We brushed the crumbs off our dresses and made our way back to her home. The Bunan's lived in a tenement which had been built a long time after the window tax had been passed. The large building only had one window per story, and those three windowed apartments were the most expensive. My family house was small, but it was single family with a couple of widows to give us light and air. There was talk of reforming or getting rid of the Window Tax, as the whole point of it was to tax the rich, not the poor, and as usual this hadn't worked out as intended. If there was any justice in the world, parliament would immediately end it. This wouldn't help the families who lived in darkness because their landlords hadn't wanted to pay the extra tax, but it would be a start.
We walked up to the third floor where they lived. The hall was dark, due to that lack of windows, but Nora pulled a small candle out of her pocket and lit it. A few of her neighbors greeted her as they left for work.
"Mother has laundered your dress for the wedding," Nora told a young woman with curly brown hair. "You can pick it up tonight after work."
"Thanks Nora," The girl practically skipped down the hall.
Mrs. Bunan was eating some eggs and toast when we entered the room. She looked at me nervously and I smiled. Nora sat down across from here and took a deep breath.
"There's a few things I need to tell you, Mother. I hope you won't be disappointed in me," she said. "I wish you hadn't felt the need to get Dorothea involved. You could have just asked me about what I was doing."
Mrs. Bunan took her daughter's hand. "I was nervous about why you wouldn't just tell me about why you were going out late."
"It seems better communication was in order," I said.
They both rightly glared at me for my interruption. It would have been more proper to leave, but I wanted to give Nora my continued support. I suspect they had both worried over nothing, but you can never be sure.
"Mother, I'm in love with Margaret Harvey. I have been since we first met," Nora said.
Mrs. Bunan patted her hand and chuckled. "I've known that longer than you have. You never wondered about my stories about your Great Aunt Lavinia who moved to America with her good companion Mrs. Baker?"
Nora asked, "They were lovers?"
"Oh yes, but what does this have to do with you leaving at all times of the night? If you had asked, you could have had Maggie come stay with us again."
"We've both been working two jobs to save money for starting our business. I've been working all night at the cotton factory."
Mrs. Bunan shook her head, "Ah, to be young again."