“Like I said before…I want her in the front. She’s pretty enough to be up front, and she’s better than Suzie and all those other girls, anyway!”
Penelope Pinkerton was not the kind of woman that liked taking no for an answer, but Coach Elly Anderson didn’t like being told how to run her cheerleading squad. Penelope had grown up with a silver spoon in her mouth, so to speak, and she demanded the best for herself and her daughter. In addition, she was one of those moms that liked to live vicariously through their daughters in the hopes that they would be younger, more successful versions of themselves.
“Ms. Pinkerton, I understand your frustration, but she’s only been on the team for a few months, and some of these girls have been waiting for a front spot for years. She’s only a freshman, and she still has a lot of work and maturing to do,” Coach Anderson tried to explain.
Penelope nodded and flashed an insincere smile as she gathered up her daughter’s gym bag and her own Gucci handbag. “I’m sorry, Coach Anderson. I used to cheer myself, you know, and I guess I’m letting my own competitiveness go to my head. I only want what’s best for Angie, and I’m not sure if she told you or not, but she was captain of her squad at her old school.”
“I assure you she’s doing fabulous, and I always look out for the girls’ best interests. She seems to be enjoying herself, and we can’t forget that’s what is most important here,” Coach Anderson reminded her gently. She lightly patted Penelope’s arm and offered her a reassuring smile.
Angela Pinkerton skipped over to her mother and coach, grinning from ear to ear.
“Mom, did you see that? I nailed my back tuck this time—without a spotter!” Angela exclaimed.
“Of course I saw, Honey, wonderful job!”
Angela waved to Coach Anderson and thanked her for another grueling practice. “See you tomorrow, girls!” she waved back to her fellow squad members as she followed her mother out of the gym.
Penelope handed the gym bag to her, and they locked arms as they strolled out the exit doors of the gym and headed across the parking lot to their Cadillac Escalade.
“Hey, jerk,” Angela greeted her soon-to-be stepbrother.
He was slumped down in the backseat, and as usual he was lost in the land of Nintendo DS. He finished whatever it was he was doing and looked up at her with a sheepish smile. “You’re the jerk, jerk,” he said, shoving the game system into his ratty, old Land’s End backpack and buckling his seatbelt. “How was practice? Did you learn how to curl your hair and paint your nails today or what?”
She punched him in the arm and scooted over next to him, reaching for her own seatbelt. “As a matter of fact, jerk, I actually landed my back tuck today without a spotter. So there,” she taunted, sticking out her tongue at him.
***
Elijah Sinclair couldn’t help but smile at Angie. She was the most gorgeous girl at Riverside High School. Unlike some of the other pretty girls, she wasn’t a snob. She was smart and friendly and seemingly unaware of her own beauty. She was technically the “new girl,” but needless to say, she was having no problems fitting in with everyone. It was hard not to love Angie with her bubbling personality, contagious smile, and natural good looks.
When Elijah’s father introduced him to his new girlfriend, Penelope, he was less than pleased. His mother had run off several years earlier, and he kind of liked having his dad all to himself—not to mention that Penelope seemed like a snooty bitch with all her jewelry, fancy clothes, and an endless assortment of bizarre looking purses that apparently cost a small fortune. She was nothing like his mother, but hell, maybe that was a good thing too. However, he still hated the idea of his dad and Penelope together.
But Elijah’s mind quickly changed when she introduced him to her daughter, Angela. Angie was the prettiest girl he’d ever seen, and she was nothing like her prissy mother. Plus, he and Angie had a lot in common. He played basketball at Riverside High School, and she was a cheerleader at Crimson. His mom had pretty much abandoned him at the age of six, and her father had died when she was young. Plus, they both loved to joke around and play video games in their spare time. Needless to say, they hit it off from the start.
Elijah had mixed feelings about his father’s engagement and the subsequent new home they had decided to purchase together as a family. Living together meant Angie would transfer to Riverside, and he would get to see her all the time. That was a good thing. But now that his dad and her mom were engaged, didn’t that make them like brother and sister? He shuddered at the thought as he refrained from looking over at her long, tan legs and golden blonde hair.
After the engagement, they had purchased a monstrous home that was so not his dad’s style in a ritzy, new building development. The development was located in the small town of Oaksdale, which was where his father had grown up. Every house in the subdivision looked identical, which sort of gave Elijah the creeps. The fact that his father apparently loved Penelope was probably the only reason he agreed to give up their comfortable man-pad. The inside of the new house was awesome though, he had to admit, and he and Angie practically had the entire second floor to themselves. He was also relieved that the move didn’t mean changing schools, since they were still located within the allowed school district for Riverside. Angie was okay with switching from Crimson to Riverside High because Riverside had the best cheerleading squad in the state. So, all in all, the whole transition seemed to be working out for everyone—except for the whole weird brother-sister thing.
***
Penelope started the SUV and slowly pulled out of the school parking lot on to the main street. Oaksdale was a small town that consisted of six cross streets and a main road. Penelope had lived in Mellville, a much larger neighboring town, most of her life. Moving here was worth it though, she thought. Oaksdale did not consist of much, but it had one thing going for it: Michael Sinclair. She would have moved anywhere with him no matter how small or big. They’d been dating for only a short time but soon they would be married, and they had recently bought a brand new home in Oaksdale’s most prestigious neighborhood, Glenn Heights. Oaksdale had been Michael’s choice so she had insisted on choosing the house. She had chosen the biggest and best house in town.
It was the kind of home she had always dreamed of with its clubhouse, gym membership, and perfectly manicured lawns. She felt like a princess, and Michael was her prince. Elijah needed a mother, and Angie needed a father. It all seemed to be working out perfectly, really. And the kids seemed to get along so well.
She adjusted her rearview mirror so she could see them in the back of the SUV. “Elijah, you ready for pizza?” she asked.
“Hell yeah we are,” Angie answered for him.
“Language, Angie,” she scolded, raising her eyebrows in the mirror.
“Yes, Mom…” Angie rolled her eyes, giving Elijah a conspiratorial wink.
Elijah leaned forward. “Can we stop for ice cream too?”
“I can do even better than that. Your dad got you a cake and ice cream. He’s meeting us at the pizza place,” Penelope told him.
“How did he get off so early today?” Elijah asked.
“He took the day off…said he wouldn’t miss your sixteenth birthday for the world.”
***
Elijah smiled and glanced out the window as they passed Mandy’s Fruit Market and old Dr. Middleton’s house on the hill. His eyes glazed over, and for the first time in a long time, his thoughts drifted to his mother. Did she know it was his birthday? If so, did she even care? He pushed the thoughts of her aside as he so often did as they pulled into the pizza place. His father’s Jeep Cherokee was already there. He hopped out before the car had even come to a full stop and ran over to greet his dad.
***
Angie reached for her door too, but Penelope reached back to stop her, lightly placing her hand on her leg, “Try not to overeat, honey. You know how those extra calories can slow you down in the gym. And you need to fit in that skirt for the game next week,” Penelope reminded her.
“Okay, Mom,” Angie whined as she looked achingly out the window at Elijah and Michael. She wished her mother accepted her as easily as Michael did Elijah. It was hard to imagine that he would be her stepfather soon. Even though she liked him well enough, she yearned for her own father. Her memories of him were vivid despite how young she was when he died. She remembered that he was tall with kind eyes and a smile that could light up her whole world. Then, one day, he was gone. A sudden, massive heart attack, her mother had explained. To an eight-year-old, losing a parent was the end of the world. Her own heart had been literally ripped from her chest—at least that’s how it had felt for many years after his death.
Her father was a gentle, carefree man who had brought out the very best in her mother. At least that’s how she remembered it when she allowed her mind to drift back into her hazy, eight-year-old memories. She missed her father dearly, and she knew he would never get on her for her weight or any other petty, little thing like her mother always did.
As she watched father and son embrace, she felt slightly ashamed for feeling sorry for herself. Elijah had lost a parent too. In a way, she was luckier than he. At least her father hadn’t abandoned her by choice. His mother had apparently checked out early for reasons unknown. She walked up to her soon-to-be brother and slipped her hand into his. “Let’s go pig out, birthday boy…”
Penelope and Michael followed behind them. “I’m glad you took the day off. He’s so excited, Michael,” Penelope said.
“It was worth it. God knows he deserves a real birthday. The last two years I’ve had to work on his birthdays,” Michael admitted with a tight frown.
“Well, not anymore,” Penelope replied. “He has a whole family to celebrate with now.”
Michael nodded and opened the door to the restaurant for her. He seemed to have a lot on his mind, but everyone else was too happy to notice.