CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Nellie sat up that night in her bed working on her romance story. She had always thought that writing about being in love would be easy, after all she had read many books describing love, but actually being in love had opened up her eyes, as well as doors to many new feelings, feelings that she never knew she had. And these feelings only made her a better writer. As she wrote out a love scene between her Irish heroine Moira, and her battle warrior lover Adair, never had the words flown so fluently from her pen.

There was a knock at her door.

"Nellie." It was Samantha. "Can I come in?"

"Of course," Nellie replied.

Often back in New York City after everyone had gone to bed, Samantha or Nellie would come to the other's room, knock on the door, and then crawl in the bed. It was the girls' alone time. Time where Nellie would tell Samantha stories, and Samantha would tell Nellie about all the men she thought were handsome. It was during one of their nighttime talks that Samantha had told Nellie about how she liked her piano teacher, and it was during a nighttime talk that Nellie showed Samantha her first completed written down story. Samantha slid into the bed next to Nellie.

"We have created quite a mess," she sighed.

"We?" Nellie asked as she laid down her composition book.

"It's all right though because I know how we are going to get out of it," said Samantha,

In Nellie's mind the only trouble they had was Peyton Denardo, other than that everything was just peachy.

"Eugene and the rest of us saw your public display of affection for Eddie Ryland this afternoon," Samantha said.

"Public display?" Nellie asked. "Sam you are the one who had the dramatic public display, dashing out on the bocce ball court and all."

"But I'm supposed to be in love with Peyton," Samantha retorted. "You are not supposed to be in love with Eddie."

""Who says?" Nellie exclaimed raising her voice. "I can be in love with whoever I want."

"I'm sorry Nellie," Samantha said. "Eddie has been a good experience for you, he was good training ground for you, but remember we are soliders, this is war."

"You aren't going into that war hullabaloo again?" Nellie asked shaking her head.

"Come on Samantha. Grandmary is allowing you to see Peyton again, so Eddie didn't destroy your chances of becoming a Denardo. I think we should stop the charade now. We tell him the truth. That you were mad at him, you concocted this stupid plan, and then we tell him my name. It hasn't been going on long at all, I think he would think it funny, and everything would be okay."

"We will stop the charade soon," Samantha agreed. "I don't know what I was thinking. Why he could just drop by anytime unannounced and Grandmary, Hawkins, Elsa, or the Admiral will give us away when they tell him that there is no Helene Fitzgerald living here. Also since you aren't keeping a low profile in public, what if Maude or somebody sees you?"

"No one except you, Maude, and Eugene even notice me," Nellie replied hotly. "And you are the last person that I'd take low profile lessons from. That hat of Cornelia's that you had on today had so much stuff on it that it's a wonder that your neck isn't tired."

"Well we do need to end this soon," Samantha went on. "Because it is going to come out, and we are ruining your chances with Eugene. I think he saw you and Eddie and he's jealous."

"Jealous?" Nellie sniffed. "Why on earth would Eugene be jealous?"

"Because he doesn't know about our plan," Samantha answered. "But he will. I am going to fill him in tomorrow. You are in danger of losing him Nellie. I think he was upset. I didn't want to tell you this, but I must. He tried to ask me for a drink this afternoon."

"Eugene and I are just common friends," said Nellie. "He is not my boyfriend."

"Sure," Samantha teased. "That is why he comes calling to see you every couple of days and brings you gifts."

"He doesn't bring me gifts," Nellie cried.

"Does too." Samantha retorted. "He is really sweet Nellie! He's a catch, and I am not letting a nincompoop like Eddie Ryland chase him off."

"Eddie is not a nincompoop," Nellie defended.

"Oh come on Nell," Samantha laughed. "You don't really like that lumbering dolt."

"He's not a dolt Samantha," Nellie replied. "I know when he was a boy he could be a pain. Trust me I used to work for his family, and he was a pig. But he's grown up now. He's quite a gentleman."

"Eddie Ryland is no gentleman!" Samantha shrieked. "He took you to the race track."

"So?" Nellie shrugged.

"A betting parlor is no place for a lady," Samantha said. "You are a fine delicate flower, a fragile bird."

"First of all Grandmary," Nellie began. "I am not a delicate flower or a fragile bird. I spent the first years of my life working on the bobbin machine in a filthy factory, getting grains of sand and gunk in my eyes and hair. Having my lungs so filled with dust that I would cough so hard, and my throat would burn at night. I have scrubbed floors until the skin goes raw on my fingertips, and my hands are completely chapped. I lived with my worthless alcoholic Uncle in disgusting hovel that he referred to as a home, and then went to a dumpy orphanage."

"But that is in the past now," Samantha argued. "You are a fine lady."

"Yes I am a fine lady," Nellie agreed. "But the past are my roots. It has shaped me into who I am today. And no matter how expensive a gown that I'm dressed in, or how rare the jewels, I will never forget where I came from."

There was a long silence as Samantha let what Nellie said sink in.

"But he still took you to a betting parlor," was all that she could say.

"That is what I like about Eddie," Nellie replied. "I think you'll appreciate it too, since you are into women's rights. Eddie treats me like an equal. Yes he does treat me like a lady, giving me a flower, and being so gentle and sweet, but by taking me to the racetrack I got to meet all of his friends. A boy will take his boy friends to the track, and by taking me there I felt like an equal. I like that."

"But he's so big and beefy," Samantha said.

"I like it. I feel so safe standing next to him," said Nellie. "When I take his arm it feels so solid, hard as a rock."

"How in earth did he get that big?" Samantha wondered aloud. "He was always tall, but he wasn't that big when we were growing up."

"He plays football and baseball for his university teams," Nellie replied. "And he eats beef. Lots of beef. Why when we went out to lunch he had a shank of veal as long as this bed."

"Nellie that is absolutely disgusting," Samantha groaned. "I'm sorry Nellie, but don't fall too hard for him. We are still going to carry out our plan, but soon at the Fourth of July Independence Ball. He likes you, so you can convince him to go with you. We'll drop the bombshell there."

"Sam please I don't want to humiliate him in front of a bunch of people," said Nellie.

"Nellie. I hate to tell you this but Eddie Ryland is a creep. Once he finds out that you used to be his family's maid, he'll be the one humiliating you," said Samantha.

"That's not true!" Nellie yelped. "You think that just because I used to be a maid that no man will want me!"

"Eddie won't want you, but Eugene wants you," Samantha defended. "I don't want you getting hurt by Eddie."

"Trust me Samantha I won't be getting hurt," Nellie said hotly, tears brimming in her eyes, her face burning with anger. "Eddie is not a creep, he respects me and likes me, whether I'm Helene or Nellie but he won't if we carry on some childish plan at the Independence Ball. And Eddie is not the creep, Peyton is!"

"Take that back Nellie O'Malley!" Samantha screamed and shot up from the bed.

"It's true," Nellie went on. "He's been out with practically every girl in Mount Bedford, and he particularly fancies Edith Edelton."

"What's gotten into you?" Samantha asked. "Why are you trying to ruin my happiness, and tell stories about the man I love. You are jealous. You have always been jealous of the attention I get from men."

"Yeah right," Nellie said. "I've let you come by and sweep up any boy. Any boy, even if he was interested in me. We'd have tow brothers come calling, I let you have both of them. I guess I am the real jealous type."

"You are foolish!" Samantha yelled. "You have never had a boyfriend before, and you don't know anything about men."

"No Samantha," Nellie hissed. "You are the one who doesn't know a thing or else you would know that Peyton two times you."

Samantha let out a screech of frustration just as Grandmary barged in.

"What is going on in here," she yelled. "You girls are shrieking and yelling when the rest of us are trying to sleep!"

"Nellie is being a bitch," Samantha retorted and stomped out of the room before Grandmary could zap her on her choice of language.

"Gracious!" Grandmary exclaimed. "You girls do too much creeping and

prowling around at night. I don't know what you girls have against just going to bed at

night like normal people."