Zoe waved at Eva before disappearing through the front door.
***
The rest of the hour dragged on as Eva and Earl worked together to pack boxes in the storeroom. Nothing was said about Zoe’s slip-up. Eva hoped Earl had been distracted enough not to have understood the significance of what he had heard.
She closed a box with tape and straightened up, letting out a small groan as her back protested again. The storeroom was quite stuffy, and both of them were sweating. Earl’s solution was to take off his heavy white shirt and work in only his undershirt and trousers. It was not company policy, but he did not seem to care.
Eva looked up and smiled. “You know that’s a great idea.”
“What?”
“Taking your shirt off.”
“You can do it too.” Earl laughed, and jumped down from the pallet. “So how long have you had back problems?”
“How do—”
“Maria told me.” Earl shrugged, taking out his cigarettes from his pocket.
“I was eighteen years old.”
“Uh-huh.” Earl offered Eva a cigarette and lit both of them with a match. “Accident?”
Eva dropped her gaze and stood for a long moment staring down at her feet. She sighed. “No, not an accident.”
“Deliberate?”
“Very.”
“With what?”
“A poker and a heavy leather belt,” Eva replied, and took a drag off her cigarette. “Long story including having a ceiling fall on top of me in Paris.”
Earl winced. “Sounds painful.” He paused, then brightened somewhat. “Everything seems to be a long story.” Eva scowled at him. “Come here,” he said, beckoning with a crooked finger.
“Why?”
“I’ve got a trick to show you.”
“What trick?”
“A trick.” Earl pulled Eva to him, relieving her of her cigarette before dropping it, together with his own, to the floor. “I learned this at the Jap Ritz,” he said. He put Eva’s arms around his neck. “Hang off me.”
“Hang off you?”
“Yeah, I’m tall enough.” Earl grinned. “Go on.”
Eva put her arms around his neck and lifted her legs. She rested her cheek on his shoulder and Earl’s fingers began to massage her lower back. The tightness began to fade and Eva smiled as the pain receded. A relieved sigh escaped her lips.
“I bet Zoe doesn’t know how to do this,” Earl teased as he held Eva close. Then they heard Stalk’s voice drifting in. “Eva, trust me on this all right?” Earl said quietly into her ear.
“On what?”
“Just trust me. Kiss me.”
“Kiss you?” Eva started to move away from him.
“Please, just kiss me. I promise to explain,” Earl pleaded. He seemed hugely relieved when, after a moment, Eva’s lips met his. At that instant Stalk, Mr. Peabody, and Mrs. Higgins entered to find the two of them in an apparently passionate embrace. To add to the illusion, Earl lifted Eva’s uniform skirt up a little to show off her shapely leg.
“Mr. Wiggins!” Mrs. Higgins was the first to react to the scene before them. She scowled at them. “This is not the place to do whatever you are doing!”
Earl disentangled himself from Eva, who pulled her uniform skirt down. “I couldn’t help myself,” he said.
“Wiggins, I know you are the company Lothario, but please, not on company time!” Peabody admonished.
Earl pulled Eva towards him. Eva played along. “We’re going to get married, Mr. Peabody,” he said.
“That’s what you say about every girl,” Stalk grumbled.
“Nah, she’s the real thing,” Earl replied, taking Eva’s hand and kissing it.
Mrs. Higgins stormed out of the storeroom muttering to herself, closely followed by Stalk and Peabody.
After the door slammed shut, Earl collapsed on a pallet. “Oh man, that was great! Just absolutely perfect. I give it five minutes before it hits the rest of the factory.”
Eva scowled at him. “Would you like to tell me what’s going on?”
Earl took out another cigarette and offered it to Eva. “How would Zoe feel about you marrying me?”
Eva frowned. “I’m not marrying you.”
“No, not really, but how would she feel about it? Do you think she would like to be one of those gals who...”
“Bridesmaids?”
“Yes, one of those.”
Eva shook her head slowly. “Not much.”
“By the way, you’re a great kisser.” Earl grinned. “I guess Zoe knows all about that, eh?” Eva stared at him, trepidation making her legs felt weak. “I saw you both here earlier,” he continued. “You were a little too friendly to be sisters.”
“Oh.” Eva sat down hard one of the crates and wondered what Earl had in mind for her now that her secret was out.
“You really have to coordinate your stories,” Earl said. “It’s either the same mother or the same father.”
“So, what are you going to do?”
“Marry you,” Earl replied seriously. “Well, if Zoe doesn’t kill me first for pulling a stunt like that.” He grinned.
“So you’re not going to tell Mr. Peabody?”
“Nah.” Earl shook his head. “Tell him what? That you like kissing in the storeroom? You really do have a thing about this area.”
“Really, Earl, what are you going to do?” Eva stood and walked over to him. “You know...”
Earl’s expression turned serious. “I wouldn’t betray you, Eva,” he said, putting his arm around her. “I’m a friend of Mrs. King.”
“You’re...what?”
Earl grinned. “I’m a friend of Mrs. King.”
Eva stared at him, totally confused.
Earl groaned. “Oh, for goodness’ sake! I’m a homosexual.”
“You’re a...?” Eva asked, still a bit shocked. “Who is Mrs. King?”
Earl shook his head. “It doesn’t matter at the moment.” Earl grinned but quickly lost his humor. “We are both in a bit of a predicament.”
“Is that why you go after all the girls?”
“Yes,” Earl replied. “I had to be the factory Romeo.”
“And you were nice to me so you can bolster your image?” Eva tentatively asked, playing with the silver ring on her finger.
“When you came for your first meeting with Peabody, I did,” Earl replied, honesty in his voice. “Not today. I like you, Eva. You are a smart, charming, witty woman and I prefer friends like that.”
Eva smiled at him, feeling shy. “So how did you know that Stalk was coming?”
“I heard him, and I figured that if I kissed you, the news would travel faster than any telegram ever could.”
“So now we’re together?”
“It seems so,” Earl said. “Well, you have to tell Zoe.”
“Oh, no.” Eva shook her head. “You’re going to do that,” she said, and chuckled at Earl’s surprised look. “I’m not telling her.”
“Are you scared of that slip of a girl?” Earl teased. His gaze was fixed on Eva’s face. “I’m glad you’ve stopped being so afraid of me,” he said, smiling. “So tell me about her...is she a better kisser?”
Eva grinned broadly. “Hate to deflate your ego, but you are not anywhere near Zoe’s league,” she said. She loved the feel of Zoe in her arms—her perfume, her softness and her fire. “She kisses better than I do.”
“Oh, that hurts.” Earl put his hand over his heart and feigned deep pain, then laughed. “How did you meet?”
“Long story,” Eva quipped, getting a groan from Earl. “It really is a long story, and one that I think you should hear over dinner.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure.”
The sound of the end-of-shift buzzer made them grin at each other. “Zoe’s waiting,” Eva said. “I think I’d better tell her when we get home.”
“Is she the jealous type?”
Eva laughed as she left the storeroom with
Earl at her side. “You have no idea, my friend. No idea at all.”
Chapter Ten
“So, you’re a little quiet,” Zoe said while she was setting the table for dinner. The bus ride from the factory had been subdued, far too much for her liking. There was the usual banter with Eva telling her about the people she had met and other general news, but Zoe felt that Eva was holding something back. She was not going to press the issue. She knew she would find out in time, but that did not stop her from being extremely curious.
Zoe’s curiosity had climbed higher when Eva had suggested that they eat one of her favorite dishes — eggplant with potatoes and peppers. When they had stopped off at the grocer’s shop on the way home, Eva had purchased more items than usual. At the time, Zoe had not said much about it, but now Eva came out of the kitchen and set the table with an extra place setting.
“Are we expecting company?” Zoe asked as Eva came around the table and took her into an embrace. Playfully Zoe took a sniff of Eva’s shirt and then looked up. “I can still smell the biscuits.”
Eva looked up at the clock, then back to Zoe. “I think I’m going to smell like that for a long time. I have something to tell you.”
“I knew it.”
“Knew what?”
“You were giving me the Daily News version of your day,” Zoe replied. “So give me the real version.”
“That was the real version,” Eva said. “Well, with a little bit of editing.” She laughed when Zoe stuck out her tongue. “Now, now, patience is a virtue.”
“I have patience.”
Eva rocked back and laughed heartily. After a moment, Zoe joined her, knowing that finding patience and herself in the same situation was a rare event. Eva took her hand and led her to the sofa. “Everything I told you happened.”
“Stalk doesn’t like you,” Zoe said, stating the obvious. “I don’t understand why.”
“He’s a veteran,” Eva replied.
“I feel sorry for him, but he’s still a boofhead,” Zoe said, interspersing the German they spoke together with Australian slang. “So spill it.”
“You remember Earl?” Eva asked, smiling when Zoe nodded. “Well...he kissed me.”
Zoe stared open-mouthed at Eva, whose face was contorted as she clearly tried to hold in her laughter. “He kissed you?” Zoe asked incredulously.
“Yes.”
“And you let him?”
“Yes.” Eva nodded and pressed her lips together. She took a deep breath. “We were in the storeroom—”
“That storeroom sees a lot of action,” Zoe said.
“We were in the storeroom,” Eva continued, “and he showed me a trick for my back.”
“Uh-huh,” Zoe muttered, her irritation growing.
“Well, I was hanging off him and he asked me to kiss him,” Eva finished in a flurry and sat there frowning, not making eye contact.
Zoe stared incredulously at Eva. Her irritation was turning into anger at Eva’s nonchalant retelling of what had happened in the storeroom. “You kissed him?” Her voice rose. “You actually kissed a man?”
Eva nodded and tried to avoid looking at Zoe. “I have kissed men before, Zo. You do remember I was married to Erik? Jurgen my fiance? Remember him, right? Yes, I kissed Earl.”
Zoe ran her hand through her hair in frustration, and then palmed the back of her neck, feeling the tension that made her muscles wire-tight. “Then what happened?” she asked through gritted teeth.
“He asked me to marry him,” Eva said.
Zoe let out a frustrated groan. “Did you tell him you were off limits?”
Eva looked up at Zoe with a very slight smile. “You are so jealous. I love that shade your eyes get when you get angry.”
For a moment, there was absolute silence except for the ticking of the wall clock. It did not last long. Zoe pounced on Eva and they fell backwards against the sofa amidst peals of laughter. “You are such a lousy liar!” Zoe said. She tickled Eva, who eventually held up her hands in surrender.
“Uncle!” Eva said, tears running down her face. She grinned up at Zoe, who was sitting on top of her. “Got you going there, huh?”
“That wasn’t nice, Miss Eva,” Zoe gently rebuked her lover.
“I know,” Eva admitted. “I’m sorry I teased you.”
“So which part was true?”
Eva grinned. “The kissing, the marriage proposal...”
“And the back problem,” Zoe added.
“I thought I would slip that in and hope you didn’t notice it,” Eva said.
“Hmm, what did you do?”
“Picked up a box to take to the pallet and it was a little heavy,” Eva confessed. “It was just a twinge.”
“Right.” Zoe gave Eva a look that said she did not quite believe that.
“Earl showed me a trick he learned from when he was a POW.”
“Earl was a prisoner of war? Where?”
“Japanese,” Eva added. “He massaged my back and then the pain was gone.”
“Don’t you mean the twinge in your back was gone?” Zoe tweaked Eva’s dimpled chin.
Eva chuckled. “Yes, the twinge was gone. Anyway, while he was doing that he asked me to kiss him and said that he would explain.”
“Very odd man.”
“While he was kissing me, Mr. Peabody, Mr. Stalk, and Mrs. Higgins walked in and found us,” Eva continued.
“So does that mean they’re going to sack you?” Zoe asked eagerly.
“No, sorry, you don’t get your wish,” Eva said.
“Rats.” Zoe sighed.
“They told us to get back to work and left.”
“And then what happened?”
Eva’s beautiful face sobered a bit before she continued. She looked directly into Zoe’s eyes. “Earl is like us,” Eva told her.
“Earl is like us?” Zoe asked, perplexed. “He’s a woman?”
Eva was momentarily taken aback and then started to laugh. “No, love, he’s not a woman. He’s a homosexual.”
“Oh.” Zoe frowned. “He must be a very confused homosexual if he’s kissing you.”
Eva put her arms around Zoe and laughed softly. “Oh, Zoe, you are priceless.”
“Well, is he confused?”
“No.” Eva stroked Zoe’s face. “He was protecting himself — and us.”
“And now I am confused,” Zoe admitted plaintively.
“If they find out that he’s a homosexual, they will fire him,” Eva explained. “He acts like the factory Lothario so people will think he’s just after everything in a skirt.”
“Oh, that must be horrible. But how did he know he could trust you?”
Eva smiled. “He caught us,” Eva motioned to herself, then to Zoe, “kissing in the storeroom.”
“Oh.” Zoe’s frown deepened. “So he is blackmailing you into doing this.”
“No, no, no, Zoe, it’s not like that. He said that when I first went for my interview at the factory, he played up to the role he had created for himself. Today he told me that he really likes me and he wasn’t playing any games this time, and besides, it helps us as well. Now they think he and I are a couple.”
“I don’t want him hurting you,” Zoe replied. “I’m not sure I like him.”
“He doesn’t want to hurt me, love.”
“I don’t know, Evy. How much can you trust him? You hardly know him.”
“How did you know you could trust Elena?” Eva asked.
Zoe took a moment to think about that. Finally, she said, “I just felt like I had known her all my life.”
Eva smiled. “That’s how I feel about Earl. I’ve only known him for a few days, but I feel so comfortable around him. I consider him a friend.”
Zoe looked surprised. “I have to get to know this Earl much better since he’s now family,” she said, very aware of Eva’s shyness with people she did not know. Anyone who had managed to get through Eva’s shy exterior was a person that Zoe wanted to know better, even if he did dole
out confusing kisses. She would have a chat with him about that very soon.
“You will,” Eva replied. “He’s coming for dinner shortly.”
“Ah!” Zoe looked at the extra place setting. “So that’s our mystery guest.”
“You don’t mind, do you?” Eva asked a little belatedly.
“No, I have to meet the man who wants to marry you,” Zoe replied. “You really think we can trust him?”
“Yes, love, I do. I think he has a lot to lose by trusting me.”
“You’d never betray a trust.”
“He doesn’t know that,” Eva said. “He reminds me of my childhood friend, Willy.”
“Is that why you like him?”
“No, not just that,” Eva said. Her brow furrowed. “I feel safe when I talk to him; he...” Eva hesitated for a moment, her gaze cast down to her hands. It was clear that she was having difficulty expressing her thoughts. “He was a POW and went through hell.”
“Did you tell him...?”
“No.” Eva shook her head. “But I think he figured it out. I don’t know how but he did.”
“Then you do have something in common with him,” Zoe said, holding Eva’s hand. “That’s why Elena and I are friends—we both lost our families and we know how the other feels.”
Eva smiled in response. “Yes, something like that.”
“I’ve never really asked you if you minded that Elena is my second best friend.”
“I don’t mind,” Eva said. “So, who’s your first best friend? Do I know her?”
“Not sure. She’s tall, has a gorgeous figure, dazzling blue eyes, a beautiful soul, and answers to Eva Muller. Now do you think you know her?”
Eva did not reply but gently touched Zoe’s face and pressed her lips to Zoe’s mouth. The kiss became passionate and Zoe moaned in pleasure.
“Oh my, yes, you do.” Zoe fanned herself after they broke away from each other. “What were we talking about?”
Eva brought Zoe to her for a quick hug. “Earl should be here any minute.”
“I promise to be polite to your boyfriend,” Zoe said seriously, causing Eva’s blue eyes to widen.
A knock on the door alerted them that their dinner guest had arrived. Zoe crossed the room and opened the front door to find Earl standing outside, flowers in one hand and a bottle of wine in the other. He wore a dark blue suit with a matching tie, and a fedora hat was pulled down over his eyes.
Where Shadows Linger (Intertwined Souls Series Book 2) Page 9