Page 67 of The Maid's Secret

At the concession stand, he bought me chocolate caramels, and on our way out the door, we bumped into the last person I expected to see at the drive-in.

“Hi, Flora,” he said. He was holding two tubs of popcorn in one hand and a Coke in the other.

“John? What are you doing here?” I inquired.

“Am I not allowed to watch a movie?”

“Who’s this?” Algernon asked.

“John Preston. We met at the ball,” John said in a tone sharper than a knife.

“Did we?” said Algernon. “Sorry, I’ve forgotten. The bartender had a heavy pour, and the company was too distracting,” he said as he casually flung his arm around my shoulders.

John’s jaw clenched.

“Who are you here with?” I asked, but John just stared at me mutely.

“I get it,” said Algernon. “Ol’ Johnny boy here isn’t the type to kiss and tell. Am I right? Listen, we’ll let you get back to her, whoever she is. Nice to meet you.”

“Wish I could say the same,” John muttered under his breath.

Algernon pulled me away, and the second we were out of earshot, he asked, “What the hell was that all about?”

“No idea,” I replied.

I could feel John’s eyes on our backs without even having to turn.

I was relieved when we were back inside the safe haven of Algernon’s convertible. We talked for a while as darkness descended. Soon enough, the film began. Algernon opened the chocolate caramels and we both partook as we watched. Before long, he put his hand on my knee, and I’m sure he could feel me trembling. The chocolates fell by the wayside, and he came closer.

“Sweeter than candy,” he said, then kissed me deeply. I drank in the scent of him, the caramel from his mouth, and before long, he was kissing my neck. I lost all sense of time and all sense of decorum, too. It would be a lie to say I didn’t like what was happening, for at first I did. I was flattered he found me at all attractive. After a while, the windows fogged up and I could barely see out. On the movie screen, two blurry actors were talking about love, but what the plot of the movie was, I couldn’t say. Suddenly, Algernon’s hand was on my inner thigh, traveling up and up. It was happening so fast. I felt claustrophobic. I needed to think, to breathe.

I held a hand to his chest. “Can we crack a window?” I asked. “It’s getting warm.”

Wordlessly, he rolled down his window a bit, then picked up where he’d left off.

Oh, Molly, these were different times, and I was so young and naïve. I was out of my element, delighted to have wooed Algernon but terrified of all that lay beyond the realm of his kiss. I wanted to slow down, maybe even to halt entirely. I hoped his hands would take my cues and relent. What I felt was no longer pleasant, and when he undid the top button on his jeans, I didn’t know what I would say to make him stop. I could hear my mother’s voice echoing in my head—Girls like that are looking for trouble.Was I one of those girls, the kind who teased, then let a boy down?

“Please,” I said, finding my voice at last. “Can you slow down?”

That’s when I heard it—a sharp rap on the foggy driver’s side window.

Algernon pulled his hand away and adjusted his jeans. “What the hell?” he said.

He rolled the window down to reveal Mrs.Mead standing there with a tub of popcorn. “Hello, Flora,” she said cheerily, just as she did every morning when she pulled back the curtains to let the daylight stream into my bedroom. “John bought too much popcorn. We were wondering if you’d like the rest.”

“Who the hell are you?” Algernon asked.

“Mrs.Mead, Flora’s nursemaid, at your service,” she said and didn’t she even curtsy.

“And that there is my brother, butler to Flora’s father. I hear you’ve already met my nephew, John?”

Algernon looked into the shadows, where both Uncle Willy and John were standing by my father’s old car—John holding a Coke and Uncle Willy another tub of popcorn.

Mrs.Mead pushed the popcorn through the window. Her one blue eye and her one green eye pierced Algernon with the most withering look I have ever witnessed. “On the house,” she said. “Popcorn keeps the mouth and hands busy. Enjoy!”

When Algernon took the tub, she waddled away.

He rolled up the window, then passed me the popcorn.

---