had asked for and a little fruit, too, and almost all the sugar, though the iron wouldn’t be ready until later. Timber and paper would have to wait until the next consignment. There were plenty of textiles to be had, but it made sense to stock up, as the situation could change.
The Waldorf-Astoria, Fifth Avenue and Thirty-fourth Street. While the city was awakening outside, deals were being done at every breakfast table. No one had time to waste: around the next corner another opportunity was waiting, the promise of a quick profit. There was a bird singing in a cage in the lobby. He was called the money bird.
A waiter wearing white gloves placed a silver spoon on the table, bowed and retreated silently.
Jones stood up. His business was done. They engaged in a long handshake.
“And I don’t need to ask whether you avoid doing business with other Icelanders,” said Kristjan.
“I only do business with the Baron.”
“And I only with you.”
“You have my hundred-percent trust.”
“Likewise.”
They smiled.
“I’m having a party tomorrow at six. At home. I hope you can come.”
“It would be a real pleasure. Six o’clock.”
“Just close friends.”
“Thank you.”
Silence.
“Klara and I have just become engaged.”
Three-ten Park Avenue, apartment 10B. He glanced in the mirror and adjusted his tie. The woman’s scent was stronger in the elevator than down in the lobby. He had two gifts in a bag: a tie pin for his agent, a necklace for her, a white sapphire on a slender chain.
The elevator doors opened. Noise carried out into the corridor. He heard the sound of her voice and walked faster.
When she fastened the chain round her neck, the sapphire gleamed on the swell of her breasts.
28
Jones spoke with the childish fervor of a man in love.
“The first time I saw her I stood up without realizing. She entered the stage from the left holding a basket, then laid it down on a small table and began to dance. The stage was covered with blue petals and she tiptoed between them without treading on them. They didn’t stir, it was as if her feet didn’t touch the floor. I thought she was going to float over to me.”
He laughed.
“This was no Carnegie Hall, my friend, but I would have stood there for a long, long time if the woman behind hadn’t nudged me and told me to sit down.
“When she looked out over the audience, I felt as if she was looking at me.”
Jones fell silent, then added:
“Christian, I never knew a man could feel this way.”
He seemed unable to stop talking about her. They were standing in a corner of the study, most of the other guests were in the living room. It was evening. Outside electric lights seemed superfluous in the soft spring. Inside were noise and laughter. He was intoxicated, but not drunk. Kristjan listened. There was no way out.
“There’s no happiness like waking up beside her in the morning. Rain or shine, I don’t notice the weather. I’ve even started to feel bad when I’m away on business. Imagine, I wake up in the middle of the night in some hotel room and can’t get back to sleep, feeling something’s missing, tossing and turning till dawn, getting up the moment I see the faintest light through the curtains. Sometimes she talks in her sleep, but I don’t understand a word. Is it hard to learn Swedish?”
Kristjan couldn’t stand it anymore. He looked at his watch.
“Sorry to run on like this. I can’t contain myself.”
Kristjan smiled and slapped him on the shoulder. They went into the other room. She came towards them, tall and dark, with a slender waist and long neck, her breasts warm and soft. Her lover held her against him. She looked over his shoulder at Kristjan who was standing behind him. When he finally let her go, she said to his guest in Swedish:
“I’ve missed you.”
Her lover was away on business.
Kristjan was jittery when they entered the hotel together, so he went ahead and waited for her in the room. He knew she
The Waldorf-Astoria, Fifth Avenue and Thirty-fourth Street. While the city was awakening outside, deals were being done at every breakfast table. No one had time to waste: around the next corner another opportunity was waiting, the promise of a quick profit. There was a bird singing in a cage in the lobby. He was called the money bird.
A waiter wearing white gloves placed a silver spoon on the table, bowed and retreated silently.
Jones stood up. His business was done. They engaged in a long handshake.
“And I don’t need to ask whether you avoid doing business with other Icelanders,” said Kristjan.
“I only do business with the Baron.”
“And I only with you.”
“You have my hundred-percent trust.”
“Likewise.”
They smiled.
“I’m having a party tomorrow at six. At home. I hope you can come.”
“It would be a real pleasure. Six o’clock.”
“Just close friends.”
“Thank you.”
Silence.
“Klara and I have just become engaged.”
Three-ten Park Avenue, apartment 10B. He glanced in the mirror and adjusted his tie. The woman’s scent was stronger in the elevator than down in the lobby. He had two gifts in a bag: a tie pin for his agent, a necklace for her, a white sapphire on a slender chain.
The elevator doors opened. Noise carried out into the corridor. He heard the sound of her voice and walked faster.
When she fastened the chain round her neck, the sapphire gleamed on the swell of her breasts.
28
Jones spoke with the childish fervor of a man in love.
“The first time I saw her I stood up without realizing. She entered the stage from the left holding a basket, then laid it down on a small table and began to dance. The stage was covered with blue petals and she tiptoed between them without treading on them. They didn’t stir, it was as if her feet didn’t touch the floor. I thought she was going to float over to me.”
He laughed.
“This was no Carnegie Hall, my friend, but I would have stood there for a long, long time if the woman behind hadn’t nudged me and told me to sit down.
“When she looked out over the audience, I felt as if she was looking at me.”
Jones fell silent, then added:
“Christian, I never knew a man could feel this way.”
He seemed unable to stop talking about her. They were standing in a corner of the study, most of the other guests were in the living room. It was evening. Outside electric lights seemed superfluous in the soft spring. Inside were noise and laughter. He was intoxicated, but not drunk. Kristjan listened. There was no way out.
“There’s no happiness like waking up beside her in the morning. Rain or shine, I don’t notice the weather. I’ve even started to feel bad when I’m away on business. Imagine, I wake up in the middle of the night in some hotel room and can’t get back to sleep, feeling something’s missing, tossing and turning till dawn, getting up the moment I see the faintest light through the curtains. Sometimes she talks in her sleep, but I don’t understand a word. Is it hard to learn Swedish?”
Kristjan couldn’t stand it anymore. He looked at his watch.
“Sorry to run on like this. I can’t contain myself.”
Kristjan smiled and slapped him on the shoulder. They went into the other room. She came towards them, tall and dark, with a slender waist and long neck, her breasts warm and soft. Her lover held her against him. She looked over his shoulder at Kristjan who was standing behind him. When he finally let her go, she said to his guest in Swedish:
“I’ve missed you.”
Her lover was away on business.
Kristjan was jittery when they entered the hotel together, so he went ahead and waited for her in the room. He knew she
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