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proudly, “and the swimming pool, and we rode up and down in all the elevators. And then he told me we’d have to find someone to give us little cakes, so we did. They were very nice,” she announced matter-of-factly with her angelic face, satisfied with her big adventure. “I told them that tomorrow is my birthday.” Which was true. Kate had ordered a birthday cake for her the day before, and Charles Joughin, the head baker, had promisedto make it with white icing and pink roses, and it was going to be a surprise for Alexis.
    “Well, I’m glad you two had such a lovely time.” Bert was still amused by them, and even Kate laughed as she listened to Alexis’s descriptions of what they’d done. “But perhaps next time you’d better come with us, instead of inviting yourselves to tea with strangers.” George grinned at them both, and Alexis cuddled up to Kate, who gently kissed her cheek, and held her close to her. Alexis loved being near to her mother like that, she loved her warmth and her softness, and the feel of her hair when she turned her head, and the smell of her perfume. There was a special bond between the two. There was no denying it, it just was, and it didn’t mean Kate loved the others less. It just meant that at certain times, Alexis was very special. Kate loved all of the others, too, but there was a kind of need Alexis had for her that none of the others seemed to have, which was just as well. It was as though Alexis had never quite pulled away from her, and perhaps she never would, and perhaps, Kate sometimes thought, perhaps she would never have to. At times Kate hoped that she could keep her close to her forever, particularly if Edwina went to live in England.
    Edwina and Charles came into the lounge from outdoors a little while later, after their stroll. They waved as they saw Bert and Kate. Edwina was still trying to warm her hands as she approached them.
    “It’s freezing out there, isn’t it, Mama?” Edwina was smiling again. She was always smiling now. Kate thought that she had never seen anyone as happy, except herself maybe when she married Bert. It was almost as though they were made for each other. And Mrs. Straus had mentioned it, too, she had noticed the young couple more than once, and commented on them to Kate,about what a lovely young couple they made, and she hoped they would be very happy.
    “I wonder why it’s so cold,” Edwina said to her father as they ordered tea and buttered toast. “It’s much colder than it was this morning.”
    “Our course is quite far north. If we keep an eye out tonight, we might even see a few little growlers,” he said, referring to tiny icebergs.
    “Is that dangerous?” Edwina looked concerned, as their tea and toast arrived, but her father shook his head reassuringly.
    “It’s not dangerous to a ship like this. You’ve heard what they say about the
Titanic.
She’s unsinkable. It would take a lot more than an iceberg to sink a ship like this, and besides I’m sure that if there is any concern, the captain is proceeding with great caution.” In fact, they had been going close to twenty-three knots all day, which was a good speed for the
Titanic.
And by that afternoon, as they sipped tea and ate toast, the
Titanic
had already received three ice warnings from other ships, the
Caronia
, the
Baltic
, and the
Amerika
, but Captain Smith had not reduced their speed yet. He didn’t feel he had to, he was keeping a careful watch on all conditions. He was one of White Star’s most experienced captains. And after years with the line, he was retiring after this final prestigious trip.
    Bruce Ismay, the head of the White Star Line, was on board too. And he had seen one of the ice warnings earlier as well. He had pocketed it after he and the captain had discussed it.
    Kate put the children to bed herself that night, because Oona had gone back to steerage again to visit her cousin, and a stewardess had promised to baby-sit until she returned.