Page 95 of Lipstick Kiss

Jonathan walked her down the hall and stopped behind the closed front door, taking her into his arms again.

“I love you, Cyn. I’m sorry we can’t be together always, but this is the best we can hope for until your father accepts me.”

Cynthia knew that would never happen.

“I love you too. I’ll see you soon,” Cynthia said with tears in her eyes.

At that moment, a car came to a stop outside.

“I better go,” she said, and kissed him quickly.

Then she was out the door and trotting down the steps to the waiting cabbie. She climbed in the back and waved at the living room window, where she knew they were watching.

“Ready?” the cabbie asked.

“Yes, let’s go.”

The taxi driver glanced at her in the rearview mirror and frowned.

“Are you okay? I seem to ask you that a lot.”

Cynthia dropped her head and laughed.

“I’m fine.”

“What brings you to Sally’s place?”

“A job interview,” she said, plucking the reason out of the half dozen they’d devised over the years.

“Oh, I didn’t know she was hiring?”

“She’s not. It’s for a job in London, and the recruiter came here to interview me rather than drag me up to London.”

The taxi driver grinned and raised his eyebrows. “Wow, they must really want you, to make that effort.”

“I’ll have to wait and see.”

“You seem upset,” he commented.

“It was a stressful interview. I’d never been interviewed before, so when it was over, I rushed to the bathroom and burst into tears. Silly, really.”

“Ah, not really. It’s a new experience for you,” he said happily, like it was no big deal.

There had been so many times she’d spun that lie it was like it was real. All the taxi drivers seemed to read from the same script, and they all believed her.

“Okay, we’re here,” he said, pulling up to the taxi rank.

“Thanks for coming back for me.”

“Sure, wouldn’t dream of running off with your money.”

Cynthia smiled, got out of the car, and looked down the quayside, relieved that the boat was there to take her back.

Cynthia arrived back at Turner Hall to find Imelda pacing the marble foyer with a hand supporting her back. She was puffing out her cheeks.

“Where is everyone?” Cynthia asked.

“Freddie has gone to get the doctor. Bailey is herding the staff to prepare a room downstairs as I can’t get upstairs with these contractions and won’t make it to the doctor’s surgery.”

---