Page 11 of Sands of Sirocco
Could she kick Lucy under the table?A marriage to the new Earl of Braddock would solve many of her family’s financial issues.And it would put Penmore in their hands once again.Unfortunately, it wouldn’t be something Ginger could help them with.
Silence settled on the table.Ginger felt sorry for William.His attempts at congeniality only resulted in the cringe-worthy nature of the conversation.Ginger tasted a spoonful of her soup, then asked, “Are you excited to see Cairo?”
“Delighted.Antiquity has always fascinated me.I’m hoping to spend several days seeing the sights.”William sat back in his chair.“You ladies should come with me.I’d love the company and the chance to spend more time with you.I plan to stay in Egypt until the summer.”
“Oh, that sounds wonderful.”Lucy’s face brightened.“I’d much rather be in Cairo.And maybe Angelica will finally be up for company.”
Ginger stared at the creamy soup.Angelica.The thought of her made Ginger feel ill.The news of Henry’s death had devastated his former fiancée.But she was also Stephen’s sister.Stephen had disappeared that day too, and Angelica mourned him.Did she have any idea what a monster her brother had been?
Lucy missed her friendship with Angelica and wrote to her often.She didn’t know Lord Helton’s men intercepted those letters or the threat Stephen Fisher was to their family.It was too dangerous for Angelica to know how to reach the Whitman women.With no response from Angelica, Ginger had hoped Lucy would get over the friendship.She would rather no one in her family go near the Fishers again.But the more time that passed without a reply from Angelica, the more determined Lucy seemed to be to contact her.
Maybe Ginger and her mother had made a mistake by not telling Lucy the full truth of what had happened in the spring.But Mama had been determined not to spoil Lucy’s memories of her father and Henry—or frighten her about Stephen.
“Are you certain it wouldn’t be too much of an imposition?”Her mother touched her temple, where silver streaked her red hair.Ginger could only guess at her mother’s embarrassment.She would be loath to turn down William’s generous offer, but she still wasn’t comfortable with the appearance of accepting charity.
“I’m certain.It would be an honor.”William returned Lucy’s eager smile.“I’d be a very fortunate man indeed, with three lovely travel companions.”
“Just two.”Ginger’s eyes moved toward the clock on the mahogany buffet.They’d need to speed dinner along if she was to make it through the entrée.She hadn’t planned on a full-course dinner.“I’m with the Queen Alexandra’s Nursing Corps at one of the local hospitals.I’m afraid my work won’t allow me the ability to leave.But thank you.”
“That’s very noble of you.”William tapped his fingers on the chair’s arm.“One of my biggest regrets is being unable to serve further during the war.”
“If you don’t mind my asking, how were you injured?”Ginger eyed the sling.
William noticed the direction of her gaze.He leaned back in his seat.“I was with the First Wing of the Royal Flying Corps—shot down during the Battle of Aubers.My left arm has been quite useless since then, I’m afraid.The doctors aren’t sure if I’ll ever regain the function.”
“Oh my, how difficult that must have been,” her mother said, a sympathetic look on her face.Lucy’s lips twitched.Knowing her, Lucy was likely considering whether marriage to a cripple was something that would deter Ginger.
“I’m sorry to hear it.”Ginger forced herself not to look at his arm, curious about what exactly had left him disabled.“I’m certain it’s been quite a change for you.”
William gave a disingenuous smile.“What I miss the most, to be honest, isn’t the use of my arm.It’s that I’ll never be in the cockpit of an aeroplane again.I don’t quite know how to describe the experience, but it’s incredible.Being up there”—he pointed skyward—“surrounded by the blue heavens, with the birds and the clouds beneath you.It’s breathtaking.”
Lucy scrunched her nose.“That sounds terrifying.You should consider yourself lucky you’re still alive.”
Ginger bit her lip.But Lucy was also right, for once.He was lucky.All the countries of Europe faced a drastic reduction in the male population of her generation and many of those who survived were scarred beyond recognition, both physically and from shell shock.To redirect the conversation, Ginger met William’s gaze.“I had the privilege of going on an aeroplane once last spring.You’re right, it was magical.”
“Really?You’re one of the few people I’ve met—and perhaps the only woman—who has.”William rested his good arm against the tabletop, seeming to relax with the topic.“Before all this, I would have considered myself somewhat of an adventurer.I thought it might be marvelous to try to cross the Atlantic Ocean in an aeroplane.Imagine the boundless possibilities for the future with all these new inventions they keep coming up with.”
William gestured lazily toward his left arm.“Which is why I’m not entirely worried about my arm yet.I’m sure within a few years they’ll come up with something to fix me too.”
Ginger smiled.Whatever flaws William had, his optimism and enthusiasm were infectious.
After Bahiti cleared their entrée course, Ginger stood.“I regret to have to leave so quickly, but the matron asked me to return by the beginning of curfew.”
“So quickly?”Her mother fiddled with her serviette.“Can’t you stay longer?”
“I’m afraid I can’t.”Even in the European quarters of town, the threats to a young woman out alone past dark were serious.Especially after the Balfour Declaration.“Tensions with the locals have been increasing by the day.”
William and her mother stood.“I hope I can spend some more time with you, Ginger.Perhaps in the weeks to come, you’ll find some leave?”
She didn’t want to encourage him.“Maybe so.”Ginger nodded a good-bye at them.She hurried to change back into her uniform and then her mother walked her to the door.
“Cairo, then?”Ginger embraced her mother.“Are you sure it’s wise?I worry about you going there.Stephen Fisher still hasn’t been caught.”
“I understand your concerns, but I must resist the temptation to avoid the ghosts of the past,” her mother said, then kissed Ginger’s cheek.“Besides, I’m certain it would be beneficial for us in the long run.If I’m not mistaken, William appears to have come to Cairo to find a wife.”
Ginger gave her a tight smile.“Then perhaps he should look at Lucy.”
Leaving the house, she pushed her guilty feelings aside, then walked back to the tram.The mild winter weather ensured a pleasant breeze from the nearby Mediterranean Sea.She turned back to glance over her shoulder at the house.William presented a problem she hadn’t been expecting.The consequences of her father’s actions continued to hang over her like a dark cloud.
