‘What’s this?’
‘You need to eat before your lesson,’ said Gracie.
‘Oh no, I’m far too nervous to eat,’ said Edie, so Gracie ate the sandwich and Edie sat at the table drawing invisible pictures with the tip of her finger and watching the clock.
At fifteen minutes to three Edie stood in front of the mirror in the entranceway and fluffed her hair. Then she squashed it all down again under her green cloche hat. She put on her coat and scarf and put her gloves in her pocket and walked down to the kitchen.
As though she was doing something perfectly routine, she announced, ‘I’m off for my driving lesson. Mister Ainsworth should be here directly, and soon I’ll be able to drive us anywhere we need to go.’
‘If Papa ever agrees to buying a car,’ said Gracie.
‘Oh, it will happen,’ said Edie.
Gracie was reading sheet music for songs she wanted to learn. ‘What do you think of “I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles”?’ She held the music up for Edie to see.
A horn beeped at the front of the house. ‘Well, that’s me — wish me luck.’ Edie kissed Gracie on the cheek, walked back down the hall, checked herself one more time in the mirror (though she wasn’t sure why), then she took out her notebook and wrote:
Tenth May Twenty-One
Plan — Purchase a motor car. One that gleams and reflects the white clouds in the sky.
The horn beeped again and she tucked her notebook back into her bag and walked down the front path that had been pebbled recently to cope with the new motorised delivery vans — tyres sank too far into the mud in winter, which only made Paul comment that they wouldn’t have needed to have the driveway done if the world had just stuck to horses, which were perfectly capable of taking them wherever they needed to go in adequate time.
She almost skipped along the path and the pebbles crunched under her shoes, making crackling music.
Virgil was parked in the driveway. He leant on the bonnet of his two-seater Morris Crowley, his arms crossed over his chest, smiling. His smile was lopsided and made him look like a boy who had got up to some mischief, mischief like kissing her. She’d make sure that didn’t happen again. She sensed he was a man who didn’t mind breaking a few rules. As she felt her heart thump against her ribs she realised it was a very appealing quality in a man and a shot of electricity ran through her to her fingertips.
The car was a glorious blue and the sun bounced off it in impish sparks. Edie couldn’t help sweeping her gloved hand along the bonnet and saw the reflection of the clouds in the gleam. This was the type of vehicle she needed. She noted that Virgil was wearing a knitted vest that matched the colour of his motor — and the colour of his eyes.
‘All ready?’ he said.
‘I think so,’ she said, letting her hand linger on the bonnet in the sun. ‘It’s very kind of you to give up your afternoon with so little warning.’
‘Well, first of all you’re paying me, and secondly I didn’t have anything more pressing to do this afternoon, Miss Cottingham.’ He spoke as though she was the only thing in the world that mattered to him. She heard the meaning in his tone but let it fly right by.
‘Well, I’m very pleased because I am eager to learn to drive and my father will send you a cheque,’ and she could hear her voice sounding strained and nervous. She decided it was the automobile making her nervous and not the teacher, she was nervous about being behind the wheel of an enormous vehicle, its fury in her control. That’s why she was anxious and it was showing in her voice. She coughed to clear her throat. ‘And please let’s not call each other Mister and Miss.’ She hated being called Miss, it didn’t fit her. Miss was for young girls like Gracie.
He laughed. ‘Yes, well, I suppose we have been on more intimate terms.’
She was hoping he wouldn’t bring that up. Her cheeks glowed hot so she looked at the ground and the black ants like spilt tea leaves scurrying around the white pebbles.
‘I’ll just back it out into the street,’ he said. ‘Backing up can be a bit tricky for a beginner. Edie?’ he said and she looked up. He was looking straight into her eyes. ‘Edie, I’ll just back it out and then you can take over.’
‘Yes, of course.’ She couldn’t stop thinking about that kiss. He walked to the front of the car. His hair was thick and shimmered in the autumn sun. He walked with his shoulders straight and back — still like a soldier, she thought. He cranked the motor and it rattled to life with a bang that startled her. He backed the vehicle out of the drive and into the street and left it running as he got out and indicated for her to sit in the driver’s seat.
She got in awkwardly. She had wanted to look graceful but she caught her dress on the rim of the door and he had to lean down and untangle it for her, his head almost touching her knee. Then he shut the door, walked around to the other side and sat down in the passenger seat. Suddenly she was aware they were in a small private world, so close they could easily be touching.
Then they were touching. He had taken her hand and put it on the gearstick, and she could hear her heart thumping in time to the thumping of the car’s engine. He
