Peggy Dulle - Liza Wilcox 04 - Saddle Up Read Online Free PDF

a long way. I reached in and grabbed my own small handful and wafted them back at her. I have a better aim, plus my kindergarten students love bubbles, so I have more experience. It hit directly on the arm of her lovely blue sweater.
    Then Jordan scooped up a larger handful, smiled and blew them at me. They landed on the front of my shirt. I smiled back, grabbed two handfuls and threw them at her. Then we put both hands into the sink and threw water and bubbles at each other as we giggled and slid on the soapy floor.
    A few minutes later, when my dad stood at the kitchen doorway, Jordan and I were soaking wet and covered in bubbles. And laughing, something I didn’t think I would ever do with my sister.
    He came into the kitchen, grabbed the sprayer from the sink and let both of us have it. Water flew through the air; we laughed, slipped on the floor and fell. I felt better than I had in years. It was like a heavy weight had been lifted from my chest and it felt fabulous!
    My cell phone rang and I slipped in the water as I tried to get to answer it. Jordan and Dad laughed harder.
    “Stop!” I told them, between hysterical episodes of laughter, myself.
    “Hello!” I shouted into the phone.
    “Liza?” Tom’s voice asked.
    I giggled and pointed to the phone. “It’s Tom.”
    Dad immediately stood up, his face serious.
    Jordan continued to laugh and said, “Say hi to the cop for me!”
    “Who’s there?” Tom asked.
    “My sister surprised me with a visit,” I told him.
    “Jordan?”
    “Yeah,” I giggled. “I only have one sister.”
    “What are the two of you doing?”
    “We had a water fight in the kitchen,” I told him.
    Tom laughed. “Sounds like fun. I wish I was there.”
    That sobered me up quick. He couldn’t be here.
    “What’s up, Tom? I thought you said you were in training all day,” I said.
    “I drove all the way to Sacramento this morning and the training doesn’t start until ten, so I thought I’d call and see how you’re doing.”
    “I’m fine,” I told him.
    “I can hear that. How long is your sister staying? I’d love to meet her.”
    I looked from Dad to Jordan and then back again. Dad shrugged and went out my screen door.
    “Hello, Liza?” I heard Tom’s voice in the phone.
    “Oh, sorry, Tom,” I said, pulling my attention back to the phone and not on my back yard.
    “I’ve got to get back to New York on Monday,” Jordan finally said, then went back toward the kitchen.
    “She’ll be gone by the time you get here on Tuesday,” I said.
    “That’s another thing. I definitely have to be in court all afternoon on Tuesday and maybe even Wednesday morning. I’ll be there sometime Wednesday afternoon.”
    “Okay, Tom. I’ll see you then.”
    “I should let you get back to your water fight. Use the sprayer on the sink, it works really well. I’ll talk to you later, if I can.”
    “Okay.”
    “Love you,” he said.
    “Yeah, me too,” I said and set the phone on the table. Normally, I would tell him I loved him, but it felt weird with Dad and Jordan here.
    When I got back to the kitchen, I said, “Hey, I just cleaned this place yesterday.”
    Jordan giggled, threw a sponge at me and said, “Not on my account, I hope. I’m not as germ phobic as I used to be.”
    “Really?”
    “Yeah, counseling works very well.”
    I put my arm around her shoulder and said, “I’m glad.” Then rubbed the sponge in her hair.
    A few minutes later we cleaned up the mess and found Dad sitting on the back porch, Shelby on one side, Fifi on the other. Shelby had that look in her eye she gets when she sees a bike coming down the road and she’s getting ready to chase it away.
    “Hey, my dog got out from under the porch,” Jordan said.
    “It took a little coaxing but yes, she did.” Dad patted Shelby on the head. “And Shelby is trying very hard to contain herself.”
    “Hey, where are Fifi’s clothes?” I asked, noticing for the first time that the dog didn’t have on its