Pure as the Lily Read Online Free PDF Page B

picture queue. He had come and stood by her side and said, “Hello,” and she had said “Hello,” back; and then he had gone into the six pennies and she into the three—pennies.

    On the other hand, Paul Connelly was always wanting to talk to her.
    But she couldn’t stand Paul Connelly. She didn’t know why HughieAmesden and he were friends because Paul was only about half the size, they looked like Mutt and Jeff.
    She now raised her rain-wet lashes and looked at the Adonis, and he looked back at her, and at this she drooped her head and muttered,
    “I’ll have to be going, I’m going for Neither of them made any comment on this explanation and the three of them stared at each other for a moment longer, then she turned awkwardly and ran down the street.
    She was trembling again; she always trembled when she saw Hughie Amesden.
    When she came to the shop there were no children jumping up and down on the low sill or playing bays on the pavement with their hitchidobbers. She put her face close to the window and saw that the shop was empty, which was a rare occurrence, because Mr. Tollett sold practically everything and there was always somebody wanting something from half past seven in the morning until eight at night, ten on a Saturday.
    The shop was situated on a corner, with one window in Cornice Street and another in Benbow Street, the short street that was linked with Crowdon Road. The back door to the premises was in Benbow Street, and it led into a bads—yard nearly always filled with boxes of all shapes and sizes. There were two rooms behind the shop that were used as storerooms. In the main one Mr. Tollett kept his tubs of butter and rounds of cheese and sacks of flour, and there were nails in the ceiling from where he hung the sides of bacon. The other room he kept for storing tat ties and green grocery The door from the backyard leading into the first room had a pane of glass in the upper half.
    Next to this door was another that led into what had once been a separate house. The downstairs part had been turned into a garage, but the upstairs, consisting of four rooms, had been opened up to join those above the shop. Altogether, it was a grand place. She had been up there only once and had only glimpsed the sitting-room, but had been amazed at the size of it. Mr. Tollett had had two rooms knocked into one; it was really lovely. Her mother had almost shooed her out.
    She had said she wasn’t to come bothering, Mr. Tollett didn’t want the street in. She had wanted to say to her mother that she wasn’t the street, she was her daughter who had come with a message from her da.
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    She was going towards the door now that led into the house when she saw the outline of a figure moving behind the rain-smeared glass pane.
    That was her ma. Perhaps she was helping to put orders up. As her hand went towards the latch her faced moved closer to the pane of glass and now she could make out not only her mother but also Mr.
    Tollett, and saw that they were talking.
    The room was brightly lit but the rain-patterned glass distorted her mother’s features, and at first she thought that it was this that was making her look different. Then her hand dropped from the latch and she peered intently through the window. Her mother did look different, and it wasn’t because of the wet glass. She had never seen her mother looking like this. She was looking into Mr. Tollett’s face and her expression was soft and pleading; she looked young. She noticed that she kept wetting her lips. She saw Mr. Tollett bow his head while her mother kept on talking; she couldn’t hear what she was saying because of the wind and the lashing rain. But now she saw Mr.
    Tollett pick up something from a chair. It was her mother’s coat. She watched her mother put it on; her head was drooping now.
    When Mr. Tollett suddenly came towards the door, she sprang back and nearly fell into the boxes stacked near the wall. If it hadn’t been for the wind