Mom? Is that you?

"When?"

"Oh, heck. So much to do, so little time. We'll see."

"I don't want to wait."

"Me neither, love. Me neither! Now, c'mon, before I lose my resolve. Let's go have lunch and then see about turning Bambi into a teenager."

After a light lunch of seafood salad on croissants and a green salad, Neeka and I shared a quick shower up in my room, during which it was very hard for us to stay out of each other's arms. The tension and the temptation were strong, but we stopped at a few caresses.

Bambi was already in her room laying out clothes when we walked in. Most of them were still too nice and too sophisticated but we didn't say so right off.

We slathered her face with cold cream to remove all traces of makeup. We made her take a bath and wash her hair to get the perm out of it. While she was in the tub, we put away all the clothes she had out and then went looking for something suitable.

When nothing turned up, Neeka ran out the door and down the hall into one of the guest rooms. She came back with a pair of denim shorts that had been cut off and the side seams ripped. They were the perfect thing for kicking around the house and something that 'Mrs. Reynolds' would never wear.

Neeka saw my raised eyebrows and said, "She told me I could stash some of my stuff over here so I wouldn't have to be running back and forth all the time. Some of it is down in the workshop and some is down the hall."

"Sounds like she wants you to move in."

"Yeah, I got that idea."

"I want you to move in, too."

"Yeah, I know. I'd really like to, but I need some space. You're just too much of a distraction if I'm too close."

"Especially if I'm having an orgasm?"

"Especially then. I just climax right along with you. When I'm at home, it's a big smile and a warm glow. When I'm any closer, it's back-cracking, nerve-jangling, eyeball rolling..."

"I get the picture," I said. "Stop before you get me worked up. We need a top for her. Something less distracting than usual." I thought for a second, then the perfect thing occurred to me. I ran up to Jim's room and stuck my head in. Jim was lying on the bed, reading a homework assignment.

"Hey, Jim. Have you got a football jersey I can borrow?"

"Sure, Sis. Old? New? Dirty? Local? Pro?" He opened his closet and pointed to a rack that was almost full of football jerseys.

"What a collection! Uh. This is nice." I pulled out a Dolphin 'away' jersey with number 12 and the name 'Griese' on it.

"Dad got me most of those. I have an autographed one of those on the shelf if you would rather wear that. This one's been washed a few times and it's starting to fade."

"No, this is perfect. Thanks. But I thought he had a different number when he played with the Dolphins."

Jim looked at me like I had said something dumb. He smiled and explained, "This one was his father's."

"Oh! His father played football too? That's nice. But the jersey's not for me. You wait and see. It's a surprise!"

Jim looked puzzled, but he knew better than to press for details. He went back to his textbook and I went back downstairs.

Neeka loved the jersey. While I was gone, she had found a pair of slip-on deck shoes that looked just comfortable enough. They may have been the only flats in the closet. Everything else in sight had nothing less than a four-inch heel.

When Bambi came out of the bathroom, we brushed her hair back into a ponytail. Then Neeka applied just a touch of blush to her cheeks and a hint of color to her eyes. No mascara. No eyeliner. No pencil. No lipstick. It was the lipstick that she had the hardest time giving up. We gave in as far as letting her put on a little peach gloss, but that was all.

We put her in the shorts, the shoes and the jersey and sat her in front of the mirror.

"I look fat," Bambi said. "This jersey just hangs off me and makes me look fat."

"Easily fixed," Neeka said. She took the sides of the jersey and folded them around the back and pinned them in place with a safety pin.

The result was a close fitting midriff that showed about two inches of skin above her shorts and fit closely around her breasts. It made her bust look almost as large as mine. I saw that she approved of that.

"It's amazing," Neeka said, looking at Bambi in the mirror.

"It's fantastic," I said. "We could be sisters."

Bambi stared at the two of us in the mirror. She went back and forth, comparing and examining. Except for the two inches of height, hair length and my tan, we looked very much alike. We weren't twins, or even close to it, but anyone seeing the two of us together would assume that we were sisters and that we couldn't be more than two or three years apart in age.

"What do you think?" I asked Neeka. "Nineteen?"

"At most. Maybe even eighteen."

"You two are the biggest flatterers!" Bambi said. "I don't look that young. But I am surprised at how much Sam and I look alike. I've been very happy with all the comparisons, but I never saw it myself until now."

"We need another vote," I said. "Come with me."

I led both of them up one flight and knocked on Jim's door. I stuck my head in and said, "Jim, I have a friend I'd like you to meet. I let her wear your jersey. I hope you don't mind."

I opened the door and led Bambi in by the hand. Jim smiled broadly at the new girl and dropped the book and jumped off the bed to greet her. He stepped right up to her, looked her in the eye and said, "Mom? Is that you?"

"Hi, Jim," Bambi said, smiling back. "Thanks for the loan of the jersey."

"Oh My God!" Jim said. "I don't believe it. You look... you look just like the girls at school. You could walk down the hall and no one would know you weren't a student. It is really you isn't it? I mean, I know it's you, but... wow. You're cute! If Neeka wasn't here, I would have hit on you."

That last comment got him a swat on the arm from the redhead. It was obviously a sincere compliment though and it made Bambi very happy to hear it.

"Really," Jim said, obviously stunned. "You don't look any older than Neeka. I might not have caught on so quick if Sam wasn't standing behind you grinning like the cat that swallowed the canary. I knew something was up when she came in to borrow my jersey, but if I passed you in the hall at school or saw you at the mall I never would have known it was you."

"Do you really think she will pass for nineteen?" I asked.

"Oh, yeah," Jim said, enthusiastically. "Wait a minute. Pass? Pass where? What are you up to?"

"She's coming to the party. Janice, Jolene, Connie, Neeka, and Bambi are going to be hanging out this afternoon. We're going to be upstairs on the deck some, while there's still good sun, but you and Bud can join us down in the family room later if you think you can keep a straight face."

"It won't take that long," Bambi said. "Surely they will catch on in a few minutes."

"We'll see. I think you'll be surprised."

Connie was the first to arrive, promptly at 3 o'clock. She left her small blue Fiat parked next to the curb in front of the house and walked up the driveway to the front door carrying an overnight bag. I saw her craning her neck and looking up at the house on the way. I remembered my first walk up to the door and how impressed I was with the four-story façade. Even though the front was intended to impress, I thought the view from the tree line in the back was much more impressive, where the slope and the landscaping combined to give the impression that the house sat on a high hill.

I opened the door before Connie could ring the bell. I wanted her to feel that she was welcome and that I was excited to see her. Neeka was downstairs giving Bambi some last-minute tips on the current music, celebrity, and local gossip topics; so I greeted Connie by myself.

"Hi, Connie. Thanks for coming," I said as I showed her in. "You didn't have any trouble find the place?" I wanted to satisfy my curiosity while we were alone.