Gypsy - Lesley Pearse [71]
‘Oh dear, Theo,’ Beth tutted, ‘you must have been destroyed.’
‘Only dented, my dear,’ he said with a grin. ‘And once here in the land of opportunity, I realized I’d found the perfect outlet for my talents, and I certainly don’t regret coming.’
‘What are your talents?’ she asked teasingly. ‘That is, apart from being something of a charmer and ladies’ man?’
‘I play cards rather well,’ he said.
Beth laughed. ‘Will that make you a fortune?’
‘I hope so.’ He smiled roguishly. ‘It has stood me in good stead so far.’
‘If you play with men like Heaney you’ll get fleeced,’ she said.
‘You underestimate me, my dear,’ he said. ‘I intend to own gambling places, not lose my shirt to them.’
He laughed at her look of surprise. ‘And you, my pretty little gypsy, can play your fiddle in my very first one if you wish. I feel it was fate that we met up again, and that our fortunes will be inextricably linked.’
Beth felt fluttery inside as his hand reached out across the table and took hers. She thought he was going to kiss it, but instead he turned it and studied her palm, tracing the lines on it with his forefinger.
‘There is great passion in your hand,’ he said in a low voice. ‘I see strength and courage too. Money will come to you, but love, both of men and your music, will always be more important.’
Beth giggled. ‘You sound like a gypsy now! Can you see a husband and children?’
‘Is that what you want?’
‘Don’t all women?’
‘You are all told that is what you want from an early age,’ he said thoughtfully. ‘Our society encourages that idea too and creates no alternatives. But I think it would be such a waste for you to marry young and spend your life bringing up a brood of children when you have so much talent.’
He was still holding her hand, and slowly he bent his head down and put his lips to it. Beth felt a sharp pull inside her, a hot flush washed all over her and her skin tingled. She had to resist the urge to reach out and run her fingers through his hair. Instantly she recognized her feelings were the start of passion.
Three days later, Beth was with Ira in the back room of the shop where they repaired and laundered clothes, when Ira asked the name of the man Beth was seeing.
‘I know you are seeing someone,’ she said, looking sharply at Beth. ‘You’ve been lost in a daydream since Wednesday.’
Beth lifted the flat iron from the top of the stove and spat on it to see if it was hot enough to iron the white cotton petticoat. She didn’t want to answer Ira’s question; she felt if she voiced anything about Theo, especially her feelings towards him, it might jinx everything.
He had asked her to supper when they eventually came out of the coffee shop, and much later he had walked her home to Houston Street. It was a cold evening and the street was deserted, just a handful of young men standing around the grog shop on the corner.
‘I suppose you live somewhere smart?’ she said as they came to a stop outside her place.
‘Not really,’ he said, and reached out to caress her cheek. ‘Don’t be embarrassed by being poor, Beth. The will to succeed is always strongest when you have the least.’
His hand on her cheek made that strange pulling feeling in her belly return. She wanted him to kiss her so badly that she felt faint with it. She didn’t even care who saw her.
‘Will I see you again?’ she asked weakly, knowing that was too forward but unable to stop herself.
He kissed her then, as though it was his answer to her question. His lips touched hers, so gently at first, awakening every nerve ending in her body. Then, just as she was aching for something stronger, his arms went around her tightly, the tip of his tongue insinuated its way into her mouth, and she seemed to erupt inside.
She couldn’t help but press herself closer to him; his kiss was so thrilling that her body was acting on its own volition. She could feel her nipples hardening and a kind of throbbing in her private parts, and she shamelessly slid her tongue