Drive Me Crazy Read Online Free PDF

of the bathroom. I can hear her moving around, making little low growls to herself as she does whatever it is she’s doing in the mirror, but the door stays shut. Since Grandpa Howe and Grandma Tess will be fetching us any minute, I dig my swimsuit out of my suitcase and change quick, pulling my shorts back on over my suit just as there’s a knock at the door.
    “Where’s Cassie?” Grandma Tess says when she sees me standing there, alone.
    “She wanted to shower,” I say, hoping that explains it. “And I just called Mom.”
    “How is she?” Grandma Tess asks.
    “Busy,” I say, light. “I told her Dad would love all the bougainwhatsit around here.”
    “It is one of his favorites.” Grandpa Howe nods.
    “Well, you girls come on down when you’re ready,”Grandma Tess says, putting her hand on Grandpa Howe’s tan arm. They both look like they should be on a commercial for a cruise.
    “Fancy drinks with umbrellas in them as soon as you get down, okay?” Grandpa Howe adds.
    I smile. “We’ll be right there.”
    But we aren’t right there. Every time I think Cassie’s about to come out of the bathroom, she turns on the hair dryer, runs the water again, or shakes some bottle full of something. Part of me wants to head on down and leave a note that I’ll see her at the pool, but I don’t want to abandon her and make her come down by herself. Also, while I’m examining everything in the room, I find a card in our bouquet of flowers, which is actually a gift from Grandma Tess. I figure Cassie and I should thank her together.
    This only makes me even more eager to get downstairs, though, especially so Grandpa Howe and Grandma Tess won’t be wondering where we are. Even though Cassie can’t be much longer—we’re only going to jump right into the pool, after all, so there’s no point in perfect hair—I decide to start a postcard to Tamika, to keep myself from checking the clock every ten seconds. I choose the best one from the batch I bought at the berry farm: a field full of the small leafy strawberry plants under a sunny blue sky.Tamika would’ve probably spent more time trying to see how many rows she could leap over than picking, and I like to imagine her in this picture.
    Dear Tamika,
    You would’ve liked our pioneer outing today on the way to Paso Robles. I was all-out Laura Ingalls Wilder bent down in the dirt, and the juicy red sweetness of the strawberries made it extra good. Now we are at this beautiful hotel that’s probably too fancy for cowgirling, but I’ll see what I can do. Cassie and I are—
    I’m about to write “getting along great,” because that seems mainly true, though it has been a rockier start than I wanted. Tamika doesn’t have a lot of patience for wishy-washiness in the emotional department, so “great” would do fine, but I end up not writing anything, because finally the bathroom door opens. Cassie’s there, looking like she’s about to go to a poolside ball instead of just hang out with me and our grandparents.
    “I didn’t think you were still here,” she says. I can’t tell if she’s embarrassed to have taken so long, or disappointed she has to make her appearance with me.
    “I wanted some solo time too,” I say back.
    “Are they down there already?”
    “They’re waiting, yeah. Grandpa Howe said he’d get us fancy drinks.”
    Cassie’s bending to put her dirty clothes from this morning into some kind of clear plastic zip-up bag, so it seems at first that maybe she’s miffed about the idea, but when she stands back up, she’s smiling.
    “Well, let’s make sure they’re as fancy as this room is, then.”

Chapter Six

Cassie
    I ’ve got to hand it to Nono and Howie—they picked a stunning hotel for our first night. The whole place is posh, and I love all the organic shampoo and lotions in the bathroom. The pool is even more spectacular. Glowing lanterns are strung above the patio, with a few threaded over the water so their light glimmers on