Boyfriends and baby-sitting don't mix!

We were all gabbing away when the front door opened.

"Hello! I'm ba-ack!" Mrs. Kuhn sang out. Her keys jingled as she walked toward the kitchen. "Guess who didn't have to wait at the doc-"

She never finished her sentence. she just stopped in the kitchen doorway.

Her eyes flickered from Logan to me. Her smile tightened.

In that moment I realized I had never told her about Logan. Never asked if he could come over, either.

I hadn't thought it was a big deal. Mrs. Kuhn probably wouldn't have, either, except for two small facts.

Logan was a boy. I was a girl.

And I looked like the world's biggest sneak.

"Hi, Mommy!" Patsy screamed, running to hug Mrs. Kuhn's knees.

"Hello, sweetheart." Mrs. Kuhn gave her daughter a hug, but her eyes never left mine. "So, we have a ...visitor?"

Logan stood up with a smile. "Hello, Mrs. Kuhn. I'm Logan Bruno."

"What a surprise," Mrs. Kuhn said.

"He's the best athlete," Jake insisted.

"Ha ha." Logan's laugh sounded so forced. I could tell Mrs. Kuhn was making him nervous. "Jake's getting pretty good himself."

"Now, Mary Anne," Mrs. Kuhn barged on, " correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't believe we discussed anyone else coming over today."

"It's okay, Mom," Jake chimed in. "Logan's been here before."

"Has he?" she asked.

"Sure. He's Mary Anne's boyfriend."

Ugh.

I felt as if someone had pulled a drawstring around my stomach.

Mary Anne Breaks the Rules
Published by Scholastic Inc. 1996
ISBN: 0590482238