Page 94 of The Sebastian Guarantee
And there probably was something—a program out there perfect for these girls once they aged out of Tech Tweens, but these kids didn’t have a cohesive community to rely on for that information.
“My sister is right,” Sebastian began. “You can’t stop. We need more women leading companies, starting businesses, and forging the path ahead.” He pictured Phoebe when they were twelve. Clad in overalls and a black beret, she’d spend hours coding, glued to her computer as she munched on cookies and hot dogs. “I’m lucky enough to know a woman who was very much like you when she was your age. She’s the smartest person I know. We need people like you and her in charge. I’m sorry for what happened at the airport. I should have been more observant. I was only thinking about myself. I’m going to change that. I’ll find a way to do better. Will you accept my apology?”
“What do you say, girls?” Angelique asked.
The girls huddled, then blond braids met his gaze. “Yeah, we can forgive you.”
Tula waved him down. “That was good, Seb. Now you need to do something nice for them.”
“Like what?” he whispered back.
“Buy the cookies they need to sell to get to Disneyland. That way, they’ll be happy, and then they can’t throw more of them at you.”
He peered at his whip-smart sibling. “You are one clever frankfurter, Tula Cress.”
“I know. I’m smart like Phoebe.”
The kid wasn’t wrong.
He surveyed the group. “And as a gesture of our gratitude, my sister and I would like to purchase your remaining boxes of cookies.”
“You’re going to Disneyland,” Tula announced.
“We’re going to Disneyland!” the trio of girls shrieked as the other tweens cheered.
The redheaded girl walked up to Tula. “We’re doing another round of catapult testing on the basketball court. Do you want to come with us, hot dog kid?”
Tula’s face lit up. “Can I go, Sebby?”
“You bet, but make sure you can still see me, and don’t leave the park.”
“We’ll keep an eye on her,” the girl with blond braids said, taking Tula’s hand as the foursome headed toward the blacktop and the mass of Tech Tweens dispersed.
“That was quite a speech,” Angelique commented.
“I meant every word of it.”
“We can tell.”
“We?” He’d barely uttered the words when a cell phone rang.
Angelique slipped the device from her pocket, pressed it to her ear, then met his eye. “The Marieuse Group investors would like to speak with you.”
“At their office?”
“No, now,” she corrected. “They’re here at the Tech Tween Jamboree.”
“They are?”
“I told you, they’re one of the two major sponsors. They always attend the Tech Tween Jamboree.”
“Are they interested in my life-coaching business?”
“They’re interested in you, Mr. Cress.”
What did that mean?
She gestured toward a table beneath a red pop-up canopy not far from the blacktop. “I’ll let Tula and her new friends know where you’ll be.”
