Super Duper Pee Wee! Read Free Page B

is sending on some more of my things,” said Marie. “I couldn’t take everything on the plane.”
    Molly wondered where any more things would go!
    “Here, this is for you!” said her aunt, handing Molly a big box with pink tissue paper and a big white bow.
    Did divorced people go out shopping for presents? Maybe it was like a party. A divorce party instead of a wedding party!
    “I don’t know if you’ll like it or not,” chattered her aunt as Molly opened the box.

    She pulled out a big stuffed Scottie dog with a wide red ribbon around his neck.
    “I hope you aren’t too old for stuffed animals,” said Marie.
    “I love them,” said Molly.
    It was nice of her aunt to bring her a gift.
    “No one is ever too old for stuffed animals,” said Mrs. Duff. “Molly keeps them on her bed.”
    Molly hugged the big soft dog. “He’s like Skippy!” she said. “Except he’s black.” She ran over and gave her aunt a hug too. “Thank you,” she said. “I think I’ll name him Harry.”
    “It’s a good name,” her aunt said, laughing. “He has a lot of long hair.”
    Her mother had a package too. It was a pretty teapot in the shape of a strawberry. It even had a green leaf on the top of it.
    “That’s for us to have a tea party some afternoon,” said Marie.
    When Molly’s dad came home, they all ate dinner, and it was a cheerier meal than the one the night before. Mr. Duff even poured three glasses of wine.
    After Marie had gone to her room to unpack some more, Molly helped her motherdo the dishes. “Auntie Ree doesn’t seem too sad,” she said.
    “Well,” said her mother, “she was always the plucky one in the family. She doesn’t believe in feeling sorry for herself.”
    The next afternoon, Molly’s aunt took her and Mary Beth to the zoo and then out for ice cream. It was fun getting to know her aunt better. When they got home, two men were delivering some exercise equipment.
    “I thought I could put it in the basement,” said Marie. “I have to get back in shape, you know!”
    Her aunt looked in good shape the way she was, thought Molly. On Sunday her aunt got a newspaper and read the want ads.
    “It’s time I stopped vacationing and got a job,” she said, running her finger down the list. “Here is someone looking for a fry cook. And a nurse in a doctor’s office. But I think I’d like to work in a bookstore.”
    A job? If she was looking for a job, Auntie Ree must be planning on staying! Exercise equipment was one thing. But a job was something you went to every day, maybe for the rest of your life! Molly might never get her room back! She’d never be able to have another overnight party the rest of her life!
    And her aunt snored. Sometimes it kept Molly awake and she was too tired to get up in the morning.
    But her mother seemed to enjoy having her sister there. Instead of making her sad, she seemed to cheer her up! And her aunt did take Molly shopping, and she showed her how to play tennis. Molly felt guilty wanting her to leave. Auntie Ree seemed to enjoy being with Molly. It felt more and more like being with a friend.
    “It’s just that our house is too small!” Molly told Mary Beth one afternoon whenthey were cutting out paper dolls on the Kellys’ front porch.
    “She needs a home of her own,” said Mary Beth. “And a new husband. I think she’s ready to date.”
    Molly was shocked. She felt bad about her uncle Chuck. How could Mary Beth want her aunt to go out with someone else?
    “That’s what you do when you’re divorced,” said Mary Beth. “You find someone new.”
    “She doesn’t even know anybody here,” said Molly.
    “Well, then it’s up to us to find her someone,” said her friend. “Let’s make a list of who we know.”
    Mary Beth ran and got a piece of paper and a pencil.
    She wrote down, “Mr. Stenstrom.”
    “Who is he?” asked Molly.
    “The butcher at the market,” said MaryBeth. “My mom says he’s looking for a wife.”
    Mary Beth frowned.