TWO LITTLE GIRLS

By JENNIFER SUE

TWO LITTLE GIRLS

By Jennifer Sue

1997 RELUCTANT PRESS

FIRST PRINTING SEPTEMBER 1997

Illustrations by BRIAN DUKEHART

NO PART OF THIS BOOK MAY BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION OF THE

PUBLISHER

Published By Reluctant Press

P.O. BOX 2767

Dale City, VA 22193

The characters and situations presented in this work of fiction are entirely the product of the writer's imagination. Any similarity to persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. All situations and activities portrayed in this work are fictional and are presented for the reading enjoyment of the audience. The Author and the Publisher does not recommend or suggest that those reading this work attempt to imitate, copy, or personally emulate any of the activities or behaviors described.

EBLISHERS

TV-TS BROCIALON

THE TV-TS PUBLISHERS' ASSOCIATION WILL PAY FOR INFORMATION LEADING TO THE ARREST, CONVICTION, AND/OR PROSECUTION OF ANYONE WHO, FOR GAIN, REPRODUCES, COPIES, COUNTER-FEITS, OR BY OTHER MEANS MECHANICAL OR ELECTRONIC EXPLOITS THE UNAUTHORIZED USE OF COPYRIGHTED RELUCTANT PRESS PUBLICATIONS

CONTACT: RELUCTANT PRESS POB 2767 Dale City, VA. 22193

DEDICATED TO:

Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty, Erato, the Muse of love poetry and mimicry, May they find pleasure in my works.

FROM BAD ATTITUDE TO LASS-ITUDE

By JENNIFER SUE

Fred Carver lost his wife to cancer.

Since he owned a construction firm, he had little time to spare for his son, Sheldon. The only option he had was to seek someone to look after the boy while he worked his normal 12 to 14 hour days. While he was looking for a caregiver, he naively decided to see if the person could double as a live-in housekeeper. Placing an ad in the weekly paper, he anticipated a flood of applicants. Fred quickly discovered that finding someone who would take on the dual tasks and was dependable and trustworthy was nearly impossible. Most of the handful of responses he received were discarded. Those he spoke to demanded what he considered to be exorbitant salaries. He was so frustrated that he began to consider sending Sheldon to a military academy.

The name of the applicant on one of the last responses he received seemed familiar, but by then he was worn to a frazzle by the hectic pace of keeping up with his business and trying to raise his seven-year-old son. Her letter related that she was recently widowed and had plenty of experience in handling growing boys and taking care of a house.

Fred called. As soon as he spoke to Helen Hunt, he recognized her voice and remembered. Helen was about his age and rather good-looking. A stirring in his jeans reminded him how long it had been since he'd even had the time to think about a woman. Helen's husband had been in the room next to Fred's wife during the days before both succumbed to the ravages of cancer. The two had spoken often, and discussed their mutual hardships. Fred knew that Helen had been worried about how she was going to support her family since she had never held a job. Her husband had in-

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