Page 75 of The House of Hopes and Dreams
But unfortunately, once the first rapture had worn off, his delight expressed itself in a desire that I should do nothing but sit like a pudding till the baby was born, perhaps with little airings in the pony and trap with Honoria as a treat!
However, I was not one to be inactive or wrapped in cotton wool and, apart from that one spell of dizziness, felt perfectly well. I was determined to carry on working until my girth made it impossible!
Father was pleased at the news and Lily, who was herself in the family way, agreed that there was no need to mollycoddle oneself, and she passed on to me much of the sensible advice her mother and older sisters gave her.
26
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I was already in the workshop when Ivan and Grant arrived next day. They’d brought Louis with them.
Molly, who’d gone on up to the house to stash the latest fruits of her labours in the big freezer, tooted her horn as she passed on the way down again.
‘This is a bit of all right,’ Ivan said, wandering round the big workroom. ‘Needs some putting to rights, but seeing it’s been used for the purpose in the past, it couldn’t be better.’
‘It looks just like a slightly smaller version of Julian’s place inside,’ Grant said, putting a paper carrier bag down on one of the long glazing tables.
‘It’s probably about the same age, and brick-built construction, but they must have stuccoed the front to match the house later. Is that my mail in the bag?’
He upended it and a small pile of envelopes slid out.
‘That’s it, though most of it’s catalogues and other sales stuff.’
‘Well, those might come in handy, because I’m still compiling a list of what I need to buy for the workshop. But I was hoping there might be some replies about those two designs I sent in for competitions last year. I don’t suppose I’ve won either of them, but I’m really keen on the Brisbane one because I worked so hard on theBig Waveidea.’
‘It’s a good design, so it’ll come in handy for something else, even if you don’t win it,’ Grant said. ‘Can you remember the closing dates?’
‘No, but I think they were sometime around now. As soon as we getbroadband I’ll check, because we’re on dial-up at the moment and the minute I get anywhere, it disconnects.’
I’d used the address of Julian’s studio and the website email for anything work-related, so I couldn’t now access the latter. But if there was any news, I expect they’d write to me, too.
‘Oh, well, never mind. My main concern at the moment is to get the business up and running. I’m dying to get back to work. I’ve given my new contact details to the Crafts Council, the British Society of Master Glass Painters and a couple of other places, so hopefully I’ll get some commission enquiries before long.’
‘Sure to, lass,’ Ivan assured me.
‘You’ve got that old window to mend for Carey first, haven’t you?’ Grant asked.
‘Yes, and I’m still a bit worried about it because it really should be a job for an expert. I’m going to ask that friend of Julian’s who works in glass restoration in York for advice, but it’ll probably be “don’t touch it!”’
‘Julian mended one or two really old windows when he was first starting out,’ revealed Grant, which I hadn’t known.
‘But there wasn’t so much fuss about it then,’ Ivan put in, coming back from an exploratory circuit of the room. Louis had vanished, presumably to inspect the back premises.
‘If I set myself up repairing glass, I’ll concentrate on the more modern stuff,’ Grant said.
‘Are you still thinking about it?’
‘Unless I get a good offer from a firm within driving distance, because we don’t want to move house. I’ll stay put for the moment, though I’m not doing the job of three people, like Nat seemed to expect when he got rid of the rest of you.’
‘I don’t blame you, but I’m glad Julian’s window went off all right,’ I said. ‘I’ll go and see it when it’s installed. I suppose Nat will continue making windows in his style, but they won’t be the same.’
‘That seems to be the idea, and he’s got all Julian’s designs, cartoons and drawings to mine for ideas.’
I sighed. ‘Oh, well, it often happens. How’s Willow coming along? Has she got a flair for stained-glass design?’
‘I haven’t seen much of her. Nat said she’d had deadlines for those comic book things.’
‘Manga,’ Louis reminded us, coming back. ‘She’s done a graphic novel, too. This place is cool,’ he added. ‘There are loads more rooms – you wouldn’t think it to look at the front.’
