Mine for a Day Read Online Free
Author: Mary Burchell
her own imaginings.
When she woke once more, the September sunlight was pouring into the room, and she lay for a few minutes, drowsy and relaxed. Then she recalled her scare of the night before, and smiled a little as her sleepy gaze travelled once more over the room, so bright and reassuring now in the morning light. One had such preposterous ideas in the middle of the night! By daylight—
Leila’s thoughts and glance came to a simultaneous stop, both of them focusing wonderingly on the alien object propped against the dressing-table mirror.
That letter had not been there last night when she had put out the light.
She jumped out of bed and ran across the room, the vague misgiving of the night before suddenly returning in full force. Standing there in a long shaft of sunlight from the window, she tore the single sheet of paper from its envelope and began to read. At a glance she had recognized Rosemary’s round, rather schoolgirlish hand writing, an d the very first sentence drove the colour from her cheeks.
Dear Leila [the letter informed her quite simply],
I can’t marry Simon after all, and I’m going on with Jeremy. When you get this, I shall be on my way to London where I’m going to be married to him. I know it ’ s not the right way to break off an engagement, and I’m very sorry to hurt Simon like this. But it woul d be worse if I went on with the marriage and made us all unhappy.
You’ve been so sweet about everything in the last few weeks—just as you always have, really—an d I want you to do something very difficult for me, Leila. I quite admit I’m a coward not to be able to do it myself, but I couldn’t face all the reproaches and fuss there would be. Please explain to Mother and Daddy, and tell them that I’m really happy with Jeremy, and I’ll get in touch with them as soon as everything is satisfactorily settled. And then [Leila turned over the sheet, with gathering dismay, fatally sure of the next sentence even before she read it] will you tell Simon for me? He’ll take it better from you than from Mother. She’d be so upset and emotional. These things always come best from a stranger. And, though of course you and Simon aren’t strangers, you aren’t anything to each other, whereas I suppose he looks on Mother almost as a relation.
I’m dreadfully sorry about all this, but it was the only thing to do. And when all the fuss is over, life will go on quite normally again. One just has to remember that. Thank you most awfully, Leila, for doing this for me. You’ll do it better than anyone else. My love to you, and you must come and see Jeremy and me when all the upset is over.
Rosemary.
Leila sat down slowly on the side of her bed, curling a corner of the letter nervously in her hand. And the sensation that was uppermost in her shocked mind was now surprise that she had not seen what was coming.
Why had she not realized that Rosemary’s absences and generally absorbed air could only be explained by interest in another man? Why, she had even told Leila of Jeremy’s presence. And for an angry, remorseful moment, Leila wondered if she had herself contributed to the danger of the situation by so emphatically rejecting any idea of Rosemary meeting Jeremy in the safer atmosphere of her own home.
“But how could I know she would do this?” Leila exclaimed out loud. And her gaze dropped again to the letter in her hand, and odd phrases started out at her once more. “I couldn’t face all the reproaches and fuss ... ” “I’ll get in touch with them as soon as everything is satisfactorily settled ... ” “when all the fuss is over ...” “when all the upset is over ...
Alas, that had always been charming Rosemary’s way! She created this appalling situation, she appealed to her cousin to handle it for her. And “when all the fuss was over,” she would drift back into the picture and, in her own optimistic phrase, life would go on quite normally again.
Leila knew she ought
When she woke once more, the September sunlight was pouring into the room, and she lay for a few minutes, drowsy and relaxed. Then she recalled her scare of the night before, and smiled a little as her sleepy gaze travelled once more over the room, so bright and reassuring now in the morning light. One had such preposterous ideas in the middle of the night! By daylight—
Leila’s thoughts and glance came to a simultaneous stop, both of them focusing wonderingly on the alien object propped against the dressing-table mirror.
That letter had not been there last night when she had put out the light.
She jumped out of bed and ran across the room, the vague misgiving of the night before suddenly returning in full force. Standing there in a long shaft of sunlight from the window, she tore the single sheet of paper from its envelope and began to read. At a glance she had recognized Rosemary’s round, rather schoolgirlish hand writing, an d the very first sentence drove the colour from her cheeks.
Dear Leila [the letter informed her quite simply],
I can’t marry Simon after all, and I’m going on with Jeremy. When you get this, I shall be on my way to London where I’m going to be married to him. I know it ’ s not the right way to break off an engagement, and I’m very sorry to hurt Simon like this. But it woul d be worse if I went on with the marriage and made us all unhappy.
You’ve been so sweet about everything in the last few weeks—just as you always have, really—an d I want you to do something very difficult for me, Leila. I quite admit I’m a coward not to be able to do it myself, but I couldn’t face all the reproaches and fuss there would be. Please explain to Mother and Daddy, and tell them that I’m really happy with Jeremy, and I’ll get in touch with them as soon as everything is satisfactorily settled. And then [Leila turned over the sheet, with gathering dismay, fatally sure of the next sentence even before she read it] will you tell Simon for me? He’ll take it better from you than from Mother. She’d be so upset and emotional. These things always come best from a stranger. And, though of course you and Simon aren’t strangers, you aren’t anything to each other, whereas I suppose he looks on Mother almost as a relation.
I’m dreadfully sorry about all this, but it was the only thing to do. And when all the fuss is over, life will go on quite normally again. One just has to remember that. Thank you most awfully, Leila, for doing this for me. You’ll do it better than anyone else. My love to you, and you must come and see Jeremy and me when all the upset is over.
Rosemary.
Leila sat down slowly on the side of her bed, curling a corner of the letter nervously in her hand. And the sensation that was uppermost in her shocked mind was now surprise that she had not seen what was coming.
Why had she not realized that Rosemary’s absences and generally absorbed air could only be explained by interest in another man? Why, she had even told Leila of Jeremy’s presence. And for an angry, remorseful moment, Leila wondered if she had herself contributed to the danger of the situation by so emphatically rejecting any idea of Rosemary meeting Jeremy in the safer atmosphere of her own home.
“But how could I know she would do this?” Leila exclaimed out loud. And her gaze dropped again to the letter in her hand, and odd phrases started out at her once more. “I couldn’t face all the reproaches and fuss ... ” “I’ll get in touch with them as soon as everything is satisfactorily settled ... ” “when all the fuss is over ...” “when all the upset is over ...
Alas, that had always been charming Rosemary’s way! She created this appalling situation, she appealed to her cousin to handle it for her. And “when all the fuss was over,” she would drift back into the picture and, in her own optimistic phrase, life would go on quite normally again.
Leila knew she ought
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