know,â Evvie said. âIsnât that something invalids enjoy? Being read out loud to?â She was sure sheâd seen that in a movie once, along with pillow fluffing.
âSo Iâm an invalid, am I,â Grace said. âWell, I suppose I am. Stuck in this bed. The Bradford boyâs been my only visitor.â
It took Evvie a moment to realize that âthe Bradford boyâ was Clark. âThatâs why I came,â she said. âSo you wouldnât get lonely.â
âAnd you propose to entertain me by reading out loud,â Aunt Grace said.
âThatâs what Megs used to do when one of us was sick,â Evvie replied. âShe still does, to Sybil and Claire.â
Aunt Grace humphed. âMegs,â she said. âI assume youâre referring to my niece, Margaret.â
âSheâs my mother, Megs, as well,â Evvie said.
âAnd that father of yours, you call him something ridiculous as well?â Grace said.
âNicky,â Evvie said.
âNormal children call their parents Mother and Father,â Grace declared. âI called my parents Mother and Father and we never had a momentâs difficulty.â
Evvie smiled and resisted the temptation to dump Aunt Graceâs eggs over her head.
Grace sat still for a moment and looked out her window to the ocean. âWell, perhaps a moment or two of difficulty,â she admitted. âBut never over what to call them.â
Evvie laughed. âMay I sit down?â she asked. âI feel uncomfortable hovering like this.â
âCertainly,â Grace said, and gestured to a chair. âHave you had your breakfast yet?â
âNot yet,â Evvie said. âI figured Iâd visit with you first.â
âAnd get your obligation over with for the day,â Aunt Grace said. âIt is a lovely day for the beach. Did you bring a bathing suit?â
âI did,â Evvie said. âBut I donât plan to run out of here the minute Iâve finished my breakfast, and then show up for dinner. Iâm here to help out, to keep you company. The beach is secondary.â
âVery well,â Grace said. âSo how is Margaret? I spoke to her on the phone yesterday, but we mostly talked about me and my condition.â
âSheâs fine,â Evvie said. âWe just moved into a new house, you know, so sheâs been busy decorating it.â
âIs it a nice house?â Aunt Grace asked.
âNice enough,â Evvie said. âOnce Megs is through with it, itâll be beautiful. The kitchen has a lot of potential.â
âWhat difference does that make?â Grace asked. âWhat do people do in kitchens besides prepare meals?â
âYou can entertain in them,â Evvie replied.
âNo one entertains in a kitchen,â Aunt Grace declared. âDo you have your own bedroom?â
âIâm sharing this time,â Evvie said. âThereâs one small roomâClaire has it at least for the summerâand Iâm sharing the large room with Thea and Sybil.â
âAnd how are the girls?â Aunt Grace asked. âItâs been a long while since Iâve seen them.â
âTheyâre fine,â Evvie said. âI have a picture of them in my room if youâd like to see it.â
âCertainly,â Aunt Grace said.
Evvie got up and went to her bedroom. She hadnât unpacked the night before, and it took some digging before she could locate the picture. She enjoyed the break from her aunt, and wondered how many more of them sheâd be able to manage a day.
âHere we all are,â she said, returning to Aunt Graceâs bedside. âItâs just a snapshot, but we donât have many of all six of us.â
Aunt Grace took the photograph and examined it carefully. âMargaret looks older,â she said. âIs she developing cataracts?â
âThe sun was in her