Janelle Denison - Born to Be Wilde

" Because she's fifteen," Sydney said meaningfully. "And she already has a centerfold body to match mine and every guy from the age of ten to eighty can only think of one thing when they look at her." Sydney put her head in her hands and groaned. "Why couldn't she have been skinny and flat-chested?"

Lora would have laughed at Sydney's motherly complaint, but knew her friend wasn't joking. Sydney was thinking of her own troubling and unstable childhood, and how her deep yearning for love and security had led to her getting pregnant with Cassie at the tender young age of fourteen. Her very mature and voluptuous body, along with a boy's promise of forever, had prompted Sydney to ultimately give her heart and body to him. But she'd learned the hard way that he'd only wanted one thing from her, and in the end, when she'd needed him the most, he'd betrayed her in the worst possible way.

And now, Sydney's biggest fear was that some young guy would take advantage of her own daughter in the same way.

As Sydney's best friend, Lora was also the voice of reason in their relationship when it came to Cass, especially since she'd had her share of raising a teenager-her own brother. She didn't hesitate to set Sydney straight now, to give her the words she needed to hear.

"I know it's hard to watch her grow up, Syd," Lora said gently. "But it's going to happen. You've loved her and you've done a great job raising her. Don't hold those reins too tight, or you might find her doing just the opposite of what you want."

"I know, I know," Sydney agreed with a sigh, and dragged her fingers through her drying curls. "I just want her to make smart choices."

"Then give her the chance, and a bit of space." The advice was logical, but not to Sydney, who'd spent years being an overly protective mother. "We've all made mistakes, and she'll make her share. But you need to have a bit of faith in Cass, and she needs to know you trust her. Let her go to the party and have a bit of fun, Syd."

Her friend didn't look convinced, or swayed. "Well, I'll see what her math teacher has to say today before I say yes or no to the Halloween party."

Lora arched a brow mockingly. "You have to ask her math teacher's permission for her to go to the party?"

"No, smart-ass." Sydney stood and carried her mug to the sink and dumped the last of her coffee. "I got a call from him requesting a parent-teacher conference. Remember Daniel Barnett, Cassie's math teacher from last year?"

Lora nodded. Oh, yeah, she definitely recalled the good-looking high school math teacher very well. She'd attended Cassie's Open House Night with Sydney last year, and that's when Lora had also noticed the subtle attraction between the two. But Daniel Barnett, with his clean-cut appearance and genuine nice guy personality, was the kind of man Sydney avoided as a rule-she preferred bad boys, rebels, and guys who were out for a good time, and nothing more. She didn't do long-term commitment or emotional entanglements, and never, ever allowed her heart to get involved in any relationship. According to Sydney, she had her daughter, The Electric Blue, and Lora as a best friend, and there was nothing else she needed in her life.

"Anyway," Sydney continued as she rinsed out her cup and put it into the dishwasher, then dried her hand on a terry towel. "He's teaching Algebra Two this year, so Cassie has him again. He wants to talk to me about how she's doing in class, which is surprising, since she's always done very well in math. She even got an A in Algebra One last year."

Lora joined Sydney at the counter and grinned. "Maybe Daniel Barnett is just looking for a good excuse to see you again."

"Ummm, he's pretty straihtlaced, Lora. Kinda like you are." Sydney flicked the collar of Lora's practical work smock and wrinkled her nose playfully. "Besides, he's not the type of guy to call me in for a parent-teacher conference just to flirt with me. Something's definitely up with Cassie."

Worry filled Sydney's gaze, but before Lora could address her friend's concerns, the object of their discussion walked into the kitchen, her normally curly auburn hair now straightened into the latest shoulder-length style most teenage girls were wearing these days. The silky strands framed her face in wispy layers and brought out the golden flecks in her hazel eyes.

Growing up, Cassie had always been a no-frills kind of girl, more of a rough-and-tumble tomboy. But in the past few weeks Lora had begun to notice that Cassie was starting to pay more attention to her appearance, and taking more time with her hair, makeup, and picking out the clothes she wore to school. She still favored jeans over skirts or dresses, though, and today she had on a pair of dark denim jeans, a pale pink T-shirt, and a matching denim jacket.

Truly, Cassie did nothing to flaunt her body, but there was no way for her to hide her mature curves, either. And that was one of Sydney's biggest concerns, since her daughter was around hormonal teenage boys all day long.

" 'Morning, Aunt Lora," Cassie said as she slung the straps of her backpack over one shoulder. "I'm ready to go, Mom."

As Cassie passed her mother on the way to the front door, Sydney grabbed one of the straps on her daughter's backpack, effectively bringing her to a stop. "You need to eat something before I take you to school."

Cassie rolled her eyes and exhaled dramatically as she trudged back toward the refrigerator. "Fine. I'll drink a bottle of orange juice on the way."

Knowing that wouldn't be enough to appease Sydney, Lora grabbed a napkin and picked out a buttermilk bar from the pastry box for Cassie. "And take a doughnut with you, sweetie, so you don't have to listen to your mother lecture you about the importance of breakfast all the way to school."

Behind Cassie's back, Sydney stuck her tongue out at Lora, silently telling her what she thought about Lora taking her daughter's side in things. Lora barely held back the humorous laugh threatening to surface.

"Thanks, Aunt Lora," Cassie took the doughnut, gave Lora a bright, grateful smile, and headed out of the kitchen before Sydney could stop her again. "I'll be waiting in the car, Mom!"

"You are such a troublemaker," Sydney said to Lora once the apartment door slammed shut behind Cassie. "You know that, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do, but someone has to keep things balanced around here and between you two." Sydney was way too strict and protective of her daughter, though her friend didn't see things that way.

"She never wants to leave for school early." Frowning, Sydney picked up her purse and car keys. "Something's up."

"Oh, for God's sake, Syd," Lora said, her tone reflecting her exasperation. "Quit being so suspicious. She probably wants to spend some time with her friends before the first period bell rings." Grabbing her own pocket-book, she followed her friend to the front door.

"Or spend time with a boy," Sydney added, and didn't sound happy about the possibility.

"Which is a perfectly normal thing for a fifteen-year-old girl to do." Even as she tried to reassure Sydney, Lora knew that her friend's experiences at the age of fifteen had been vastly different from her own-which was a huge part of why Sydney was struggling with her daughter's transition from little girl to young woman now. "You need to face the fact that she's not your little Tinker Bell any more."

Sydney smiled at the nickname she'd given Cassie shortly after she'd been born. "Does she really have to grow up so fast, and so soon?"

Lora hooked her arm through Sydney's as they walked down the corridor together. "Yeah, she really does."

"That's what I'm most afraid of," Sydney said, and sighed.

FINISHED with her third client of the morning, Lora headed to the receptionist's desk to check on her next appointment and what spa treatment she needed to prepare for. She'd already completed a facial, a seaweed body peel, and a mini refresher massage. After reviewing the session log on the computer, it looked like she had a body polish scheduled in the next half hour.