Blue Autumn Cruise by Lisa Williams Kline

Author:Lisa Williams Kline [Kline, Lisa Williams]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-0-310-72618-0
Publisher: Zonderkidz
Published: 2012-09-02T04:00:00+00:00

9

DIANA

No more than thirty minutes after we got back on board, our ship left Grand Cayman. I went with Mom and Norm to stand on the upper deck to watch us pull away from the island. I could look out and see the lights of George Town begin to wink on, and Seven Mile Beach stretching away along the coastline as the sun set.

Lauren and Stephanie had gone back to take showers before dinner because they said they were sandy and sunburned. I needed a shower, too, but I didn’t primp as much as they did, and I could take my turn last.

Mom and Norm came and stood next to me as I leaned against the railing watching the island slip away.

“We had a great day today, didn’t we?” Mom said.

“Yeah.”

“All the animals were really cool, weren’t they?”

“Yeah. Getting to touch those stingrays was amazing.” I was trying not to think about the turtles.

“How is everything going?” Mom asked. “Are you girls getting along okay?

“Yeah. Fine.” I had already made the mistake of telling Grammy Verra about my argument with Lauren. She’d already told me I was wrong. I didn’t want to hear it again from Mom or Norm.

“Okay, sweetie,” Mom said, rubbing my shoulder. “I’m glad. If you need to talk about anything, let me know.”

“That’s right,” Norm said. “There’s a lot of togetherness on a trip like this, and it can sometimes be a challenge.”

I wished Norm hadn’t butted into the conversation. I wished I could just have had a couple of minutes with Mom. I wanted to ask her about the trip she made with Dad where she fed the iguana. Sometimes I thought about times they were together and having fun—like that trip to Saint Thomas—and I’d wonder what happened between them.

I shook my head, as if to shake the thoughts away. Deep down I knew that wasn’t something I should spend my time thinking about. I knew it was right that they were apart and that Mom was with Norm.

I reminded myself that Norm had always tried to be nice to me. Not to replace my dad but to be a parent. He had even pulled me out of the Big Pigeon River two summers ago when I fell out of the raft. So I bit my tongue and didn’t snap at Norm, and then I thought about how Dr. Shrink would say I was making progress.

The evening breeze blew a bit cooler.

“Better go get ready for dinner,” Norm said.

So the three of us headed inside. Mom gave me a hug and a kiss on the forehead before they stepped into their room.

“See you in a little while, sweetie,” she said.

Just as I was going into my room, I saw something move on the hallway floor, something with a tail, scurrying. It trundled around the corner into the supply room, where a lot of towels and soaps and shampoos were being stored.

I caught my breath. Goosebumps ran up the back of my neck. What was that?

I let the door close.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.