"Company?" Harry asked. "Oh, right. We get to meet Alex's little girlfriend."

Little girlfriend. Alex knew his brother was expecting some geek girl. He couldn't wait to see Harry's face when he got an eyeful of Isabel. Okay, that sounded a little piggish. And he apologized to the goddesses of womanhood or whatever. But it was still going to feel pretty good to show Harry-and Jesse, and even the old man-that little brother was playing in the big leagues now.

Harry leaned back until his chair was balanced on two legs. "So, I just got off the phone with Alice Shaffer," he told Alex.

Alex put the last fork in place. "Who?" he asked.

"Your principal," Harry answered. "She said you never gave her the ROTC application materials." He rocked back and forth, making the chair legs creak. "She said you've never mentioned the ROTC to her period."

Alex felt like kicking that chair right out from under his brother. Just because their dad was totally obsessed with starting an ROTC program at the high school, why did Harry have to get all involved?

"The three of us have an appointment with her tomorrow at four," Harry continued. "Dad wants you to come," he informed Jesse. "He thinks you and I will be great and shining examples of what the ROTC program can do. You better keep your mouth shut so you don't blow it."

"I lost the application Dad gave me," Alex said. "I'm waiting to get a new one in the mail. There's no point in having a meeting without it."

Not a very creative excuse. Only about half a step above the dog ate it, which he couldn't have used because they didn't have a dog.

"Got it covered," Harry answered. "Dad told me to bring one with me."

Oh, happy day.

Jesse shot Alex a semisympathetic look. "You didn't actually think you were getting out of it, did

"I guess not," Alex admitted.

But he'd been doing everything he could to block his dad on this one. He'd thought of it as practice. A way of preparing for the big battle-the one where he told the Major that he wasn't planning on a military career.