Chapter Forty-Seven
CHAPTER
FORTY - SEVEN
Although Felicity was trying very hard to be cheerful and join in the celebration, the strong tea and enormous breakfast, Violet could tell her heart had followed Oliver back to Putney. Although Violet thought that Felicity should avoid Oliver for so many reasons, she could see that in the battle of head over heart going on in Felicity, her heart was winning.
And Violet was fighting her own sense of anticlimax and doubts about Henry’s emotions towards her. If he felt anything other than friendship, he seemed to have forgotten about it now. He was so excited about locating the site of the palace.
‘We should really be having a champagne breakfast at the Ritz,’ said Henry. ‘But I’m too hungry to wait.’
‘And we are covered in mud,’ said Felicity. ‘I’m not sure we’d be welcome.’
‘I am so thrilled for you, Henry,’ said Violet. ‘It is so exciting.’ Henry obviously couldn’t be more delighted, but she felt her connection with him was weakening.
‘It’s our achievement, Violet,’ said Henry, ‘not just mine!’
‘Of course,’ she answered.
‘Now, who’s for more toast?’
While Henry was catching the attention of the man pushing a grey cloth over the counter, Felicity suddenly said, ‘Violet! I completely forgot! The postman came and I took in the post. There was a letter for you in it. Here!’
Violet instantly recognised Jenny’s handwriting on the envelope. ‘Oh. That’s a bit odd. We talk all the time on the phone. Why is she writing to me?’
‘Maybe she’s got something particular she wants to say?’ suggested Henry.
‘I expect she’s going to ask you to be her bridesmaid or something,’ said Felicity.
‘I really hope not!’ said Violet, horrified at the prospect.
‘But why would you object? She is your oldest friend, it would be natural to ask you, no?’ Felicity sounded very French all of a sudden.
Violet didn’t say ‘Because I’m too old’ out loud but it’s what she felt. ‘Bridesmaids always have to wear ghastly dresses,’ she said instead. ‘I’d look a fright.’
‘Why don’t you open the letter?’ asked Felicity. ‘Then you’ll know why she’s writing to you.’
‘Unless you’d rather do it in private?’ suggested Henry.
In fact, Violet would have much preferred to open the letter in private but she felt enough fuss had been made over it already. ‘If you won’t think I’m awfully rude, reading at the table, I would like to open it now.’ Anything private in the letter, she could keep to herself. Henry instantly handed her his open penknife and she slit the envelope. Dearest Vi, It seems very strange writing to you when I could just ring you up, like we’ve been doing for years and years. In fact, just about an hour ago we were chatting about whether we should have new curtains in the drawing room or just keep the old and faded ones that I rather love. I had meant to say what I’m going to say now but I let myself be distracted by curtains instead. Out of embarrassment, which seems ridiculous! Of course you know that me and your father have finally got together. I’ve had a crush on him for years and years and it turns out that he had feelings for me too, but felt the age gap and the fact that you were my friend meant I was completely out of bounds. He is such a gentleman and it’s one of the many reasons I love him so. I’m sure you know that we both love you very much and of course I’m not saying that if you hate the idea of your friend marrying your father we’ll separate forever. I don’t think we could bear to do that because we do really make each other happy. I won’t go into detail or I’ll sound like a novel. But if you don’t hate the idea and feel you will be able to come to terms with it, it would make us even happier than we are already. In fact, if you do hate the idea it will make us utterly mis. I do know I have said a lot of this to you in person and I know you said you were happy for us, but I know you very well. I know you always want to make everyone feel all right about things, even if you don’t yourself. You must promise to tell me the truth. Now I’ve had to start another new page, I’ll ask you something and your answer to this will give us a big hint about how you feel. At our wedding, will you give me away? I know you were probably expecting me to ask you to be my bridesmaid but giving me away will tell the world – and more importantly the village – how you feel about us, and would personally mean so much. I won’t bang on now. But I do hope we can talk properly very soon. Give me a ring when you’ve had time to think about this. Lots and lots of love, Jenny
‘Oh my goodness!’ she said a few moments later. ‘She’s not asking me to be a bridesmaid; she wants me to give her away!’
‘Quite right too,’ said Henry, buttering more toast.
‘But isn’t that usually done by the bride’s father, brother or some male relative?’ Violet was still taken aback.
‘Traditionally, yes,’ said Henry. ‘But if Jenny hasn’t got anyone else in her family she wants to ask, who better than her best friend?’
‘It’s good because you won’t have to wear the ghastly dress,’ said Felicity.
Violet laughed.
Then she looked at Felicity in shock. ‘But what am I going to wear?’
‘Something you’ll look beautiful in,’ said Felicity.
‘Which is almost anything,’ said Henry. ‘Now I’m going to pay. I think we should go. I have a lot to do!’
‘I can’t tell you two how grateful I am for all you’ve done for me,’ said Henry. His eyes were on the road and so not looking at her and Felicity, but Violet could hear the sincerity in his voice.
‘Without Oliver, and you two, I wouldn’t have a book,’ he went on. ‘I’d just have a mad theory. But thanks to you, I can prove to the world that this palace really existed.’
‘We were happy to help,’ said Felicity.
‘Yes,’ added Violet. She had found herself unable to speak for a minute. While she couldn’t possibly have been more delighted with the result of the mudlarking, she realised there’d be no more cosy times in the basement at the bookshop. She’d miss those times terribly. ‘Of course, now the hard work begins for you.’
‘Yes. In fact, I’ll probably do what I always do when I have to get a writing project done: go and stay in a friend’s remote cottage in Northumberland. There’s nothing to do there except write, and so that’s what I do.’
‘That sounds very sensible,’ said Violet, hoping he wouldn’t hear the crack in her voice.
‘Yes,’ agreed Felicity quickly. ‘I couldn’t live in an isolated house in Northumberland – wherever that is – myself. But it sounds as if it’s a good idea.’
Violet managed some sort of laugh and then Henry went on to describe the beauties of Northumberland for the rest of the journey.
‘Thank you both again, so much,’ said Henry as he waited for them to get out of the car outside the house in Cheyne Walk.
‘It was our pleasure,’ said Violet, speaking for Felicity too. ‘Now get on and finish your book!’
Felicity had her key ready first and let them into the house.
‘I must ring Jenny and tell her I’d be delighted to give her away,’ said Violet.
‘Shall we go shopping first? Find you something dazzling to wear?’
‘I don’t think I need to be dazzling—’
‘Yes you do!’ said Felicity, interrupting. ‘And I need to help you choose!’
‘But—’
‘Please? I need to do something to help me forget Oliver.’
‘Although it was awful having to get up so early this morning,’ said Violet, ‘at least it means we have plenty of time to go shopping.’ She paused. ‘It’s so kind of you to come with me. I never know what to buy when it’s for an occasion. Until recently, I never had much money, so I had to worry about getting good value – which meant I always ended up with something very safe.’
Felicity shook her head. ‘I won’t let you buy anything safe. Shopping with my grandmother was terrifying; she spent so much on the clothes when she took me shopping in Paris before I came to London. But she said everything would last me for years and years if I didn’t put on weight.’
‘I suppose that’s true. And if things are good quality they usually have good seam allowances so you can let them out.’
Felicity nodded. ‘My glamorous stepmother buys clothes from the market and makes them look fabulous with belts and scarves.’ She smiled. ‘But as we don’t have a French country market to visit here, we’ll have to make do with Peter Jones.’