Evening star., 1938-04-03
p,iI ;, 1893

~ She would let herself into the
~ apartment, hang up her
iings, and look in the bedroom.
iliss Morris would be lying there,
oilm and big, the rose silk comfort
>,le which covered her bust rising
id falling evenly The hemstitched
llowcase would be spread cloudly
it'll hair.
- Miss Morris had thick black
ebrows. 1t was the eyebrows,
gamed in the cobwebby hair, that
bset Nellie as she went about run
ling the bath, taking down pine oil and
bling out biscuits Seeing Miss Morris asleep
Ike that - black and breathing -
slade her nervous Nellie never felt right until
Miss Morris was in the tub. cts pink tub,
|Narry, honest" she had told her husband
5fter the first day. He had whistled in amaze
Aaent.)
Miss Morris wasn't so frightening at break
hst, though her eyes under the black brows
!ere gray and cool, and she said, Good morn
hp. Nellie" in a quick, dry, don't-tell-me-
bout yourself way.
Miss Morris interior decorated. And she
H,as not really Miss Morris. A Mr.. Morris
anne for dinner often and he kissed Miss
Morris, and she wore silver lame gown,
/,hch was negligee anyway. But it was all
ipht. Because they were married Miss
Aorris had ring. There was leather frame
In the piano with their photographs. young
and smiling.
." Harry said it wasn't much of way to be
Tnarried And maybe he was right. The idea
apf Harry telephoning to say what night he
InVould come for dinner made Nellie giggle.
b larry drove truck, and when they had their
toate meal, he was so hungry he ate for thirty
minutes without saying word.
Nellie thought Ward Morris was nice but
|elways tired looking His light hair had gone
|,Eray at the temples and his dark-blue eyes
r;,urned deep under high forehead. But It
|brvas his hands she liked. They moved over
he keys bringing out sad, funny little songs
|bThn fingers, barely touching the keys. Like
':hey hurt him." Nellie thought.
II Sometimes his playing was wild and happy,
h and Nellie wanted to skip around the kitchen.
iii Miss Morris never looked as if she wanted
ito skip She was pleasantly polite, but you got
the idea she was just letting Ward play.
h There had been few old pieces of music
around when Nellie first came - gaudy things
|ewith the words Music by Ward Morris in
small letters - but these disappeared. They
chad been so very old.
He would stop playing and pace around the
twhite and mulberry room. 1t was hard to
|imagine him quiet, even in sleep. (Now, Harry
was strong as two men, but quiet) Nellie,
tcoming in to remove the coffee service, would
see Ward pick up the porcelain horse or
penguin book end. His lips would make a
little grimace.
"Oh, Ruthie, all this truck! Remember
the one room on Irving Place and how we
painted the walls red and the floor black?"
Nellie wasn't supposed to notice things.
Only it seemed to her Miss Morris wanted to
forget Irving Place.
You wouldn't think of Miss Morris paint
ing floors. She was solid and moved care
fully if brisAy. Maybe she had been pretty
and soft once. But the way she could smile
and say, Water under the bridge, now,
Ward" and crush out her cigarette, wasn't
pretty or soft
Miss Morris had lots of friends. Many
evenings all Nellie did was mix cocktails and
wrap bacon around olives. No dinner to get.
That was easy. There might be four, eight