Read Online Holly's Heart Collection One by Beverly Lewis - Free Book Online

the Loyalty Papers, remember?”
    Of course I remembered, but I secretly hoped she had forgotten. “Are you sure you want to revise them?” I asked.
    “Sure do! Got ’em ready?”
    “Uh-huh,” I said, giving in. “The Loyalty Papers await. And I’m making snickerdoodles after lunch. Wanna help?”
    Andie laughed. “I’ll help by making them disappear.”
    “Fabulous,” I said, and we hung up.
    But I was worried about revising the Loyalty Papers. Really worried. I felt sure that the restructuring of our original documents—made between friends—might cause another major argument, especially since Andie and I were both crushing on Jared.
    Upstairs, I showered, then dressed in my most comfortable jeans and my favorite old T-shirt. Counting the days till my birthday was priority on my morning agenda. In giant numbers I wrote 22 days on the scrap paper stuck to my bulletin board. The day still seemed too far away to plan my big bash.

    After lunch I mixed together some flour, cream of tartar, soda, and salt. Then I stirred in soft butter, sugar, and eggs.
    Andie arrived just as I began rolling the dough into walnut-sized balls. “Mmm, yum!” she said, eyeing the cookie sheet.
    “They’ll be ready to eat in about eight minutes,” I said. “Want some apple juice while we wait?”
    “Thanks,” Andie said, watching as I poured the cold juice.
    I flicked on the oven light, and we watched the snickerdoodles do their thing—puffing up at first, then flattening out, leaving a crinkled top. After they were done, we let them cool. Then, piling the cookies high on a plate, we headed for my room with plenty of sweet treats to munch on.
    Andie plopped down on a corner of my bed. “Ready to revamp the Loyalty Papers?”
    I was glad she couldn’t see my scrunched-up face as I sorted through my dresser drawer, searching for the precious papers. Finally I spied them in the legal documents holder Mom had given us years ago. The folder was a reject from the law firm where she worked as a paralegal.
    Overly eager, Andie set the plate of cookies in the middle of the bed and began to shuffle through our papers. As she read, she reached for a snickerdoodle cookie.
    I, on the other hand, sat on the opposite side of the bed and nibbled on my cookie, watching her face for any warning signs.
    She frowned. I gulped.
    “Look here,” she said. “We really missed it on this paragraph.” She pointed to the page, clearing her throat like the principal getting the kids’ attention in assembly. “Page three, paragraph seven.” She paused. “This is really absurd, Holly.”
    “What is?” I peered down at the page between us.
    “This dumb idea…that one of us has to back away from a boy if the other person likes him, too.”
    “Well, we wrote that two years ago, before guys were even a blip on our radar. Maybe we should add something about whoever likes the guy first gets dibs,” I suggested.
    “Oh no, you don’t. That’ll never work. Besides, how could we know for sure who liked him first?” She flipped through the next two pages. “Were we so naïve to think we’d never attract the same boy?”
    “Well, look at it this way,” I said, trying to remain calm. “Since we’re both so different—in looks, in personality, in the way we think—maybe we were on to something when we wrote that part.”
    She stood up, brushing the cookie crumbs onto the floor. “I’m sick of your logic, Holly. Maybe we should talk about this some other time, when you’re thinking clearly.”
    “Wait!” I followed her out of the room. “What’s the big deal? Do we really have to do this now? It’s not like either of us can actually date Jared yet.”
    She glared at me. “Don’t be dense. Liking the same guy is still a huge problem, and you know it.” She was in the hallway now, heading for the stairs.
    “Where are you going?”
    “Home—to practice Jared’s audition music. See you, Holly. Thanks for the snickerdoodles.”
    A lot