Jessi's Secret Language by Ann M. Martin Page A

associate club members, but he’s also Mary Anne’s boyfriend, remember?)
    Mary Anne took the receiver, faced herself into a corner of the room, and began talking so quietly that none of us could hear her, no matter how far we leaned over. Every so often a little murmur would come from her direction, but no actual words.
    When she finally hung up, she turned back to us, blushing, and said, “Logan says hello. He just wanted to know what was going on. He said he might want a signing lesson sometime, Jessi. In case he ever sits for the Braddocks.”
    â€œWhat else did he say?” Claudia teased, looking at Mary Anne’s red face.
    (I feel sorry for anyone who blushes so easily.)
    â€œOh … not much.”
    We started talking about our families then. We do that sometimes, when we’re not lining up jobs or talking about club business. We sort of take turns saying what’s going on in our lives.
    â€œMy brother called from California last night,” said Dawn. “He’s still really happy out there.”
    â€œYou think he’ll stay?” asked Kristy.
    â€œI’m pretty sure. When the six months are up, the lawyers and everyone have to get together again to discuss the trial period — but I know he’ll stay.”
    I couldn’t imagine my family being torn in half like Dawn’s had been. I just couldn’t. What would I do if Squirt and Daddy were living in California?
    â€œTigger learned how to fetch yesterday,” said Mary Anne. “Have you ever known a kitten that could fetch?”
    â€œYou’re just trying to distract us from Logan,” said Dawn with a smile.
    â€œYou’re absolutely right,” agreed Mary Anne.
    â€œWell, here’s something that’s been going on at my house,” said Kristy. “I find this hard to believe, but Mom has been mooning around saying she wants a baby.”
    â€œA baby ?!” the rest of us shrieked.
    Kristy nodded, looking puzzled.
    â€œIs she pregnant?” asked Claudia.
    â€œNope,” said Kristy. “I know that for a fact because she’s also been saying she wishes she were pregnant, but she thinks she’s too old. After all, Charlie is seventeen.”
    â€œYeah, but how old’s your mom?” asked Dawn.
    â€œI don’t know. Thirty-seven or something.”
    â€œThen she could still get pregnant.”
    â€œReally?”
    â€œSure.”
    â€œHmm.”
    Ring-ring.
    â€œHey, one of you guys want to get the phone?” asked Kristy, looking down at Mal and me.
    â€œSure!” we cried. We both leaped up.
    â€œOnly one of you can answer it,” said Claudia. “Trust me. In the old days, the four of us always used to try answering the phone at the same time and it never worked.”
    I might be more agile than Mal, but she’d been sitting closer to the phone, so she reached it before I did. I plopped back down on the floor with a disappointed “Hmphh.”
    â€œHello, Baby-sitters Club,” said Mal professionally. She sounded good and she knew it. “Oh, yes. Hi, Mrs. Braddock…. Tell her what? … Oh, okay. Sure…. Bye.”
    Mallory hung up the phone and turned to me quizzically. “That was Matt’s mother. She said to give you a message: Everything is arranged.”
    â€œIt is?!” I cried. “Oh, that’s great. Really great!”
    â€œAre you going to let us in on this?” asked Kristy.
    â€œYeah,” said Mary Anne. “What’s arranged?”
    I hesitated. “I can’t tell you. I mean, I can’t tell you yet. But I’ll be able to soon…. Really, I promise,” I added when I saw their frowning faces.
    â€œHow come you can’t tell us now?” asked Mal.
    â€œI just can’t, that’s all. But I do want to ask you something — all of you. I was wondering if you’d like to come see Coppélia . Everyone in the cast gets ten