“Continue.”
Mace squirmed some more, trying to buck me off of his back, but I pulled his arm a teeny bit higher, and he quit. “You’re really not going to make her stop?”
“Nope,” Mom said. “Is this going to take awhile? Maybe I’ll go stick some popcorn in the microwave and make it a real show.”
I shrugged. “That’s up to Mace. He knows what he has to do if he wants me to let him up.”
“She’s going to break my arm!”
Mom snorted. “Hardly. She’s only leveling the playing field since you’re bigger. Be thankful she’s not yanking your leg hairs.”
“Good idea!” I said. “I can’t reach now but maybe next time.”
Mace groaned. “I wish Cory were here. I hate being the only boy at home.”
It was true that the brother right after me, Coriander, equaled the odds fast. “Too bad,” I said. “I guess your only way out is to tell me what I want to hear.”
He mumbled something into the carpet.
“What’s that?” I demanded. “I can’t hear you.”
“I said, ‘Pepper is spicy goodness.’”
I let go and hopped up quickly before he could retaliate. He climbed to his feet and glowered down at me, nearly a foot taller and on his way to passing my dad, who was six-foot-four. My mom shook her head. “Height is no match for strategy.”
“We’re calling that strategy? I thought it was plain old sneakiness.”
“It’s all in the eye of the beholder,” I said. “And behold, you got whupped.”
He stomped off toward the kitchen to inhale some food, and I eyeballed my mom. “Aren’t you supposed to lecture me about acting my age?”
“Nah. It’s good to see you having some fun.”
“Have I been that difficult?” I picked some carpet threads off my jeans and waited for her answer.
“Yes,” she said. “But I knew you’d snap out of it eventually.”
“Sometimes I think I’m just going to snap—period,” I confessed.
She gathered me in a hug. “Your dad told me, but we’re not worried. We know you’ll find your way.”
I stepped out of the hug after a hard squeeze back. “Thanks, Mom. And now I need to finish revising my résumé. Do me a favor and don’t ask Ginger to ‘help’ me with anything else.” I smiled so she would know I wasn’t mad. It was sad that for months, my family’d had reason to assume that peevish was my default setting.
“You got it,” she said, and I headed back into the office to work on phase two of becoming a real, live journalist.
Dear Ellie,
It was great to meet you in person. Anna Mayers has nothing but great things to say about you, and I’m so glad she suggested that I contact you. I know I don’t have a ton of experience, but I believe I have talent, and I know I have the drive to work hard. I’m blown away by what Real Salt Lake is doing, and the more I think about it, the more sure I am that I want to be a part of the team.
Thank you for taking the time to interview me. I look forward to getting started.
Sincerely,
Pepper Spicer
Chapter 4
Ginger poked her head around my door, and I threw a slipper at her. It bounced off the wall two feet away from her, and she stayed where she was, unperturbed. “Let me see,” she begged.
“No. Your help is not so helpful.”
“Not fair,” she said. “Those shoes would have been fine if the train wouldn’t have broken down. Blame Trax.”
“Your résumé coaching was a disaster too,” I reminded her. “And if I could find a reason to blame you for the snag in my tights, I would.”
“Come on,” she wheedled. “I won’t comment. I just want to see what you’re thinking about wearing tomorrow.”
Knowing she wouldn’t give up, I sighed and waved her in. She stood next to me and stared at the outfits laid out on my bed in anticipation of my interview with Ellie Peters the next day. She kept her word not to say anything, but I could tell she was about to choke with the effort. I ignored her for another minute or two while I debated between a black suit I
Mace squirmed some more, trying to buck me off of his back, but I pulled his arm a teeny bit higher, and he quit. “You’re really not going to make her stop?”
“Nope,” Mom said. “Is this going to take awhile? Maybe I’ll go stick some popcorn in the microwave and make it a real show.”
I shrugged. “That’s up to Mace. He knows what he has to do if he wants me to let him up.”
“She’s going to break my arm!”
Mom snorted. “Hardly. She’s only leveling the playing field since you’re bigger. Be thankful she’s not yanking your leg hairs.”
“Good idea!” I said. “I can’t reach now but maybe next time.”
Mace groaned. “I wish Cory were here. I hate being the only boy at home.”
It was true that the brother right after me, Coriander, equaled the odds fast. “Too bad,” I said. “I guess your only way out is to tell me what I want to hear.”
He mumbled something into the carpet.
“What’s that?” I demanded. “I can’t hear you.”
“I said, ‘Pepper is spicy goodness.’”
I let go and hopped up quickly before he could retaliate. He climbed to his feet and glowered down at me, nearly a foot taller and on his way to passing my dad, who was six-foot-four. My mom shook her head. “Height is no match for strategy.”
“We’re calling that strategy? I thought it was plain old sneakiness.”
“It’s all in the eye of the beholder,” I said. “And behold, you got whupped.”
He stomped off toward the kitchen to inhale some food, and I eyeballed my mom. “Aren’t you supposed to lecture me about acting my age?”
“Nah. It’s good to see you having some fun.”
“Have I been that difficult?” I picked some carpet threads off my jeans and waited for her answer.
“Yes,” she said. “But I knew you’d snap out of it eventually.”
“Sometimes I think I’m just going to snap—period,” I confessed.
She gathered me in a hug. “Your dad told me, but we’re not worried. We know you’ll find your way.”
I stepped out of the hug after a hard squeeze back. “Thanks, Mom. And now I need to finish revising my résumé. Do me a favor and don’t ask Ginger to ‘help’ me with anything else.” I smiled so she would know I wasn’t mad. It was sad that for months, my family’d had reason to assume that peevish was my default setting.
“You got it,” she said, and I headed back into the office to work on phase two of becoming a real, live journalist.
Dear Ellie,
It was great to meet you in person. Anna Mayers has nothing but great things to say about you, and I’m so glad she suggested that I contact you. I know I don’t have a ton of experience, but I believe I have talent, and I know I have the drive to work hard. I’m blown away by what Real Salt Lake is doing, and the more I think about it, the more sure I am that I want to be a part of the team.
Thank you for taking the time to interview me. I look forward to getting started.
Sincerely,
Pepper Spicer
Chapter 4
Ginger poked her head around my door, and I threw a slipper at her. It bounced off the wall two feet away from her, and she stayed where she was, unperturbed. “Let me see,” she begged.
“No. Your help is not so helpful.”
“Not fair,” she said. “Those shoes would have been fine if the train wouldn’t have broken down. Blame Trax.”
“Your résumé coaching was a disaster too,” I reminded her. “And if I could find a reason to blame you for the snag in my tights, I would.”
“Come on,” she wheedled. “I won’t comment. I just want to see what you’re thinking about wearing tomorrow.”
Knowing she wouldn’t give up, I sighed and waved her in. She stood next to me and stared at the outfits laid out on my bed in anticipation of my interview with Ellie Peters the next day. She kept her word not to say anything, but I could tell she was about to choke with the effort. I ignored her for another minute or two while I debated between a black suit I
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