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“Are you in on this, too?” Derek asked Grace.
“Well, yes,” Grace answered. “Now that we’re all finally on the same side.”
“You were working against us before?” asked Emily.
Grace looked a little sheepish. “Sorry. But I had already figured out those two were in love. You just weren’t ready to believe it yet.”
“Quick! Everybody scatter!” whispered Hannah before she retreated to the kitchen.
“What’s going on?” asked Josh, striding up to the group. Emily thought he looked like he hadn’t slept well. There were dark circles under his eyes, and he had a decided scowl.
“We were discussing where we wanted to go skiing today,” said Grace. “Do you have a vote?”
“I’ll just follow along,” he muttered. “No one seems to care what I think anyway.”
Emily clamped her lips together to prevent a smile when Grace rolled her eyes.
“Hey Grace, I wondered if you might braid my hair for me?” Anne used her eyes to point upstairs.
“Sure,” said Grace. “And I think Hannah wanted her hair braided. Maybe Emily could braid hers.”
“Great idea,” said Emily.
“Great! Now we have to wait while you all braid your hair.” Josh hung his coat back on the rack, grumbling under his breath.
“We’ll be fast,” Grace assured him as she motioned Hannah and Claire to come up the stairs with her, followed closely by Anne.
Josh stomped away, leaving Derek with Emily. “What am I supposed to do?”
“Just go make sure Charlie doesn’t come upstairs. Do whatever you have to do to keep her down here. We won’t be gone long.”
When Emily reached Grace’s room, Anne was speaking, but she stopped when she saw Emily.
“Let’s see what her sister thinks. I was saying we probably need to use reverse psychology with Charlie. If she kind of thinks we’re picking on Josh, she’ll jump to defend him. You know, if he’s struggling with the kids, and we’re not helping. If Olivia complains about him. Stuff like that.”
Emily nodded. “That’s true. She’s such a softy, she’ll defend almost anybody. But if you try to convince her of something, she’ll fight you on it every time.”
“What about Josh? What’s the best approach for him?” Grace deftly braided Hannah’s hair as she spoke.
“This jealousy thing is working awfully well. Maybe Derek should keep at it. Ow, Grace!
You’re pulling!” Hannah scrunched up her face in pain.
“Actually,” Emily said, “I think that’s a great idea for Charlie, too. She gets so uncomfortable every time he kisses her, and I know good and well she’s comparing his kisses to Josh’s kisses.”
“Really?” Anne asked, braiding her hair behind her head. “How many times has Josh kissed her?”
“Only twice. But they were memorable, according to Charlie.”
“Since she came back to New York?” asked Grace.
Emily shook her head. “No. Two years ago. You remember the night of the first one. It was at your house. Remember when they went into the den while we were all at the dinner table.”
“No way!” laughed Hannah. “So he kissed her in our den? I thought she went in there to yell at him.”
“She did.” Emily chuckled. “But it backfired on her—they’ve just got chemistry.”
“I’m thinking we could also show Josh why he isn’t a good match for Olivia,” Grace said. “You know, she’s not nearly as athletic as Charlie. And it just so happens we were talking last night about leaving the slopes at noon today to go shopping in town.”
