Page 60 of Pity Party

Sammy and I both yell, “No!”

“Why?” He seems genuinely confused.

“No girl that age is going to talk to Sammy if her dad is looming about.”

“But they’ll talk to her if you’re there?” He’s clearly disgruntled.

“Of course. I look like Sammy’s cool older sister or young aunt.”

He raises an eyebrow. “How old are you?”

“Thirty-two,” I tell him.

“You’re old enough to be her mother,” he says plainly, if not rudely.

“But I look twenty-five.” For once, he’s smart enough to keep his mouth shut. Turning to Sammy, I say, “Come on, let’s go.”

I feel Jamie’s eyes on us as we walk away, but I don’t turn around. What game is that man playing? Don’t make it clear that you aren’t interested in someone, going so far as to say you don’t even want to be friends, and then look at them the way he looks at me. It’s just not good manners. Also, it’s darn confusing.

I pick up my speed until we’re close behind the other girls. When they get to the clubhouse, I call out, “Can you hold the door?” They stop in their tracks and turn around. Their eyes immediately land on Sammy.

“Sure,” one of the girls says.

“Are you members here?” the other asks.

“My dad and I just moved to Elk Lake,” Sammy tells them. “We joined the country club today.”

“What grade are you?” the taller one asks.

“I’m going into seventh. How about you guys?”

“Seventh,” they say in unison. Then one of them looks at me and asks me, “Aren’t you the lady who owns the bridal store?”

“I am. Melissa Corner,” I tell them.

Blondie number two points between me and Sammy. “Is she related to you? You guys look alike.”

“I work at the bridal shop,” Sammy tells them. “Melissa is my friend.”

“Really? That’s cool!” the shorter of the girls says. Then she reaches out her hand to Sammy. “My name’s Regan.”

The other girl repeats the gesture. “Cameron.”

“Sammy,” she tells them.

“You want to come sit with us?” Regan asks. “We were just going in to grab a candy bar.”

Sammy looks up at me, silently willing me to understand the gravity of what’s taking place. “Go on,” I tell her.

“Will you tell Dad where I am?”

“Of course I will. Go have fun.” Super, now I get to spend more time with Jamie.

I walk back to a very interested looking father. When I reach his side, I tell him, “Sammy met a couple of girls and she’s going to sit with them.”

“Did you know that was going to happen?”

“Girls aren’t that big of a mystery,” I tell him. “They would never come over and talk to an unknown girl, but it’s considered okay to talk to them if you run into them on neutral territory.”

---