Monica is torn between rooting for her school's football team and the team that her friend Rory plays for, and things get complicated when she is asked to be a substitute rider in the rival team's parade.
When her mother cannot find a babysitter for the weekend, thirteen-year-old Monica is left in charge of the house and her stepsister Angela, with disastrous results.
Monica is already nervous about riding in her first horse show, and when she finds out that Rory is betting on her performance it only increases the pressure she feels.
Monica tries to be nice to her eight-year-old stepsister, Angela, but she begins to wonder why she bothers when it seems like Angela is trying to get her in trouble.