Read Online Coming Up Roses by Alice Duncan - Free Book Online Page A

and Annie had
privately referred to him as the Prince of Whales—and his wife, and
a whole bunch of titled folks. She’d also met the Kaiser and
several more royal people in Europe, as well as an African chief, a
Polynesian something-or-other, and a Chinese Mandarin.
    But she’d been working then. Her life hadn’t
afforded her many opportunities to relax and behave like other
young women who, she presumed, visited entertainments whenever they
were moved to do so.
    But at this moment, she was visiting the most
spectacular Exhibition the world had ever seen, in the company of
one of her best friends and an alarmingly exciting man. She glanced
up at H.L. May and was thrilled all over again.
    Her reaction to him both troubled and puzzled
her. She didn’t really like him. He was too cheeky and aggressive
for her taste. He also made her feel like a backwoods yokel.
Granted, that wasn’t a difficult feat to accomplish, but all Rose
had to do was look at H.L. May, as she was doing now, to feel
insignificant, unlettered, and worthless.
    At the moment he was surveying the milling
throng and the astonishing display of electrical lighting all
around them as if he were a monarch eyeing his kingdom. He didn’t
find all this tumult and inventiveness intimidating. He acted as if
he’d created it himself, like God.
    Oh, dear. She was becoming blasphemous, and
she’d only been in H.L. May’s company for a little more than thirty
minutes. This didn’t seem like a good omen to Rose.
    To distract herself, she said, “It is very
kind of you, Mr. May, to entertain Little Elk and me this way.”
There. Rose didn’t truly think the man was kind at all. She figured
he’d only taken Little Elk along with them because Rose wouldn’t
have gone otherwise.
    Or would she? Shoot, she didn’t know. She
hoped she’d have had enough moral courage, or been enough of a
proper lady, to resist the lure of an exciting time at the
fair.
    “ Aw, it’s nothing,” H.L. said, waving
his hand in a dismissive gesture. “It’s more fun to see the fair
with a friend or two along.”
    “ You have friends ?” Rose could have bitten her tongue as
soon as the question popped out of her mouth.
    H.L. gave her a sharp glance. “Yes, Miss
Gilhooley. I have lots of friends. What kind of man do you think I
am, anyway?”
    She’d probably better not say. Instead, she
mumbled, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it like that.” Lordy, now she’d
added lying to her list of defects.
    “ I’ll just bet.”
    A low, rumbling sound came from Little Elk.
Rose, who had heard that noise before, but only rarely, glanced at
her friend, vaguely peeved.
    “ What are you laughing at?”
    “ You and your man, Wind
Dancer.”
    “ My man?” Just as Rose hadn’t meant to
ask H.L. May if he had any friends, she also hadn’t meant to shriek
at Little Elk.
    Little Elk winked and offered her more
popcorn. She took some because she had to do something or die of
embarrassment.
    H.L. May, as might have been expected,
laughed. He probably thought it was the funniest thing anybody had
said in a month of Sundays, since he obviously had no interest in
Rose except as a subject for examination and dissertation.
    She found that notion so depressing, she
decided not to think about it, too, along with all the other things
she didn’t want to think about. Instead, she turned her attention
back to the fair, and hoped H.L. would forget Little Elk’s comment
and her own shriek. “I’ve never seen so many people in my life
outside of an arena.”
    The manner of H.L.’s smile changed. To Rose,
he suddenly looked as if the topic of conversation had turned down
a path for which he harbored a degree of fascination most often
associated with religious zealotry or romantic love. “You know,
Miss Gilhooley, the Columbian Exposition is the most spectacular
world’s fair ever put on. I’ve heard it even tops the one they had
in Paris a few years back. And I’m going to make sure you see