Beatrice hurried toward a sleek black Cadillac that had just pulled to a stop. She opened the rear door and lifted the children inside.
What a cad of a driver! A hired man ought to get out of the vehicle and assist the lady.
Sam started forward until he noticed that the dark-haired man behind the wheel sported a fashionable suit. The little girl called him “Daddy.” That cad was Beatrice’s husband. Sam recognized the distracted self-absorption of careless pleasure-seekers, whose quest for self-indulgence knew no limits because they’d been born privileged. Money bought them out of scrapes. Money insulated them from recrimination. Sam’s wife had been one of that set, and, to some extent, so had he. But she had paid the price for her sins, while he lived to regret his every day.
The driver leaned across to open the passenger door. Beatrice grabbed her expensive beaded bag off the fender and climbed in. Her diamond ring flashed in the sun, and the truth finally sank in. Beatrice had married into money.
The Foxes would not lose their shop. Beatrice could bail them out.
Chapter Five
Ruth selected the plainest dress in her closet. The yellowish-beige calico print drained the color from her complexion. Sam would never notice her in this dress. His gaze would settle instead on Jen.
By the time Ruth descended the stairs, Jen had vanished, in spite of her promise to pack the picnic basket.
“Where did your sister go?” Ruth asked Minnie, who was plunking out a melody on the old piano.
“To the airfield.” Minnie pounded on the middle C key, which stuck in humid weather. “Why can’t we get this fixed?”
“For the same reason we didn’t buy new dresses this year. Daddy’s treatment.”
Minnie’s shoulders slumped. “I’m sorry for complaining. It’s just that I get so tired of being poor.”
Ruth hugged her baby sister from behind. “Sometimes I get blue, too. Just remember how rich we are in each other.”
“I know, but sometimes I wish I could have something new.”
Ruth suspected this had to do with Minnie’s hope that Reggie would notice her. “I do, too. If I remember right, I have some scraps of brocade that would make a nice little handbag.”
“No, thank you.” Minnie pulled up the stuck key and pushed it down again, where it remained. “This is impossible. I can’t play a thing.”
“Would it help if I sang the note for you?”
“No.” Minnie closed the music book. “You get ready for the picnic. Wear something pretty. It’s your big chance, after all.” She managed half a smile.
The poor girl was definitely pining for Reggie. It would do no good to reveal that Ruth intended this afternoon to be Jen’s big chance, but it wouldn’t happen if her sister didn’t get home soon. “Did Jen say when she’d be back?”
“By one-thirty.”
That didn’t leave enough time to prepare the food for the picnic. Ruth blew out a sigh of frustration. That was Jen. Always racing on to the next exciting thing and forgetting her responsibilities at home.
Ruth headed for the kitchen and spent the next hour fashioning a respectable picnic lunch from leftovers and Mother’s canned peaches and pickled beets. She hoped Sam wasn’t famished, or there wouldn’t be enough to go around.
After packing everything into the basket, she got a niggling feeling that she was forgetting something. One by one she checked off the contents. Lemonade, sandwiches, silverware, napkins, cups...
“Can I at least buy some new sheet music?” Minnie called from the living room.
The mercantile might extend credit for food but not for luxuries. “We haven’t the money.”
Then she remembered what she’d forgotten. Sam’s catalogs. She fetched them from her dresser and tucked them into the side of the basket. As a second thought, she covered them with a napkin. If Minnie saw these lavish catalogs, she would pester Ruth for a new dress.
She’d just finished laying the blanket on top of the basket when Jen bounded through the kitchen door. Ruth glanced at the clock. One-forty.
“You’re late.”
Jen wrinkled her nose. “You’re wearing that dress?”
Ruth smoothed the beige calico skirt. “It’s light and comfortable.”
“It’s ugly and old-fashioned. Sam will never be attracted to you in that.”
That was the point. “Appearance shouldn’t matter.”
Jen rolled her eyes. “Most men aren’t nearly that high-minded. Put on something else. Even your gardening dress is prettier than that.”
Ruth hefted the basket off the table. “There’s no time. It’ll take us twenty minutes to walk to the park. If we want to get there before Sam, we have to leave now.”
Jen groaned. “At least wear a pretty hat.”
Ruth grabbed her straw garden hat with the wide brim. “Minnie, let’s go,” she called out. “Jen, could you fetch two fishing poles from the shed?”
“Why?”
“In case Mr. Roth would like to fish.”
“But you don’t—” Jen’s eyes widened. “Ooooh. That’s the point.” She grinned. “You’re craftier than I thought.”
“I am no such thing.”
Jen’s Cheshire-cat grin only broadened. “I’ll fetch the poles and meet you in the alley.”
Moments later, Ruth led her sisters down Main Street. The park was several blocks away, and with the heavy basket, she had to walk slowly and take many breaks. No breeze had come up yet, and the heat felt oppressive, so she kept to the shaded side of the street.
Half the town had decided to go to the park. The tables in the pavilion were already taken, and a game of baseball commandeered much of the open area. Dogs ran after balls and barked excitedly. Children giggled and squealed in games of tag or ring-around-the-rosy. Ruth had promised Sam that he could find them near the pavilion, so she picked a spot in front of the building.
“It’s in the sun,” Minnie complained. “We’ll die of heat.”
“You’ll be fine.” Ruth set down the basket and pulled off the blanket.
Jen leaned the poles against a tall oak and helped her spread the blanket. In an hour or so, the sun’s travels would bring the shade away from the pavilion and over them. As Ruth smoothed out the blanket, she watched for Sam. Rather than help, Minnie wandered off looking for Reggie. At first Ruth was irritated, but then she realized this could work to her advantage. Once Sam arrived, she’d excuse herself to find Minnie and suggest Jen take Sam fishing.
“He
