Snowdrop Kisses Part Eleven
A Christmas love story featuring a plucky florist and a tall dark and handsome entrepreneur
Previously… in part 10 Wendy and James leave the greenhouse and plan on bringing Harry and Minna to the National Gallery.
Chapter 21
“Come on, Wendy. I don’t have all day.” Harry hustled towards the National Gallery entranceway, barely leaning on his cane.
“Cool your jets, old man,” Wendy shot back. The sky was overcast and the clouds heavy. Maybe the long-threatened snow would finally arrive. Christmas was approaching and it would be nice to have a fresh blanket of the white stuff.
They walked through the eight hairy legs of “Maman”, a massive, egg-carrying bronze spider looming over the entrance. She and Harry followed the concourse leading up to the Gallery. It was a beautiful building with glass walls soaring seven storeys and a shape that echoed the nearby neo-gothic towers of Parliament Hill.
Just as she had hoped, Harry was game for another meeting with Minna, although Wendy omitted the fact that the older woman didn’t know about the scheme.
“Are you Wendy?” the woman at the ticket desk surprised her by asking.
“Yes. Why?”
“I have a message for you.” She unfolded a piece of paper. “’Meet us at the gift shop at 1:15.’”
Wendy paid her admission. “How did you know who I was?”
“The gentleman who left the note said that I should expect an older man and a pretty young woman.”
Wendy blushed. Ridiculous! Just because Crofton had described her as pretty.
“Let’s go,” Harry barked. “I don’t want to die before I get in there.” He walked briskly towards the long concrete ramp that led to the Great Hall and the exhibit rooms. The glass wall along the ramp was flooded with daylight. His grey hair looked white, and the natural light softened his craggy face making him look angelic. Almost.
Wendy glanced at her watch: 1:15. She was suddenly very nervous, and caught herself humming. How was Minna going to react to another set-up?
“Let’s hit the gift shop first,” she called to him. As they approached the store, Wendy realised she should forewarn Harry about the ambush. She stopped in front of the shop’s entrance and cleared her throat. “There’s something I have to tell you.”
Harry looked at her expression. “She doesn’t know that I’m coming does she?” His face fell.
Wendy shook her head.
“She probably thought that I was too low class for her, eh?” He frowned and raised his voice. “Well, Mona didn’t exactly ring my bell, either. She was snooty. I don’t need her. By the time she gets off her high horse, I’ll have found another filly.”
There was a noise behind them, and before either Harry or Wendy could turn, they heard a voice: “I should probably reintroduce myself, Mr. Hepple, since you can’t be troubled to remember my name.”
The tone was icy and Wendy’s heart sank. There were Minna and Crofton, approaching the store’s doorway.
The dismay on Crofton’s face echoed her own feelings.
“I’m sorry, Molly,” said Harry sincerely. “I’ve met a lot of old biddies since my wife died, but you’re the first who hasn’t irritated the hell out of me.”
“The name is Minna,” she snapped. She pressed her left hand to her stiff and carefully curled hair and straightened her shoulders. Chin jutted out, she turned on Crofton.
Her voice was unsteady with rage, and she shook one long, be-ringed finger at him. “James Crofton, you have sunk far, far too low this time. I knew something was up the instant I saw you skulking around after the board meeting. I have no idea where you got this imbecilic notion to set me up with this… this person… but I have had enough. I’m your business partner, not one of your lady friends to be trifled with.” Minna was getting louder. “I will not tolerate such blatant disregard for my feelings or expressed wishes.” Her face had turned a deep shade of red and she was shaking with anger. “I have had enough of this –-”
“Minna, is everything all right?” A well-dressed woman in her late sixties emerged from the gift shop and looked at Minna with concern.
For a moment Minna was at a loss for words, but she quickly transformed her snarl into a stiff smile.
“Yes, everything’s fine, Dorothea.” Minna forced out a laugh. “I was just… joking around.”
“Minna, dear, you don’t joke. What’s really going on?” Dorothea’s long nose was almost quivering at the scent of potential gossip.
Minna’s laugh had an edge to it this time. “Nothing. This is James Crofton, my new business partner. He runs LCC, a fabulous software company.”
Wendy marvelled at how quickly Minna was able to compose herself. Only her hands, clasped in white knuckled fists, gave away her distress.
Dorothea shook his hand. “I’ve heard all about you of course, Mr. Crofton. You’re quite the man about town. More often in the society pages than the business ones, from what I can tell. You’ll have to keep an eye on him, Minna.” She winked broadly at Crofton and turned inquiringly to Wendy and Harry.
Minna’s sigh was almost inaudible. “These two are-- uh-- friends of mine. This is Harry Hepple and Wendy Blake.”
“How do you do?” asked Wendy. Shaking Dorothea’s hand was like squishing a piece of white bread.
“Minna, I’ve got a marvellous idea. I was going to get a cup of tea in the café, why don’t you and your friends join me?” Dorothea’s smile was mischievous.
Minna’s eyes widened. “Oh, we couldn’t possibly. James is terribly busy, and these two have other things to do.”
Sensing an opportunity, Wendy spoke up. “Actually, that sounds lovely. I could do with a cup of tea.”
Wendy could feel Minna’s death stare, but she avoided her gaze and caught Crofton's eye. He flashed her his crooked grin.
“That’s right, Minna,” he said. “I’ve got time. If you can’t join us though, I’m sure we can keep Dorothea entertained, perhaps tell her about our most recent dinner outing.”
Minna blanched but spat out a resigned “Very well. One cup of tea.”
Chapter 22
Wendy was pleased. They could still save this Gallery rendezvous. If Harry could see potential in this relationship, surely it was worth trying again with Minna? Wendy turned to the older man, who had been watching the exchange with bright eyes.
“Harry,” she said quietly, “I know you might be peeved with us for not telling Minna, but if you come for a quick cup of tea, I promise I won’t bother you with this again.”
Harry chuckled. “Are you kidding? I wouldn’t miss it for the world. I doubt Minna thinks I’m any great catch, but neither did Helen, and I convinced her eventually.” Harry turned to Dorothea, who was standing beside Crofton and offered her his arm. The pair walked to the main entranceway.
Minna, Crofton and Wendy followed. The older woman’s face was pinched and her back rigid. As soon as Harry and Dorothea were a few steps ahead, she turned on them. “Listen, you dunderheads, get this through your stubborn skulls: I will not be foisted on that rude and uncultured man.”
Wendy made silent resolution. If Minna couldn’t see that she and Harry had chemistry this afternoon, she would hang up her cupid’s bow. It wasn’t right to try to manipulate the couple. She wasn’t sure how Crofton would take the news that she was bowing out of matchmaking, but she couldn’t continue if the two were obviously not interested. “I’m sorry Minna. You’re right. We shouldn’t have paired you and Harry up again. It’s just that Harry seems to come alive around you…”
“Come alive?” Minna’s face softened for an instant, but then her features sharpened again. “Well if you can forget all your matchmaking plans, and get through this tea without embarrassing me, I may consider forgiving you. Mind your ‘P’s’ and ‘Q’s’ around Dorothea. The last thing I need is her dragging my name through the muck.”
They were in the Great Hall now, the heart of the Gallery. Like the ancient gothic cathedrals it echoed, the room was designed to draw the eye upwards. There was a huge vaulted peak, made entirely of glass and steel. The three walked in silence for a moment.
The drift of conversation between Harry and Dorothea floated back to them. Harry was speaking: “We were at La Maison the other night. Have you been there? Great eats, although you know the French, their food is so garlicy it makes my indigestion act up. Anyway, Minna ordered this funny drink —”
Minna lunged towards the couple. “Oh Harry, dear Harry,” she forced out a laugh. “Let’s not bore Dorothea with stories of meals we’ve had.”
As she and Crofton followed the trio, Wendy said quietly, “She called him ‘dear,’ that might be as close to success as we’ll get.”
“Wendy, you give up entirely too easily. ‘Love conquers all,’ didn’t I read that in a greeting card once?” Crofton stopped at the entrance to the café to meet her eye, while the others waited by the door.
Wendy looked up at him, idly wondering what colour you could call his eyes. Was that what azure looked like? She stared into them for a moment longer, puzzling over the question.
Harry’s discreet cough interrupted their gaze and Wendy turned on the trio with some confusion. Harry and Minna exchanged a look.
Dorothea filled the conversational lull. “Why don’t us girls get a table, and let the men round up the tea?” She ushered them over to a table at the back of the room, overlooking Major’s Hill Park.
Wendy stared out at the blue beech and serviceberry trees, all denuded of leaves. Snow would soften the stark dark lines of their limbs, and the white stuff had finally started to fall, thick flakes drifting from the sky. It drifted down transforming the landscape in front of them. Wendy thought of the intense gaze she and Crofton had exchanged. Despite her previous experiences with men, including a three-year relationship with cheating Martin, that look was one of the most intimate moments she had ever shared. It pulsed with desire. She still felt flushed.
Dorothea called her attention back to the table. “Is he your boyfriend, dearie?” Her long nose now quivered in Wendy’s direction.
“What? Who?”
“I’m a woman of the world my dear, and you don’t stare at a man like that unless you’re interested. You can dish with us gals, we won’t tell.” In her eagerness, Dorothea seemed ready to jump across the table. Her smile revealed sharp little teeth.
Minna stared at Wendy with enjoyment, obviously relishing that the younger woman was now in the hot seat.
“Crofton? We’re not an item!”
“Come, come dear. Don’t be coy. I’m sure you’ve got an eye on that handsome man. What woman wouldn’t?”
“That’s his problem,” Wendy blurted out, thinking of all those bouquets she had sent out over the years. “Women fall all over him, and he never says no.”
“Really?” Dorothea asked. “I’m all ears.”
Wendy was saved from the inquisition by the arrival of the men with pots of tea and warm scones.
They set the trays on the table. Crofton pulled up the chair next to Wendy, and their legs briefly brushed. Again, a frisson coursed through her. She shifted so they no longer touched.
Wendy focused on Minna who was pouring the tea. The older woman actually met Harry’s eye and smiled at him when handing him his cup.
Dorothea gathered up the reins of conversation. She leaned towards James. “Now, Mr. Crofton, who are you squiring around town this week? I remember about two months ago you were dating the Thorpes’ youngest daughter, Missy. A barre instructor, of all things! Quite a disappointment to the family.”
Wendy tensed. She didn’t want to hear about Crofton’s varied love life.
Dorothea continued, unconcerned about the tension she was causing. “I think lately you’ve taken up with that Layla or Lilo. I forget her name. She was Kyle Henderson’s third wife. I don’t like to say ‘gold-digger,’ but I hear she made out like a bandit in the divorce settlement.”
Crofton’s face darkened into a deep scowl; his voice was restrained however. “I’d prefer not to discuss it.”
“Don’t be so silly. Wendy was just telling Minna and I all about your love life.”
He turned to Wendy, his face thunderous. “What do you know about it?”
“I – uh, nothing,” Wendy protested weakly.
“Now she’s just being coy.” Dorothea seemed very satisfied at the progression of the conversation. “Weren’t you telling us about all the women Mr. Crofton dates?”
“It wasn’t like that,” Wendy protested. “She’s twisting my words.”
“Really?” He asked, looking furious. “You made a crack like that at the flower shop. Something about sipping mai-tais off the money you were making from me.”
Wendy was aware of Dorothea’s eager tittering and she spoke calmly to diffuse the situation. “I don’t think this is the place to --”
He was too angry to calm down, however. “-- Why don’t you stop being so judgemental about my love life, and get one of your own?”
Wendy gasped, and lashed out. “I’m doing just fine, thank you. Maybe if you maintained a relationship longer than a month you’d see there is value in meaningful connection.”
This time Harry intervened. “Okay, okay. Let’s not go on anymore about your love lives. Minna, what do you know about the War Artists’ exhibit?”
The conversation turned away from inflammatory topics and settled into a discussion of the merits of the exhibition, although Wendy knew that things hadn’t been settled between she and Crofton. Why did they seem incapable of having a civil conversation?
At last the final crumb of scone was eaten, and Dorothea stood. “I must be off. Minna, it was lovely to spend some time with you and your friends. It certainly is nice to mix outside of our tired, stuffy circle. Toodle-oo!” With a wave Dorothea walked back towards the Gallery’s entranceway.
There was a small silence at the table, then Minna spoke.“I want to thank you all for not embarrassing me. Dorothea is a notorious gossip.”
“She’s got a tongue sharper than a butcher’s knife,” agreed Harry. He turned to Minna, “Wendy and I are going to have a look at that exhibition. Do you have time to join us?”
Minna looked a little surprised, but agreed and then asked Crofton. “Why don’t you come along? The subject matter is extraordinary.”
“That’s what I’d been planning on doing.” Crofton smiled at the older couple, but all friendliness disappeared when he turned to Wendy.
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