Rumors from Shanghai by Amy Sommers

Author:Amy Sommers
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Earnshaw Books Ltd
Published: 2021-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

12

September 1941

“You’re back!”

“Just like a bad penny, I always turn up!” Tolt laughed. Despite Bill Gross’s appeals, buttressed by John Gayton’s reasoned arguments, he had insisted on returning to Shanghai.

Diana had creased her brow, frowning. “Why do Americans say that? What does it mean to be a ‘bad penny’?”

“Heck if I know.” He took her by the hand and spun her around as if they were on the dance floor instead of the spacious entrance hall to the Wang family home. Diana laughed.

“What’s this?”

“Practice! Tomorrow I’m taking you to the Park Hotel. Lord knows that with my being gone so long, you’ve probably forgotten how to even foxtrot!”

“Ha! Why just last weekend, I was doing the jitterbug.”

“Oh really? Be ready to be tested on your moves, Miss Wang. I’ve got my eye on you!”

The most oppressive of Shanghai’s summer heat was past and a hint of autumn delights was in the air. Restaurants with outdoor verandahs or patio seating found themselves in heavy demand.

Resuming the Shanghai life that he missed while in the States, he now inveighed upon Diana to accompany him in all pursuits. On the weekends, they rode ponies in the villages and fields adjacent to the city, finding a local family to prepare them a lunch they could enjoy at a table set up outside. On these outings, Tolt sought to turn the conversation or mood to one of tenderness, but Diana always seemed to anticipate these inclinations, forestalling with banter that would make romantic approaches appear out of sync. Tolt found this perplexing, but so enjoyed their high-spirited exchanges that he was hard-pressed to complain. Nevertheless, beneath the repartee, he was nursing a plan. All he needed was the right opportunity to present it.

Dancing turned into Tolt’s and Diana’s favorite pastime. The Metropole Gardens, the Paramount, the MGM, Vienna Gardens (which offered not only an open air dance pavilion, but also a miniature golf course), the Park Hotel; they visited them all, plus many others, sometimes two or three in an evening.

Before the summer, late-night dancing had been restricted to the weekends, but Tolt now went during the week as well. When Diana marveled that he could work after staying up so late, he dismissed her concerns, saying that they were young and needed to enjoy life. He didn’t tell her that he was caching away memories in the way he had hoarded Sara’s last letter. Soon, there would be no carefree dancing in Shanghai, nor maybe elsewhere. Occasionally the entire group went out, but Quentin and Tak were both busy with work. Sometimes they could persuade Sumiko to join them, but often it was just Tolt and Diana. By this point, he was so much a part of the Wang family’s circle, Diana no longer had to find a way for her father to allow her to be seen alone unchaperoned.

For each dancing excursion Diana wore a different evening gown of tissue-like shimmering silk. Some were in the ch’i-p’ao style, form-fitting with long slits up the sides and made of colors or patterned fabric that looked anything but traditional.

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