Page 135 of The Wedding Dress Repair Shop
I pray that it is not so, and that this so-called blessing will be conferred upon Sophia instead, who yearns for it.
I had thought those with child only felt sickly in the mornings, but Sara says some women may feel so all the time, so that I must entertain the possibility.
I have of late often seen Sophia’s eyes upon me when I refuse food, or have to suddenly retire from the table, so I think she may also suspect.
If it should be so, I would desire even more urgently to be in London, where Letty and other friends could give me the best advice, for I have such a mortal fear that it would go ill with me.To be within reach of an eminent doctor well-versed in the difficulties of childbirth would be at least a little reassurance.
Guy, too, would benefit from being able to call in the services of a good doctor and I have written to him to point this out … though without mentioning my own fresh reasons for wishing for it.
42
Bittersweet
I took Saturday afternoon off, because I had a feeling I’d be working flat out from Monday and spent it sewing the marionette costumes. Simon brought me Maria’s tiny blue bonnet, perfect in every way, down to a miniature plume.
Then, in late afternoon, I had another email from Will, reporting on progress:
Darling Garland
I cunningly filtered your excellent advice into Marco’s ear and it was very well received, because he has been burning the midnight oil in an attempt to revise his play into something that the management might actually want. As a consequence, he now looks a lot more like a Byronic poet than ever, pallid and somewhat hollow-eyed.
As predicted, I have now had to take on your mantle as best friend and muse, so it was me he came rushing to tell when he discovered your current whereabouts.
You didn’t tell me you were related to the bestselling novelist Honey Fairford, but Marco says you are cousins,but only realized it at that Rosa-May Garland exhibition, where it turned out that the actress was a mutual ancestor.
How very thrilling! Of course, we all know that A Midsummer Night’s Madness was inspired by that exhibition, too … He hasn’t revealed which muddy duck pond had inspired his current swan lake epic, and probably just as well.
Even I had noticed that Honey Fairford had been all over the media lately, talking about her new book and also a wedding dress museum she had set up in her hometown in Lancashire. So of course, Marco realized you must be involved in it and that was the job you had left London for, though he said he’d rung Honey Fairford to ask if she knew where you were and she’d told him she had no idea.
I do wish you weren’t in Lancashire, which is so far away!
I said to Marco how relieved he must be to know you were happily employed by a relative and quite safe, but he only said he didn’t know why you had been so secretive about it, when all he had wanted was to assure himself of your wellbeing, though of course we both know now why he really wanted to find you!
I would love to come up some time and see this amazing museum, which I gather features bridal misfortune, rather than the happy-ever-after variety … and perhaps meet Honey Fairford, because I am a great fan, although actually, I think she looks really scary.
Anyway, darling, it didn’t sound as if Marco was about to jump into his car and rush up north – and I shouldn’t think he’s ever been further north than Milton Keynes – so you can relax.
Do tell me all about the museum and whether your own bridal misfortune features in it.
Will xx
I sent him a brief reply, saying that yes, my new jobwasat the wedding dress museum and I was very happy living and working in Great Mumming. I told him I’d known the penny would drop once Marco saw the publicity about it, but hoped he would have lost interest in me by then, so was glad to know that this seemed to be the case.
Then I finished by wishing him continued success in his role as Oberon and said at some future date, if he was in the north, it would be nice to see him.
‘Nice’ is such a pleasantly non-committal kind of word, isn’t it? And after all, if Will did turn up and had romantic inclinations, I could always call on Honey to scare him off …
*
Amy Weston’s motherhadgot herself into a Sunday paper, but this time Honey didn’t mind, because the publicity was all out there now, anyway. Honey’s PR still had some more events planned, but locally, in Liverpool and Manchester, which she could easily manage in a day.
I had done a little work on Sunday morning, but then Thom drove me up to the Pike with Two Heads, on the moors near Thorstane, to meet Simon and Pearl for lunch after they’d been to church. Then we had a walk in the pine woods round a nearby reservoir to burn off some of the calories, and Simon and Pearl held hands, so things there seem to be developing nicely.
On the surface, Thom and I appeared to have slipped comfortably back into our old friendship, but it could never be quite the same – undercurrents are stirring and I have no idea where they will take us, except I’m sure neither of us could bear to lose the other again …
*
When we met for our usual attic session, we made a big push to clear the third large attic, because we knew we’d be too busy to come over on the following weekend, right before the museum opened.
