“Oh, good morning, Evelyn. I thought I heard someone moving about but it’s so early I thought it was Grace.”
Evelyn wondered why it was more acceptable to appear half-undressed in front of Grace but did not say so. “Good morning, James. I’m sorry if I woke you. I wanted to have a bath.”
“No. I mean, you didn’t wake me at all.” James had apparently now noticed Evelyn’s state of undress and could not help a lingering look from her shoulders where her hair soaked the robe, down to her ankles and slippered feet. She wanted to tell him to stop looking at her, but that would have meant acknowledging that he was, and she did not relish the prospect.
“Good. I’m going to dress for breakfast now.” Evelyn tried to move towards her own door.
“Of course. Oh, I meant to tell you”—James was still struggling to keep his eyes on Evelyn’s and she grew increasingly uncomfortable—“I managed to take two days of leave next week. So if you’d still like to go somewhere on one of those days, I’m available.”
Evelyn felt dismayed and realised she’d forgotten James’s intentions. However, she could not forget that it was his hospitality that gave her a roof over her head in London. “That’s wonderful. Thank you. I couldn’t possibly take up both days of your free time but maybe we could go to one of the galleries one afternoon.”
“I could take you to the pictures,” James said, hopefully. The pictures, Evelyn thought, was hardly a way to see more of London, but it was certainly a way for James to spend time with her alone.
“That would be nice too,” she replied, with little enthusiasm. “Are they showing anything good?”
“They have Wings on at the Elite, with Clara Bow.”
“Oh, the one about the war. Of course.” Evelyn could not imagine a film she had less interest in.
“It’s supposed to be very good. Very realistic.”
“How wonderful. I’d be delighted.” She forced a smile.
“Excellent.” James looked genuinely pleased.
“Now, do you mind awfully if I make myself decent?” Evelyn did not hide her impatience.
Recalled to their states of undress, James suddenly seemed shy again. “Oh, of course. Apologies. Delighted you accepted though. See you at breakfast.” Slightly pink in the face, he hurried off looking at the carpet. Evelyn let herself into her bedroom with some relief, though frustrated that her dependent situation and fear of causing offence made it impossible to refuse James, however much she wanted to.
*
Although she chided herself for cowardice, Evelyn decided not to join Lilian and James for breakfast. She knew James would leave for work within the half hour and she preferred not to see him again this morning. She did worry about what he was telling his sister. Had he confided in her that he planned to take Evelyn to the cinema, to court her perhaps? The notion made her desperately uncomfortable. Lilian, unusual and difficult though Evelyn found her to be, was still her first London contact, her first friend. She did not like the idea of Lilian forming incorrect ideas about her. And if she was to disappoint James, what impact would that have?
Of course, she reflected, she could be honest about her feelings towards Jos. But, unlike Dorothy, Lilian had expressed some distaste for Jos’s way of living, and loving. Evelyn did not feel as though she could confide in her so easily, especially when nothing was by any means certain. After today’s visit to the theatre, she might never see Jos again. She certainly did not need to share this with Lilian and realised that, in fact, it would make her feel vulnerable to do so.
Instead of eating her toast, she instead spent her time considering what to wear for her afternoon with Jos. While having no desire to be as superficial as Lilian, she found herself looking with dissatisfaction at the contents of her wardrobe. Jos was of the same world as Lilian and Dorothy, whose clothes were beautiful and well chosen. Yet there was some hope. Jos did not conform to Lilian’s idea of fashionable, so perhaps she would not expect the same of others. In the end, she opted for her plain grey skirt and cream blouse, reflecting that she would be wearing her coat for most of the outing anyway. She would wear the red cloche and knitted scarf Lilian had given her a couple of days before.
Once she was dressed, Evelyn listened again to see if she could hear movement downstairs. She was fairly sure James would already have left for work, probably disappointed not to have seen her at breakfast. Eventually, she ventured downstairs, carrying the hat and scarf. As she reached the bottom of the stairs, Lilian entered the hallway from the kitchen. She was already dressed for the day in quite a conservative dress with a blue tartan pattern. Evelyn did not think it suited her at all but was not about to say so.
“Morning, Evie,” Lilian said cheerfully. “There’s still some breakfast left if you want some.”
“I’m not that hungry this morning, but thank you,” Evelyn said.
“Ah well, suit yourself. You’re off to meet Jos this afternoon, aren’t you?”
“Yes, I am. But I’m going for a walk first. I want to try being out and about by myself, without just following you around. Much though I appreciate all the time you’ve spent with me, of course.” Evelyn felt nervous when Lilian spoke of Jos and wanted to move the conversation on.
“It’s only natural that you want to be independent, Evie. I’m quite all right with not sheepdogging you everywhere. You be careful with Jos though, won’t you? And those theatre people she spends her time with.”
“You don’t approve?” Evelyn raised a questioning eyebrow.
“I approve of the performing arts, obviously. And I’m all for a bohemian lifestyle, if one
