"I . . I thought I knew who she was."
"Well, what do you two talk about if not each other's pasts?" I asked in all innocence.
"I told her all about myself, yes, but she never mentioned any. . . promiscuity, you say? Expelled for it? What sort of promiscuity? I mean, what did she do?"
"You have to understand she was so much less mature then," I said.
"It wasn't very long ago," he replied quickly.
"The events matured her," I said. "Sometimes that happens when things are bigger than we expect." "You mean there was something of a scandal?"
"Almost. Daddy and I stopped it before it started," I bragged.
He shook his head, his eyes glassy, numb.
"I had no idea. Who else knows this?"
"Besides the family . . . administrators at the school, some other girls, of course, and of course the boys involved," I said.
"Boys? You mean there was more than one?"
"Oh, why talk about something a girl did when she was young and immature, Carson. That's not the girl you know now, right? That's not the girl you proposed to, the girl you want to build a home for, the girl you want to have your children, if she still can have children, of course."
"What? Why couldn't she?"
"That's an entirely different matter, Carson. I don't feel right discussing it, even with Belinda's future husband. It's something that should be between you, your wife and your doctor," I added.
"I had no idea . . . about any of this," he said shaking his head. "I don't put my ear to the walls surrounding gossip, and I know so few of Belinda's contemporaries. None of her girlfriends, in point of fact."
"You're not missing anything there," I said. "Her friends are . . . mostly undesirable. You won't want to have any of them to your home, much less your wedding."
His mouth dropped open.
"I'm sorry," I said, "but I promised my father I would review and correct these documents today and . . ." "Oh, yes." He rose.
We heard Belinda bouncing down the stairs. He looked at me with the expression of a man who was about to go to his doom.
"Carson McGil," she sang in the hallway. "Where are you hiding? I know you wouldn't dare be late for a date with me. Carson?"
He started out of the den as Belinda appeared in the doorway.
"There you are. Visiting with Olivia? How nice. We're on our way to Boston, Olivia."
"I know. You told me twice already, Belinda." "Don't you get tired of doing men's work?" she said with her little impish smile.
"It's not men's work. It's not women's work. It's work," I said. "That's a word that has never felt at home in Belinda's vocabulary," I explained to Carson. He nodded.
"I don't want to make it comfortable in my vocabulary," she whined. "Play," she followed, "that's the word that will be the most valued guest in my house. Right, Carson, dear?"
He looked at her and then to me.
"We better be going," he announced.
"Have a nice time. Both of you," I said.
Carson nodded and started out of the room. Belinda's eyes grew small with suspicion for a moment and then, whatever thought had flashed across her movie-screen mind disappeared and was replaced with her usual fanfare.
"Thank you, Olivia. We will," she promised and spun quickly to shoot her hand under Carson's arm.