Logan sighed in frustration. “Fine,” he said. “I won’t say anything else about it, but I have one more surprise for you tonight, and the first part of it is in the car. I put a lot of work into this.”
“Why didn’t you just say so?”
“I wanted it to be a surprise,” Logan said.
“Do I need to wear anything in particular for this surprise?” Callie asked.
“You don’t have to bring a stitch of clothing if you don’t want,” Logan said. He flashed her a devilish grin. It didn’t make complete sense to her, but Callie couldn’t deny the thrill she felt whenever he looked at her like that.
“Let’s go,” she said. The sky had darkened to a bright red above them, and the sunset seemed to hang there as they prepared to leave. Callie followed Logan back to his speedboat. Within a few minutes, they were heading back across the water toward his father’s mansion with the wind in their hair. Callie had tucked herself underneath Logan’s arm as he piloted the boat across the calm water. She leaned her head against his shoulder and let herself relax. “Isn’t it beautiful?” she asked. “I know things got a little out of hand at polo, but it was wonderful. I had fun.” She was excited for the surprise, but mostly, she just wanted to spend as much time with Logan as possible.
“I’m glad to hear that,” Logan said. “I swear, I had no idea she’d be there.”
Callie had already put Veronica out of her mind. As far as she cared, she could pretend Veronica Jones didn’t exist for at least one night.“Let’s not talk about her,” Callie said.
“That’s fine by me,” Logan said. There was still something different in his voice, some reservation in the way he phrased his words.
Callie wondered if she had done something to upset him. It couldn’t have been the run-in with Henry and Eve, could it? She racked her brain to figure out what she had done. “Logan, you’d tell me if something were wrong, wouldn’t you?” Callie asked.
“Yeah,” Logan said,”everything’s fine,” he said. There was still that hesitation in his voice.
Maybe this was the time to tell him that she had decided to stay, she thought, but she wanted him to be happy when she told him. She wanted everything to be perfect, and at that moment, with the sky darkening to a deep purple-red above them, with the water growing dark beneath, she felt like the only thing holding her back was Logan’s mood. She made a decision, she’d wait until the car and his surprise, and she’d tell him as soon as he was happy again.
After a while the color started to fade from the trees and the houses on the far off shore, and the lights in the houses and on the boats blinked on. Hank’s mansion came into view around the point. For a while, Callie didn’t recognize it. Every other time she had seen it, it had been virtually empty, but tonight, she could see crowds of people on the back veranda and lawn. She pulled on Logan’s shirt and nodded forward. “Something’s going on,” she said.
“Surprise,” Logan said flatly. “You were right about the car. I sent someone to pick it up as soon as we got back to the boat, but I had to figure out some way to get you back ashore. The other day, you told me how much you would have loved to have gone to a great ball at one of the Newport mansions. Well, I can’t bring you back in time, but I know a thing or two about throwing a party.”
By the time they reached the dock, the entire scene had come into focus. The house was lit up from the basement to the roof, and blazing shadows stretched out between the lights across the lawn. Through the windows Callie could see a sea of people, dancing and laughing and moving from room to room. The happy sounds of a summer party in full swing floated across the lawn. Callie looked over to Logan. “You did all of this for me?” she asked.
Logan nodded sheepishly. “You wanted Newport glamour. Here you are. I wanted to give you a day to remember,” he said. Logan pulled the boat up to the dock and tossed a rope up. Two men took the other side and pulled the boat into position. “I hope you enjoy it.” He stepped up off of the boat and held his hand out for Callie to follow him. “I have your dress waiting in the guest house.”
It was quiet inside the guesthouse. Save for a low hum and the occasional vibration, Callie could barely hear the sounds of excitement from the big house once she had stepped inside. Logan led her over to her bedroom and opened the door. A black ball gown lay across the bed. “You did this? How did you know my size?” Callie asked.