593 Riverside Drive - 12. Chapter 12

Another thing we talked about at dinner was something Ella was concerned about but hadn’t mentioned. Mama seemed less surprised, so I suspect she already knew, as I’d long realized how close the two of them were. I’d once asked, “Do you tell Ella everything?” and Mama admitted, “Usually.”

“More than you tell Papa?”

She’d smiled. “Well, especially things I know he’s not interested in.”

Still, the bonds were something Papa might have known more about and certainly Herbert would have, since he occasionally invested on Wall Street. Papa was more cautious.

“I’m curious about something,” Ella had asked Joe after their doctors’ examinations were postponed. “But it’s difficult to talk about because when I left the apartment, I took almost nothing with me.”

“I know,” Joe replied. “And I wish you hadn’t. You know you’re welcome to anything.”

“It only would bring complications,” Ella insisted. “The lawyers told me that.”

Joe laughed. “Almost everything is complicated according to lawyers, and they make sure you know it. Then they add it to your bill.”

After we all laughed, Joe went on. “Something else we haven’t talked about is finances. It’s been over a month. Do you have enough to live on?”

“I’ve got a bit saved,” Ella admitted.

“From before we were married? You were working for your family, and I know your father only gave you and your mother household money.”

“But we learned to be careful with it,” Ella offered smiling. “So we put a little away.”

“And you did that with me?”

Ella nodded.

“How much have you saved?”

“Several thousand dollars,” she answered quietly.

“How many? Exactly.”

“Almost three – you always gave me far more than I needed.”

Joe was silent, and Ella quickly went on, “I realize that’s your money, too, so if you want it back...”

Joe grinned. “No. If you can run a household as well as you do and still manage to save, you’re entitled to that.” He hesitated. “Or were you always planning to leave me?”

“Absolutely not,” Ella insisted. “I never wanted to do that... And I waited and hoped – I even prayed – and you know I don’t believe in that.”

Joe smiled.

“But when there were days that I didn’t want to get out of bed because I didn’t know how to face Laurette and Ira... And when there were times I had to admit that, maybe for the first time in my life, I didn’t know what to do... And when I couldn’t even ask Lee for advice because she only knew part of what was troubling you and me, and the rest seemed too private...”

Joe assured her that she didn’t need to go on. “I understand.”

Ella again nodded, and Joe seemed amused. “Well, it’s good to know that you probably have more cash than I do,” he offered. “Perhaps I can borrow some, as I did on our trip to Havana.”

Ella smiled, maybe remembering. Then she returned to the bonds. “I know you gave them to me so I’d feel independent – especially if something happened to you.”

“I believe those were my exact words.”

“And I know there were other bonds in our safe deposit box – marked for Laurette, Laurie, and your father.”

“For the same reason,” Joe confirmed.

“And I’ve never touched those so certainly wasn’t planning to take them with me. I’d only gone to the bank to return all my jewelry – the pieces I wore every day, not the expensive ones we kept in storage.”

“I notice you kept your wedding ring,” Joe pointed out, “and still wear it.”

“People expect me to.”

“And that’s the only reason?”

Ella hesitated then shook her head. “That’s one of those questions I have no answer for. You’ve never worn a ring, so maybe you wouldn’t understand.”

“You know I work with my hands. And you know how clumsy I am. Every time I’ve worn a ring, I’ve caught it and hurt myself.”

Ella smiled.

“But this wasn’t about our jewelry,” Joe went on. “It was about bonds.”

“Yes. When I was in our safe deposit box, I noticed the bonds were gone. All of them.”

“I needed them for collateral for a construction loan – a hundred thousand dollars for the building we’re putting up in Jersey City. The bonds are in another bank and will be returned once the building is finished, the rents start coming in, and the loan is repaid.”

“How long will that take?” Ella asked.

“Two or three years.”

“And if something happens to you?”

Joe laughed, maybe at Ella’s thoroughness. “There’s insurance, of course – both on the buildings and on my life. Everything won’t come tumbling down.” He quickly continued. “But the bonds I gave you are yours, just as the others are Daughtie’s, Laurie’s, and my father’s. And Anna’s jewelry is yours, except for the pieces we set aside for Daughtie.” He grinned. “The showiest ones, I seem to recall. You said, ‘Oh, I could never wear that.’”

“Anna and I had different tastes.”

“Actually, they’re surprisingly the same. When I gave Anna the pieces the jewelers and I had picked out, she often said, ‘Oh, I could never wear that.’”

We all laughed, but Joe studied Ella.

“I don’t want money to be your concern,” he went on. “If something happens to me – either to my health or with these lawyers...” he seemed uncomfortable mentioning that, “...you need to know those bonds and jewelry are never at risk.”

Ella nodded. “I wish I knew more about investments.”

“We all do,” Joe assured her, and he and Herbert exchanged looks. “They often seem the same as jewelry, clothes, and automobiles. They’re expensive at first and almost immediately lose most of their value.”

“I prefer what my father does,” Ella offered. “As soon as my older brothers proved themselves by working with him, he made them partners. Now, they all share.”

“Do you want to drive to Jersey City with me every morning and sell men’s hats?” Joe kidded. “You’ve proved yourself in the kitchen, so if you can keep up with my sales, I’ll make you a partner.”

“I’d be happy to be a very small one,” Ella admitted. “Maybe up to the value of those bonds.”

Joe looked at her. “Twenty-five thousand dollars? That’s a tiny partner. And what would you do to earn that?”

Ella smiled. “To begin with, I’d lend you the bonds to secure your loan.”

Joe laughed. “You did learn something from those business courses.”

“I learned that from my father. The two years at school, we mainly studied Ladies Office Skills.”

She made them seem as senseless as they sounded, so we all laughed. That gave Joe a moment to think.

“I’ll tell you what,” he offered Ella. “I’ll make you a partner, up to the value of your bonds, and you can keep your jewelry, separate from that. Does that make you more comfortable?”

Ella nodded and offered her hand.

“I’ll talk with my lawyer in the morning,” Joe finished. “I like that lawyer. He doesn’t insist I disrobe to have a conversation.”

Again, we all laughed. On balance, it had been a successful evening.