“Isn’t that what they all say—especially those who are dying for a ring.” Lillian pointed to her ring finger and rolled her eyes. She lifted a leg onto her vanity stool and powdered herself from toes upward. The room quickly filled with a cloud of the white dust.
Suzanne coughed and turned her back to Lillian. That woman did not deserve an explanation as to why she was not interested in marriage.
“Don’t be cruel, Lil,” Ruby scolded. She rubbed lotion into her arms “We all have a right to privacy.”
Lillian looked like she was going to say something, but was silenced by Jada walking into the small room.
“Hello,” she said softly. “I trust rehearsal went well today?”
“Of course,” Lillian replied. “Do you know where my rose water is?”
Jada walked over to Lillian’s table and moved a picture frame to reveal a row of bottles. Lillian took one and dabbed behind her ear without a word to Jada. Suzanne clenched her fist to prevent herself from saying something. She needed these girls to be her friends, or at least not hate her.
“Thank you for putting everything away,” Ruby offered. Suzanne softened at Ruby’s words.
“Even if you put things in the wrong place,” Lillian growled as she sniffed a bottle, made a face, and passed it to Ruby.
“Oh, good, I need that.” Ruby grinned. “There is something about a splash of lemon that clears my throat right up.”
“Take note, girl,” Lillian instructed Jada.
Heat rose in Suzanne’s cheeks. If she’d taken Jada to rehearsal as she promised, Lillian and Ruby wouldn’t be critiquing her now. Jada deserved better than this. She buttoned her last button and stepped out from the partition. Grabbing her boots from the floor, she smiled at Jada. “I’m about ready to go home. Are you ready, Jada?”
Jada nodded, a look of relief spreading over her face.
“See you tomorrow!” Suzanne sang before shutting the door behind them.
“You aren’t going to the Ritz tonight?” Lillian asked.
Suzanne reopened the door. “The Ritz?”
Lillian rolled her eyes as if it was an effort to explain. “It is only the best place to see and be seen. You joined us later than the other new girls. Don’t you want to show everyone that you’ve arrived?”
“I think not,” Suzanne said. Leon’s suggestion of dinner and bed sounded good to her.
“Your loss,” Lillian called out as Suzanne shut the door.
Suzanne led Jada through the hallways until they were in the lobby. She sat in a large, overstuffed chair and jammed her feet into her tall boots. “I am sorry about them.”
“Those girls are a dime a dozen.” Jada waved her hands as if to show how minuscule they were. Despite Jada’s pretense otherwise, Suzanne still felt a coldness directed at her.
“Where were you, anyway?”
Jada’s cheeks darkened. “Oh, I finished a while ago and took a quick tour of the theater. It’s quite beautiful.”
Suzanne nodded. “This is the most beautiful place I’ve ever been.” She tied the top bootlace and leaned back. As she did so, the note from the flowers crinkled in her pocket. She reached in and pulled out the paper.
“Love notes already?” Jada raised an eyebrow. There was an edge to her tone that made Suzanne pause.
Suzanne forced a laugh. “No, I don’t know. Someone sent me flowers.”
Jada’s face fell to an unreadable expression. “Who do we know who would send you flowers?”
The lilac paper unfolded easily and both girls looked down at the perfect penmanship: May your introduction here be memorable.
Suzanne blinked. She turned the paper over, looking for a signature.
“Looks like you’ve attracted a secret admirer.” Jada continued to walk toward the exit. “That was quick work.”
Ignoring Jada’s taunting tone, Suzanne shook her head. “The only men I’ve met are Mr. Ziegfeld, Julian Mitchell, and Leon Errol. And none of them would send this.”
“Don’t forget Mr. Franks,” Jada said.
“I highly doubt Jonathon would send me flowers unless Mr. Ziegfeld instructed him to.”
“I saw the way he looked at you.”
“Jada, please,” Suzanne exclaimed. “He is Mr. Ziegfeld’s assistant.”
Jada was silent. Suzanne frowned and continued. She didn’t like to think that she had hurt Jada. Was she really that upset about Suzanne not coming to show her the theater? And being thought of as Spanish should be a huge compliment.
“I’ve been here all day, Jada. I haven’t had time to make an impression yet.” Suzanne tucked the note into her handbag. “No, it must have been delivered by mistake. That is the only thing that makes sense.”
Jada opened her mouth as if to say something, but quickly closed it again. “With cleaning up the room, I still have a list of errands to run.”
Suzanne stepped around a wrinkle in the carpet. “And I have more to add to that list, I’m sad to say. Ann invited me out to dinner tomorrow night. I have to look my best. Can you pick up a corsage to match my navy gown and purchase a new set of ivory gloves? My old ones are stained and since I’m making enough now, I should look the part of a Ziegfeld girl. Don’t you think?”
“Of course. I am at your service. Do you think—”
Suzanne interrupted Jada without hearing her question. “The only thing I can think of is putting my feet up and taking a long nap. If he is going to parade us day and night, I need to get my rest when I can.” Suzanne tittered a slight laugh, but stopped when Jada didn’t join in. “Another time, I promise.”
An uneasy silence settled between the two friends. Jada leaned backward as if afraid she’d burst with words, but Suzanne shook as if she couldn’t wait to get away.
“I’ll see you at Miss Mitzi’s tonight. Wake me for dinner.” Before Jada could say anything else, Suzanne slipped out the door and started the short walk home.
CHAPTER 7
With Suzanne’s money in her purse, Jada walked the streets of New York. She had lied to Suzanne. There were no errands to run. She simply could not stand to be near her another moment, not in that theater close to those women. How could Suzanne have gone through with it and told people she was Spanish?
A cool evening wind blew against her and she pulled her shawl tighter around her shoulders. Her feet clomped hard against the city sidewalks, but the sound melted into those of all the other people around her.
To top the horrible day off, Suzanne had forgotten about her. Had she thought cleaning that horrible dressing room would take all day, or was Jada such an embarrassment that she couldn’t have her onstage with her? If that was the case, why bring her to the theater at all? Why lie about her heritage to impress people if she wasn’t going to show her off.
Jada clenched her shawl to her tightly as she rounded the corner and nearly walked into Sally.
“Jada?” Sally asked. “What’s the matter with you?”
Wonderful to know the whole city could see her anger.
“I’m fine, Sally.”
Sally glanced around at the others walking down the street. “Can I walk with you a bit?” she asked as she fell in step beside Jada.
Jada bit her lip. “I’m just off to get Suzanne a new pair of gloves.”
“That’s perfect. Miss Mitzi asked me to pick up the new fabric she ordered and I know that Miss Steel keeps a full stock of gloves for every occasion.”
“I wasn’t thinking of going to Miss Steel’s shop,” Jada said. That was the woman who started Suzanne on the idea that Jada’s heritage was a bargaining chip in her quest for fame. She was not willing to forgive that woman now, or anytime soon. She was more than a pawn in Suzanne’s career.
Sally slowed their pace until they had almost stopped walking. She motioned toward a small park across the street. “Want to talk? That Miss Steel is bad news.”
Jada shook her head. “I’d just rather not see Miss Steel today. There must be another place to buy glov
es.”
Sally was silent for a moment. “We could go to Oliver’s. It isn’t much to look at, but his glove selection is wonderful.”
“Give me his address and I’ll go myself. I am sure you need to get back.” Jada forced a smile to her face.
Sally smiled. “Miss Mitzi won’t miss me for hours. I can take you. It’s only a few blocks from here.”
“I’m not going to go alone, am I?” Jada spoke her thoughts out loud.
Sally just laughed. “Of course you aren’t.”
“Are you sure you want to spend your alone time glove shopping for Suzanne?” Sally lowered her voice. “I’d like to spend my time making a new friend.”
That thought had never occurred to her. “Really? You want to befriend me?”
Sally seemed shocked to be asked such a question. “You live a life most people like us only dream of. I’ve never imagined I’d get to travel, let alone leave a good job like Miss Mitzi’s given me. But you . . . you have been all over the country and you are smart.”
Jada had never thought of herself through another’s eyes. The education Suzanne’s family had given her was a huge gift. She had always been grateful for that. Mr. and Mrs. Haskins should have been grateful to her as well. Without Jada’s tutoring, Suzanne wouldn’t have learned nearly as much. They owed her just as much as she did them.
There were no words that would explain how Sally made Jada feel, so the pair remained silent. Jada linked her arm through Sally’s and the pair started walking.
“Oliver’s is just two blocks up this street.” Sally pulled Jada down an alley. “Did Miss Suzanne’s play close?”
Jada nodded. “We had our first rehearsal with the Follies today.”
“Oh.” Sally walked around a pile of horse droppings. “How was it?”
“You’d have to ask her.” Jada tried to keep her tone light. “It sounded like she had a good day.”
“I thought you two was close,” Sally admonished. Jada gave her a glance and Sally’s face reddened. “Miss Mitzi is always telling me I need to stay out of people’s business. I’m sorry.”
This woman truly wanted to be Jada’s friend. The panic in her tone proved what any words could not. Jada smiled at Sally to show she wasn’t upset and sped up their pace. It occurred to Jada that working at a place like Miss Mitzi’s must be isolating. There were few employees and the guests were not those who would socialize with Sally.
“Suzanne and I are very close. But it is complicated.” She glanced at the buildings around them. “We seem to have left the business district behind us,” Jada noticed.
Sally turned a corner and the story-high advertisements were gone, as were the rows of storefronts. Instead, the street narrowed and the buildings turned into shorter apartment buildings and row houses.
Sally wrinkled her nose and looked away. “Yeah, Oliver is a friend of mine. He doesn’t have a store.”
“Sally!” Jada half laughed in shock. “I need to get these gloves for Suzanne and they have to be quality.”
The pair stopped beside a wooden staircase that led to a boarded-up back door. If Sally weren’t with her, Jada would never have stopped in this alleyway, let alone consider approaching one of the buildings. She wanted to trust Sally, but this place felt dirty and unbecoming. Hardly the place of a respectable business.
“I promise he will have an excellent selection. Far better than Woolworth’s, and these are handmade.” She turned toward the back stairs and seemed to see the condition of his home for the first time. “Please? He needs the money.”
Jada glanced at the wooden back porch of the building. The windows had a layer of dirt on them and the door needed a fresh coat of paint. One section was boarded up, but perhaps Jada could overlook that. She closed her eyes and forced all prejudice from her mind.
“I will look. But I won’t promise to buy from him.”
Sally’s face lit up. “Thanks, Jada!”
They walked up the rickety porch steps and knocked on the door.
Sally knocked on the door. “Oliver?” she called out.
The locks on the door were undone quickly and the dirty door opened to reveal a very tall, thin man. His skin was incredibly dark, but that wasn’t what struck Jada as the most noticeable thing about him. It was the way he moved. She had read about fops in Mr. Haskins’s novels, but this man was the embodiment of everything she’d ever read. His tan suit and pink shirt were pressed perfectly and matched the pastel hues of his décor so well Jada would have thought she walked into a painting set.
“Sally!” He held his hands out wide and she lunged at him in a huge hug. “And who is your friend here?”
Sally grinned. “This is Jada. She needs to buy some gloves for the lady she works for. She’s in the Ziegfeld Follies.”
“No!” Oliver exclaimed. “I hear those dancers are dropping like flies.”
He motioned for them to follow him into the back room. The room was decorated in lilac shades with cherry furniture. He opened the top drawer of the desk and pulled out a white box. He placed it on the table and gestured for Jada to open it. Inside were dozens of pairs of gloves. White, off-white, cream, even some in a blush shade.
“These are wonderful,” Jada said. She picked one up and slid her finger into it. The trim was so fine it felt as if it were made to fit her hand personally. “How much?”
Oliver smiled. “Twenty-five cents. They are all handmade from good fabric.”
Jada pulled the glove off and reached into her coin purse. “Here is a dollar. I’ll take one of each color. Thank you.”
Oliver’s face lit up. “Thank you,” he said. He placed the four coins in his hand gently before walking over to the desk and depositing them into a box.
“Now, what number is your mistress in?” he asked. “My friend’s friend works for Fanny Brice and I hear those girls aren’t leaving because Flo is being too forward, if you know what I mean. I hear they are all leaving because they are scared.”
Sally leaned forward. “Scared?” she asked.
Jada shifted uncomfortably. “What do you mean, scared?”
Oliver shrugged. “This friend overheard one of the girls telling Fanny that she was going home to Indiana. That the New York life was too much for her and she wanted to go home while she could. Fanny tried to talk her out of it, but her mind was set. You would’ve thought she’d have a stronger reason than that, but who knows; maybe there is a man she wanted to get back to.” He took a deep sigh and fanned his face. “So, tell me. What is it really like there?”
“Um, well, they are all hard workers who want to dance. I haven’t really been there long enough to know much else.”
Oliver’s face fell. “Oh. Well, if you hear something, you be sure you come see Oliver, darling.” He handed her a small bag for her gloves.
“Thank you.” She glanced at Sally. “I’d better get these back to Suzanne in case she changes her mind and decides to run off to that party tonight.”
Sally stood up and kissed Oliver on each cheek. “Good to see you,” she said to him.
“You too.”
Once back on the street, Jada exhaled. “Who is that man? He’s exhausting. I didn’t know any men cared that much about such things as the Follies unless they were chasing after one of the girls.”
“He is my best friend’s brother. He doesn’t leave the apartment much. I’m not sure he’s gone out since before winter.” She glanced at the ground. “I often give him what I can to help him keep food on the table.”
“What about his sister?” Jada asked.
Sally looked away at the people across the street. “She died a few years back. Caught a fever and was gone in a week.”
There wasn’t much to say in response. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s over and done with. I help out Oliver when I can.”
Jada looked into her bag. “Well, if Suzanne likes these gloves half as much as I do, then he’ll have plenty of business once she tells the rest of the girl
s where she got them. Don’t worry.”
“Thank you,” Sally stammered. “I never thought, I mean.”
Jada swatted Sally’s shoulder. “Of course you thought, you just didn’t think it would happen.”
“Exactly,” Sally agreed.
” Suzanne is dying to give the other girls something to gush over. With his talent and frugal prices, those girls are going to fawn all over him.” Jada grinned. “I suspect Oliver might like being the toast of the town.”
CHAPTER 8
None of the rumors or society photos prepared Suzanne for the opulence that greeted her when she stepped out of her cab and into the Ritz. It felt overly decadent to hire a cab to transport only herself, but Suzanne could think of no other way to arrive at her first Ziegfeld affair. She took the valet’s hand as she stepped onto the curb and pulled her blue silk shawl around her shoulders. She hadn’t worn the shawl since they’d left Richmond, and it felt luxurious against her skin. If there was any night she needed to feel glamourous, it was tonight.
Ziegfeld girls were known for their style as well as their looks. Mr. Ziegfeld himself was the embodiment of class. He spared no expense with fitting his clothes to his frame so that they looked like a second skin on him. His productions were styled down to the detail on the stockings. Suzanne was sure the parties that he organized would be no less grand, and the Ritz did not disappoint.
“Welcome to the Follies,” the gentleman at the entrance said as he took Suzanne’s shawl.
“Thank you,” Suzanne said as she took his arm and let him lead her to the ballroom.
One look at the other guests and Suzanne was grateful she had chosen the light blue gown that evening. The salmon-colored walls and dark maroon carpet made her stand out in a way that others blended in with their pink and ivory dresses. She smoothed the front of her dress down as she thanked the hotel clerk for escorting her.
Everywhere one looked there was something to delight the senses. Along one wall was a table covered in chocolate desserts. In the far corner of the room an orchestra was playing for the dozens of couples on the dance floor in front of them. But Suzanne was mostly fascinated by the table a few steps to her right. The large, round table was covered by a pyramid of empty goblets at least ten rows high. A ladder stood beside it and a waiter climbed carefully to the top. Behind him stood another man with the largest bottle of champagne Suzanne had ever seen. A waiter stood on a stool, opened a bottle, and poured the gold liquor into the top glass. Instantly champagne floated down from one to the next. Suzanne stood transfixed by the golden waterfall.
Ziegfeld Girls Page 7