“I hope you will join the guests for meals,” Cecily said, as the widow hurried to the door. “Especially the Christmas dinner. Michel always outdoes himself at Christmas.”
“I would like that. Most kind of you.” Tears glistened in Gloria’s eyes once more as she bowed her head, then followed Pansy into the hallway.
Cecily sank onto her chair. She wasn’t at all sure she’d done the right thing. There was bound to be animosity between Gloria and Gertie. Perhaps the two of them would find a way to avoid each other. Gertie would have to understand that she couldn’t turn the poor thing out into the cold, after losing her husband in such a tragic way and with nowhere else to go. All she could hope now was that Gloria’s presence in the Pennyfoot wouldn’t cause more trouble.
CHAPTER 8
“I really enjoyed that walk this afternoon.” Leaning across one of the dining room tables, Pansy laid a folded white linen serviette on the left of the place setting. “Your twins are really fun to be with.”
Gertie twisted her mouth in a wry smile. That was easy for Pansy to say. She didn’t have to clean up after them, or make them behave when they got into mischief. “They’re fun if they’re in a good mood and not scrapping with each other. They get bloody overexcited this time of year. They drive me blinking loopy wanting to know when Father Christmas is going to get here.”
Pansy laughed. “You’re lucky to have them. I wish I had little ones like that.” Her face sobered. “Don’t look as if I’ll ever have ’em, though, at this rate.”
Gertie snorted. “Watcha talking about? You’re only a young kid. You’ve got lots of time to find a husband.”
“I don’t want just any husband. I want Samuel.”
“Yeah, well, I wouldn’t hold your breath waiting for that one.” Gertie picked up a crystal glass and polished the rim with a corner of her apron. “How many times have I told you to look for someone else?”
“Well, if I can’t have Samuel, I want someone just like your Dan. I think he’s smashing.”
Gertie grinned. “Yeah, he is. He’s so good with James and Lillian.”
“He is that.” Pansy lifted the pile of serviettes and moved to the next table. “He was a lot of fun to be with today. He made me and the twins laugh. I like that.”
“Me, too. I don’t think I ever laughed as much as I do with my Dan.”
“He looked tired, though. Like he’d been up all night. How’d he get that graze on his cheek? It looks nasty.”
“Had an accident in his motorcar, didn’t he.” Gertie followed her, resting the tray of wineglasses against her hip. “He told me someone stepped out in front of him and he had to swerve to miss him. He hit another motorcar coming the other way.”
“Goodness!” Pansy looked at her in dismay. “He could have been killed.”
“Nah, he wasn’t going fast enough.”
“Don’t you get scared when you go out riding in that motorcar with him?”
Gertie shook her head. “Dan’s a good driver. He’s taking me out in it this evening. They’re having a Christmas party down at the pub, with dancing and everything.”
Pansy sighed, her face taking on a dreamy expression. “Oh, it must be lovely to have someone take you out dancing. I can’t imagine Samuel ever doing that.”
Gertie felt like shaking her. Here she was having to sneak out tonight to be with Dan and risk getting into big trouble, while Pansy was too timid to go after what she wanted. “Then find someone who will.”
Pansy made a face. “Not that easy is it. I don’t get out much, and when I do I don’t go to places where there’s single blokes.”
“Well, we’ve got a couple of single blokes staying here for Christmas. How about that Archie Parker? He’s here all on his own. He’d probably jump at the chance of taking out a gorgeous young woman like you.”
Pansy made a gurgling noise of disgust. “A fat old medicine man. I can do better than that.” She tilted her chin up and looked thoughtful. “Now, that Sid Barrett. I wouldn’t mind taking a turn around the Esplanade with that one. He can make me laugh, too. He knows how to treat a lady, and make her feel special, all right.”
Gertie’s smile vanished. “You’d better stay away from that one. He’s trouble. I can sense it a mile off.”
“You’re just worried he’ll fancy me instead of you.”
Gertie snorted. “What me? No, thanks. I wouldn’t touch him with a lamplighter pole. You can bleeding have him if that’s what you want.”
“He fancies you, though. He’s always following you around.”
“Yeah, well he’s out of luck. I wouldn’t have nothing to do with him if he was dripping in diamonds.”
Pouting, Pansy slapped a serviette down on the table. “Well, you don’t have to, do you. You’ve got Dan.”
Gertie sighed. She wasn’t too sure about that. It was nice to have someone to go out with, and she really enjoyed being with Dan, but she couldn’t help wondering if she should take her own advice and give up on the idea of him ever asking her to marry him.
Then again, she wasn’t getting any younger, and with the twins and all, her prospects weren’t too bright. If Dan didn’t want a ready-made family it was unlikely anyone else would, even if she did meet another bloke.
She might just as well enjoy what she had and stop worrying about whether or not Dan would ever propose. The thought of giving up her dream made her heart ache, but dreams were for young kids, and she wasn’t a kid no more.
“I wonder why that Mrs. Johnson is staying here,” Pansy said, breaking into her thoughts.
For a minute Gertie thought she hadn’t heard right. “Mrs. Johnson? You mean Ian Rossiter’s wife?”
Pansy nodded. “Actually, she’s his widow now, isn’t she. I don’t know if I’d want to stay in the place where my husband was killed.”
“Gloria is staying here?” Gertie shook her head. “I don’t bloody believe it.”
“She’s in room number one. I took her up there myself about an hour ago.”
“Why would she want to stay here?”
“I dunno, but she had a lot of luggage with her. Samuel had to go and fetch it from the High Street.”
“What was it doing in the High Street?”
“Samuel said she and Ian was living in a flat over Ab bitson’s, the butcher’s shop. Just think, if Dan still owned it, he’d be her landlord.”
“Flipping heck.” Having placed the last wineglass on the table, Gertie swung the tray down by her side. “That’s it. I’ve had enough surprises for one day. I’m going back to the kitchen. It’s almost time to start dishing up the supper, anyhow.”
“I’m not finished yet.” Pansy dropped another serviette on the table in front of her. “I have to go and ring the dinner bell in a minute.”
“I’ll ring it for you.” Gertie headed for the door. “You get finished up in here.” She waved away Pansy’s thanks and stepped out into the hallway.
After the bright light of the chandeliers in the dining room, the tiny flickering gas lamps on the walls were dim by comparison, and she blinked to adjust her sight.
Gloria here, in the Pennyfoot, right under her nose. It didn’t seem possible. All she could hope was that they didn’t bump into each other. The less she saw of Ian’s widow, the better.
She had taken just a few steps when she saw a movement outside the library door near the other end of the hallway. Two people stood close together, as if deep in a private conversation.
As she approached one of them broke away and sped off in the direction of the lobby. The woman passed under the gas lamp and Gertie frowned. It was Mabel and she seemed in an awful hurry.
The other figure turned and started toward her. Her nerves jumped when she saw Sid Barrett grinning at her. No wonder Mabel had run off like that. He’d probably been pestering her the way he hassled all the women.
Bracing herself, she approached him with a firm step, ready to brush him aside if he barred her way.
“Hello, me old darling,” he called out, while she was still a few steps away.
“I’m not your bleeding darling.” She glared at him, but he seemed unfazed by her animosity toward him.
“I hear they’ve got a Christmas celebration going on at the George and Dragon tonight. If you’ll go with me I’ll
