Nothing by Henry Green

Author:Henry Green
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978168371443
Publisher: New York Review Books
Published: 2017-09-15T04:00:00+00:00

Later still Philip and Mary made good their escape, got away to a nightclub.

“Well,” he said “I told you! It went quite all right.”

“Oh Philip darling,” she cried above but somehow under the music so that she sounded hoarse, “they’ll never let us marry, I know they won’t, isn’t it awful!”

“But see here,” he objected “everything worked like a dream. I swear this was the only way to deal with my mother. I learned by watching Pen as a matter of fact. When she wants whatever it may be she just takes it; as soon as she feels ill she doesn’t just say she feels something coming on, she is ill and Mamma loves the whole business.”

“We should’ve got married first. There’s what we ought to have told them, not that we were only engaged.”

“I know but it’s so rude to the relations when people elope.”

“Yes you’re right,” she gulped.

“And then eloping’s out of date, it went out with horses.”

“Oh dear now they’re all eaten poor things.”

“Too many people on this island keep carnivorous pets Mary,” he replied. “The waste is fearful.”

“But what happens next Philip?”

“With our parents? Well you know how it is. They’ll argue, there’ll be no end to the amount they’re sure to squawk which they’ll love. And Mamma will weep once or twice and your father will act pretty idiotically for quite a time.”

“Don’t say anything against Daddy darling, please.”

“OK then lay off Mamma.”

“What d’you mean, I haven’t said a word about her!”

“It was just I thought you seemed a bit unenthusiastic when you made out she’d try and stop us.”

“I said ‘they.’ I didn’t say anything against her.”

“Well who is ‘they’ in that case?”

“All of them.”

“But look here it passed off awfully well didn’t it? I mean they seemed overjoyed to me. As a matter of fact I thought my speech went rather grandly didn’t you?”

“Oh you were wonderful darling,” she warmly assured him. “Heavens though I do feel I’d been put through a mangle.”

“Poor sweet,” he said and squeezed the hot hand he was holding. “Shall we dance?”

They danced. Eyes closed, cheek to cheek, better than ever before. When they had had enough for a time they came back to their table.

“That’s the way to do the rumba,” she told him. “See that man on the left, how he makes the girl go round while he stays in the centre.”

“Should I do that with you?”

“Of course darling.”

“I doubt if I ever shall be able.”

“Then take lessons silly.”

“I say,” he said “you do feel better now, you must?”

“I think so, yes.”

“Can’t find out yes or no.”

“But no one can. First something inside says everything is fine,” she wailed, “and the next moment it tells you that something which overshadows everything else is very bad just like an avalanche!”

“I’m so sorry,” he said. “I truly am.”

They danced again and again until, as the long night went on they had got into a state of unthinking happiness perhaps.

•

A week later Mrs. Weatherby asked John Pomfret to dinner.

“And how is dear Liz?” she enquired as she brought the man a glass of sherry.

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