Your Folly

"Nellie! Where are you going?"

Mr. Barker's voice rings out from the stairs between the pie shop and the parlor, and Mrs. Lovett turns around, her deep green dress swishing on the wood floor. She smiles up at him, loving how he never ceases to make her heart leap. "Dancing, Mr. Barker, why?" Mr. Barker gives a little laugh and makes his way down the stairs toward her. His laughing eyes stare right into hers, and Nellie can't help but feel her breathing quicken. "How many times have I told you, Nellie, to call me Benjamin?" he asks, a teasing smile playing on his lips. She laughs breathlessly, flicking her eyes to the walls in an attempt to calm herself. "Maybe a bit more, Mr. B," she says, but silently her heart is flying as it always does when he trusts her enough to speak his given name. Benjamin laughs again, following her into the pie shop. "And is Mr. Lovett coming with you?" he asks, and Nellie can't help but believe that there is a wariness to his tone. The smile slides slowly off her face, and she looks down at her hands.

"Ah, not today, Mr. B," she says quietly. "'E don't really like to dance," Eleanor admits, looking back up again, and her smile is plastered back in place. "So I'm goin' alone tonight." And there is a twinge of sadness in Mr. Barker's eyes, making Mrs. Lovett wonder if perhaps he can see past their outwardly happy marriage, if perhaps he knew more than she suspected. But the moment is gone, and his smile is back in place. He rests a hand on her arm, making her flood with heat. "Why don't I come with you?" Mr. Barker asks, and Mrs. Lovett breaks out into a smile. "That'd be lovely, dear," she says, covering his hand with hers. "But what about Lucy?" she asks, praying that he will leave her home, that just for tonight she can have him all for herself.

"She'll be fine. With her pregnancy, it's best for her to rest anyway." Nellie's heart leaps with joy and a twinge of sorrow, reminded that Lucy is about to be given what Nellie had been denied numerous times. But she smiles nonetheless, letting Mr. Barker lead her out the door and to the dance hall, where she can pretend that his warm embrace and the way they twirl across the floor means something more.