Cutler 04 - Midnight Whispers

disdainfully. "Has she taken a breath yet?"
    "I like Aunt Trisha very much," I said.
    "First off, she's not really your aunt so I don't know why you insist on calling her that, and second, good for you." She paused, took a puff, blew the smoke straight up, and then gazed at me. "Guess what I got for you for your birthday," she said, smiling coyly.
    "I can't imagine," I said.
    "I'll give it to you later, but you can't show it to your mother or tell her I gave it to you. Promise?"
    "What is it?" I asked, intrigued.
    "A copy of Lady Chatterley's Lover. It's about time you found out what it's all about," she added. "Well, here I go. Home again," she said and marched up the stairs and into the hotel.
    A ripple of apprehension shot down my spine. I hadn't spoken to her for more than a few minutes, but already my heart was pounding in anticipation of what was yet to come. Aunt Fern was like unexpected lightning and thunder shaking the very foundations of any happiness. I looked out toward the ocean. The clouds were still thick, still rolling in with fervor, determined to hold back the sunshine. I bowed my head and started up the stairs when I heard the sound of a horn and turned to see another taxi approaching.
    A hand was waving from the rear window, and then I saw a face.
    It was Gavin, his wonderful smile driving the emptiness out of the pit of my stomach and bringing the hope of sunshine back as quickly as it had been driven away.

 
    2
AND NEVER BEEN . . .
     
    GAVIN STEPPED OUT OF THE TAXI QUICKLY, BUT paused. I wanted to run to him and hug him, but I knew that would turn his face bright crimson and send him stuttering with embarrassment if I did any such thing, especially in front of his mother and father. I called his father Granddaddy Longchamp because he was Daddy's father. He was a tall, lean man with deeply cut lines in his face. His dark brown hair had thinned considerably, but he still wore it brushed back on the sides and flat on top. More and more gray had snuck in since I had last seen him, especially along his temples. His lanky frame, long arms and hands, and often sad eyes made me think of Abraham Lincoln.
    Gavin's mother, Edwina, was a very sweet and warm woman who spoke softly and seemed always terribly in awe of the hotel and the family. Aunt Fern never hesitated to remind her in whatever ways she could that she was only her stepmother, this despite the friendliness and love Edwina tried to show her. In his letters and whenever we were together, Gavin often told me about the mean things Aunt Fern had said or done to his mother.
    "She's my half-sister," he told me, "but I'd much rather she wasn't."
    "Well now," Granddaddy Longchamp exclaimed when he stepped out of the taxi, "the birthday girl!"
    "Happy birthday, honey," Edwina cried, as Granddaddy Longchamp kissed me on the cheek and then looked around, his hands on his hips, standing just the way Daddy stood sometimes.
    "Hi Gavin," I said, anxiously turning to him.
    "Hi." His eyes quickly turned soft, meeting and locking with mine.
    "Where's Jimmy?" Granddaddy Longchamp asked, but before I could reply, Daddy appeared in the doorway.
    "Hey, Pop, welcome," he cried, coming down to them. He hugged and kissed Edwina and helped them with their bags. Gavin and I followed behind then as we all entered the hotel.
    "How was your trip?" I asked Gavin. I tried not to stare at him, but I could see he had grown taller and his face had filled out, so he looked more mature.
    "It was long and boring," Gavin replied and then added, "I wish I lived a lot closer to you."
    "So do I," I confessed. He flicked a quick smile at me and looked around the hotel lobby. "Anything different?"
    "Wait until you see the grand ballroom," I told him.
    "You coming up to our suite, Gavin?" Granddaddy Longchamp asked him.
    "It's all right. I'll see to your things," his mother said, seeing his reluctance. "He wants to visit with Christie. They haven't seen each other for quite a while," she said and Gavin turned red with embarrassment. I didn't know any boy as shy.
    "Thanks, Mom," he muttered and gazed at something on the other side of the lobby.
    As soon as Daddy walked off with Granddaddy Longchamp and Edwina, I turned to Gavin.
    "Do you want to take a walk through the gardens and to the pool?" I asked. "They're doing a lot of work out there."
    "Fine. I bet you have a lot of your school friends coming tonight," he said as we started away.
    "Everyone in my class. I didn't have the heart