Read Online The Decision by Penny Vincenzi - Free Book Online

dreamboat, Scarlett, you should see him in his mess kit.’
    ‘What’s mess kit?’ asked Scarlett curiously. She was learning a whole new vocabulary from Diana, every bit as foreign as the French, Italian and German of her passengers.
    ‘Oh, it’s what they wear in the Officers’ mess, not khaki, but bright red tunics and frightfully narrow navy trousers, so flattering.’
    In spite of everything, Scarlett always felt rather honoured Diana had befriended her.
    The plane had settled down again; Scarlett took a deep breath and went to collect the honk bags.
    ‘So, darling, how is the job? Still enjoying it?’
    ‘Oh, Gommie. I just adore it. And I’ve got the most marvellous news, I’ve been promoted.’
    ‘Really, darling, how awfully clever. I’ve never been promoted to anything in my life. Unless you can count getting married. And I don’t think Piers has turned out to be a promotion. Not nearly as rich as I’d thought. Good thing I didn’t have any brothers and all Pa’s money came to me or I’d be in a frightful bind. More champagne, darling?’
    ‘Oh, yes please.’
    Eliza beamed happily at her godmother; they were having their monthly dinner at Claridges. Anna liked to keep up with Eliza’s life; she said it was much more interesting than her own.
    ‘So what is the new job?’
    ‘Well, Woolfe’s are going to do a new young department, called Younger Generation, or something like that. And, they think it deserves a young PR. To talk to the younger journalists. And, oh Gommie, you’re looking at her!’
    ‘My darling girl, that is just thrilling. You are clever. Well done. How exciting.’
    ‘Isn’t it? And it means I can go into meetings with the buyers, stuff like that. I just can’t believe it. Lindy – that’s my boss – is so generous too. She says it was something I said that gave her the idea, and she’s told Mr Woolfe that. And she’s so young-thinking even though she’s quite old, I mean at least thirty-five, I’d say—’
    ‘Thirty-five! My God, Eliza, and she can still get herself about?’
    ‘Oh, yes,’ said Eliza, missing this irony entirely, ‘and she’s really with-it, too.’
    ‘With-it? What does that mean, darling?’
    ‘Oh, gosh, well, sort of – sort of young and trendy. You can apply it to anything, cars, clothes, music …’
    ‘I shall remember that,’ said Anna, smiling at her, raising her glass. ‘It’s one of the reasons I like seeing you, darling, keep myself up to date. Well, congratulations. Now what about your love life, anything interesting happening there?’
    ‘Absolutely nothing,’ said Eliza firmly. ‘I’m a career girl, Gommie, and a very ambitious one. Love, getting married, doesn’t fit into my plans at all at the moment.’
    ‘Better not let your mother hear you saying that,’ said Anna Marchant.

Chapter 5
     
    ‘What you doing this weekend then, Matt?’
    ‘Oh, not sure.’
    Matt grinned at Paul Dickens, one of his fellow negotiators – well, OK, fellow trainee negotiators – at Barlow and Stein, Commercial Estate Agents.
    ‘Group of us going down the coast Sunday. Should be good. Going to be hot, they say. Want to come?’
    ‘Well …’ Matt did want to go – a lot. But he’d promised Mr Barlow to work on Saturday and if he didn’t finish he was quite prepared to work Sunday as well. He wanted to get promoted and fast, and he needed Mr Barlow to be pleased with him for that.
    It wasn’t exactly a difficult job; the only requirement was legwork. There was a stack of letters to go out to a great many small businesses in the area, asking them if they were looking to expand their offices and letting them know that Barlow and Stein had every type of premises to show them if they were; it would save a lot of money if they could be delivered personally.
    Barlow and Stein was a small agency, based just off Great Portland Street and specialising in commercial property. Their clients were the fast-expanding businesses cashing in