month. I'm over the hill."
Her head still on the cushion, she turned her face away from his and her voice had a dreamy note in it as she said, "I'm thirty-five and I've never known love. I had a girlish idea of it, but was soon
disillusioned. I know now, though, that I love you, and have loved you for the past two years' she brought her face back to look at him again
'and I'll go on loving you no matter what happens in the future."
Quietly now they enfolded each other and presently, her head on his shoulder, she murmured, "I wanted to see you so badly, but I also wanted to know what's happening at the works. His reaction is not natural. When he came back last Friday night and Gran told him she had given you the post, he could have killed her. Really; really, he could have killed her. I heard him yelling before I entered the house. He had Mother and Peggy terrified. It was an awful scene, and when he stormed out of the house I thought such was his rage that he would commit suicide or something. But no; he came back quietly. And that's been his attitude since. How has he been to you?" She raised her head now and looked at him, and he said, "Polite. Stiffly polite. I know the whole shop expected high jinks, especially when I showed my face in the showrooms. But they were disappointed. Yes. Yes'he nodded at her
'they were really disappointed. They were looking for a showdown because, you know, he's not popular. Never has been. But there, some of the men don't like me either. They don't like my methods. They could get round Mr. Cartwright, in a way; but as is also the way, he left most of the dirty work to me: he made the bullets and I had to fire them; so it was natural that everybody didn't love me. And some will love me less from now on, because there are one or two slackers in that company and it's usually the slackers that have light fingers and cause staff unrest in other ways. In the main, they are a good crowd and the majority are with me. But I don't think one of them would have been with Len. In the first place, you see, they think he got the position he's in now only through marrying you. Anyway, let's forget about him, the works, everything else, except us. What are we going to do?"
"I don't know. I've got a strange feeling. It's as if I'm waiting for something to happen, something that he's going to make happen."
"There we go again. Come on' he pulled her up from the couch' and let me show you my abode.
Now this' he waved his arm from side to side' isn a bad little room, is it? "
"It's lovely, and so big."
"Well, come and see the rest."
The door at the far end led into the dining-room. When he switched on the light she saw it was about half as big as their dining-room but well furnished.
"And off here," he said, opening another door, 'is the kitchen. Both these rooms look on to the back garden and the hills beyond. It's a very pleasant view in the daylight. "
She was surprised by the modern appearance of the kitchen and she said so: "It's beautifully equipped."
"I had it done out' he paused job, some four years ago." And she knew he had been about to say, 'just before Jane died. "
"And off here," he went on, 'is a walk-in pantry. " He switched on another light.
"And next to it a coal house and woodshed, all modern conveniences. And a cloakroom. I would have liked that nearer the front door but there was no place to put it. At one time I was going to have a glass
verandah all along the back here, like a long sun-room. I'll still do it, I think. But now for upstairs."
The staircase was made of teak, open and uncarpeted, and the landing was quite large for the size of the house. Four doors led off it. The first he opened led into a good-size bathroom, much more modern, she saw immediately, than the one they had back home, for the walls were covered in pale blue tiles.
The first bedroom he showed her was of ordinary size, one which would take a single bed and a bedroom suite. But when he opened the door
Her head still on the cushion, she turned her face away from his and her voice had a dreamy note in it as she said, "I'm thirty-five and I've never known love. I had a girlish idea of it, but was soon
disillusioned. I know now, though, that I love you, and have loved you for the past two years' she brought her face back to look at him again
'and I'll go on loving you no matter what happens in the future."
Quietly now they enfolded each other and presently, her head on his shoulder, she murmured, "I wanted to see you so badly, but I also wanted to know what's happening at the works. His reaction is not natural. When he came back last Friday night and Gran told him she had given you the post, he could have killed her. Really; really, he could have killed her. I heard him yelling before I entered the house. He had Mother and Peggy terrified. It was an awful scene, and when he stormed out of the house I thought such was his rage that he would commit suicide or something. But no; he came back quietly. And that's been his attitude since. How has he been to you?" She raised her head now and looked at him, and he said, "Polite. Stiffly polite. I know the whole shop expected high jinks, especially when I showed my face in the showrooms. But they were disappointed. Yes. Yes'he nodded at her
'they were really disappointed. They were looking for a showdown because, you know, he's not popular. Never has been. But there, some of the men don't like me either. They don't like my methods. They could get round Mr. Cartwright, in a way; but as is also the way, he left most of the dirty work to me: he made the bullets and I had to fire them; so it was natural that everybody didn't love me. And some will love me less from now on, because there are one or two slackers in that company and it's usually the slackers that have light fingers and cause staff unrest in other ways. In the main, they are a good crowd and the majority are with me. But I don't think one of them would have been with Len. In the first place, you see, they think he got the position he's in now only through marrying you. Anyway, let's forget about him, the works, everything else, except us. What are we going to do?"
"I don't know. I've got a strange feeling. It's as if I'm waiting for something to happen, something that he's going to make happen."
"There we go again. Come on' he pulled her up from the couch' and let me show you my abode.
Now this' he waved his arm from side to side' isn a bad little room, is it? "
"It's lovely, and so big."
"Well, come and see the rest."
The door at the far end led into the dining-room. When he switched on the light she saw it was about half as big as their dining-room but well furnished.
"And off here," he said, opening another door, 'is the kitchen. Both these rooms look on to the back garden and the hills beyond. It's a very pleasant view in the daylight. "
She was surprised by the modern appearance of the kitchen and she said so: "It's beautifully equipped."
"I had it done out' he paused job, some four years ago." And she knew he had been about to say, 'just before Jane died. "
"And off here," he went on, 'is a walk-in pantry. " He switched on another light.
"And next to it a coal house and woodshed, all modern conveniences. And a cloakroom. I would have liked that nearer the front door but there was no place to put it. At one time I was going to have a glass
verandah all along the back here, like a long sun-room. I'll still do it, I think. But now for upstairs."
The staircase was made of teak, open and uncarpeted, and the landing was quite large for the size of the house. Four doors led off it. The first he opened led into a good-size bathroom, much more modern, she saw immediately, than the one they had back home, for the walls were covered in pale blue tiles.
The first bedroom he showed her was of ordinary size, one which would take a single bed and a bedroom suite. But when he opened the door
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