Belle Epoque by Elizabeth Ross Read Free Book Online Page A

about it, handsome?”
    There’s nothing halfhearted about Marie-Josée! I have to hold in a laugh at her utterly brazen banter.
    Laurent takes it in stride. He simply smiles and says, “I wish,
ma belle
, but I’m recruiting for the boss. Business is brisk, demand is high.” He lowers his voice. “And I don’t want to make the other girls jealous.” He gives her a smile and even though it’s not for me, my heart skips a beat too.
    I watch carefully as he moves toward Cécile and strokes her damp cheek. “Oh,
pauvre petite
, I heard what happened last night. He’s not worth those tears, so chin up, love.” Cécile looks at him through swollen eyes. One residual sob escapes.
    The sharp click of footsteps in the hall dampens the high spirits and turns everyone’s attention to the door. It feels as if the temperature in the room cools when Durandeau enters.
    Everyone avoids his gaze. I don’t want to be noticed by him either, but I can’t help stealing a look: impeccably dressed in evening tails, he purses his lips and straightens his bow tie in preparation for a speech.
    “First the unpleasantries. Mademoiselle Carré.” He glares at Cécile and I feel myself shrink back. “You have let down the agency with your hysterics on the job. You have one last chanceto pull your professional self together or you will be relieved of your privilege of serving the agency.”
    Out of the corner of my eye I catch Marie-Josée pulling a face. How could she be so bold?
    “Mademoiselle Pichon!” I jump at hearing my name. His beady eyes fix on me and I inwardly cower. “You are to rendezvous with Countess Dubern and her daughter at a boutique of ladies’ fashions tomorrow afternoon. This will give the countess a chance to assess your suitability as a physical match for her daughter.”
    My heart stops racing; I’m glad I’m not in trouble. But now the job is real. Lessons with Girard have kept the dread of my first assignment at bay until now. “
Oui
, monsieur,” I manage to say.
    “Madame Leroux has a suitable outfit for you. Your transportation has been arranged from the agency by carriage at a quarter to three.” He lifts his lapel to smell the gardenia in his buttonhole. “It is expected you will be a match. Don’t disappoint.” Without another word, Durandeau turns and heads for the door, with Laurent at his heels.
    “Thank you, ladies,” Laurent calls out, then blows us a kiss behind Durandeau’s back as he closes the door.
    As soon as they are gone, everyone relaxes back into their conversations, but I am silent. A knot is growing in my stomach at the thought of my first assignment. The countess is vastly more intimidating than training exercises. I pull up a chair next to Marie-Josée. She’s sitting at one of the dressing tables, smearing cream over her jowly face.
    “Don’t fret,
ma grande
. You learned from the best.” She smiles at me.
    Her words aren’t comforting. Anxiety twists in my stomach as she reaches over and places a greasy hand on mine, her face serious for once. “Remember, Maude, you need to have a shell like stale baguette—hard as a rock.” She squeezes my hand. “Don’t let them in and you’ll be fine.”
    I nod and force a smile. I want to believe her.

I HAVE FOUND THAT IN anticipation of any dreaded event, time accelerates. My morning lessons flew by, and now I’m sitting in the agency carriage, which is charging through the streets of Paris toward my meeting with the countess and her daughter. I feel like a bugle should be proclaiming our passage or sounding the alarm. The urgency throbbing through life here is dizzying. I wonder when all of this newness and change will stop. I want that feeling of stillness that hangs in the air before a thunderstorm, when it feels as if the earth has stopped turning. If I could just catch my breath, steady my footing. But there is no respite. The city streaks by my window, the people no more than a blur.
    All too soon the carriage