Mud and Gold Read Online Free Page B

the cows that Frank was reluctant to distract him,
and perhaps annoy him. Over dinner might be a better time.
    Then again, perhaps after dinner. Ben would
be in a good mood when he had a full stomach, Frank thought as he
gnawed at a chop. It seemed a particularly tough chop, and Frank
remembered the tasty stew he had had for lunch. The chops didn’t
seem the kind of food to put anyone into a good mood. When should
he bring up the subject? After Ben had had a cup of tea? When he
started reading the paper? Why not right now?
    Frank watched Ben hack another slice of
bread from the loaf, then took a deep breath and spoke before he
had time to change his mind.
    ‘I’ve got a bit of news, Ben.’
    ‘Uh?’ Ben grunted, showing more interest in
his piece of bread and butter.
    ‘Yes. Good news.’ Ben was looking
expectantly at him now. ‘It’s about Lizzie.’
    Ben’s eyes narrowed. ‘That girl? What about
her?’
    ‘Lizzie and me are going to get married.’
There, it was said.
    Ben’s mouth dropped open, and he looked at
Frank in stunned silence for several seconds. ‘You bloody idiot!’
he said, finding his voice at last. ‘What the hell do you want to
do a fool thing like that for?’
    This was not going well. ‘Calm down, Ben.
There’s no need to go crook about it.’
    ‘You’ve asked her, have you? It’s too late
to get out of it?’ Ben pressed.
    ‘I don’t want to get out of it! I want to
get married. It’ll be really good to have a woman around the
place.’
    ‘Why? What’s so good about having a woman
telling you what to do?’
    ‘She’ll make things nice. She’ll clean the
place up—we won’t have to bother with washing and dishes and things
any more. She’s a really good cook, too. No more tough chops.’
    ‘What’s wrong with my chops?’
    ‘Nothing’s wrong with them, but Lizzie cooks
roasts and things, and she makes beaut puddings.’
    ‘Make things nice, will she?’ Ben said in
disgust. ‘What, cloths on the table, I suppose? Leave your boots at
the door and all that rubbish. Frilly things lying around.
Ugh.’
    This was an aspect that had not occurred to
Frank. But he would gladly put up with cloths on the table if it
meant not having to eat out of saucepans. And mention of frilly
things made him imagine Lizzie’s underwear. He wondered just what
she kept hidden under those long skirts of hers. He would find out
soon.
    ‘What are you grinning about?’ Ben asked.
‘That girl’s already got you dancing to her tune, eh?’
    ‘No!’ Frank protested. ‘Lizzie’s a really
nice girl, Ben. You’ll like her when you get to know her.’
    ‘Not bloody likely,’ Ben grumbled. ‘Well,
what’s she like, then? Is she the sort of woman who keeps her mouth
shut? I don’t want some rowdy woman wagging her tongue all day
long.’
    ‘Oh, Lizzie’s not a noisy person,’ Frank
assured him. That was true enough, he told himself. No one would
call Lizzie quiet, but it wouldn’t be fair to call her noisy. After
all, she never seemed to shout. She just never stopped talking.
Perhaps he could have a word with her, and tell her not to say too
much around Ben.
    ‘Will she do as she’s told?’
    ‘Ahh…’ Frank hesitated, reluctant to tell an
outright lie.
    ‘You’d better keep her in line, Frank. No
woman’s going to rule this place while I’m here. You get her sorted
out right from the start.’
    ‘Lizzie’ll be all right, don’t you worry.’
He really would have to have a word with Lizzie.
    ‘She might be all right if you show her
who’s boss. I’m warning you, if she doesn’t behave I’ll sort her
out myself.’
    ‘What are you talking about, Ben?’
    ‘If you’re too stupid to keep the little
bitch in line—’
    ‘Don’t call my wife a bitch!’ Frank
interrupted angrily. ‘And you can keep your hands off her,
too.’
    ‘I don’t want the little tart,’ Ben snarled.
‘You can tumble her all you want. Dunno why you can’t go to the
whorehouse if you’re