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The boy in the elevator tried to pretend he wasn't staring at them. He caught Rose's eye once and looked away quickly. Rose just grinned and moved even closer to Jack, who was studying the floor nonchalantly. He remembered them from the night before, that much was obvious. Rose recalled how they'd dashed madly into the elevator, his coat and her dress billowing, Lovejoy at their heels. Jack had slammed the gates shut and they'd both stood laughing hysterically. And the elevator boy had backed into the corner as though afraid of them. Rose snickered; she couldn't help it. Both Jack and the elevator boy glanced at her. "Sorry," Rose murmured, struggling to keep a straight face. It was obvious they were all thinking of the same thing. The elevator stopped and the boy slid open the gates, not bothering to hide his relief. "B deck," he announced. "Thank you," Rose and Jack said simultaneously, stepping off the elevator with great ceremony. Once the gates were closed behind them, they both looked at each other and burst into laughter. The hall stretching to their left and right was empty all the way down, everyone in their cabins dressing for dinner. Rose turned to look at Jack, wiping tears from her eyes. "I suppose I should go," she said. He nodded. "Yeah, they're probably expecting you." She sighed. "Well...goodnight then. And be careful." He tipped her chin and kissed her, closing his eyes, savoring the moment. "I'll be careful," he murmured. "Don't worry." "When will I see you again?" "I'll find you." She smiled. "You always do." *** "Hello, Mother," Rose said as she strolled through the suite, intent on her bedroom. Ruth whirled around, the flaps of her dressing gown billowing. "Where - have - you - been?" she gasped. "Not far," Rose said maddeningly. "I'm going to dress for dinner now. Where is Trudy?" "Right here, miss," Trudy said nervously, appearing from a far corner of the suite. Rose smiled at her. "What do you recommend for tonight?" she asked, guiding Trudy toward her room. "I was thinking of the taffeta..." "Rose, you come back here right this instant!" Ruth said angrily. She stormed across the room and grabbed Rose's elbow, spinning her around. Trudy disappeared into the shadows, knowing a heated argument was imminent. Mother and daughter faced each other, eyes narrowed, arms crossed, identical expressions of anger on their faces. "Now. I demand an explanation of your astonishing behavior!" Ruth exclaimed. "You simply disappeared this morning and nobody has seen you until now! I don't care how liberated you may feel, Rose. The fact remains that I am still your mother and you are still my child, and therefore you will obey me. Understood?" "I'm sick and tired of you thinking I'll come at your beck and call," Rose snapped. "I actually went and did what I wanted to today, and you know what? It was by far the most wonderful day of my life. No luncheons...no gossip...no more conversations that bored me out of my skull. Nobody that I had to impress or show off for. I was actually happy all day Mother - that's rare for me. So don't expect me to apologize. I returned, I haven't eloped - hard to do on a ship - but if you keep treating me as an inferior instead of an equal, don't expect me to stay around much longer." "I hardly think you're planning on that anyway," Ruth said coolly, her face expressionless. "Mother..." Rose sighed, running her hands through her hair. "I love Jack. You know that. I want to be with him. I'm happy with him. No, don't say anything - I've already heard it all, remember? - just listen to me for a moment. I know you don't approve of him. You think he's hardly worth the proverbial speck of dirt. So far below me - us - that there is no comparison. So instead you tell me to marry Cal. Cal and his millions, his manners, his fine reputation. But we both know that looks are deceiving. Cal may appear to be a gentleman, but he isn't, and you know that as well as I do. He's cruel and calculating and deceitful. So suddenly your class system falls to ruins. And if it works one way, can't it work the other? If Cal, with all his money, can be nothing more than a common scoundrel, can't Jack - the common man, the artist - be the true gentleman?" She paused, studying her mother. Ruth stared at a point on the wall somewhere over her left shoulder. Her eyes were blank, but she was listening - for once, she was listening. "Because he is, Mother," Rose said softly. "He is. In a million years Cal couldn't be the gentleman that Jack is, no matter how hard he tried. And so all I'm asking is for you to accept Jack. You don't have to like him - he doesn't like you either, so don't worry about that. But just try to understand why I love him." Rose turned away, calling for Trudy, and headed for her room. "You'd better hurry up," she said over her shoulder. "Or we'll be late to dinner." |
