Crandalls' Castle Read Online Free

open window she could hear Ray out in the driveway, emptying the last of the luggage from the car so there would be room for three people to ride. She tiptoed down the hall, past the open door to her mother’s bedroom and back to the living room. Across the street the Crandalls’ house was quiet.
    â€œLet’s go,” she called to her mother. “Let’s go right now.”
    â€œOh, Charli,” her mother called back, “calm down. The restaurant will wait for us.”
    Charli kept her eyes on the house across the street while Ray backed the car out of the driveway and she and her mother climbed in. There was only one thing that could spoil this moment and it didn’t happen. Not a single Crandall appeared to see them leave. Charli was glad. She didn’t want Uncle Will and Aunt Lilly and the cousins to know they weren’t invited to the family dinner.
    Three hours later, a taxi made a U-turn and stopped in front of the Crandalls’ house just as Charli and her parents turned onto Lincoln Street.
    â€œThe new kid!” Charli exclaimed. In the excitement of the beautiful restaurant, the lake with the yachts skimming by, the cloth napkins as big as hand towels, too many forks, too much chicken and not enough shrimp, and the perfect slice of chocolate peanut butter pie, she had forgotten about the girl who was coming to live with the Crandalls. Now she watched curiously as a dark figure stepped out of the cab, dragging a big suitcase and then a smaller one behind her.
    The girl stood uncertainly at the curb until the taxi pulled away. Then she started up the walk, wobbling a little under the weight of her bags.
    â€œPoor child,” Charli’s mother said. “Lilly didn’t know whether she was coming tonight or tomorrow. She was supposed to call as soon as she got in, so they could pick her up downtown.”
    Ray swung into the driveway just as the Crandalls’ front door opened and Aunt Lilly came out onto the porch. Charli unfastened her seatbelt and opened the car door before Ray turned off the motor.
    â€œI’m going over there,” she said excitedly. “I want to see what she’s like.”
    â€œOh, Charli,” her mother protested. “It’s so late. Why don’t you wait until morning? The girl must be tired and you’re tired—”
    â€œI’m not tired,” Charli said.
    She was halfway back to the street when Ray said, “Hey!” in a way that made her skid to a stop. “Think about what it must be like to come to a strange house all by yourself, not knowing anybody, Charli. She doesn’t need another stranger staring at her, checking out whether she’s pretty and fun.” His voice softened. “Your mother’s right. There’ll be plenty of time tomorrow to get to know her.”
    Charli’s cheeks burned. He was bossing her! And how had he guessed exactly what she’d wanted to find out? Slowly she walked back down the driveway and followed the grown-ups into the house. I was just going to say hi, she thought angrily. The new girl couldn’t be too tired for that.
    Later, when she was in bed, she heard Ray’s low voice and then her mother’s down the hall.
    â€œâ€”don’t see why Will and Lilly would do it,” Ray said. “They have more kids than they can handle without taking on another one.”
    â€œIt’ll work out,” Charli’s mother said. “Will may be a little impulsive and Lilly may be a little disorganized but—”
    â€œA little?” Ray chuckled. “A little! I feel sorry for the new arrival. She has a lot to get used to over there.”
    Charli punched her pillow and dived farther under the sheet, covering her ears. It was just what she’d dreaded—Ray didn’t understand the Crandalls at all.
    I don’t feel one bit sorry for the new girl, she thought furiously. Anyone who lives with Uncle Will and