I decided that in this particular circumstance, I was justified in disobeying Miss June’s instructions to stay in bed.I sat up and pushed the covers back, being very careful not to strain my stitches too much.I was comforted by the fact that moving seemed to hurt less than it had the day before, but when I pushed myself to my feet, I swayed a bit and had to sit right back down.
Which was when the door opened.
“Oscar!”I said as relief flooded me.
“Jimmy Downing, what on earth are you doin’ out of bed?”
“Lookin’ for you.I didn’t know you were back.”
Oscar shut the door behind him and came to help me get back under the covers.
“Back to bed now.I’m fine.Trick’s downstairs.We were talking to Miss June.I had a peek in on you, but you were sound asleep.”He pulled the covers back o’er me like a proper nursemaid and sat down on the coverlet.
He was dirty and dusty, but I’d never seen anyone so beautiful.
“Did you have any luck?”
Oscar sighed and shook his head.“Not yet.But we’ll try again tomorrow.”
I was not looking forward to another day without him.I was sure hoping Miss June would give me leave to get out of bed, at least.
“You want me to sing youAll the Pretty Little Horsesso you can go back to sleep?”Oscar asked, smoothing the hair back from my brow.
“Well, I—” In fact, that sounded like the best thing in the world right about now.“I would, in fact.”
Oscar took off his boots and got up on the bed, leaning back against the pillows and soothing me with soft touches and loving glances, as he sang the familiar words that lulled me right back into the land of Nod, safe in the assurance of his proximity and care.
* * * *
I was fortunate that once Oscar and Trick had left again the next morning, Miss June came to change my bandages, and she gave me leave to move around a little, as long as I promised to sit when I could and go slow and easy.
I puttered around in the room for the morning and early afternoon, and it was enjoyable to sit in the chair and look out of the window onto the backyard.I felt a good deal recovered, except for the occasional stabs of pain from the healing wound.When I couldn’t bear it anymore and the fretting of waiting for Oscar to return was too much, I left the safety of my room and walked gingerly down the stairs, holding the railing and moving like molasses.
The parlor was full of scantily clad girls, lying about on the furniture and getting ready to receive any men who might come in.This was the way of cathouses, and ’twasn’t anything I was unfamiliar with.Although now that I’d had the luxury of seeing Oscar dressed in some of them frilly underthings, I found my eyes wandering and my cheeks heating.Seems I still found some things fetching, even if I was more interested in Oscar’s parts and the heart attached to them.
“Hi, Jimmy,” one of the girls said, waving at me and smiling with a coy flirtatiousness that made me a mite uncomfortable.I recognized her as the girl who’d given me the sponge bath—Sally.
“Hello,” I said, with a polite smile, and tried not to remember how she’d seen me.
“You worried about your beau?”
My husband.
“Yes.A little.”
A lot.
“Aww, I’m sure he’ll be back soon,” one of the other girls assured me, pulling her peignoir open on purpose so I could see the flesh plumping out of her corset.
I tore my eyes away, but then found myself gazing into the pretty green eyes of another girl, who smiled and giggled.
“You’re awfully sweet to worry about him, Mr.Downing.”
Perhaps coming down here hadn’t been the best idea, but I wanted to know when Oscar got back.
An older whore named Bertha, who had hair as dark as coal, bright blue eyes and seemed more experienced than the others, leaned o’er to slide her finger along my chin, gazing into my eyes with a smile.
“You know, Jimmy, we can distract you until Oscar and Trick come back.Wouldn’t that be nice?”
