Music in the Night (Logan 4)

It was a wonderful afternoon. I never thought I would enjoy working so much. They wanted me to stay for dinner, but I didn't think it would be right on such short notice. I explained how I usually helped my mother make dinner and should be getting home.

Despite all the restoration work ahead of them, the Royces were happy and confident. The

atmosphere of camaraderie, the sense of partnership among them, made me envious.

Robert's parents seemed so much younger than mine and so much more relaxed. I felt their love for each other and how concerned they were for each other's happiness. No wonder Robert has such a warm and hopeful personality, I thought.

"Well," he said as we drove away, "I warned you my mother was a character."

"I love her, Robert. She's great."

"Yeah, I guess I'm lucky," he said. "And now," he added, looking at me, "I'm even luckier."

Because the school year was approaching its end, studying for exams and preparing our last projects was very important. Although Robert and I didn't share any classes, we thought it might be fun to study together. For that purpose, he came to my house the following Saturday. I had already told my mother and mentioned it to Daddy just before Robert was due to arrive. Daddy and May were playing a game of checkers in the living room at the time. He paused and turned to me.

"Seems youre becoming the talk of the town, you and your boyfriend, Laura," Daddy said.

"No we're not, Daddy." I started to laugh at the idea. "Grandma Olivia thinks so," he added. "You know how all the news worms its way up to her."

"I know." I grimaced in expectation of what Grandma Olivia had told him.

"Maybe you're getting a little too serious too fast," Daddy suggested.

"I'm not, really, Daddy."

"Everyone's expecting you'll go off to college, Laura. Not many Logans have. Your mother tells me you've shown some interest in becoming a teacher."

"I will become a teacher, Daddy."

"Lots of girls make plans and then meet someone and lose their heads, Laura," he warned.

"I'm not lots of girls, Daddy. I'm me," I said.

He nodded, his eyes softening. Daddy never liked chastising me and on more than one occasion, Cary suffered because of that. Poor Cary was always blamed for things we did together, no matter how much I protested and defended him. Daddy believed because Cary was a boy, he should be more responsible.

Once, when we were only ten and we had gone down to the beach at night and gotten ourselves soaked, he took the strap to Cary. I shouted and cried outside the door to Cary's room. Afterward, I went in and put some soothing cream on his welts. He never cried nor complained and when I did, moaning that I should have gotten at least half of the beating, he looked at me and said, "What for, Laura? I can bear it for both of us. I'm happy to take your half."

Because Cary was always so devoted to me, it was hard seeing him upset and angry now. I felt like a rubber band being stretched from both sides, fearful I would soon snap. I wanted Cary to be happy, too; but I wasn't willing to make myself and Robert unhappy in the process. I was hoping Cary would accept Robert soon and we would all be happy together.

Daddy said no more about my relationship with Robert and he didn't oppose our studying together at the house. Cary didn't say anything nasty about Robert coming over, as I thought he might, so I asked him if he wanted to study with us.

"I'm not going to waste my time on that," he replied. "It's not a waste of time, Cary, I know you're not doing well in some of your classes."

"What of it? I'm not going to college. You are. I'll be working with Dad in our business, where I belong," he snapped.

"You know you want to build boats, Cary. It would be good for you to go to college and take some courses in engineering and design."

"I don't need to sit in some stuffy college classroom full of snobby kids just to learn what I already know," he said. He did know an awful lot about boats. He had never had reading difficulties when it came to that, and there wasn't a boat, a design, or a concept of which he wasn't aware. Daddy was proud of the way Cary could hold his own in a discussion about our boat or about sailing whenever Daddy's friends were around. Some of them even took to asking Cary for advice.

"If you change your mind--"

"I won't," he declared. "I have things to do at the dock."

Robert had to work until after lunch, but around two-thirty, he drove up. I was waiting for him on the front stoop. Mommy and May had gone into town to do some shopping.

"Hi," he said, getting out quickly, his books and notebooks under his arm. We exchanged a quick kiss. "I hated leaving; there's still so much work to do, but my mother practically threw me out. So," he said, "where shall we go?"

"Up to my room," I said. I had been planning on studying there and had my own work set out. "We'll be less distracted. It's too beautiful today and if we stay out here, we won't get a thing done."