Holly's Heart Collection Two (55 page)

Two more rings.

Where is she?
I wondered.

Frazzled, I let the phone continue to ring.

At long last, someone answered. It was Andie’s father. “Martinez residence,” he said.

“Is Andie there?” I asked hesitantly.

“Oh, hello, Holly.” He paused. “Uh, I believe she is, but I think she’s in her room. May I take a message?”

I switched the phone to my left ear. “Is…is Andie all right?”

“Well, I don’t know that she’s ill if that’s what you mean.” He cleared his throat.

I figured he didn’t know what I was talking about.

“Okay, well, just tell her I called, and she can call me back whenever.”

“I will certainly tell her.”

We said good-bye and hung up.

This wasn’t working. I
had
to talk to Andie!

I figured I’d better wait awhile before leaving to go visit her. The way I felt right now, it wouldn’t be smart to go dashing downstairs. I didn’t trust my feelings toward Stan or his disgusting friend.

Why did they talk that way about Andie, anyway?

My cat leaped up onto my window seat, as though he were inviting me to join him. So I did. There, on the padded pillows, I snuggled with Goofey, letting the rumble of his purring comfort me. More than anything, I wished I could talk to Andie. Maybe she didn’t need me to help her through whatever was bugging her, but I needed her—to find out if what I suspected was true.

To keep from freaking out, I began to pray. “Dear Lord, I don’t know what’s going on between Stan and Andie, but you do.” I paused, hesitating to pray about Ryan Davis. What a jerk!

I took a deep breath, then continued my prayer. “Uh…Stan’s friend, you know him, his name’s Ryan. Well, I don’t think he’s the best kind of friend for Stan, but then, you know all things, so I’ll let it go with that, Lord. Amen.”

It was the most pathetic prayer I’d ever prayed.

I glanced at my watch. Almost seven o’clock. I got up and gently laid Goofey down on my window seat. Then I opened my bedroom door and leaned my head out, listening. Stan and Mom were talking in the kitchen. Closing my eyes, I tried to visualize the kitchen cleanup schedule.

Fairly certain that it wasn’t my turn, I breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe, just maybe, I could slip out of the house without encountering Stan. Or Ryan. It was worth a try. Besides, my curiosity was propelling me over to Andie’s. I had to know what was going on. She would easily clear things up for me if I could just get her to talk. One thing was sure—with Ryan hanging around over here, it would be next to impossible to get a straight answer out of Stan.

Quietly, I closed my door and tiptoed down the hall to the stairs. I made my way cautiously to the landing.

Carrie came racing through, nearly slamming into me. “Holly,” she said much too loudly, “I need your help.”

“Not now,” I whispered, looking around, hoping Stan and company weren’t nearby.

Just then Stephie came in from the living room. “Ple-ease help Carrie and me,” she begged. “It won’t take long.”

I glanced over my shoulder toward the kitchen. Too late. Stan had spotted me.

“Can’t now.” I pushed past the girls. “Maybe later.” Heart pounding, I hurried toward the front door.

“Wait up!” Stan called after me.

I ignored him and kept going.

“Holly, would you wait?”

There was no looking back now. I hopped on my bike and sped away. When I was out of reach, I glanced back, surprised to see Stan sitting on the front steps, staring at the ground. Had he sensed where I was headed? And if so, what didn’t he want me to find out?

Now I was
really
curious. If I could just get Andie to talk.

Three blocks away, still on Downhill Court—my street—I saw the Miller twins riding their bikes, heading west toward the main drag through our ski village resort.

“Hey, Holly,” the girls called in unison. Funny how that worked with twins. Not only did they look alike, they thought alike, too.

“Hey,” I said, riding up to them. “Where’re you two headed?”

Kayla spoke up. “Footloose and Fancy Things is having a giant sale on their summer stock. Why don’t you join us?”

“I’m almost broke,” I said, which was true. I’d spent nearly all my summer baby-sitting money on a year’s sponsorship for an overseas child.

“I’ll be glad to loan you some money,” Paula offered, smiling brightly.

“Thanks, anyway,” I said. “I’m pretty well set with clothes for summer.”

Paula moved her bike out of the street and onto the sidewalk. Kayla did, too. I stayed put, eager to get going. Unfortunately, it looked like the twins wanted to engage in small talk.

“I’m in a hurry,” I said apologetically.

“Headed to Andie’s?” Paula asked.

“Uh-huh.” I said it casually, like it was no big deal.

Kayla flipped her shoulder-length brown hair. “How’s she doing
today
?”

Before I could answer, Paula added, “We were really concerned about her emotional state yesterday at the Y.”

The Y?

Quickly, I moved my bike out of the street and up onto the sidewalk beside Kayla’s. “What happened at the Y?”

Kayla’s eyes widened and her thick, mascara-laden lashes fluttered. “Andie didn’t tell you?”

“Not exactly.”

Paula put the kickstand down on her bike and came over to me. Kayla too. Something was up. We were actually huddled.

Paula started filling in some important details. “Kayla and I had just arrived at the Y yesterday afternoon when we ran into Andie. She was crying as she came out.”

I swallowed hard. “Crying?”

Kayla sighed. “It looked like she and Stan had gotten into it, or worse.”

“Stan?” I echoed.

“He and some guy were standing inside the lobby,” Kayla explained. “And Stan looked upset.”

“Who was the other guy?” I asked.

Paula glanced at Kayla. “We’d never seen him around here before,” she said.

“Not at church or school,” Kayla added.

“It’s possible that he’s a high school student,” Paula suggested. “He seemed a little older than Stan.”

“What did he look like?” I asked.

Paula glanced up, like she was trying to pull a description out of the air. “I don’t remember.”

“I remember something,” Kayla said with a giggle. “He had a very large pimple near his nose.”

Paula nodded, laughing, too.

My pulse raced. “You’re saying the guy with Stan had a pimple?

Paula and Kayla stared at me. “Why?” Paula asked. “Do you know him?”

I exhaled. “Maybe.”

“Well, whoever it was,” Kayla said, “he sure was a master intimidator.”

“Yeah,” Paula piped up. “He was downright sarcastic.”

Whew! Things were beginning to take shape.

Kayla draped her arm around her twin’s shoulders. “The jerk made a comment about Paula’s eyes—that they didn’t match mine. And if we were really twins, one of us ought to wear a little more mascara.”

I gasped. “He said
that
?”

Paula nodded. I could tell by her grin that she was rather proud that someone had noticed she’d opted for the more natural look.

“I tell you, the guy’s outspoken,” Kayla said.

“No kidding,” I whispered. Man, it was anybody’s guess what the guy had said to Andie!

By the time I got to Andie’s house it was almost eight o’clock. I could see the light in her bedroom upstairs as I rode my bike into the driveway. Walking around the side of the house, I stood under her open window and called up to her. “Andie, come to the window.”

In a flash, her perky curls appeared at the window.

“What are you doing down there?” she asked, her brown eyes questioning my return.

“We have to talk,” I said matter-of-factly.

“Now?”

“Can you come out?” I stepped back away from the house, trying to see her better. “Or should I come up?”

She frowned slightly. “Well, I guess I could. Meet me out front.”

I hurried to the front of the two-story house, to the same steps I’d sat on earlier. Now they felt cool to the touch as I eased myself down onto the cement, waiting for my friend. It seemed strange that I’d be sitting here again, especially since I knew Andie needed some space from whatever had happened. But I needed to hear the story from her lips.

Crickets chirped noisily as Andie finally emerged from the front door, barefoot. “What’s the occasion?” she said as she sat down, a bottle of red nail polish in her hand.

How should I start?
I wondered. I sure didn’t want to put her through the same kind of pain she’d seemed to be feeling earlier today.

“Hey, can’t your best friend just show up for no reason?” I said. “I was worried about you.” I put my arm around her shoulders.

“I’ll survive.”

“Of course you will. And I’m going to make sure you do.” I removed my arm as she leaned over to paint her toenails.

I sat there, fidgeting with my fingers, studying my cuticles and pushing them back till I could see the round white moon shapes underneath. I wished for some sort of breakthrough. Some way to open up the subject of Stan and Ryan without causing Andie additional pain.

“Have you thought any more about taking me to California with you?” she asked, still bending over, talking to her toes.

I hadn’t had time to think about that. I’d been too busy worrying about her encounter with Stan to contemplate my trip to California. “It’d be fabulous” was all I said.

“What about your dad and stepmom?” She straightened up and dipped the brush into the polish. “Did you ask them?”

“They do have a huge house,” I said. “Plenty of room for you. But what about your parents? Think they’d let you go with me?”

“Here’s the deal,” she said. “If you get the okay from your dad, I’ll take it from there with my parents, okay?”

“Sure, that’ll work.”

She started polishing her toenails again. “You’re flying out this Monday, right?”

“At 12:15,” I said. “Think you can get up before noon?”

She laughed. “Yeah, right. Isn’t summer terrific?”

I nodded. Summer made the whole rest of the year worth living. “Guess we’d better start planning things, or you might not get a seat on my flight. I’ll call my dad tonight.”

This conversation was going in a totally different direction than I’d intended. I wondered how to address the subject of what had happened yesterday at the Y. Then an idea popped into my head.

“So…does Stan know you want to go with me?” I asked.

She stared at me incredulously. “Stan who?”

I realized I’d opened up a fresh wound.

“He couldn’t care less where I go or what I do,” she announced to the approaching sunset. “I’m sorry to inform you, Holly, but your stepbrother is a despicable bigot.”

I frowned. “Excuse me?” I needed more to go on than this impromptu indictment.

“And that friend of his…” She blew air out through her lips.

“What friend?” I quizzed her, almost sure she was talking about Ryan Davis.

“Oh, Ryan somebody.” She waved her hand in front of her face. “You should’ve heard what he said to me.”

Bingo. Just what I’d been waiting to hear!

LITTLE WHITE LIES

Chapter 4

“What did Ryan say?” I asked.

“Stan was in on it, too,” Andie insisted. “He acted like he hardly knew me. Especially after his friend carried on about how nice it must be to have such a good tan.” She tightened the lid on her nail polish and held out her feet, swinging them in the air. “It was like he was trying to flirt with me in a backhanded sort of way.”

“So…what did you do?”

“I went over and stood beside Stan, expecting him to be his normal, cool self…you know, clue this guy in on the two of us.”

“Yeah?”

“But Stan clammed up. Didn’t say a word in my defense. And even worse, his friend didn’t seem to know when to quit.”

“What else did he say?”

“Stuff like where was I during Cinco de Mayo this year and was English my second language.” She sighed. “It was the cocky, sarcastic way he said it that bugged me the most. Like he thought he was better than me just because he’s white.”

This was so bad! I couldn’t believe Stan would tolerate something like this, especially since Andie was the victim.

“I don’t blame you for being hurt,” I said. “Stan knows better.

“Well, I’m not crying the blues anymore,” she said, getting up. “I’m plain mad. And if I don’t split this town soon, I’m gonna burst.”

I could see that a change of scenery might do her good. “I’ll go home and call my dad,” I said, heading for my bike.

Andie hugged me before I left. “Holly, you’re the best.”

“I’ll call you the minute I know something.” I hopped onto my bike. “Don’t go anywhere, okay?”

“I’ll wait by the phone,” she said, waving. And I knew she would.