Free SVH10-Wrong Kind of Girl by Francine Pascal Page B

Suzanne."
    "She's just your age," their father said. "It'll be like having another sister in the house."
    "Hey, wow," Jessica exclaimed. "Suzanne Devlin! Don't they live in New York?"
    "Yes," said Alice Wakefield.
    "And Paris?" Elizabeth added.
    "And in London, too," said Ned Wakefield.
    "Boy, she's been all over," Elizabeth said.
    "Wow, a really sophisticated New Yorker who's lived in Paris and London?" Even Jessica was impressed.
    "She's beautiful, too," Ned Wakefield said.
    Elizabeth laughed. "She would be."
    "Anyway," their father said, with a glance at his wife, "if I'm allowed to get a word in here ... Suzanne will be here for two weeks."
    "That'll be fun," Elizabeth said. "We can find out all about New York!"
    The twins' parents were looking at each other slyly and smiling again. Mrs. Wakefield whispered to Mr. Wakefield. He whispered back.
    "What's going on?" said Jessica.
    "There's more?" Elizabeth wanted to know.
    "There's more," said their mother. "A lot more. But--"
    "Uh-oh," Jessica moaned. "There had to be a 'but'!"
    "If s good," said their mother, laughing. "But part of it's better than the other part."
    "Boy, you two ought to be diplomats yourselves," Elizabeth said.
    "While Suzanne Devlin is here with us, one of you will go to New York for the same two weeks," said Mrs. Wakefield. "There, it's out."
    Jessica and Elizabeth looked at each other in astonishment.
    "One of us?" Elizabeth asked.
    "But which one?" Jessica asked.
    "We're not going to decide that right now," Alice Wakefield said. "But either way, it should be fun. One of you will get to show Suzanne Devlin around Sweet Valley, and the other will see New York."
    "Liz is already a lot more sophisticated than I
    am," Jessica said. "So I think I need the New York trip the most."
    "Jess," Elizabeth countered, "you are about as unsophisticated as a mink coat."
    Alice Wakefield laughed. "We're not deciding now, so you can both compose yourselves."
    "It's not fair!" Jessica wailed. "I won't be able to sleep for days! I can't stand secrets!"
    "You can't stand secrets," Elizabeth remarked after their parents had retired to the study and she and Jessica were on their way back upstairs. "But you won't tell me who you picked for the cheerleader squad."
    "Later, Liz, later. I have just had the most sensational idea!"
    "Oh, no," Elizabeth groaned. "Not another one of your sensational ideas. It could mean disaster."
    "Not this one," Jessica insisted as she sat down on her sister's bed. "You are going to flip over this one, I promise."
    "OK, Jess, out with it."
    "Suzanne and Steven!" Jessica announced with the air of someone who has just discovered the secrets of the universe.
    Elizabeth stared at her. "Look at me closely, Jess. I am not flipping. And do you know why I am not flipping? It is because you, sister dear, are not making any sense."
    Jessica shot Elizabeth a look of disgust. "I really hate it when you talk to me like that, you know? If you would just take a minute to think about my idea, you would see how good it is.
    Suzanne Devlin is beautiful, talented, intelligent, and sophisticated," Jessica pointed out.
    "So?"
    "So? You are deliberately being dense, Liz. Our visitor is the perfect girl to lure our brother away from Tricia Martin!"
    "Do you have a death wish, Jess?" Elizabeth asked. "Steven would take you apart if you butted into his relationship with Tricia."
    "Not if you helped me," Jessica suggested, reluctant to give up her plan.
    "No, Jess, no way. Forget it," Elizabeth said, shaking her head. "Tricia is sweet and lovely and a terrific girl for Steve. I absolutely refuse to take your side against her. Case closed. And now let's get back to the real subject."
    "What subject is that?" Jessica asked innocently.
    "About how you can't stand secrets but won't tell me who the second new cheerleader is."
    "Oh, that's different." Jessica pouted. "I already know that secret."
    "Jessica, you are being impossible!"
    "OK." Jessica grinned. "I'll tell you half.