Chance Meeting Read Free

response would never change. But she thought about it a long time, turning the problem over in her mind, and came to the conclusion that her father must not believe the other girls at her school were good enough for her. Even then, at age eight, Ty understood that good enough meant, according to her father, having enough money. As Ty came to understand the extent of her father’s vast wealth, she realized, too, that if her father truly felt that way, then only about sixty families in the entire world were good enough to be considered friends of Tyler Stannard’s daughter. And not one of those other families had a daughter in Ty’s third-grade class. Luckily for Ty, Lizzie had never cared about any of that. She’d never been put off by the large, shiny black car that pulled up in front of the school steps every afternoon at dismissal. She didn’t think it unusual or creepy that Ty was never picked up by a family member. Nor did she appear offended or become standoffish when months passed and Ty didn’t invite her over after school or accept any of the invitations Lizzie herself extended. Day after day, Lizzie simply waved good-bye to her best friend, calling out cheerfully, “See ya tomorrow, Ty,” before skipping down the street, her mother’s hand clasping hers.
    In the wake of her father’s refusal, Ty turned to Sam Brody, her bodyguard. It took quite a bit of hard campaigning before she persuaded him to discuss with Lizzie’s mother the possibility of an afternoon’s outing for the two girls.
    Or perhaps it was eight-year-old Ty’s visible loneliness, her poignant need for companionship, which ultimately swayed Sam. Throughout that period, he watched the pattern unfold. Ty waving good-bye to the only girl who called out to her. Ty waiting beside the Rolls as Lizzie skipped down the street until at last she turned the corner and was out of sight. Only then would Ty reluctantly slide into the darkened leather and handrubbed mahogany splendor of the car’s interior. After he’d witnessed this daily drama repeat itself one too many times, Sam sided with Ty and became her ally. Willingly risking the wrath of

    Tyler Stannard, should he discover what had transpired without his express permission, all so that Ty could spend some afternoons with her best friend, eating popcorn, working on homework together, and laughing hysterically over nothing at all.
    Ty knew she owed Sam a lot, for he had recognized how important it was to have a friend who liked her for herself, rather than because she was Tyler Stannard’s only child. But the plan Lizzie was concocting right now was an entirely different matter. That Sam understood her need for friendship didn’t mean he was about to let her run loose over the Lake Placid show grounds, chasing after Steve Sheppard like some deranged fan.
    Nevertheless, she was going to do it. Somehow, she’d reached the point where she had to test the strength of the gilded cage her father had constructed around her. Her father, the real estate king, who excelled at building things. She wanted to see whether she could break free, if only for a little while. Surely Sam wouldn’t be too angry.
    Quickly, before she lost her nerve, Ty grabbed the metal handle on the molded plastic door of the portable toilet, resisting the urge to glance over her shoulder and see how far back Sam was standing, waiting. She opened the door wide, moving her body behind it so that she was blocked from view. Yuck! The stench of cherry-scented cleanser liberally mixed with fermenting urine assaulted her nostrils, about a hundred times more awful in this heat. She held her breath and pulled the door after her. Praying that Sam’s eyes had strayed momentarily as she’d stepped inside, she abruptly reopened the door, slipped out from behind it, and dashed around the back of the tall, rectangular toilet. Lizzie was already there, flushed with excitement.
    “Quick, hurry! I saw which way they went!”
    “This is