Roz watched Felix deep in thought. She wondered whether his silence was a result of her rejecting his offer to buy her a frock. She hoped not, as the last thing she wanted to do was cause offence, and she meant it when she said he had taught her to not be bothered by what others thought, but in truth, she also felt as though she were taking advantage of him. When they had been at Dovercourt, she had begun to suspect that Felix had fond feelings for her, but since seeing him again in Liverpool, she felt as though things had changed, not from Felix’s point of view, but from hers. She might say she wasn’t bothered about what others thought, and that, to a certain extent, was true, but she was still embarrassed for Felix to see her as she was now. True, he knew it wasn’t her choice, but she felt as though it showed a weakness on her part, that she might not be the woman he once thought her to be. A beggar, she thought – no matter how much she dressed it up, that’s what she had turned into, and whilst Roz did not regret swallowing her pride in order to try to find her parents, there was still a small part of her that thought she should have tried harder to find an alternative; just what, she couldn’t say. Looking at Felix, another thought occurred to her. Perhaps he had offered to buy her the frock because deep down he was embarrassed to be seen out with her? She instantly chided herself. Felix wasn’t like that. After all, the first time he had met Roz she hadn’t exactly looked her best having just being thrown from a moving vehicle. Too much on your plate, she thought to herself. You need to concentrate on one thing at a time, and let everything else sort itself out. Besides, if Felix remained true to his word, and she had no doubt that he would, he was going to find somewhere for the two of them to live once he’d turned eighteen, and he wouldn’t have made that suggestion had he had any romantic thoughts towards her, he was too much of a gentleman for that. She nodded slowly to herself. He might have been keen on her in Dovercourt, but things had certainly changed since then.