above a hushed whisper and they seemed to engage in this secret battle only when they went into the dressing rooms to try on outfits. And every time Rachel was
