Nocturne(40)

“You spoke with Madeline about my interactions with Savannah?” My throat was stiff as I asked the question. As far as I knew, Madeline wasn’t aware of the brief affair rumors that had run through campus, as she was off campus for the entire semester.

“Relax, she doesn’t know about the rumors. At least, she’s never mentioned them to me. But, yes, Savannah’s come up. Madeline and I have been on a few dates, and we talk about work sometimes. Naturally, our most promising students enter the conversation and, Savannah is Madeline’s.”

Trying to regulate my sigh of relief I waved my hand. “Of course, of course. I didn’t realize you and Madeline …”

He smiled. “Well ... it’s very new.”

I nodded then said, my tone stiff, “And may I ask, why did you not mention dinner before now?”

James rested his hands on the counter and gave me a searching look. “Because it’s obvious you are hung up on the girl. I thought it best to not leave you stewing in your own juices, and since the school year is over, perhaps the two of you can be around each other now without acting like idiots.”

I squeezed my eyes shut for a second. “Your thought process is bizarre.”

He chuckled. “Maybe. But isn’t it true that if I’d warned you, you would have suddenly found something else to do this evening?”

I grunted. “Perhaps that would have been best.”





Savannah


As I followed Madeline up the steps of the house, I found myself wondering for the fiftieth time if I should have gone out somewhere else. The past few weeks had been wonderful. I’d attended Tanglewood as a student during my summers in high school, but I’d never guessed that it was just as much an education for the instructors as it is for the students. And one thing I’d learned in the last few weeks was that I was a good teacher.

It was gratifying that I wasn’t the only one who felt that way. Increasingly, Madeline had left me to my own devices as she became more confident in my abilities.

All the same, I was still a bit of a loner. Not really an instructor, though technically I was on the faculty for the summer. I was separated by age and by the fact that the rest of the faculty were professional musicians, most of them with tenured positions at the Boston Symphony Orchestra. More than one of them had given me the cold shoulder because of my youth and status as a not yet graduated student at the conservatory. At the same time, I was four years older than most of the students.

Madeline had brought up dinner casually a couple of days before. “I’m going to be having dinner Friday night with James Mahone. You know him? He’s an oboe instructor at the conservatory.”

“He was on the panel for my audition,” I had replied. “He seems like a nice guy, I’ve seen him around school.”

So here we were. I was still a little lost in my thoughts as she knocked on the door, my eyes on the wooden porch, so when I looked up and saw Gregory Fitzgerald standing in the doorway, I sucked in a quick breath.

Gregory wore a tight black t-shirt and black pants. Typical. Slim, fit, with his muscular arms and shoulders, he was more than a little bit unnerving. He was obviously relaxed, padding around in his black socks with no shoes. What is he doing here? Stupid question, I guess. I knew James and Gregory were friends, or at least I’d seen them off campus drinking together. I’d managed to avoid Gregory so far this summer. Because really, what’s the point of spending time with someone you’re falling for, if they don’t return the feeling? And I’d finally admitted to myself, just a little, that I was falling for Gregory. It was more than a passing kiss in a rainstorm. It was that I wanted to kiss him again. In the rain, in the sun, anywhere I could.

But I couldn’t. He didn’t want that.

I swallowed. Why did he have to be here? Why didn’t Madeline warn me? Ugh, she wouldn’t know to warn me, I guess, given she knew nothing of the rumors from the past semester. That was long gone, and we were both adults. She certainly didn’t know about the kiss.

I actually wanted to run. My throat was dry, my hands trembling, as Gregory gave a tight half smile and said, “Madeline ... S-Miss Marshall ... please come in.”

He stepped back away from the door, and I followed Madeline in. My muscles were tight as I walked past him, and I had no idea where to set my eyes. As he reached to close the door behind me, he brushed against my shoulder. I jerked back a little bit. His touch lit me up more than I was comfortable with, given the setting. I forced my eyes anywhere but on him because I needed to cool the heat circling around my neck.

“It’s very good to see you again,” he said in a low rumble.

My breath caught a little, and I whispered, “You too, Mr. Fitzgerald.”

Madeline gave Gregory an annoyed smile. “I don’t think the two of you need to stand on ceremony any more. After all, she’s on the faculty this summer.”

Gregory’s eyes flashed at Madeline, then back to me. He nodded, and spoke in a low, tense voice, as his eyes locked on mine. Their bright crystal reflection made my heart race. “Of course. Savannah.”

Pulling my shoulders back slightly to fake some confidence, I nodded. “Gregory. Nice to see you.” Smiling because I’d made his eyes widen a little at my response, I shuffled by him and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.

James met us in the living room. “Thank you both for coming.” He gave Madeline a quick hug and a peck on the cheek, and echoed the greeting with me. I liked James a lot, and I was interested to find out more about how he and Madeline maintained their friendship with Gregory for so long without doing him any physical harm.