A Mother’s Spirit. Anne Bennett
Чтение книги онлайн.
Читать онлайн книгу A Mother’s Spirit - Anne Bennett страница 16
Название: A Mother’s Spirit
Автор: Anne Bennett
Издательство: HarperCollins
Жанр: Книги о войне
isbn: 9780007287680
isbn:
That hadn’t been what Joe had anticipated at all. He imagined he and Gloria in their own little house or apartment somewhere, but when he said this, everyone seemed to think it was all rather amusing.
‘Darling, I wouldn’t have the least idea how to keep house,’ Gloria said. ‘I have never had to do it, and as for cooking anything, well, I have never done that either. I honestly don’t know how to boil an egg.’
‘But did you not have any sort of cookery lessons at school?’ Joe asked.
‘Well, no,’ Gloria said. ‘Why would we? And I have never washed dishes, or really cleaned anything, and wouldn’t know how to start dealing with the laundry. We have servants to do those types of things.’
Joe realised then that after his marriage everything would go on as it always had done, and the only thing that would alter after he put the ring on Gloria’s finger was that she would share his bed.
Three rooms were being amalgamated to make a suite for Joe and Gloria, and when Joe was shown the plans for his approval he was staggered at the size of it. He knew he wouldn’t be sorry to leave the room that Brian had assigned to him when he had moved into the house. It had a carpeted floor, a blue fluffy rug by the large and comfortable bed that matched the drapes at the windows, a wardrobe, chest and dressing table in light wood, and a bathroom for his use off to the side. It bore no resemblance at all to his spartan cellar where he had felt so contented, and yet he had never felt at home in the luxurious and comfortable room.
The bridal suite was at least being planned specifically for Gloria and himself, and he was sure he would be happier there with Gloria by his side. In fact, if he wasn’t then he was a hard man to please
‘What is this room to the side?’ he asked Brian.
‘That is your dressing room,’ Brian said. ‘Will I have a bed installed in there too?’
‘What on earth for, sir?’ Joe asked. ‘The bed you tell me you have ordered for Gloria and me would accommodate half a dozen with ease. What use would we make of another bed?’
‘There are times when a woman might like to sleep alone,’ Brian told him. ‘Or when you are home late perhaps, or have to get up early and don’t wish to disturb. Believe me, a separate bed is essential.’
All of it was out of Joe’s understanding. In the world he came from, when a man and woman married, they bought a double bed and slept in it together thereafter night after night. They made love on it, babies were born on it, small children sometimes shared it and the marriage bed was often the most important purchase ever made.
He thought of the huge and beautiful bed Brian had ordered. Was it possible that Gloria would lie encased in that magnificent bed all alone, while he lay in another bed, the other side of the wall?
Brian saw the confusion on Joe’s face. ‘A dressing room and a separate bed were among the first things I insisted on when I married Norah,’ he said. ‘And she has been as grateful as I have been at times. I know that this is all new to you, but trust me in this.’
‘Yes, sir,’ Joe said, knowing he had no alternative.
The news that he was engaged to Gloria Brannigan, Joe found opened doors to him, even if many people did view him with suspicion, doubting his intentions were really honourable. One of those doors was to the club that Brian attended.
Brian had taken Joe to the club quite a few times but he had always had to sign him in as a guest, but after the engagement he had been made a full member and he enjoyed the privileges this offered, though he always kept well away from the gaming rooms. He had gone in with Brian once and had been appalled at the money gambled away. Brian loved the thrill of it and was a regular, but it left Joe feeling cold and rather odd when he saw Brian raise the stake in a poker game for the amount that the average working man would barely earn in a month of back-breaking work.
He was amazed too by all the fuss a marriage of this magnitude caused. Norah and Gloria were either poring over fabric patterns for the drapes and discussing colour schemes, or shopping together for Gloria’s trousseau. The wedding dress she was having made seemed to need endless fittings, as did the bridesmaid dresses for three of her school friends. Then there the flowers to choose, cars to order and invitations to send.
‘Let them be,’ Brian advised when Joe complained of this. ‘Women and weddings go together like peaches and cream.
Mind you, we’d better be thinking about ordering our suits soon.’
‘I have half a dozen decent suits,’ Joe said. ‘I wasn’t going to go to the expense of buying another. I was just going to buy a new shirt.’
Brian smiled. ‘You really have got to stop thinking of the expense of things all the time,’ he said. ‘Those days are over for you and, anyway, you haven’t a morning suit or top hat, and that is what will be required on the day.’
‘Oh, surely not, sir,’ Joe said.
‘I am afraid so. All the men will be dressed the same,’ Brian said. ‘And you will have to think of your best man. Will you be asking the man that sponsored you? Patrick something, wasn’t it?’
Joe shook his head. ‘The friendship was spoiled between us when I passed my exams and you took me into the house to live. I haven’t seen him since then.’
‘Hmm, a pity.’
‘A great pity, sir,’ Joe said. ‘But there it is. In fact, the only one in the house that was pleased about my success that time was Planchard, and I think that he will do well enough.’
Brian nodded. ‘He is a good man. So he will have to get kitted out as well.’
‘Couldn’t I just hire a suit, sir?’
‘Stop calling me sir,’ Brian said. ‘You will be my son-in-law soon and my name is Brian. No, it would not be good form for you to have a suit on hire. The bridegroom needs his own.’
‘But when would I ever need it again, sir?’
Brian shrugged. ‘Who knows? Another wedding maybe, or other society dos where a morning suit is the appropriate and expected dress. Look,’ he went on as Joe still looked doubtful, ‘on your marriage you will become my business partner. Whatever people say, first impressions count, and so it is important to me that you have the correct clothes to fit these occasions.’
It was the first time a partnership had been mentioned and though Joe was undoubtedly pleased he was also a little unnerved. But if Brian had decided then that was how it would be, he knew, and it would be another change in his life that he would eventually get used to.
The morning of the wedding, 16 October 1926, Joe was spirited out of the house and into the white limousine to take him to the church early, lest he should cast his eyes on Gloria’s dress before the service and so bring bad luck upon the marriage. His morning suit felt stiff and uncomfortable, and he marvelled that Planchard looked so good in his. Brian was right, though, Joe noticed, as the car pulled up in front of the church and he saw some of the guests arriving: the women were dressed in a variety of outfits, but the СКАЧАТЬ