Welcome to the World, Baby Girl!

Marion Chapman

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

1954

The La Salle Dress Shop in Philadelphia, where Dena’s mother now worked, was unlisted in the phone book. Those who needed to know the number knew it. Under its long blue and white canopy strolled customers who peopled the best homes, schools, and clubs in Philadelphia, the Main Line, Palm Beach, or wherever they happened to be. Mrs. Robert Porter, one such customer who wanted and could well afford only the best, always insisted that Miss Chapman was to wait on her. She had picked Chapman out from the first as a woman who knew what she was doing. Today, Mrs. Porter was seated on the edge of a large round tufted ottoman in the center of the mirrored showroom, choosing a wardrobe for a daughter-in-law’s trip to Europe. As always, she was impeccably dressed in a black designer suit that showed off her small, neat figure to best advantage. Her thin, black, T-strap shoes called attention to the fact that although she was in her early seventies, she still had the legs and perfectly shaped ankles of good ancestry and the very rich.

As her daughter-in-law, Margo, modeled each outfit, selected by Miss Chapman, Mrs. Porter approved by a simple nod. She was really more interested in studying Miss Chapman, something she had been doing for some time now. It began when her middle son, Gamble, who was at present between marriages, started to pursue Marion Chapman but to no avail. Over the ensuing weeks Mrs. Porter had observed that Miss Chapman handled herself very well indeed at all times. She was never overly friendly, always pleasant, but still there was always something slightly reserved, slightly removed about her. She was a tall, extremely attractive woman with flawless, almost porcelain skin, and wore her light auburn hair in an upsweep that emphasized an aquiline nose and a perfect profile. At first glance she had the exact look of the professional woman, but upon closer inspection, the one feature that did not fit the picture of the cool, emotionless saleslady was her eyes. There was something in her eyes that told another story. A certain expression, a sadness, almost a preoccupation with something that had nothing to do with the present.

After her daughter-in-law had finished her fitting, Mrs. Porter said, “Margo, wait in the car for me, will you? I’ll be out in a few minutes.”

When Margo left, Mrs. Porter patted the space beside her on the ottoman. “Miss Chapman, sit down. I’d like to talk to you.”

Miss Chapman seemed rather reluctant. “Mrs. Porter, if this is about Gamble, I can assure you—”

Mrs. Porter waved her hand. “No, of course not. You are perfectly right to stay away from him. He’s a fool where women are concerned. On the contrary, I’m surprised he had the good sense to go after you. Most of his women are brainless.” She snapped open her cigarette case and placed a cigarette in a small black cigarette holder and lit it. Miss Chapman sat down. “Is it about the clothes? Is—”

Mrs. Porter interrupted again. “The clothes are excellent. Margo is a big girl and you did a magnificent job of minimizing it. No, it’s you I want to talk about.”

A look of alarm crossed Miss Chapman’s face but she did not flinch. Mrs. Porter took a drag from her cigarette, turned and blew it out the other side, then looked at Miss Chapman squarely. She said, matter of factly, “Miss Chapman, I’m too old and too rich to beat around the bush. Why are you here?”

Miss Chapman blinked. “Pardon me?”

“You don’t belong here. I know it and you know it. I’ve been watching you for quite some time now. And frankly, you fascinate me. You’re no ordinary shop girl; nobody speaks French like you do on a high school education. It’s obvious you have breeding so don’t try to tell me your parents were just plain working folks. I raise horses, Miss Chapman, and I can spot a Thoroughbred a mile away.”

Miss Porter saw her blush. “Please don’t misunderstand, I would never presume to pry into your personal life; I find that sort of thing distasteful. But this much I do know. You could probably have any man in town if you wanted him, but maybe you don’t want a man, for whatever reason; I couldn’t care less. But in the meantime I also know you have a daughter to raise. I also know what they pay you here and it can’t be easy.” She took another drag of her cigarette. “What I am proposing is this. I have plenty of money and God knows I have clout and contacts. Let me buy you a shop of your own. Anywhere you want, that’s up to you, but at least allow me to put you in a position where you are not working for somebody else.”

Miss Chapman looked concerned.

“And you needn’t worry that this has anything at all to do with my son; this is strictly between you and me. You have talent, style, and you know your business. There is no good reason on earth you shouldn’t have your own shop. I’m sure in a matter of a few years you could be very comfortable. There are enough clotheshorses in my family alone to keep you busy.”

Miss Chapman looked as if she were about to speak but Mrs. Porter stopped her. “Don’t decide today. Take some time to think it over. You can give me your answer at the end of the week.” She removed her cigarette from the holder and crushed it out in the large crystal ashtray between them. “But I’ll tell you as I would tell one of my own daughters. Don’t be foolish and not accept my offer. You can pay me back or not. It doesn’t matter.”

Marion Chapman was still rattled as she hung up clothes in the dressing room. Of all her customers, she had always liked Mrs. Porter more than most, but this proposal had caught her off guard. Dealing with Gamble had been tricky, but she had handled such situations before. This was different. Maybe it was because there was something about Mrs. Porter that she trusted, that even allowed her to entertain the idea. If only she could. It would mean a new life, security; she would be able to do so many more things for Dena, buy her anything she wanted. It would give her a chance to get them out of those seedy apartment hotels. They could have a lovely home, a place where Dena could bring her friends.

When she got home from work that night, Dena was in the lobby waiting for her. They went to dinner around the corner at a small restaurant, and Dena asked what was wrong, what she was thinking about. But she said, “Nothing, honey, I’m just tired, that’s all.” After they came home and she put Dena to bed on the sofa in the living room, Marion Chapman sat across the room in the dark and watched her daughter as she slept.

The streetlight shining in the window bathed Dena in an almost silver glow and she could see her hair and white skin. Lately she had begun to see a lot more of her father in her. She looked more and more like Gene every day, same blue eyes, same hair. As she sat and smoked in the dark, her mind drifted back to 1943 and San Francisco. A girl who worked with her was dating a marine, and his friend had apparently seen her through the window and was dying to meet her, but that year the town was crawling with boys desperate to get a date before they were shipped out, and she was not interested. But the girl badgered her for weeks to at least meet him and finally, as a way of getting the girl to leave her alone, she agreed to meet him at the Top of the Mark for one drink and one drink only. That night when she got off the elevator at the Mark he was standing there waiting for her holding a cellophane-wrapped box, tied with a purple ribbon, containing an orchid. “Miss Chapman, I’m Gene Nordstrom,” he said. “I didn’t know what to buy; the lady at the flower shop said you might like this.”

He was certainly not what she had expected. He looked as if he had just stepped off a marine recruiting poster. He was at least six foot three with blue eyes and white-blond hair. The place was packed with servicemen and their girls, and they had to fight their way through the crowd to get to their table by the window. He said, “I hope this is all right. I got here early to get a really good one. I’ve been here for a couple of hours; this place fills up fast.”

She looked around. “Yes, it certainly does.”

“I ordered a bottle of pink champagne, is that all right? I figured this might be the only time I get a chance to drink some.” As soon as the waiter poured, he pulled out his wallet and took out a picture. “That’s my dad’s bakery and that’s my mom and dad standing in front of it.”

His father was a tall man standing beside a plump, smiling woman. He handed another picture across the table. “This is my Aunt Elner and this one is my dog, Tess. I don’t suppose you have ever heard of Elmwood Springs, Missouri, have you?”

“No,” she said. “I’ve heard of St. Louis. How far away is that?”

He laughed. “Pretty far. But you would like Elmwood Springs. Have you ever heard of Neighbor Dorothy?”

“Who?”

“Neighbor Dorothy … on the radio? I guess you don’t get her show all the way out here. Anyhow, that’s where I’m from, Elmwood Springs. It’s not very big but we have everything you need. We have a movie theater and a lake. I wish you could see it sometime. I bet you’d like it. I don’t know why I’m going on and on about Elmwood Springs; I guess I must be homesick or something. I’m probably boring you to death.”

“No, you’re not.”

She had not meant to fall in love and get married but his joy and enthusiasm for life had been so infectious that she actually began to think that maybe her life could be different. Maybe she could leave her past behind and really live happily ever after, in a small town in the middle of the country, making a fresh start in life.

But it had only been a momentary dream. After Gene was killed she realized how foolish she had been to even consider it for a moment. And when their daughter, Dena, was born, she made up her mind what she was going to do. She had every intention of taking Dena to Elmwood Springs and leaving her with Gene’s parents and simply disappearing from her life.

It had not turned out that way. When she stepped down from the train that day, it was already too late. As hard as she tried to leave Dena, she could not. Every day that passed, she knew she should go, but as the days went by life in Elmwood Springs had somehow begun to make her believe that maybe she was safe here. The Nordstroms asked no questions, accepting her with open arms.

She had almost begun to forget who she really was and what she had done when suddenly her worst nightmare had come true. Right after Dena’s fourth birthday, Theo had found them, had come knocking on the Nordstroms’ front door.

She should never have married, never have had a child; she should have left Dena that first day. What had she been thinking of? What was she thinking of now? She could not stay in Philadelphia or anywhere permanently. She had to keep moving. She could not take a chance again, not with Dena’s future.

A week later Mrs. Porter called the La Salle and asked to speak to Miss Chapman. The owner said, “I’m sorry, Mrs. Porter, but she’s no longer with us. Can I be of service?”

“You mean she doesn’t work there anymore? What happened?”

“I don’t quite know, Mrs. Porter. One day she called in sick and the next day when she didn’t come to work I called to see how she was, and the man on the desk told me that she had moved and didn’t leave a forwarding address. I don’t know what to think. I have a paycheck for her but I don’t know where to send it. I’m sorry, Mrs. Porter, I know you were fond of her.”

“Yes,” Mrs. Porter said. “Yes, I was.”