Every penny Stella brought her was to Chrissie the elixir of life. It was also her revenge on Stella for being pretty and desirable. If she suffered to obtain it, all the better. Why should things be easy because she had a pretty face and a well-formed body?
A face out of the past confronted Chrissie with a leer. She remembered Lord Wrotham whom Stella had hated. He was a notorious blackguard, but rich and powerful. Stella tried to avoid him for he was a by word in the theatrical world. One evening he sent her a bouquet of orchids and an invitation asking her to have supper with him after the show. Stella shuddered and thrust the flowers away from her.
‘I’ve not sunk so low that I have to take a meal off him,’ she said firmly. ‘Send a message, Chrissie, and say I’m otherwise engaged.’
C
