CHAPTER 32
WHYNOT STREET
Lillian returned from Cora’s and went straight to her bed. There she lay for two days, feeling completely bereft. The pain she felt over Cora’s rejection released a fresh surge of longing for Patricia. Nicholas’s frosty silence turned to concern when Jemima returned to the kitchen with a plate of untouched dinner. He climbed the stairs and entered the room, stopping abruptly at the end of the bed.
‘Fine, Lillian, look. You mustn’t continue to sulk. What’s done is done. Today’s gossip is tomorrow’s chip paper. All you need to do is wait until the next drama erupts and your little outburst at the ball will be forgotten.’ He folded his arms across his chest as if sure his wisdom would make her rise and tell him that of course, how silly she was being, after all.
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