Grandma?" I asked nervously.
"We'll go out to the gazebo," she replied,
ignoring my question. "I need some air and a little
walk after that meal anyway," she said.
"It was a terrific brunch, Grandma."
"The coleslaw was rather bitter this time," she
complained. We left the house, walked down the
pathway to the gazebo, and sat on the bench. "Mommy and May should come out, too," I
said. "It's so beautiful, hardly a cloud in the sky." I gazed down the beach and saw the four men
walking, little puffs of smoke from Grandpa's and
Judge Childs's mouths caught and dissipated in the
breeze. Cary was a few steps behind the adults, his
head down.
"We'll send for them in a moment," Grandma
Olivia said. "Now that you are obviously becoming a
young woman with a woman's . . interests, I thought it
was time we had a little talk, Laura. I don't mean to
interfere, but I don't think your mother is prepared for
this sort of discussion," she added.
"What kind of a discussion is that, Grandma?" "A woman-to-woman discussion," she replied,
"where one woman has vast experience and wisdom
to give to another, younger woman. Although she
would have the same good intentions, your mother
doesn't have my background, my breeding. She's not
as aware of the dangers."
"Dangers?"
I stopped smiling and sat back. I suddenly felt
as if my wonderful brunch had all tightened into a
small, hard ball at the base of my stomach.
"I don't understand, Grandma. What dangers?" "You're interested in someone, I understand,