“Made it myself,” Olivia answered proudly.
Mr. Vega looked at the dessert longingly. “I once knew someone who would have loved a sweet topping like this. I haven’t had anything like it in years.” He fixed Olivia with a pained smile. “Thank you.”
“Enjoy your desserts,” Olivia whispered. She knew, somehow, that he had been talking about her mother.
She took a deep breath as she reentered the kitchen.
“How’s it going?” Ivy asked.
“They’re totally falling for each other,” Olivia said, trying to convince herself. “There’s no way he’s going to want to move now.”
Suddenly a huge crash sounded from the dining room. Olivia and Ivy looked at each other and rushed through the door.
Mr. Vega was standing behind Alice, his arms wrapped around her in a bear hug. Alice’s eyes looked like they were about to pop out of her head.
Is this some strange vampire hugging ritual? Olivia wondered.
Mr. Vega squeezed, and Alice emitted a sickly sound that culminated in a pop. A small purple orb the size of a marble sailed out of Alice’s mouth and splatted on the wall behind Olivia’s head.
Alice breathed deeply. “If I were human, you would have just saved my life!” she said, turning and throwing her arms around Mr. Vega’s neck.
He looked at Ivy and Olivia over her shoulder. “Alice choked on a grape.”
“Are you okay?” gasped Olivia.
“We never should have served grapes,” Ivy blurted.
“No, no,” Alice said. She shifted Mr. Vega awkwardly, her arms still around his neck. Now she was facing them over his shoulder. “I’m not upset.” She smiled beatifically. “This man is my hero!”
Olivia exchanged openmouthed looks with her sister. We did it!
A half hour later, she and Ivy were peeking around the corner at the foyer, spying on Alice and Mr. Vega again.
“Thank you, Charlie,” Alice cooed. “I had such a terrific time. You have very strong arms, you know.”
“It was certainly an eventful evening,” Mr. Vega answered.
“Maybe some time we can go to the museum together and I can teach you a thing or two about art,” Alice suggested.
Mr. Vega gave one of his close-lipped smiles.
Alice came right up close to him.
Kiss her! Olivia wanted to yell. Kiss her! Instead Mr. Vega said, “Bye now,” and gently pushed Alice out the door. Beside Olivia, Ivy slumped to the floor in defeat.
Mr. Vega turned toward where they were hiding. “You can come out now, girls,” he called.
Uh-oh, thought Olivia. She recognized the tone of his voice: it was the one used by parents everywhere to indicate when you’re in big trouble. “Thanks for participating in our art project, Mr. Vega,” Olivia said hopefully as she and Ivy came out into the open.
He walked toward them. “If this were an art project,” he said, “you two would get an A. Tonight was creative, unexpected, and memorable. And really, Ivy, the lasagna was superb.”
“Thanks, Dad,” Ivy said.
“But as a date”—he sighed—“I would have to give it an F. Even without the Heimlich maneuver.” He looked at them sternly. “This wasn’t an art project, was it?”
Olivia and Ivy both shook their heads. “Alice is a lovely person and a talented artist, but I am perfectly capable of choosing my own dates. In any case, there’s no point in my starting a relationship when we’re about to move.”
“But that’s exactly why we—” Ivy began to say, but Olivia stopped her with a look.
It’s no use, Olivia thought sadly.
“Olivia, I’ll drive you home now,” Mr. Vega said. The conversation was over.
During the car ride, Olivia sat staring straight ahead, thinking about how miserably her plan had failed. Next to her, she could hear Mr. Vega occasionally sighing as the streetlights illuminated his pale face.
This sucks, she thought, and she didn’t mean it in the good way vampires did.
Chapter 5
The next day at lunch, Olivia slapped her tray down and slumped into a chair.
Brendan eyed her suspiciously. “Wait a minute,” he said, looking from her to Ivy. “Did you two switch again?”
“No, Brendan.” Ivy rolled her eyes.
“He’s right.” Sophia studied Olivia’s face.
“The real Olivia would never sulk like this.”
Ivy blinked with frustration. “That is the real Olivia!” She waved her black-nailed hands in front of Sophia’s face. “And I’m the real Ivy!”
“Likely story,” said Brendan, unconvinced.
“Will you please tell them, Olivia?” Ivy begged. Something surged through Olivia’s chest, like a crowd doing the wave. “AREN’T I ALLOWED TO HAVE A BAD DAY?” she shouted.
Everybody stared at her, speechless.
“Sorry,” Olivia said softly, wrinkling her nose.
“Ivy probably already told you that last night was a total failure.”
“It’s okay,” Sophia said gently. “There’s always chaining ourselves to Ivy’s mailbox.”
“It was a good plan,” Olivia said stubbornly.
“Even if Alice wasn’t the right girl, there must be someone in Franklin Grove our father could fall in love with!” She angrily broke a celery stalk in half, and Brendan flinched.
“We could try speed dating. We could hold a singles party. You people have online dating services, don’t you? There has to be something we can do!”