Annabelle still nursed a quiet sense of elation the following morning as she headed to work. Was it just her imagination, or were the flowers in the experimental garden a little more fragrant this morning? She was finding a sense of purpose in the world, and it felt good.
She rolled the issue ofGood Housekeepingin her hands as she mounted the steps to the lab. How could she ensure that higher-ups in the department saw it? Horace Greenfield andMr. Bryant certainly knew, but she couldn’t expect anyone outside their lab to be aware of her role in this. She didn’t want to boast, but this was a significant accomplishment and perfectly aligned with one of the department’s major initiatives.
She was still debating how best to alert others in the department when she arrived in the lab. Good heavens, so many people crammed into their tiny workspace!
“There’s the famous Miss Larkin!” Horace said.
“Miss Prim and Practical,” Mr. Bryant added. In the six weeks she’d worked here, he’d barely smiled, but now it looked as if he was battling a laughing fit.
“What’s going on?” she asked. She needn’t have worried about getting attention for the magazine article, for she spotted at least three copies ofGood Housekeepingfloating around, and this male-dominated department certainly didn’t make a habit of reading ladies’ magazines.
“You didn’t tell us you were going to be featured in the magazine,” Mr. Bryant said.
“I’m not.” She had read the article several times last night, and there was not a single mention of her or Gray’s name. Exactly how they wanted it.
“And yet you are half of a thoroughly modern couple!” Horace chortled, handing her one of the magazines opened to an article near the back.
Her mouth went dry, and her heart skipped a beat. She hadn’t read anything else in the issue, and her hand shook as she took the magazine from Horace.
A Thoroughly Modern Couple
By Mrs. Eleanor Sharpe
On a perfectly ordinary day in August, a most unusual couple paid a visit to the testing kitchen atGood Housekeeping. As our nation embarks on a new century, we expect to see new types ofromantic pairings. One couple that personifies these changing times is Miss Annabelle Larkin and Mr. Gray Delacroix.
Readers of this magazine will already know the Delacroix name, as it is proudly affixed to the finest jarred spices in the world. Readers may not be familiar with the man at the helm of the company, an experienced traveler who personally visits his spice fields around the world but still has time to supervise a modern spice production facility in Virginia. He combines culinary excellence with the roving spirit of a renaissance man.
And what sort of woman has captured the heart of this international business magnate? She is a homegrown woman from the American heartland, raised on a wheat farm and educated at Kansas State Agricultural College, a school with a long and admirable record in granting women the same educational opportunities as men. Miss Larkin is the epitome of everything Prim and Practical. She perfectly offsets the roving, romantic adventurer of Mr. Delacroix.
Miss Larkin and Mr. Delacroix each have vivid personalities and are not afraid to flaunt them. They are a perfect combination, like oil and vinegar. Unpalatable on their own, but delightful when sampled together.
The story rambled on, but she couldn’t read any more. She lowered the magazine and wished the floor would open and swallow her whole. Everyone in the room watched and waited for her reaction. She forced her embarrassment down and put on a serene expression.
“Mrs. Sharpe certainly has a colorful writing style,” she said.
Horace pulled up alongside her. “Oil and vinegar? How long have you been seeing Mr. Delacroix?”
“I’mnotseeing him.” And Gray was going to be furious about this.
“That’s not what Mrs. Sharpe implies,” Horace pointed out. “You wouldn’t want to let down the American readers. Come,you visited their office weeks ago. We need an update on how oil and vinegar are getting along these days.”
“You’re not going to get one,” she said as she headed toward her station at the far end of the lab. The wheat seeds she’d left half analyzed yesterday still sat in their beakers, waiting to be sorted and measured. “I’d like to get back to work.”
Two more men entered the lab, and oh good heavens, one of them was Mr. Cabrera, the commissioner of agriculture. She didn’t recognize the other, but he wore a bow tie and looked very official. He carried an issue ofGood Housekeeping.
“Where’s the lady of the hour?” the second man boomed. A silly question, since she was the only woman in the lab.
“That’s me, sir.” And to think, only a few minutes ago she was worried about how she could ensure the magazine article got attention outside of her immediate lab.
Heat flushed her face, and the man introduced himself as Harvey Wiley, in charge of the bureau of chemistry for the department. That was the office in charge of investigating food purity, and to her relief, Mr. Wiley had the magazine open to the important article on page nine.
“Well done!” he said, giving her a bone-crushing handshake. “It’s been hard for us to get attention in the popular press. No one gets excited over agriculture, but you figured out a way to getGood Housekeeping’s attention, and that will go far in advancing our mission to ensure a pure food supply.”
The commissioner nodded and smiled.
The muscles in Annabelle’s neck began to ease. How gratifying that these two highly placed men understood what was important. She felt even better when the commissioner suggested she start attending some of the department’s meetings on developing pure food and drug proposals.
“I’d be honored,” she stammered.
