The Sea Shell Girl (10 page)

‘Miss Brown, it is such a long journey from Porthsallos that I would hardly mistake the date of my appointment with Mr Fairbright. It was definitely for eleven o'clock today and …' Merry began.

‘As I said, you got it wrong,' Miss Brown hissed. ‘Now some of us have work to do, so kindly go away and come back on the right day.'

Merry stared at the woman in disbelief but could see by her dismissive attitude that further argument would be futile. Picking up her parcel, she turned to go.

‘Could we have some refreshments, please, Miss Brown?' Mr Fairbright said, appearing at his door. Catching sight of Merry, his eyes widened. ‘Miss Dyer? What are you doing here? I was given to understand you had to change your appointment?' he said frowning.

‘Change my appointment? I would never do that,' she replied.

‘It would appear she got the day wrong,' Miss Brown said, raising her eyebrows.

‘I most certainly did not. I meticulously noted it down,' Merry said, scrabbling in the pocket of her skirt and pulling out her little notebook. ‘I would never get such an important thing wrong.'

‘Clearly you have,' Miss Brown sniffed. ‘So if you'd like to come back tomorrow, Mr Fairbright will see you then. Now, sir, I'll get your tea,' she said, disappearing through a door behind the counter.

‘There seems to have been some misunderstanding, Miss Dyer,' the agent said, frowning again.

‘I guess it can't be helped, Mr Fairbright,' she answered politely, her heart sinking. She couldn't possibly travel all this way again tomorrow.

The agent was staring at her thoughtfully. ‘Look, Miss Dyer, my business with Mr Didcot will take about an hour. I usually take a break at noon, but if you wouldn't mind waiting I could see you then?'

Her heart lifted. ‘That would be most kind, Mr Fairbright,' she said, gathering up her parcel once more.

‘You are welcome to wait here. Perhaps you'd like to sit by the window – you can at least watch life go by?' he added.

‘Ah, Miss Brown,' he said, turning as the woman bustled through the door carrying a tray of tea and cake. ‘I'll take that.'

‘But Mr Didcot's waiting and I …' the woman began. Ignoring her, the agent took the tray from her hands.

‘Miss Dyer has graciously agreed to wait until noon so perhaps you could make her some tea and show her where she can refresh herself after her long journey?'

‘But you take luncheon then, and Mr Didcot …' she began, glaring at Merry.

‘Mr Didcot will be gone by then and I will require an explanation as to how this unfortunate mix-up with appointments has occurred, Miss Brown.' He gave the woman such a searching look, her cheeks flushed and she looked down at the counter. ‘Please make yourself comfortable, Miss Dyer,' he said, turning back to Merry. ‘I will try not to keep you waiting longer than necessary.'

As Mr Fairbright disappeared back into his office, Miss Brown looked up and glowered at Merry.

‘I don't know what you said to him but if you made him any promises …'

‘Promises? I'm sure I don't know what you're insinuating,
Miss Brown. Now I believe Mr Fairbright said you would make me some tea,' she said, smiling sweetly. The woman's eyes widened and Merry was sure she heard her utter a curse as she disappeared.

Merry shook out her skirts, then settled herself in the chair. Taking up her pins, she continued with her knit frock. Clearly someone had muddled her appointment and it didn't take a genius to work out who. The question was: why? She hadn't intentionally upset the formidable Miss Brown, although she supposed Mr Fairbright would have taken her to task about the overpayment. Still, that wasn't Merry's fault and she couldn't have pocketed the extra money, could she?

She jumped as a cup of tea was slammed down on the table in front of her, the hot liquid spilling into the saucer.

‘You needn't think I made that out of the goodness of my heart,' she spat.

‘Why, Miss Brown, I didn't know you had one,' Merry quipped. The woman might be Mr Fairbright's assistant but Merry had no intention of putting up with rudeness. She turned her attention back to her knitting, leaving the woman no choice but to return to her stool behind the counter.

Her fingers automatically settling into the rhythm of the pattern, she glanced out of the window. People were bustling about their business and, further down the street, she could see the brightly coloured booths, their stripy coverings flapping in the breeze. Excitement bubbled up inside her. With no Nicco waiting for her, after concluding her business she'd be free to browse the materials and
trimmings. She was so busy planning what she might buy that she only noticed Mr Didcot had emerged from the office when the tap tap of his cane on the floor came to a stop by her side.

‘Miss Dyer?'

She looked up quickly. ‘Yes, sir?'

‘I understand you have been inconvenienced this morning and I wish to convey my apologies.'

Merry stared at the dapper businessman in surprise. ‘It's no trouble, sir,' she answered, putting down her pins and smiling up at him.

‘You are right, Fairbright. Miss Dyer is charming in the extreme. She has also put the time she had to wait to good use,' he said, turning to the agent, who was hovering behind them. ‘Good day, my dear. I've a feeling our paths will cross again very soon.' Before Merry could ask him what he meant, he gave a little bow, put on his topper and tapped his way smartly from the premises.

‘Come along, Miss Dyer,' Mr Fairbright said. ‘I can only apologize again for the misunderstanding. You can be assured, however, that I will be getting to the bottom of it.' He frowned at her untouched cup with its tea-filled saucer. ‘Miss Brown, please bring us some refreshment and do try to keep a steady hand, if that is not too much trouble.' Merry could feel the woman's glare on her back as Mr Fairbright showed her into his office. She might be able to afford fancy leather for her feet but Merry wouldn't like to be in her shoes later.

She waited patiently whilst the agent spread her knit frocks over his desk, then inspected them. His room smelled of beeswax polish and tobacco, and she relaxed
back in her chair, content to read the titles on the bound volumes in his bookcase while she resumed her knitting. He was still checking the tension of stitches and regularity of the pattern when Miss Brown slunk into the room and put the tea tray on the table. She stood there awaiting acknowledgement but Mr Fairbright ignored her and with a sniff she flounced from the room.

‘Those pockets for the watches have been worked impeccably and I am pleased to say I have received more orders for your shell-patterned ones. I see you have produced the required dozen frocks this time,' he said, pushing them to one side. Taking up his pad he scribbled, then tore off a chit, but instead of passing it to her as usual, he sat back in his chair and eyed her candidly. ‘Tell me, Miss Dyer, are you happy in your work?'

The question took her by surprise. What should she say? If she told him she was bored with knitting day in and day out he would certainly cancel the order. Yet she'd been brought up to be honest.

‘Well, it is certainly satisfying to finish a garment,' she began. ‘And I'm grateful that you pay a fair price.' She was about to add, ‘unlike the stingy Sharp' but thought better of it. Mr Fairbright smiled and passed her cup to her.

‘You must be thirsty after your travels for it is some distance from Porthsallos. How did you get here, by the way?'

‘I caught a lift with the carter.'

‘Hmm,' he said, steepling his fingers. ‘I dare say the journey there and back must take the best part of a day?'

‘Yes, it does, and that is why I would never make a mistake about the date,' she said.

He took a sip of his tea and seemed to be pondering his next words. ‘Now young ladies are beginning to travel more, there is a demand for suitable attire, waterproof clothing being a prime example.'

‘And you think because I travel from Porthsallos I require such things?'

To her surprise Mr Fairbright rocked with mirth.

‘You are such a tonic, my dear. No, I'm talking about ladies who travel the globe. Those with money … Look, Miss Dyer, I have been most impressed with the way you conduct yourself and think you would be perfect. Why, I was saying the very same thing to Mr Didcot earlier and he seemed most interested in you.'

‘Interested in me?' she frowned. ‘Why?'

‘Have you ever thought of procuring work in the town?' Her heart skipped a beat. Had she? Then she saw the serious look on the agent's face and her heart flopped. Was he going to cease trading with her?

‘My dear, forgive me; as ever, I am ahead of myself. Mr Didcot and I are jointly investing in a draper's shop in the town.'

‘So you won't be requiring my knit frocks any more?' she gasped, staring at him in dismay.

‘While there is still a demand for those, one must move with the times. Young ladies in particular no longer wish to spend time visiting their dressmakers for numerous fittings. They want nice quality clothes, customized to their personal requirements, that they can take away from the shop and wear that same evening if they choose. There is an increasing demand for a more up-to-date service and this is where I think you would be ideal.'

‘Me, Mr Fairbright? I'm sorry but I don't see how.'

‘That's easy, Miss Dyer. You could become a sales assistant in our new store. Of course, you would have to pass an interview and an elementary mathematical test, but I'm sure that would be a mere formality.'

‘A sales assistant? But I have no skills in that kind of work.'

‘You have already shown yourself to be honest, pleasant to people under challenging circumstances and are obviously a hard worker. These are the attributes we require, Miss Dyer, so what do you say? Would you be happy to be interviewed for such a position?'

‘Well, I don't know. I mean, I have already travelled here this morning and …' Her words tailed off as butterflies of excitement skittered in her stomach. Wasn't this what she'd been dreaming of? Yet what would her mother and Grozen say?

‘Mr Didcot is aware of your situation and would be happy to meet us at one o'clock,' he urged. Seeing him take out his pocket watch and frown, Merry forced herself back to the present. ‘We've just time to get there, if we hurry. Come along,' he insisted.

Realizing she had nothing to lose, Merry followed him out of his office where he was already handing the chit to Miss Brown.

‘Please make payment and reimbursement of wool for Miss Dyer, the correct amount this time, Miss Brown,' he said. ‘I believe I am now free, unless you have seen fit to rearrange my appointments again?' He quirked an eyebrow but the woman was frantically pulling down hanks of wool. ‘No hurry, Miss Brown. Miss Dyer will collect
everything upon her return,' he said, snatching his hat from the stand in the corner.

As the agent strode along the busy street, Merry endeavoured to keep up. Her mind was spinning like a merry-go-round at the fair as she tried to take in what he'd said. She didn't have time to ponder for long, for already he was disappearing down a side road that led through to the main thoroughfare. Finally he came to a halt outside a large double-fronted shop with a door at each side. Before she'd had time to take note of the items in the window, the door on the left was thrown open and a regal-looking woman dressed in black was greeting the agent effusively.

‘Good afternoon, Mr Fairbright. Mr Didcot is waiting in the office for you.'

‘Thank you, Mrs Smale. This is Miss Dyer,' he said, barely pausing as he marched inside.

The woman frowned down her glasses and shook her head as she took in Merry's appearance. Hastily smoothing her skirts, Merry followed after the agent. She just had time to take in the glass-fronted counters flanked by rows of wooden drawers before she was ushered up three short flights of stairs to the first floor and into a spacious office.

Mr Didcot welcomed them and bid Merry take a seat in front of his highly polished desk. As the two men began explaining about the new business, she automatically picked up her pins, only to receive a frown from Mr Fairbright.

‘It would be advisable to pay attention, Miss Dyer, for we have much to cover.'

‘Sorry, sir,' she said meekly.

Mr Didcot nodded and continued talking about their venture, then asked Merry what she had done in Porthsallos. She'd only just finished explaining how she fitted in her knitting around the fish packing when he began firing mathematical questions at her. Just when she thought her brain was going to burst, he sat back in his chair.

‘Well, Fairbright, I don't know what you think, but I've made up my mind,' Mr Didcot said, his grey eyes twinkling.

Mr Fairbright nodded. ‘I think Miss Dyer has shown herself adept in numeracy and conversational skills.'

‘Really?' Merry said, her eyes widening.

‘Indeed, Miss Dyer. Such industriousness does you credit and is to be applauded, so I am happy to offer you a trial position here in our new store.'

‘Thank you,' she gasped, staring from one to the other.

‘Well, would you be happy to faithfully serve and keep the secrets of Didcot and Fairbright?'