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disappear around a turn.

"Does he get a job during the summer?" "I don't know, honey. I don't imagine he would

be easy to employ. Even Tyler, the master guru,

would have trouble dealing with someone so

introverted," she said, smiling.

I didn't smile. I thought to myself, If it weren't for my uncle and aunt, I'd probably not have a job for

the summer either.

For some reason, the cafe wasn't as jammed for

lunch as it had been the day before, so we were able to

continue home to bring everything into my bedroom.

After we put on the new bedding and set out the area

rugs, hung the new curtains and placed the lamp, we

stood back together and considered.

"You know what else you might think of

doing?"

"What?"

"Pai

nting these walls a happier color. Or

papering them. Something. Maybe," she added, "if

you brighten up the room, you'll brighten up yourself

inside."

"Maybe." I relented, and we planned on when

we would go look for some paint or wallpaper. After we made ourselves some lunch and ate

and talked, I revealed that I had brought along one of

the more fashionable skirts and blouses I had bought

during our shopping spree before the prom. After we

ate, I put them on and she smiled.

"Now go fix your hair and put on a little

lipstick, Alice."

I did, and then we left for the cafe to help with the after-lunch cleanup and preparations for the evening dinner. The crowd had thinned out to where there were just two tables of four. It was Missy's turn to stay on. Cassie had left, and Mrs. Mallen had gone to the bank to make a deposit for Uncle Tyler. As soon as we entered, I looked over at the corner table and sure enough, there he was, Duncan Winning, his head down, scribbling in his notebook, a cup of coffee