Evvie at Sixteen

by Susan Beth Pfeffer

  “You’d like Schyler if you got to know him,” Evvie said. “He’s really very nice.”

  “So am I,” Sam declared. “Or hadn’t you noticed?”

  “I’ve noticed,” she said. “Look, Sam, I’ve got to get off. I’ll talk to you before Thursday.”

  “Okay,” Sam said. “See you.”

  Evvie hung up the phone, and ran up the stairs to Grace’s room. Grace was back in bed, and Trouble was sleeping contentedly by her side.

  “I’m back,” Evvie said.

  “Who was that on the phone?” Grace asked.

  “Sam,” Evvie replied. “He’s driving to Boston on Thursday and wants me to go with him. We’d be back around ten. Is that all right?”

  “I don’t care for Sam,” Aunt Grace declared. “He’s dishonest at his core.”

  “Sam isn’t dishonest,” Evvie said. “He hasn’t lied to me or to you about anything.”

  Aunt Grace snorted. “It’s not a question of little lies,” she said. “The dishonesty is inside him, as it is in Nick.”

  “If you feel that way about it, why do you let me see Sam?” Evvie asked. “Not that I want to give you any ideas.”

  “If I forbade you, what difference would it make?” Grace said. “I tried that with Margaret and learned my lesson then. If you’ve inherited any of Nick’s native cunning, you’ll see Sam for what he is, and break off the relationship on your own.”

  Evvie sighed. “I’d still like to go to Boston with him,” she said. “All right? Assuming my native cunning hasn’t kicked in by then.”

  “I’ll think about it,” Grace said. “There are those papers I left in Beacon Hill …” Her voice trailed off.

  “Thank you,” Evvie said. “And can Schyler and I go swimming this afternoon?”

  “Feel free,” Aunt Grace said. “Schyler is suitable. His family is well known to me.”

  Evvie laughed.

  “I fail to see what’s amusing,” Aunt Grace said. She shifted her weight around, which woke Trouble up and started him purring.

  “I’m not sure I can explain it,” Evvie replied. But before she had a chance to, the phone rang. “That’s them,” she said. “I’ll take it in the music room.”

  “Very well,” Aunt Grace said, and Evvie ran out of her room and down the hallway. She got to the phone by the third ring.

  “Evvie? It’s me.”

  “Thea, hi!” Evvie said, settling in on the loveseat. “How are you? How is everything?”

  “Everything’s fine, only we miss you,” Thea declared. “Well, Claire’s a royal pain, but that’s just typical. And Nicky’s doing great. He met this guy who’s looking for interesting investment opportunities, and Nicky’s trying to talk him into building a ski resort nearby. He’s really excited about it.”

  “What’s new with you?” Evvie asked. “Meet any cute boys?”

  “I only wish,” Thea said with a sigh. “I swear I haven’t left the house all summer. Megs has us working day and night. But the place is starting to shape up.”

  “Even our room?” Evvie asked.

  “We’re working on it,” Thea said. “At least it isn’t red. What’s it like there?”

  “It’s beautiful,” Evvie admitted. “It’s like a dream house. And Clark’s house is just as nice. I had brunch there today.”

  “Do you get out at all?” Thea asked. “Or just to Clark’s?”

  “There are two guys here,” Evvie said, savoring the moment. “Schyler and Sam.”

  “Schyler and Sam,” Thea repeated. “Two of them. Evvie, you’re amazing. What are they like? Which one do you like better?”

  “They’re both great,” Evvie said. “Schyler is spending the summer at Clark’s. He’s some sort of cousin, and he’s gorgeous. Thea, you wouldn’t believe how great-looking he is. Like a model, only better, if you know what I mean.”

  “I could learn,” Thea said. “If he’s so great-looking, what do you care about the other one? Sam.”

  “Sam’s cute, too,” Evvie said. “And …” She paused for a moment trying to figure out how to explain Sam.

  “And what?” Thea demanded. “Evvie, we only have a couple of minutes before Nicky and Megs get on. And Claire and Sybil are going to want to know everything.”

  “It’s hard to explain,” Evvie said. “It’s just that … well, with Sam I’m just me. No games. And he makes me laugh. For that matter, I make him laugh. We laugh a lot.”

  “Great looks versus great laughs,” Thea said. “Either way it sounds wonderful. I don’t believe your luck.”

  “Neither do I,” Evvie said. “Of course Aunt Grace prefers Schyler.”

  “Who do you prefer?” Thea asked.

  “Sam,” Evvie said, and was surprised at the ease with which she answered the question. “Yeah, Sam.”

  “Are you in love with him?” Thea asked.

  “I don’t know yet,” Evvie replied. “I’m not Megs, after all. I don’t just look at some guy and end up marrying him. I have more native cunning than that.”

  “I don’t know about the native cunning,” Thea said. “But you are in love, I can tell. Wait until I tell Claire and Sybil. Wait until I tell my diary! What’s his last name?”

  “Steinmetz,” Evvie said. It was too hard to explain about Greene.

  “Evvie Steinmetz,” Thea said. “Oh, well. Maybe you could get him to change his name to Sam Sebastian. It sounds like some kind of ruin.”

  “Thea!” Evvie said.

  “I gotta get off now,” Thea said. “Nicky and Megs are making demanding noises. Hold on.”

  “ ’Bye,” Evvie said, but before Thea had a chance to say good-bye back, Nick and Meg were on the phone.

  “How’s Grace treating you?” he asked, immediately following their hellos.

  Evvie searched for the right words. “She’s been fine,” she said. “I don’t feel like Cinderella if that’s what you’re worrying about.”

  “Aunt Grace isn’t like that,” Meg declared. “No matter what Nicky says. Are you getting a chance to enjoy yourself, Evvie? Are you seeing much of Clark?”

  “I’m having a good time,” Evvie said. “I had brunch at Clark’s today. He’ll be calling you soon.”

  “What about people your own age?” Nick asked. “You can’t spend the summer with just Grace and Clark.”

  “Clark has cousins visiting him for the summer,” Evvie replied. “Two teenage boys. I’ve been seeing them.”

  “That’s right,” Meg said. “I remember Clark mentioned they’d be coming. Are they nice?”

  “Very nice,” Evvie said. “And Aunt Grace doesn’t mind if I spend time with them. I’ve asked.”

  “Naturally she’d approve,” Nick said. “So what, if anything, does she disapprove of?”

  “There’s another boy,” Evvie admitted. “Sam Steinmetz. His family owns the bookstore. He’s really nice, but Aunt Grace isn’t too crazy about him.”

  “Try not to irritate Aunt Grace,” Meg said.

  “Megs, if I breathe I irritate Aunt Grace,” Evvie declared.

  “I know the feeling,” Nick said. “Has Grace forbidden you to see him?”

  “No,” Evvie replied. “And she says she isn’t going to, either. She says forbidding doesn’t work.”

  “She has a point,” Nick said. “What do you say, Daisy? Should we stand in the way of young love?”

  Meg laughed. It was an intimate sound, one which Evvie associated with Megs and Nicky as a pair. “We wouldn’t stand a chance,” she declared.

  “I hope Grace is easier on you than she was on Daisy,” Nick said. “If she isn’t, give us a call, and we’ll see what we can do.”

  “Thanks, Nicky,” Evvie said. “How are things with you? Thea told me about a deal you’re trying to put together?”

  “It’s fascinating,” Nick replied, and soon Evvie was listening to all the details of Nick’s latest venture, almost as though she were still at home.

  CHAPTER TEN

  “Pass me
the suntan lotion.”

  Evvie did as Schyler requested. She watched him spread the liquid over his arms and chest. It hadn’t taken Schyler long to acquire a perfect tan. She, on the other hand, was a blotchy combination of sunburn and freckles. The only one in her family with even the remotest chance to tan well was Claire, and Claire insisted on keeping her complexion creamy white all year round. “I will not pay for a tan now with wrinkles when I’m fifty,” she’d declared when she was ten. Claire believed in advance planning.

  “What if there’s a nuclear war?” Sybil had asked at the time. “Then you’ll just end up wrinkled like everybody else in the world.”

  “I will never be like everyone else in the world,” Claire had replied.

  Evvie grinned at the memory. Claire, of course, had been right, but Sybil had chased her around the house—or was it an apartment that year?—demanding a different answer. Claire proclaimed, Sybil demanded. It had been that way for quite a while.

  “A penny for your thoughts,” Schyler said.

  “You’d be cheated,” Evvie replied. “They’re not worth that much.”

  “That’s all right,” Schyler said. “I’ll take my chances.”

  “I was thinking about my family,” Evvie said.

  “That’s sweet,” Schyler declared. “You’re a very sweet girl, Evvie.”

  “Am I?” Evvie asked. “I doubt Aunt Grace thinks so.”

  “Oh, I don’t know,” Schyler said. “I’m sure she’s very fond of you. Clark says so. He says in spite of everything, Grace loves your mother and all you girls a great deal.”

  “Clark’s very dear,” Evvie said. “But he still believes in Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy. Come to think of it, in my family, he is Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy.”

  “Clark says your father is an innovative businessman,” Schyler said. “And that many of his deals have proven quite lucrative.”

  “Clark’s right,” Evvie replied. “There have been times we’ve had money to burn.”

  “Then what happened?” Schyler asked.

  “We burned it,” Evvie said. “That’s the nature of our family.”

  “It sounds,” Schyler began, but then he obviously couldn’t think of just how it sounded. “It sounds interesting,” he finally ended with, and Evvie laughed.

  “Very interesting,” she replied. “No one’s ever accused us of being boring.”

  “I envy that,” Schyler said. “Boring is on my family’s coat of arms. There’s a picture of some ancient knight named Hughes yawning.”

  “You don’t really have a coat of arms, do you?” Evvie asked.

  “Of course we do,” Schyler said. “Mother researched it. She’s a fanatic on family history, traced hers and Dad’s, all the way back to some ungodly century. I made up the part about yawning, though.”

  “I suspected you might have,” Evvie said.

  “This is a perfect beach,” Schyler said. He leaned over, and kissed Evvie. “And you are a perfect girl to be on the beach with.”

  “No, I’m not,” Evvie replied. “The perfect girl would have a perfect tan.”

  “I can overlook that,” Schyler declared, and proved it with another kiss. This one lasted longer, and like the day and the beach was, in its own way, perfect, too.

  “Thank goodness for Aunt Grace’s naps,” Evvie said. “My daily two hours in heaven.”

  “Grace wouldn’t object to your seeing me,” Schyler said. “Would she?”

  “Not that I know of,” Evvie said. “Even though your mother isn’t from Boston.”

  “I didn’t think so,” Schyler said. “Clark led me to believe Grace would be happy if we dated this summer. Clark certainly is.”

  “You aren’t dating me because Clark wants you to?” Evvie asked. “Are you?”

  “No, of course not,” Schyler replied. “Are you kidding? A girl as pretty as you? No, I was thinking more of you than me.”

  Evvie doubted that. “What do you mean?” she asked.

  “I could understand it if Grace wouldn’t let you date a year-rounder,” Schyler said. “Or Sam Steinmetz. But I would have thought I’d be socially acceptable.”

  “Why shouldn’t I see Sam?” Evvie asked, and she realized how much she sounded like Sybil. “You think Grace wouldn’t approve just because he’s Jewish?”

  “I doubt that’s a point in his favor,” Schyler said. “But, no, I didn’t mean that.”

  “Then because his grandparents own the bookstore?” Evvie asked.

  “Oh come on Evvie,” Schyler said. “You know the story. You must. Does that sound like the kind of boy Grace Winslow would want her grandniece to be involved with?”

  “What story?” Evvie asked.

  “You don’t know?” Schyler said. “No one’s told you about Sam’s family?”

  “Sam has,” Evvie said. “He lives with his grandparents. One set for nine months, and the Steinmetzes for the other three.”

  Schyler laughed. “He seems to have left out his parents,” he said.

  “I just assumed they were dead or something,” Evvie said.

  “You got it,” Schyler said. “They’re dead or something.”

  “What?” Evvie asked. “What is it about Sam’s parents?”

  “You’re beautiful when you’re agitated,” Schyler declared.

  “Don’t tease,” Evvie said. “I want to know what you know about Sam.”

  “I thought everyone knew,” Schyler replied. “I was certain you did. I figured Sam must have told you, or your aunt, or Clark, or even Mrs. Baker.”

  “They didn’t,” Evvie said. “So you have to.”

  “If I have to, I have to,” Schyler said. “Sam’s father is dead. His mother killed him.”

  “You’re kidding,” Evvie said. “Is she in prison?”

  “They only wish,” Schyler replied. “What’s the expression? She’s on the lam. It’s been years, but they’ve never caught up to her.”

  “That’s terrible,” Evvie said. “She murdered him?”

  “Not exactly,” Schyler said. “I’m sure she’d say it was an accident. The FBI might not agree though, what with all those radical politics.”

  “How old was Sam when it happened?” Evvie asked.

  “I don’t know,” Schyler replied. “He must have been real young. It happened a long time ago, from what I’ve heard. Everybody in town knows about it. I don’t know who Sam thought he was kidding not telling you.”

  “I don’t know, either,” Evvie said. “I guess if my mother killed my father, I wouldn’t tell everybody about it, though.”

  “I can’t see your parents getting into a mess like that,” Schyler declared. “I grant you, I’ve never met them, but they don’t seem like the type to blow up banks.”

  “Sam’s parents blew up a bank?” Evvie asked. “And that’s how his father died?”

  “By the rocket’s red glare,” Schyler said. “The bombs bursting in air. Gave proof through the night that Sam’s mom wasn’t there. His dad was, though. In a thousand little pieces. Lots of people died, but his mother got away, and she’s stayed away ever since. Not that I blame her. I wouldn’t want to have the Steinmetzes for my in-laws, either.” He laughed.

  Evvie felt sick. She didn’t know which upset her more, Schyler’s cheery pleasure at having told the story, or Sam’s not having done so. Sam must have known she’d find out. Why hadn’t he trusted her with the truth?

  “You look pale,” Schyler declared. “I’m sorry, Evvie. I thought you’d find it funny.”

  “You mean it was all a joke?” Evvie asked.

  “I didn’t make it up, if that’s what you mean,” Schyler said. “Clark told me. He said he was surprised Grace was letting you see Sam. He didn’t think she was that tolerant. As a matter of fact, he said if you were staying under his roof this summer, he doubted he’d give you permission to see Sam. Not that it’s Sam’s fault, what his parents did. But Clark doesn’t think it’s safe, given Sam’s family history. The
whole thing might blow up in your face.” Schyler laughed again.

  “I’m going now,” Evvie said. “Schyler, will you excuse me?”

  “Why?” Schyler asked. “Is it something I’ve said?”

  It’s everything you’ve said, Evvie thought. And the way you’ve said it. “I’ve gotten a headache from the sun,” she said instead. “Besides, Aunt Grace will be getting up soon. I’ll see you later.”

  “Not too much later, I hope,” Schyler said.

  “We’ll see.” Evvie gathered her things up and ran down the beach toward Aunt Grace’s cottage. She let herself in, and was relieved not to see the Bakers or the maid, or to hear Aunt Grace moving about. She needed some time to herself to decide what to do.

  I could pretend I don’t know, she thought. Wait for Sam to tell me himself.

  And if he didn’t? Then where was she? Besides, there was always the chance Schyler was lying, or at least exaggerating. No, she was better off confronting Sam. It was better to face things head on.

  She picked up the phone and called Sam at the store. She was relieved when he answered.

  “I need to talk with you,” she said. “Can you get away for a few minutes?”

  “I guess so,” he replied. “Things are pretty quiet around here. Where do you want to meet?”

  “We have a gazebo,” Evvie said.

  “We do?” Sam said. “That’s news to us.”

  “Aunt Grace has a gazebo,” Evvie said. “All right? I’ll be waiting for you there.”

  “It sounds romantic,” Sam said. “See you in a few minutes.”

  Evvie hung up and walked to the gazebo. She didn’t feel like waiting for Sam indoors. The gazebo was romantic, or would be under the proper circumstances. Nicky and Megs had met there at least once, when they’d burned the frilly pink dress. She could almost feel their youthful ardor as she sat on the wrought iron loveseat and awaited Sam’s arrival.

  “So this is a gazebo,” he said, as he entered it. “I’ve often wondered what the landed gentry did with their extra dollars.”

  “I like it,” Evvie said. “It’s cool and private.”

  “Is that why you asked me here?” Sam asked. “For the cool and private?”