“But you will be expected to take this as seriously as any other school assignment,” the headmistress finished sternly. Then, finally noticing Stevie’s wildly waving hand, she nodded her way. “Yes, Stephanie?”
“So how’s this going to work?” Stevie asked. “Do we get to pick our own hubbies, or are you going to play matchmaker?”
Miss Fenton pursed her lips. “I was getting to that,” she said. “We’ve already done the pairings randomly, with the help of the office computer. You’ll be assigned your partners this afternoon at the first meeting.”
Callie let out the breath she hadn’t even realized she was holding. Whew! she thought, still not daring to glance George’s way. That’s a relief.
She was so happy that she laughed out loud when Alex started making dire predictions about what would happen if he ended up paired with his twin sister. Maybe this marriage project sounded a little lame, but at least she wouldn’t be stuck with George as her partner—not unless the fates, and the school computer, were really against her.
Even better, if we’re both busy with our respective spouses, maybe he won’t have time to follow me around everywhere and pretend not to be staring at me, she thought. And that would definitely be good news.
Callie smiled at the thought. She had enough on her mind this week, her first week back in training, without having to worry about fending off her not-so-secret admirer yet again.
THREE
When Lisa arrived at Pine Hollow that day after school, she found Alex pulling on his riding boots in the student locker room, the large, square room just off the main entryway where regular riders were assigned cubbyholes to stow their schoolbags and other items while they were at the stable.
Alex glanced up as she entered. “Hi, gorgeous,” he greeted her with his usual lopsided smile.
There were several younger riders in the room, but Lisa hardly noticed them. She was totally focused on her boyfriend. Ever since her return from California, she’d thought of little else but making things work with Alex. She’d chosen her outfit carefully that day, knowing that the snug black leggings she was wearing flattered her slender figure and that her brick red wool turtleneck was Alex’s favorite. The form-fitting outfit, which was definitely sexier than her usual weekday wardrobe, had meant a few extra stares and whistles from some of the more Neanderthal types at school, but it was all worth it the moment she saw her boyfriend’s gaze slide down her body with obvious appreciation.
“Hi,” she returned his greeting, walking over and bending down for a kiss.
Alex started to stand at the same time Lisa leaned in closer, and they bumped noses as their lips met. A little startled, Lisa jumped back, rubbing her nose. It doesn’t mean anything, she thought. Just lack of practice. And that’s definitely something we can fix.
But somehow, she didn’t quite feel like giving it another try just then. After all, her idea of a romantic kiss wasn’t standing in the middle of a locker room with a whole gang of younger riders staring and giggling.
“Just about ready for our ride?” she asked, turning toward her cubbyhole quickly and pretending not to notice that Alex was reaching for her again. She rummaged through the cubby, searching for her all-weather riding gloves. It was hard to believe that it was already the first week in December, but the chill in the air as she’d walked from her car to the stable building had told her that she’d better start accepting that winter was coming.
“Sure.” Alex gave his left boot one last yank and then stood, shooting her a worried glance. “You okay? You look a little bummed. Is it your mom?”
Lisa felt a rush of emotion at the concern in his hazel eyes. How many girls were lucky enough to have such a sensitive, understanding boyfriend? “Mom’s out of control,” she admitted. “She took a few days off from work—says she needs time to ‘get back in touch with herself.’ Whatever that means.” Lisa grimaced. Her mother had picked up a lot of those squishy self-help terms in her postdivorce group therapy.
Alex shook his head. “Bad news,” he said sympathetically. “I can see why you’re worried. I mean, I’m no shopping expert or anything, but even I know that the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas is, like, major.”
“Uh-huh.” Lisa headed across the wide entryway toward the hallway that led to the tack room, stable offices, and rest rooms. “And believe me, the last thing Mom needs is to lose her job right now, on top of everything else.”
“Look on the bright side,” Alex said with a small smile. “The stores probably so busy these days that the last thing her boss will want to do is fire someone.”
Lisa knew he was trying his best to make her feel better, but it wasn’t working. “I guess,” she said quickly as they reached the tack room. She took a deep breath of the familiar leather-and-saddle-soap smell, then stepped forward to take a bridle off a hook on the wall. “Come on, let’s hurry and hit the trail, okay? I just want to forget all about Mom and have a nice ride.”
Alex shrugged agreeably. “Sure,” he said. “I’ll meet you out front in a few minutes.”
Lisa felt a little strange as she grabbed a saddle and hurried out of the room without waiting for her boyfriend. Why did things seem so weird and off-kilter between the two of them? And worse yet, why didn’t Alex seem to notice?
Maybe because it’s all in my head, Lisa thought as she walked back across the entryway and entered the wide stable aisle. I’m just feeling out of it because Alex and I haven’t had much chance to be together for the past month or two. First we kept having all those stupid fights, then Alex got grounded, and then I was away last week. And now there’s this business with Mom distracting me, just when things should be back to normal again. …
She sighed, hoping that was all that was wrong. Stopping in front of a stall halfway down the aisle, she waited for the silvery gray mare inside to come to the front of the stall. “Hey there, Eve,” she greeted the horse softly, rubbing her velvety nose. “Ready for some exercise?”
A few minutes later she and Alex were leading their horses toward the mounting block in the stable yard. That day Alex had tacked up one of his favorite mounts, a steady Appaloosa named Chip. As Lisa paused to adjust Eve’s reins, she heard the sound of a car pulling into the gravel driveway a few dozen yards away. Glancing up, she recognized Scott Forester’s dark green sports car.
Alex looked over, too. “Hey, looks like Scott’s car is back from the mechanic,” he commented. “Guess that means he and Callie won’t have to bum any more rides from Stevie and me.”
“He must be here to pick up Callie,” Lisa commented. She wrinkled her nose. “They must have gotten their signals crossed, though. I think Callie just took off for the trails on Barq.”
Alex shrugged. “She did. She said she’d be out for a couple of hours, at least.”
“Really?” Lisa was surprised. She knew that Callie was eager to start conditioning herself and Barq, but a two-hour trail ride seemed a little extreme for their first day of training. Still, she reminded herself that Callie was the endurance expert, not her. Lisa was sure her friend knew what she was doing.
As Scott climbed out of his car, he looked their way and waved. A moment later he had joined them, slightly breathless. “Hi, you two.”
“Hi yourself,” Lisa said, and Alex nodded.
Scott leaned over and punched him gently on the shoulder. “Hey,” he said with a sly wink. “So did you tell your girlfriend there about your new wife?”
“I was about to.” Alex grinned and glanced at Lisa. “Hope you won’t be jealous, sweetie, but I got hitched today. Her name’s Iris.”
Lisa glanced from one guy to the other, feeling confused. “What are you talking about?”
Alex quickly filled her in on the marriage project. “I got matched with this girl named Iris Haley. I barely know her.”
“I used to know her,” Lisa said. “We went to community tennis camp together for a couple of years back in elementary school. She’s, uh, nice. I guess.”
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Scott grinned. “Yeah, that’s my impression, too,” he said. “I don’t think I’ve heard her say two words since I’ve known her.”
Coming from anyone else in Scott’s situation, Lisa thought, it would have been a strange comment. After all, Scott had lived in Willow Creek for only a few months. He probably didn’t even have any classes with Iris, since he was a senior.
But Scott’s probably gotten to know more people in Willow Creek in the last six months than I have in the last seventeen and a half years, Lisa told herself, hiding a smile by turning to pat Eve, who was shifting her weight and gazing at Scott nervously. He definitely inherited his father’s charisma. Maybe he’ll follow in his footsteps and go into politics as a career someday.
“So who did everyone else get paired with?” she asked. “What about Stevie?”
Alex and Scott burst out laughing. “Talk about an odd couple!” Alex exclaimed. “She’s married to Spike Anderson.”
Lisa raised one eyebrow. “Spike?”
“His real name is Miles,” Alex explained. “But everyone calls him Spike because he’s this, like, amazing beach volleyball player. He’s also a forward on our soccer team. You know, big guy, white-blond hair …”
“Oh, right.” Lisa attended Alex’s games whenever she could, and she quickly realized who he was talking about. “Wait a minute. Isn’t he the one who celebrated your win at Homecoming by ripping off his uniform and taking a lap of the field in his underwear?”
“One and the same,” Alex confirmed.
Lisa grinned. “Should be an interesting marriage.”
Scott laughed again and took a step closer to pat Lisa on the arm. “Let’s just say Stevie may be needing all the support she can get from her friends for the next week,” he joked.
“So what about Callie?” Alex asked, swaying slightly as Chip nosed him in the shoulder before returning his attention to the snippet of grass between the mounting block and the schooling ring fence. “Who’d she get? I didn’t hear.”
“My sister was much luckier than yours,” Scott replied. “She got paired up with Corey Westbrook. Do you know him?” He glanced at Lisa.
She nodded. Corey was a nice, smart guy who dated a classmate of Lisa’s named Amelia LaRue. “He’s a good guy. I know his girlfriend—she’s in my computer class.”
“Hmmm,” Alex said. “I wonder if having a girlfriend counts against you as a husband?” He reached over and squeezed Lisa’s shoulder. “If so, Corey and I may both be in trouble.”
Lisa smiled. “So what are you doing here, anyway?” she asked Scott, turning to tighten Eve’s girth. “Alex says Callie’s out on the trail.”
“That’s right,” Alex confirmed. “Lorraine Olsen gave both of us a ride over here right after school. Callie seemed really eager to get started with her training.”
“That’s Callie for you.” Scott shrugged and dug into his pocket. “I just stopped by to drop off her extra riding gloves—she left them in my car before I took it in to the mechanic. She probably totally forgot where she put them.” He laughed fondly, shaking his head. “She’s so psyched about getting back into training that she’ll probably forget to come home for dinner if I don’t come back and drag her away in a couple of hours.”
Lisa glanced at him over her shoulder. “I’m sure if you leave her gloves in the office, Max or someone will make sure she gets them. Or you could just stick them in her cubby.”
Scott nodded agreeably. “Guess I’ll head inside then,” he said. “Have a nice ride.”
“Thanks.” As Scott waved and wandered toward the stable entrance, Lisa returned most of her attention to Eve, though she also continued to think about the Fenton Hall marriage project.
It sounds like an interesting experiment, she thought, holding Eve back so that Alex could lead his horse forward to mount. Especially considering all the thinking I’ve been doing lately about marriage and families.
Even now that she was home again, Lisa couldn’t seem to stop mulling over everything that had happened during her trip to California. Her brother’s new marriage had been a huge surprise to everyone. Besides that, Lisa had found it difficult to warm up to her new sister-in-law, Greta, and Greta’s children. All the sudden changes made her think about the other ways her family had changed in the last few years, including her parents’ divorce and her father’s remarriage.
Why is it that things always seem to change just when you think you’ve got everything under control? Lisa wondered, thinking of her mother’s breakup. It’s like you can’t even relax for a minute without life kicking you upside the head.…
“Lisa? Earth to Lisa!”
Lisa snapped out of her funk to find Alex in the saddle, staring at her. “Oops!” she said sheepishly. “Sorry. Guess I drifted off there for a sec.” She quickly led Eve forward and mounted, keeping her face averted. She didn’t feel like sharing her thoughts with Alex just then. She just wanted to hit the trail, have a nice time with her boyfriend, and forget about everything else for a while.
As they set off, heading for one of their favorite trails in the woods beyond the big south pasture, Lisa couldn’t help noticing how much more confident her boyfriend was in the saddle these days. He’d only started riding the previous spring, after they’d gotten together, because he wanted a way to spend more time with her. But lately he actually seemed to be enjoying it for its own sake, too. Lisa was happy about that. She didn’t like the thought of asking him to do something he hated just so they could be together.
Still, that sort of thing would probably get him extra points if our relationship were part of the marriage project, she thought with a secret smile. Actually, after all the stuff we’ve been through together lately, we’d probably end up at the top of the class.
Her thoughts drifted from imaginary wedding bells to the real thing. She’d daydreamed plenty of times about what it would be like to be married to Alex. Sometimes she pictured the house they might buy together, or romantic dinners in front of the fireplace, or shopping for baby clothes. But today, for some reason, she couldn’t bring up those images with any clarity. The only thing she could think about was the two of them leaning toward each other to kiss … and missing.
Stevie rushed into Pine Hollow Stables, her car keys still in her hand. The place was quiet for a weekday afternoon, and her footsteps echoed loudly on the wooden floorboards of the entryway. After a quick glance into the locker room, which was empty, she raced toward the tack room.
As she careened around the corner, the first person she spotted was Ben Marlow. The young stable hand was sweeping the floor outside the stable office. “Ben!” Stevie cried excitedly. “Where is everyone?”
Ben tossed back a thick shock of dark hair and glanced up at her, his face as impassive as ever “Everyone!” he repeated.
Stevie wasn’t sure, but she thought she detected the faintest hint of a twinkle in his deadpan expression. Could it be? she wondered in amazement. Could grumpy old Ben actually have a sense of humor in there somewhere?
She didn’t have time to worry about that at the moment, though. She was bursting to share her news with someone. “Okay, forget about everyone,” she said briskly, jigging from one foot to the other. “I’ll settle for Lisa, or Alex, or Callie. Have you seen them?”
Ben shrugged, returning his attention to his broom. “Lisa and Alex are out on the trails,” he said in his usual brusque way. “Callie too. She won’t be back for a while. Training.” He shrugged again, and Stevie thought she saw his frown deepen. “That brother of hers. He’s here—again. Back paddock.”
Okay, so I guess that means Ben’s stand-up routine is over, Stevie thought, resisting the urge to roll her eyes at Ben’s undisguised animosity toward Scott. She would never understand Ben Marlow. He seemed determined to be hostile and gloomy most of the time. Aside from horses, nothing seemed to give him any real pleasure, as far as Stevie could tell. That certainly wasn’t the way she would want to go through life.
“Thanks,” she told Ben shortly. “See you.”
She hurried through the stable, stopping at Belle’s stall just long enough to give her horse a quick pat and a promise of more attention later. As soon as she exited through the back door, she spotted Scott leaning against the post-and-board fence of the small back paddock. He was watching a couple of Pine Hollow’s ponies as they dozed in the middle of the ring, enjoying the meager December sunshine.
“Hey!” Scott turned to greet Stevie with his usual easy, charming grin. “Where’s the fire?”
Stevie skidded to a stop in front of him. “I don’t know,” she replied breathlessly. “But someone else will have to cover it. Because I’ve already got an assignment!”
Scott looked a little confused for a moment. Then his expression cleared. “Oh!” he said. “You mean for the Sentinel?”
“Yep,” Stevie replied proudly. She flopped against the fence beside him, leaning over to catch her breath. “I had another meeting with Theresa just now, and I talked her into letting me write about the junior marriage project.”
“Cool!” Scott looked impressed. “But I thought she wasn’t going to let you write until, like, the next decade.”
Stevie grinned. She’d spent most of chemistry class that day muttering to Scott, her lab partner, about how unfair Theresa was being. “I changed her mind,” she explained. “I can be very persuasive, you know.” She was only half kidding about that. She was genuinely proud of her ability to talk almost anyone into almost anything. Then she relented. “Actually, she didn’t exactly promise she’d run my piece. But she said since all the other reporters are already working on stories for this issue, and this marriage project just came out of nowhere, I could take a shot at it, and she’d see.”
“Good for you,” Scott said sincerely. “I’m sure you’ll be able to come up with something that will really wow her, Stevie.” A sly grin crept across his face. “That is, if you can tear your attention away from your darling hubby long enough to write it.”
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