Chapter 12

It took Beatrix a mere two minutes to discover that Miss Theodosia Robinson had not been exaggerating when she’d claimed to be challenged when it came to fashions.

Theodosia had not known there were different styles of gloves, her eyes widening when Beatrix pulled out a glove Theodosia had pointed to, and then explained that the glove wasn’t appropriate to wear to a ball because it was meant to be worn while riding a horse.

“Is that why it only goes up a short distance from the wrist?” Theodosia asked, admiring the driving glove she was now wearing.

“It is. Makes it easier to handle the reins if your arm isn’t encased in fine leather.”

“Fascinating,” Theodosia breathed, stripping the glove from her hand and laying it aside. “I’ll take it.”

“Are you sure you want it in this particular color?” Beatrix asked. “Red is a bold color, unless, of course, you have a riding habit that has a bit of red in it.”

Theodosia’s shoulders drooped. “I only have one riding habit and it’s brown.”

Beatrix’s heart gave a lurch at the dejection she saw in Theodosia’s eyes. Pulling a piece of brown paper from beneath the counter, she set the red gloves on top of the paper. “Red gloves would certainly add a nice splash of color to a brown riding habit.”

“Or Theo could purchase a new riding habit that would match the gloves,” Norman said, looking up from the notepad he’d pulled out of his pocket a second after Theodosia had proclaimed she was going to purchase some gloves. “Perhaps, Theo, after you finish selecting a pair or two of gloves, you should take Beatrix’s suggestion and go visit the salon on the second floor.”

Horror flickered through Theodosia’s eyes. “I’m not going to the second floor.” Her hand reached up and touched what Beatrix hadn’t neglected to notice was very unevenly short hair before she gestured to the customers mingling around the different counters. “All these ladies are finely dressed and have their hair styled to perfection. I hate to imagine what the saleswomen would think of me if I, dressed as I am right now and with my hair all but burnt off, showed up on the second floor.”

Even though Beatrix longed to tell Theodosia that the saleswomen would find it a privilege to assist her, she knew that because Theodosia was currently wearing a dress of the dullest shade of gray she’d ever seen, along with sporting numerous stains as well, it would be less than the truth.

The reality of shopping at Marshall Field & Company was this—ladies shopped not only to purchase new items but to be seen in their finery. Enormous and well-decorated hats were a must, as were proper gloves, brooches, fine reticules, and even parasols, if it was overly sunny outside.

Unfortunately, the leather gloves Theodosia had taken off before she’d tried on the riding gloves were worn and cracked, and her hat, an outdated style that suggested Theodosia had purchased it at least five years prior, was missing a good deal of stitching and didn’t sport so much as a single flower or feather on it.

Beatrix had no doubt that if she were to encourage Theodosia to mosey up to the second floor, that woman would soon find herself being scrutinized by the most snobby of saleswomen, even if they would greet her with a smile.

“How are you going to get a new riding habit if you don’t purchase one here?” Norman asked, which earned him a scowl from Theodosia in return.

“I’ll order one from a catalog, just like I order all of my clothing.” Theodosia nodded to Beatrix. “I find the Montgomery Ward catalog to be very convenient, and they send the orders right to my house, which saves me the bother of shopping in a store.”

“But how can you know that clothing will fit you properly?” Beatrix couldn’t resist asking, having never ordered anything in her life from a catalog.

Theodosia shrugged. “I’ve never been one to bother much with that. I just hack off the hem with a knife if a garment arrives too long, or use pins if something’s too large.”

Norman’s brow furrowed. “Why don’t you use a needle and thread to hem your garments instead of hacking at them with a knife? Seems to me your method would cause the fabric to unravel.”

“Have you ever hemmed any of your garments?” Theodosia tossed back at him.

“Of course not, but I’m a gentleman, and no one expects a gentleman to be proficient with a needle and thread.”

“Unless you’re a tailor,” Beatrix said, which earned her an unexpected smile from Norman before he nodded to Theodosia.

“You about finished?”

Theodosia’s nose shot into the air again. “I’ve barely begun.”

It took a great deal of effort to swallow the laugh that was bubbling up her throat. Clearly Theodosia was still put out with Norman and was, if Beatrix wasn’t much mistaken, prolonging her time at the glove counter as a way to punish him for all the annoyance the man had caused her that day.

“If you’d agree to tell Mr. Cabot you’re unable to attend the ball with him, you could then abandon the glove counter, since you must know it doesn’t matter to me if you wear old gloves while in my company,” Norman said.

Theodosia’s eyes flashed. “I’m not going to the ball with you, nor will I disappoint my father by changing my mind about attending the ball with Harvey Cabot.”

“You don’t even like Harvey.”

“I don’t dislike him, and he’s an attractive gentleman, what with his dark hair, somewhat broad shoulders, and a gaze that seems to linger on me quite often.” Theodosia smiled. “He told my father he finds me to be an intriguing lady, giving him hope that Harvey is soon to approach him about courting me.”

“You don’t want a man like Harvey courting you,” Norman said firmly.

Realizing she was rapidly losing control of the situation, and because Mrs. Goodman was making yet another circle around the glove counter, Beatrix decided an intervention was desperately needed. “Perhaps, Mr. Nesbit, if you’d allowed Miss Robinson to know of your interest in her, she wouldn’t have agreed to attend the ball with Mr. Cabot.”

The squabble Norman and Theodosia had been in the midst of came to an abrupt end as the two of them burst into laughter, Theodosia laughing so hard that she came down with a case of the hiccups.

“What an amusing conclusion you’ve come to, Miss Waterbury,” Theodosia said before she hiccupped again, exchanged grins with Norman, then hiccupped once more.

“Indeed,” Norman agreed before he turned his grin on Beatrix, the unexpectedness of his grin causing her to lose her train of thought, until Norman continued speaking.

“As Theo stated before, we’re acquaintances, and neither of us has any interest in changing our acquaintance status. But before you decide to launch into a full-blown argument about that, I believe I’ll remove myself from your presence and go off to do a bit of shopping for myself.” He consulted his notepad. “I need new collars, a few belts, some shirts, and if time permits, I might see about ordering a few jackets.” He lifted his head. “Where might I find those in this monstrosity of a store?”

“You’ll find the collars and belts in Men’s Furnishings on the other side of this floor, while jackets may be found in Men’s Clothing on the second floor.”

“Wouldn’t it make more sense if those two departments were located side by side on the same floor?”

“A valid point,” Beatrix said. “But I suspect the reasoning behind the layout rests with having customers travel from one floor to another so that they may purchase items they’d not been intending to.”

“An impressive marketing plan,” Norman said before telling Theodosia to meet him in Men’s Furnishings when she was done selecting gloves and then wandering away.

“I find I’m in no hurry to join him,” Theodosia said after Norman disappeared from sight.

“Can’t say I blame you for that. He can be trying at times.”

Theodosia nodded before she frowned. “If I do wear the gown I always wear, what gloves would you recommend?”

“Depends on the cut and the color.”

“It’s got a high neck, long sleeves, and the color is, well, it was once a shade of ivory but it’s somewhat yellow now.”

“Are you certain you don’t want to pay a visit to the second floor?”

“And be mocked by everyone up there? Thank you, but no.”

Since Mrs. Goodman was making another circle, Beatrix held her tongue, fetched a pair of ivory gloves that had a hint of yellow in them, then proceeded to fetch ten additional pairs of gloves for her to try on after it became clear Theodosia really wasn’t in a hurry to rejoin Norman.

While Theodosia tried on pair after pair of gloves, exclaiming over every pair she tried on, Beatrix had to excuse herself time and again to assist other customers. Thankfully, those customers knew exactly what they wanted, which meant Beatrix didn’t need to spend an inordinate amount of time with any of them.

“I think all these should do it,” Theodosia exclaimed as Beatrix sent young Bertie on his way to the delivery room with a package that needed to be delivered to a Mrs. Sterling’s residence later that afternoon.

“You’ve made some nice choices,” Beatrix said, looking over Theodosia’s selections. “Now all that’s left to do is for you to tell me how you’d like to pay for these, give me your address, and then I’ll make certain your purchases are delivered to your house by late afternoon.”

“I’m perfectly capable of carrying my gloves home with me.”

“Then I’ll wrap them up for you and you may take them with you.”

“Why would ladies bother having their gloves delivered to their homes?”

“Most ladies stop by the glove department first, then venture into other areas of the store to continue on with their shopping. By the time they’re done, they’ve usually acquired quite a few items.”

“A logical explanation, but because I have no intention of any further shopping today, I’ll take my gloves with me.” Theodosia opened up a battered bag that was swinging from her wrist and pulled out a wad of bills.

“Good heavens, Miss Robinson, have a care. That’s a great deal of money you’re showing right now, and one can never know when unscrupulous types are lurking about.”

“I’m not really the type to secure the interest of anyone, let alone unscrupulous types. People tend to give me a wide berth.”

Having no good response to that, Beatrix tallied up Theodosia’s purchases, took some of the cash Theodosia was still holding in her hand from her, then pushed the button for the cash boy. Thirty seconds later, a young boy by the name of Robert appeared at her counter, and after giving him the money and telling him how much change he needed to return to her, she nodded to the money Theodosia was still clutching in her hand.

“You should put that away now, even if you don’t believe anyone would try to deprive you of it.”

Theodosia stuffed the money back in her bag. “No one would deprive me of it because, again, no one ever notices me.”

“Harvey Cabot has apparently noticed you,” Norman said, striding up to join them. He raked a hand through his hair and nodded to Beatrix. “I need your help.”

“More than you probably realize, but how exactly do you need my help now?”

“There are too many options for collars, and the salesman was less than helpful.” Norman raked his hand through his hair again. “He was all but fawning over Mrs. John Hamline, who is married to Mr. Hamline, a broker and president of the Chicago Stock Exchange, information I obtained through listening to the salesman who was doing all that fawning.”

“Since I’ve just finished with the gloves,” Theo began, “I can help you select a few collars.”

Norman frowned. “When was the last time you selected men’s collars?”

“Well, never, but I’m sure it can’t be that difficult.”

Norman turned back to Beatrix. “While I have to admit I’m surprised by Theo’s offer, I don’t believe she’s got the experience needed to assist me in picking out proper collars. I’d like you to come with me and pick out collars for me.”

“I can’t abandon my counter. I’ll be dismissed for certain.”

“I’ll watch over the gloves for you,” a woman said from behind her.

Turning, Beatrix discovered Miss Darlene Wheeler, who was responsible for the umbrella counter that was next to Beatrix’s. “Won’t Mrs. Goodman be upset with me if I leave my counter to you?”

Miss Wheeler waved that aside. “This gentleman evidently wants you to assist him in Men’s Furnishings, so that’s what I imagine Mrs. Goodman would want you to do.” She walked to stand beside Beatrix behind the glove counter. “I’ve not had but three customers today since it’s not raining. I’ll be fine looking after your counter.”

“Then it’s settled,” Norman said before Beatrix could summon up another protest. “Shall we?”

“I can’t leave until the cash boy comes back with Miss Robinson’s change, and I also need to finish packaging up her purchases because she wants to take the gloves with her instead of having them delivered.”

Pulling out another piece of brown paper, Beatrix started wrapping the gloves, annoyance running freely when Norman began drumming his fingers on the counter.

“Stop that,” she muttered.

“Stop what?” he asked.

“Making so much noise.”

“I’m doing no such thing.”

“Norman often fidgets when he’s made to wait,” Theodosia supplied, earning herself a grimace from Norman, although he did discontinue drumming his fingers against the counter.

Robert returned with Theodosia’s change right as Beatrix finished tying a string around the package she’d assembled. After she handed it to Norman, who took it even though he was still throwing exasperated glances Theodosia’s way, he jerked his head toward the aisle.

“Now are you ready to go?” he asked.

“You’re very impatient,” Beatrix said before she stepped out from behind the counter and nodded to Miss Wheeler. “I’ll be right back.”

“Take your time,” Miss Wheeler said as Beatrix began making her way toward Men’s Furnishings, Norman falling into step beside her while Theodosia trailed behind.

Even though Miss Wheeler had encouraged her to take her time, Beatrix knew taking her time with Norman could prove to be disastrous. The man was notorious for irritating her, which could very well provoke an argument between them, something that would certainly see her dismissed from her position. That meant her only course of action was to find the items Norman needed as quickly as possible and then send him on his way.