She brushed her hair and applied lipstick and powder. Then she grabbed her purse and ran out to the car.
Archie’s office was located in an elegant building on Park Avenue. Pandora climbed the staircase to the third floor. She felt even more nervous than when she’d waited at Lord & Taylor. Archie’s secretary announced her, and Archie appeared in the doorway. He looked almost foreign to her in a three-piece suit and two-toned oxfords.
“Pandora, what are you doing here?” he asked in surprise.
Her courage deserted her, and she had to force herself not to bolt to the stairs.
“I want to talk to you about something; it’s important.”
Archie paused, as if debating whether he wanted to see her.
“We can go into my office.”
Pandora shook her head. She wanted to go somewhere romantic to talk to him.
“Let’s go somewhere we can get a drink or at least an ice cream,” she suggested. “It’s July in New York; it’s terribly hot.”
She took him to P.J. Clarke’s on Fifty-Fifth Street. It was one of Virginia’s favorite places. The owner, P. J. Clarke, lived in rooms above the restaurant. Since prohibition started, he’d made his own gin in the bathtub and served it secretly to the customers.
Archie ordered hot brown sandwiches for both of them. Pandora asked the waiter for a mint julep. She didn’t usually drink cocktails during the day, but she needed it for what she had to say. At least Archie had agreed to come, but he was more aloof than she had ever seen him.
“Lucy introduced me to hot brown sandwiches,” Archie said when the waiter brought ham and cheese on toasted bread, covered in Worcestershire sauce. “It’s one of her favorite items on the menu of the Mayfair Hotel in St. Louis. I suppose now I’ll never go there and try one.”
“Adele told me about you and Lucy. I’m very sorry.”
Archie took a bite of his sandwich.
“It didn’t happen exactly as Lucy said,” Archie replied. “I called it off with Lucy, but I know she’s glad. She can marry Charles without Louise being angry. Apparently, Lucy is in love with him.”
“Why did you break it off?” Pandora asked.
Archie wiped his mouth with a napkin. He took a moment to answer.
“I had to stand up to my parents eventually. I don’t mind running the real estate company. In fact, I enjoy it. It’s not only about building bigger penthouses for the wealthy; it’s a way to help others. People like the Vanderbilts and the Fricks are selling their mansions on Fifth Avenue, and New York’s commercial district is moving uptown. I’ve been buying the land to build skyscrapers and office buildings. When the economy turns around, that will create more jobs,” Archie said excitedly. “Thousands of secretaries tapping on typewriters at the same time, tourists spending money at high-rise hotels. And I’m going to build neighborhood schools so that all the children in New York can get an education.”
Archie was right. The blocks around Lexington Avenue where Pandora’s boutique burned in the fire were now full of elegant shops. Elizabeth Arden and Helena Rubinstein opened flagship stores near Bergdorf Goodman’s, and a Gimbels department store had opened close by.
“I realized that my parents need me more than I need them,” Archie continued. “And I can’t compromise when it comes to love. Lucy and I spent a lot of time together in London.” He grimaced.
“What did your parents say?” Pandora inquired. Archie had never defied his parents before.
“My mother was devastated, but she’ll recover.” Archie shrugged. He looked at Pandora. “I’m older. I can’t live my life for someone else, and I can’t live a lie.”
Pandora knew Archie was referring to her marriage to Harley. She had to tell him her feelings, but she didn’t know where to start.
“I came to tell you something. Something about us.”
“You already did.” He cut her off. “You made your choices, Pandora. Neither of us can change what happened. You can’t know what it’s like to simply be told that you have a daughter. But Esme is lovely; I hope to build a relationship with her.”
“It’s not about our night together or even about Esme,” she pushed forward. “You see, I realized something today. I should have seen it long ago.” She sipped her cocktail. “I have feelings for you. I’ve had feelings for you forever.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s difficult to describe,” she said pensively. “It’s not the girlish infatuation I felt for Owen or the friendship I had with Harley. I loved Harley, but there was always something missing. With you, it’s everything at the same time.”
Pandora realized she was talking to Archie as if he was a confidant as well as a lover.
“Why didn’t you say anything before?” Archie said in shock.
“I don’t know. You were always there for me. I was blind to my feelings, and you never said anything either. I’m telling you now and wondering if you feel the same.”
Archie was silent for so long that Pandora’s hands trembled, and she felt slightly ill.
“I can’t answer right now,” Archie said finally. He glanced at his watch. “I have to be somewhere, and I can’t put it off. Can we talk later?”
Pandora was shocked. She had poured her heart out to him. He had to say something.
“Yes, of course.” She nodded. She wouldn’t show him how upset she was. “I have to go anyway; Sally is expecting me at Riverview.”
Pandora watched him walk out of the restaurant and wondered if he would ever come back to her.
Chapter Twenty-Two
July 1930, Hyde Park, New York
Later the same evening, Pandora sat on the porch in front of the cottage and thought about Archie. Esme was asleep, and Willie was reading in the living room.
She had told Archie everything, and he hadn’t responded. There was nothing else she could do. Her heart felt so heavy.
She was about to go inside when Archie appeared on the lawn. He was still wearing his suit, and he carried a rectangular box. Her chest tightened; she wondered what he was doing there.
“There you are,” he declared. “I brought you something.”
It was the shoe box that they had used to collect leaves. Pandora hadn’t seen it since they were teenagers.
“Open it,” Archie urged.
Pandora pried it open. She recognized her own handwriting on some of the leaves. There were other leaves she hadn’t seen before. Archie must have collected them. She gathered them and read the wishes out loud.
“I wish Pandora has her dream wedding. I wish Pandora’s boutique is successful. I wish Pandora is safe and happy on the French Riviera.” Pandora gulped.
“I don’t understand,” she stammered. “We stopped collecting leaves years ago.”
Archie’s eyes shone pale blue under the porch light. He had never looked so handsome.
“We stopped collecting them together, but I kept up the tradition,” he corrected her. “I was always thinking about you, Pandora. I only wanted you to be happy.” He waved at the box. “Read the last leaf.”
Pandora turned it over. “I wish Pandora loved me back.”