Page 53 of Sands of Sirocco
“Getting ready for the charity polo match at Ezbekieh this afternoon.You should join us.”
“Should I?”Ginger smirked.She couldn’t think of a ready reason not to.“I suppose I can’t say I have nothing to wear.”
“Try this one.”Lucy thrust a light-blue tea party dress at her.“You’ll look so pretty in this.”
Lucy’s eagerness only confirmed that she’d chosen the outfits.Ginger bit her lip and walked behind the dressing screen in the room with the dress in hand.“Lucy, is there a reason you worry so much about the way I look?”
“To begin with, it’s a waste of your beauty for you to be constantly stuck in nursing uniforms and plain dresses.”Lucy’s voice carried over the dressing screen as Ginger disrobed.
“And …?”Ginger hung her skirt over the dressing screen.
“And what?”
“You said ‘to begin with.’What’s the rest of it?”
Lucy cleared her throat.“Oh, I don’t know.I suppose I’ve just missed you.I always thought we’d do these things together someday.”
“Gush over frocks?”Ginger poked her head out and smiled at Lucy as she stepped into the dress.
“And go out in society together.”Lucy moved to the other side of the bed and leaned against it.
Ginger buttoned what she could, then came out from around the screen.“Can you help me finish?”
Lucy beamed then came over to help.“You look just as pretty in this as I thought you would.”
Ginger couldn’t remember the last time Lucy had been so affectionate.Was she up to something?Rather than voice her suspicions, she thanked her, then changed the subject.“Speaking of society, do you know of a Lady Hendricks?”
Lucy guffawed.“Of course I know her.Everyone knows her.She’s unpleasant, but filthy rich, so she’s invited to everything.She’ll be at the charity polo match.She’s quite philanthropic.”
Ginger smoothed her hands over the front of her dress, glancing in the mirror.Lucy was right.The color contrasted nicely with her hair and skin tone.“Do you think you can introduce me to Lady Hendricks if I go with you?”
“I can—or Mama.She knows her better than I do.”Lucy wrinkled her nose.“And I’d rather avoid Lady Hendricks if I can.Be careful around her.She’s likely not to have forgotten the scandal involving you and Colonel Benson.She remembers everything.”
Just what Ginger needed.As though finding out about Freddy Mortimer wasn’t difficult enough.She grasped the wedding band on her finger.
The drive to Ezbekieh didn’t take long, as the Braddock home was close to the European quarter of Cairo where the most popular places like Shepheard’s, the Opera House, and the gardens were located.As Ginger made her way to the polo field, she felt out of place despite her new outfit.
Did she really fit in anywhere anymore?
Not in the intelligence world, not as a nurse.
Not with her family.
She drew closer and the sounds of pony hooves from the game thudded against the hard earth.A few women stared at her.She didn’t recognize them.The men and women observing the match from lawn chairs were grouped within the cliques of their ilk.
“Mama, you won’t mind if we steal William to sit with our friends rather than yours?”Lucy said, shielding her eyes as she scanned the crowd for familiar faces.
Her mother gave William an encouraging smile.“No, of course not.I’m certain William has better things to do than listen to the gossip of old women like me.”
“Francine!”Lucy called out.Lucy’s friend stood from her seat, waving from a few feet away.
As Lucy hurried over toward her and the other young women in the party, Ginger exchanged a glance with William.“I’m certain Lucy’s introduced you to half of Cairo at this point.”
William smirked.“If I’m honest, I don’t remember even two names.It’s all been a bit of a blur.”He held his palm out, indicating that Ginger should lead the way.“Lucy has more energy than I.”
“She’s certainly an enthusiastic socialite.”Ginger smiled, clasping her handbag in her fingertips.
“And I take it you’re less enthusiastic?”William quirked a brow.
