How I Spent My Summer Vacation Read Online Free Page A

My advice is: take a different bus.”
    She curtly shook her immobile curls. “I’m not made of money, dearie. I’m an old woman, and every nickel—the bus is a charter. We pay eight dollars, they drive us here. A bargain, already, right? But then they give us five dollars for the day and a five-dollar voucher toward the next bus. How could I take another bus?”
    “Don’t come at all.”
    “I’m not entitled to a little fun? A little pleasure?”
    “Well, that’s quite a problem you’ve got.” I hated to be rude to my elders, but I was going to knock her down, if necessary, to get out of here. “Be a modern woman. Risk it. Tell him you’re not interested. Bring a lady friend. Bring a different man friend. Get a restraining order against him. Learn self-defense. Use your common sense!”
    “Actually.” She put her veiny hand on top of mine. Her nails were polished the color of bubble gum. “There is something you could do.”
    “Excuse me?” It is possible that I am actually one of those noisy ghosts who try in vain to be recognized because they don’t know that people can’t hear or see them. “I’m sorry,” ghostly me said. “I can’t.”
    “Such an easy thing.”
    I shook my head.
    “Pretend to know me. Please.” She stepped back and looked up at me. “Save me.” At five-eight, I was a good seven inches taller, and, I assumed, forty years younger.
    “I’m sorry, but—” I’m working on this other case, the lady who lives under the boardwalk, you see. The guilt office has met its daily quota and is closed.
    “Five minutes, that’s all. It’s for a good cause. You’ll do it, won’t you, darling? Play along with me. In the name of sisterhood!” She raised a clenched fist.
    Shameless manipulation. Impersonating a feminist. But what the hell? She really seemed afraid of this man. “Five minutes,” I said, and arm in arm, we entered the darkened bar. I scanned for someone dark and broody, visibly connected .
    Lala delivered me to a frail, freeze-dried male.
    This villainous lecher who’d struck terror in Lala’s heart pushed back his chair and leaped to attention. In thrall to the calendar rather than outdoor temperatures, he wore a seersucker suit and white shoes. All he lacked was a straw skimmer hat to be a perfect turn-of-the-century dandy. “Lala! Dear heart!” he said as she approached. “I was worried.”
    “Tommy, I want you to meet the granddaughter of an old, dear friend….” Self-absorbed Lala had never asked my name. She merrily skipped on. “You remember I told you about Sherwin? The man who’s infatuated with me? Can you believe that his granddaughter just showed up, and says that Sherwin is searching for me.” She spoke at about twice the tempo she’d used in the ladies’ room, and things moved so quickly that as angry as I was becoming, when Tommy put out a hand that looked like a pterodactyl’s, I shook it.
    “I’m Amanda,” I said.
    “Oh, no,” he answered. “ I’m a-man-da. You’re a-girl-da. Sit, sit, sit.” He waved at the table he’d been at. We all continued to stand.
    “Pleasure to meet you,” Tommy said, covering his wretched joke’s flat wake. “Any friend of Lala’s…” His attention returned, adoringly, to Ms. Smirtz. “I don’t seem to remember any Sherwin,” he said.
    “Really?” Her laugh was an incredulous tinkled scale, like spoons on crystal. “He’s the one who took me to Rome that time I had an urge for pasta.”
    I exhaled loudly, angrily. “It’s been great, but—”
    “I think maybe I won’t go back to the city with you tonight, Tommy. Sweetie here says Sherwin’s desperate to see me.” Lala sighed extravagantly.
    “Whatever happened to subtlety?” I muttered. “Or honesty?” They both ignored me.
    “Please, Lala!” Tommy said. “Come back with me.”
    Lala shook her head like a wild young thing, although the glued-together curls refused to toss and she looked like she had a crenelated