Emma on Thin Icing Read online

  “Guys, I’m so sorry. Thank you for dealing. I really appreciate it.” I smiled at them. They were such good friends. And I was grateful. “But you!” I said, turning to Jake. “You are in trouble with me, mister! No candy for you next week, not on my watch!”

  Jake hung his head. “Okay, sarge,” he said.

  “Let’s go. Matt’s waiting for you, and we have to leave. Sorry about the cupcakes, you guys. They were looking good.”

  “It’s okay,” said Mia. “How was the dog walking?” she asked.

  “Good,” I said.

  “How much do they pay you?” asked Alexis.

  “Five bucks a walk,” I said proudly.

  “Wow,” said Katie. “Pretty good, considering if you had your way, you’d have your own dog and be walking it for free.”

  I smiled. “Yeah, a dog is definitely not in the budget for our family right now.” I felt badly about saying it as soon as it came out of my mouth.

  Mia was quiet. We went back to the house and hustled to clean up the kitchen. Then Dad came in.

  “Hey, buddy!” he said to Jake as Jake ran to greet him.

  “Emma’s going to the movies with the babysitters!” said Jake.

  “Not yet, she’s not,” said Dad. “Emma, may I see you in here for a minute, please?”

  I felt my face get hot and put down the cupcake tin I was drying. I followed Dad into the living room. I felt my friends’ eyes on me.

  “Emma,” he said quietly. “I know you’ve got a lot on your plate right now. We all do. But you have taken on way too much. When your brother is in danger because of your decisions, it’s time for you to take a look at your priorities. And it sounds like this was the second time this week there was an incident that involved dog walking.”

  I put my head down, thinking of Jake and Jenner and the scooter ride the other day. “Jake wasn’t in danger, though,” I protested weakly. I knew Dad was right.

  “Your primary responsibilities are to your family and to taking care of yourself. I think it’s wonderful that you are so entrepreneurial with the Cupcake Club and the dog walking. I know it’s terrific to earn your own money, and . . . well, I know you need it right now for some of the little extras we’ve cut back on. And I understand that you are trying to incorporate Jake, too, which Mom and I appreciate. But I just think you are getting stretched a little too thin right now. Do you understand?”

  I nodded. Visions of expensive bridesmaid dresses swam in my head. Without the cupcakes and the dog walking, there was no way I could afford that dress.

  Dad tipped my chin up to look him in the eye. “You are a very capable young lady. You’re just like your mom—organized, energetic, and kind—and we’re proud of you. I know Jake can be a handful, but we’re all trying to get by the best we can. I just don’t want to see you make the wrong decisions or mix up your priorities.”

  I nodded. I didn’t think I was making wrong decisions. I was getting things done. I was walking Jenner and doing my homework and practicing flute and contributing to the Cupcake Club and helping out as much as I could at home. I even made dinner a lot. Jake was the only thing that was a problem. I knew that was mean, but it was true.

  Dad sighed. “You’re a good kid, sweetheart. And I hate to say this, but if there’s another incident with Jake . . . we’re going to have to make some hard decisions about what you can and can’t spend your time on, okay? And that includes the club and dog walking.”

  “It’s okay, Dad. I understand,” I said, but I really didn’t. I would just do better, I thought. I didn’t want anyone to worry about me. And I could take care of myself pretty well.

  Dad hugged me and patted me on the head. “Now it’s time to go.”

  “I can still go to the movies?” I said, kind of surprised.

  Dad laughed. “Yes, you should go have fun with your friends.”

  “Thanks, Dad!” I said, and flung my arms around him. Then I ran into the kitchen.

  Katie, Alexis, and Mia were waiting, having finished cleaning up the whole kitchen.

  Matt smirked at me from the TV room, where he and Jake were watching SportsCenter. I could tell he was happy I was in trouble. And that he thought I was grounded. “Have fun, kids!” Matt said.

  “We will!” I called back with a big smile on my face.

  Matt looked like he couldn’t believe it. I felt good. Things were getting better already.

  “The pizza’s on me,” said Dad, glaring at Matt. “You still have time, and I’ll drop you off.”

  We all climbed into the minivan and off we went. I just hoped the Will Smith movie had nothing to do with cupcakes or dogs. Or brothers.

  CHAPTER 5

  The Dress That Takes the Cake

  Mom was making her specialty—banana chocolate-chip pancakes—for breakfast on Saturday morning. I could smell the bananas and warm, melting chocolate all the way up in my room, even with the door closed. I lay in bed thinking about them until I could taste them. Then I couldn’t wait anymore and scrambled downstairs to the kitchen.

  “Hi, Mama!” I called, using my babyish, private name for Mom. In public, of course, she was Mom. And in public I was Emma.

  “Good morning, lovebug!” Mom said back, using her babyish, private name for me. Mom was already dressed in khakis and a cute lavender sweater. Her blond hair was tied back in a short, bouncy ponytail with a pink ribbon, and she had Keds on her feet. Mom got dressed within five seconds of getting up. I only saw her in her pajamas when she was sick. People always joked that she looked like she could be my sister, but when you got close, you could see from her smile lines that she was definitely mom age.

  Mom came around the island to give me a big squeeze and a kiss on top of my bed head. I hopped up on a stool, tucking my legs up under my nightie.

  “Yum. Thanks, Mama, for making these.”

  “I’ve been craving them myself,” Mom said. “But I’m really making them as a thank-you to all you kids. I know what a bumpy week this has been, and I really appreciate all your help. I’m very proud of you all.”

  I wasn’t sure Mom should be too proud of Matt the Brat or Jake the Snake, or even me (Emma the . . . ?), but I didn’t say anything. Late last night, when everyone had come home and was relaxing in the TV room (everyone except Jake, who had been fed and bathed and put to bed at a reasonable hour by Mom), everyone agreed that Mondays and Wednesdays were Matt’s days to meet Jake, and Tuesdays and Thursdays were mine. Sam would meet him on Fridays. Everyone was happy with the solution for now, and there was a temporary peace in our house.

  “So how’s your new job?” I asked, propping my chin in my hand. “Give me all the deets.”

  Mom started filling me in on all the details of the characters she worked with, and the sections of the store that she managed (cooking and fiction), and where she went on her breaks. She told me that she saw a few cookbooks that had some cupcake recipes I might like. It felt good to just be relaxing in the kitchen. I wasn’t worried about babysitting Jake or walking Jenner or how much things cost. I was just happy to be with my mom, eating pancakes. It was like it used to be.

  “So today’s the day I’m going to the mall with Mia and her mom and all the CC girls to look for the dress,” I said. I wasn’t sure where I was headed with this. I had filled Mom in on the exciting junior bridesmaid news already.

  “Ooh! What fun!” said Mom. She was quiet for a moment, then she bit her lip. She had that worried look on her face that she seemed to get a lot these days.

  “What?” I asked, but I already pretty much knew.

  “Oh, nothing. I was just thinking,” said Mom.

  “Are you wondering how much the dress will cost?” I asked quietly. “Because I have . . .” I gulped. “I have money saved up that I can use.”

  “Oh no, sweetheart. It isn’t that at all! Really. And I don’t want you to use your savings on something like that. Not when you’ve worked so hard. That’s for the mixer! Look, we’ll just cross that bridge when
we come to it, okay? You just find a pretty dress today, and then Dad and I will figure it out.”

  But what if I found a dress that was too expensive? I was worried. I guess I’m a lot like Mom because the same worried look must have showed on my face. Mom wiped her hands on the worn apron she was wearing and then leaned over, putting her arms around me.

  “I love you, muffin, and I don’t want to see you taking the weight of the world on your shoulders. Dad and I can make things work. Okay? It’s not all up to you. Though I appreciate your sensitivity and your work ethic, the most important thing is that you have fun at the store today and on the wedding day. The rest will fall into place, all right?”

  I smiled to make her feel better, but I felt awful. I hated seeing Mom so worried. And all for a silly dress. I would just pay for the dress myself. I’d take my cupcake and dog-walking money and use my mixer-fund money to pay for the rest. The mixer could wait. It wasn’t that bad to use the handheld one. I felt a lot better.

  Mom turned back to the stove and loaded up another plate of gooey, sweet pancakes. “Hot off the press!” she said. “Enjoy!” and she handed it to me.

  “Yum!”

  “Now let’s talk about your trip to the bridal store today! What fun!” Mom said. “What color dress do you think you’ll buy?” Mom was excited and suddenly I was too. And we talked about colors and long or short dresses and sashes and bows, and I finished a third plate of pancakes before Matt came downstairs and yelled, “Hey, save some for me!” and Mom got up to get him some too.

  The ride to the mall was giggly. We were squished into Mia’s mom’s Mini Cooper, but we didn’t mind. But because of the tight space and the squishing and the fact that we were really excited, we couldn’t stop laughing. Sometimes that happens a lot with us, and we just laugh so hard that we can’t stop.

  “What did you cupcake girls eat for breakfast today? Frosting?” asked Mia’s mom with a grin, and this made us all laugh harder. We finally got it together as we walked through the mall and into the store.

  The Special Day bridal store made us all quiet. There was a big white door and as soon as you stepped inside, it was like another world. There was thick, plush white carpeting and big white sofas and chairs and pretty roses all over the store, in big pots, in vases, and even hanging from a gleaming chandelier. Everything was quiet, and there was soft music playing. It was the prettiest store I had ever seen.

  “Isn’t it incredible?” Mia whispered to me.

  “To die for!” I said, using one of Mom’s favorite expressions. And it was.

  “Like a fairy tale,” Katie said breathlessly.

  “Is this a franchise?” asked Alexis, looking around. I rolled my eyes and laughed. Alexis didn’t have a romantic bone in her body.

  Inside, the tall, elegant manager came to the front of the store to meet us with her hands outstretched in a friendly greeting. “Call me Mona,” she declared. She kissed Mia’s mom on each cheek, and then Mia’s mom took a moment to properly introduce each of us. Mona made a special effort to greet each of us, complimenting our looks or outfit and saying how happy she was to have us in her store. I wasn’t used to salespeople being so nice. Usually they just rang me up or opened the dressing room door with one of those little keys.

  “Follow me, ladies,” said Mona. “Let’s go back where we can be comfortable and talk about what you are looking for.”

  “Wow,” whispered Katie as we followed Mona’s trim, stylish figure across the white wall-to-wall carpeting. “This is superfancy.”

  I got a little nervous. It was fancy. And fancy meant expensive.

  There were gorgeous wedding dresses on mannequins and on racks on the walls, and more beautiful chairs and sofas and coffee tables with Kleenex boxes and oversize white binders that Mia pointed out as “look books.” Because they’d been here before to select her mom’s dress, and because her mom worked in fashion, Mia was very comfortable in the fancy setting. I noticed that all the salespeople were really pretty (prettier than most of the customers, which was kind of funny) and everyone spoke in hushed and ladylike tones. Like “indoor voice,” as we told Jake. I stood up straighter, and I was glad I’d taken Mom’s advice and dressed up for the occasion in a skirt and my ballet flats. This was not the kind of place to wear sneakers.

  We settled into sofas and chairs around a table. There was a plate piled high with delicate sugar cookies, and there was a silver tea service. My grandmother had a tea set like that, but I had never seen her actually use it. I noticed there were a lot of tissue boxes around. I pointed at them.

  “Oh,” said Mia, “that’s because the brides are so beautiful, everyone cries a lot.”

  Mona assigned one assistant to dole out snacks to us, and another was sent to round up the rack of junior bridesmaid dresses. I noticed there was an entire row of mirrors so you could see yourself in all directions.

  Mona’s assistant handed me two cookies and tea, and it was a little weird to eat while I was staring at myself in all the mirrors. Mia was so excited, she was jumping around. She went to help her mom put her dress on in the changing room and the three of us were left alone for a moment.

  “Can you believe this?” whispered Katie.

  “I’m never leaving,” I said, nibbling on a cookie.

  “Hey, I wonder where they buy these cookies?” said Alexis, inspecting hers as if it would have a label on it. “We should ask Mona if they’d like us to supply them with cupcake minis—white cake with white frosting, of course.”

  I laughed. “Look out, Bill Gates, there’s a new mogul in town.”

  “Seriously,” said Alexis.

  “Actually, it’s brilliant,” I said. “Why don’t you ask her? I would totally love to bake for her. Maybe we can drop off some samples for her next week?” All I could think of was coming back again.

  “What’s up with the Kleenex everywhere?” asked Katie.

  “I noticed that too!” I said. “Mia said it’s because brides make people cry.”

  Alexis grabbed a Kleenex and pretended to mop her eyes. “Oh, honey, you’ve never looked so lovely!” she said dramatically. Sometimes Alexis could be really funny.

  The dress assistant came back with a cart laden with white dresses that hung in plastic protective covers.

  Then Mona came out and smiled as she watched us ooh and aah over the dresses. “Why don’t you each select two to try on, and then we can have a fashion show?” she suggested.

  We didn’t need to be told twice. Katie went first, then Alexis. It was like playing “Princess for a Day.” Mona watched and laughed and clapped.

  While Alexis and Katie tried on their dresses, I tried to poke around on the rack to see if any had price tags on them, but none of them did. I started to worry again. Then I just chose the two plainest dresses I could find and sat down and waited my turn.

  While I waited, I picked up one of the look books that Mona had laid out for us. Mia explained that a look book was like a catalog. This one looked like a photo album, but all the pictures were dresses. It was filled with one beautiful dress after the other. Alexis and Katie came to peer over my shoulders.

  Suddenly I stopped flipping. In front of me was the prettiest dress I’d ever seen, excluding actual wedding dresses, of course. It was white and the top was a fitted, T-shirt kind of cut with short, puffy sleeves. It had pleats cascading down that were tulle. I knew it was tulle because it was the same material as the long tulle tutu Mom made me one year for a recital. It looked like a fairy princess dress.

  “Wow,” I said. “This is beautiful.” My heart actually fluttered; it was that great.

  “I love it!” declared Katie.

  “Love what?” asked Mia, coming out from her mom’s changing room.

  Alexis smiled. “Emma has found our dress,” said Alexis.

  “Let’s see!” said Mia eagerly. She rushed over. “No way,” she said solemnly. “I don’t believe it.”

  She stood up and flung her arm out toward he
r mom’s door.

  “What?” I asked.

  “Here comes the bride!” sang Mia’s mom, emerging from the changing room.

  I gasped. Ms. Vélaz’s dress was a nearly identical but grown-up version of the dress I had just found. It was like they were meant to be together. For a second I forgot about our dresses, though, because Ms. Vélaz looked so beautiful. Her dress was strapless, and her hair was pulled back. She looked really glamorous and not like a mom at all.

  “Wow!” was really all I could say.

  “Oh, Ms. Vélaz! You look like a . . . a . . . ,” cried Katie, suddenly speechless. Alexis nodded in mute agreement.

  “A princess!” I said. And it was true.

  Ms. Vélaz laughed. “I do just love it. It’s the prettiest dress I’ve ever worn.”

  “And it looks just like the dress Emma found in the book for us!” declared Mia.

  “Oh . . .” I was embarrassed. I didn’t mean to pick out everyone’s dress for them. Plus, if it was like Ms. Vélaz’s dress, then it was probably really expensive.

  “Great!” said Ms. Vélaz. “I can’t wait to see it! Let me just get this pinned and I’ll come look.”

  Mona swooped over, her mouth filled with straight pins, and while Ms. Vélaz stood on a carpet-covered box, Mona began nipping and shortening, muttering, “Divine, just divine.”

  “It’s divine,” whispered Alexis, in a high voice. I tried not to laugh.

  “Mona, I think the girls found another dress to try on,” said Ms. Vélaz, watching in the mirror as Mona worked.

  “Patricia, please go look,” said Mona around a mouthful of pins. I wondered how she could talk like that. Patricia came over, and I pointed to the dress. Suddenly I hoped they didn’t have it. Or that at least it was very cheap. Or on sale. Oh no! What if it was a fortune?