Читать книгу Josephine Cox Mother’s Day 3-Book Collection: Live the Dream, Lovers and Liars, The Beachcomber - Josephine Cox - Страница 16

LILIAN WAS IN a bad mood. With Tom gone, she felt lonely and irritable. Even her bright new colleague, Alice, with her bubbly manner and quick smile, couldn’t cheer her up.

‘Whatever’s the matter with you?’ Alice was at the end of her tether with Lilian’s misery. ‘You’ve been so bad-tempered … downright rude sometimes! Are you ill, is that it?’

All day long, Lilian had been snapping and snarling, and now with only five minutes to go before finishing for the day, she was seated at her desk, head in hands, seemingly oblivious to everything that was going on around her.

On hearing Alice’s remarks, she sat up to stare at the other young woman, her face unhappy. For a moment it seemed she might angrily rebuke Alice, but the moment was gone when Dougie walked in through the door. ‘All right, are you, girls?’

Delighted at having just concluded a new deal, he was full of himself. ‘So, who wants to kiss the man of the day?’ Holding out his arms, he turned from one to the other, pretending to swoon when Alice planted a smacker on his cheek. ‘Well?’ Leaning across her desk so he could look Lilian in the eye, he teased, ‘Too good to kiss an old mate, is that it?’

‘Some other time, eh?’ Lilian was in no mood for Dougie’s high spirits.

‘Oh, dear, caught you in a bad temper, have I?’ Catching Alice’s warning glance, he backed off. ‘Right then, I’d best get back to my desk … I’ve a few phone calls to make before I can get off home.’

As he went, he warned them, ‘It’s raining cats and dogs out there, so mind how you go, eh?’ Alice thanked him. Lilian allowed a curt nod, and the merest of smiles.

Ten minutes later, after tying up a few loose ends, she had her coat on and was ready to leave.

‘See you tomorrow,’ she told Alice.

‘I hope you’re in a better mood by then!’ Alice muttered as the door closed behind her fretful colleague.

Giving Alice the fright of her life, the door opened again, and Lilian’s eyes sought her out; for a minute Alice thought she’d overheard her mutterings.

‘Look, Alice … I’m sorry I’ve been in a foul mood all day.’

Relieved she wasn’t about to be hung, drawn and quartered after all, Alice told her not to worry, because she knew what it was like to have a bad day.

One by one the other offices emptied, until ten minutes later Alice and Dougie were the last to leave. ‘What’s wrong with Lilian?’ Pausing in the foyer to prepare for the pouring rain, he remarked on how he’d never known her to be in such a bad mood.

Alice didn’t know for sure. ‘Maybe she’s not well,’ she suggested. ‘I think she pushes herself too hard. She does twice the amount of work I do.’ It was an odd thing. ‘Some days she seems tormented. It’s like she has to keep herself occupied every minute. Me … I like to go down the street to the coffee shop for my lunch. It breaks the day up, if you know what I mean. But Lilian doesn’t leave the office from the minute she comes in to the minute she goes home. She has her tea and sandwich at her desk, and if she goes to the ladies’ room, the first thing she wants to know when she gets back is whether there’ve been any calls for her.’

Dougie was beginning to understand. ‘And have there?’

‘What?’

‘Been any calls?’

Alice pondered on that. ‘It’s usually one or other of the architects, asking for her to go in when she gets back … or the boss sometimes calls down. Why?’

‘I just wondered, that’s all.’ Turning his collar up, he asked her if she needed a lift. ‘You’ll get soaked to the skin in this lot.’ By now the rain was bouncing off the pavements, and leaving puddles in its wake.

Alice graciously declined. ‘Mum and Dad have got friends for dinner, so Ron’s taking me back to his place. I’m cooking us a meal.’ She glanced down the road. ‘He should be here any minute.’

Dougie gave her a playful nudge. ‘Sounds to me like there’s marriage on the cards.’

Blushing all shades of pink, she told him shyly, ‘You sound like my mum!’ She laughingly mimicked her: ‘“You’re coming up to twenty-five, Alice my girl! It’s time you settled down with some nice young man!” Honest to God, she goes on all the time.’

He winked. ‘Well? Is there or isn’t there?’

She shook her head, and he got the idea that the discussion was over.

‘Right then. I’d best make a run for it.’

Taking his life in his hands, he bid her good night and went out into the rain. Looking this way and that, he ran across the street, splashing through puddles and trying to dodge the deluge that rained down on his back. ‘Bloody weather!’ he grumbled, scrambling into his car. ‘Brilliant sunshine one minute and all hell let loose the next! It’s enough to give you pneumonia!’

Fumbling with his keys, he took a minute to open the car, during which he got soaked through to his shirt. ‘Brr!’ Falling into the seat, he let out a long, withering sigh. ‘Straight into a hot bath when I get in –’ he gave a little chuckle – ‘after I’ve had a sizeable tot of brandy to warm me up.’ He began to look forward to it.

As he pulled out, he saw Lilian huddled in a doorway near the bus stop. ‘Hey!’ Winding down the window, he called out to her, ‘Get in the car, I’ll take you home.’

She waved him on. ‘It’s all right, thanks. The bus will be along any minute now.’

He wouldn’t take no for an answer. ‘Come on, get in! I can take you right to your doorstep.’ Flinging open the door, he urged, ‘Hurry up. Make a run for it!’

With the nose of his car jutting out in the road and traffic having to swerve round him, Lilian could hardly carry on arguing the point, so she pulled her coat over her head and ran for it.

Once she was safely inside, she gave him instructions to her house. He pushed the car into gear and was on his way.

‘Sensible woman,’ he said as he drew out onto the road. ‘If you’d waited for me back at the office I could have saved you getting all wet.’

‘I’ll soon dry out, don’t worry.’ She glanced round the interior of the car. ‘This is new, isn’t it?’

He grinned like a boy with a new toy. ‘My new Ford,’ he answered proudly. ‘I thought you’d never notice.’

‘When did you get it?’

‘Picked it up this morning. I reckon I deserved it.’

Lilian’s hitherto bad mood was beginning to mellow. ‘Some of us can’t afford a car at all, never mind a new one.’

‘Huh! You wouldn’t think so. I had a hell of a job trying to park this morning. It wasn’t so long back that I could pick and choose where I parked. Lately it seems to me like every man and his dog is buying a car … and here’s me thinking it was the privilege of the rich and famous.’

‘Oh!’ she teased him back. ‘So you’re rich and famous now, are you?’

‘I can’t complain!’ Like his brother Tom, he had amassed a healthy bank balance since he had returned from the war, though he wouldn’t call himself rich. ‘I dare say me and Tom are well off by most standards,’ he admitted. ‘But it didn’t fall into our laps, far from it! We’ve worked hard for it.’ He lapsed into silence for a time, then added, half to himself, ‘We’ve both paid the price, though … Instead of Tom spending more time with his kids and wife, he was always on the move. I’ve no doubt but that he regrets every second lost with them.’ He shook his head. ‘Jesus Christ! What does money mean when compared to happiness?’

Lilian asked the same question everyone had asked at some time or another since the tragedy. ‘Do you think they’ll ever catch the man who ran them off the road?’

‘Well, they haven’t caught him yet,’ Dougie answered angrily. ‘If you ask me, the trail’s gone cold.’ He wondered about it all. ‘Strange that …’ He finished thoughtfully, ‘… Why would anybody want to kill an entire family?’

Lilian agreed, though she added, ‘Maybe it really was an accident after all – even the police thought that at one point.’

Dougie shook his head. ‘Tom swears he was rammed by that other car, and I for one believe him. Besides, even if it was an accident, they should have been able to trace the other car! Instead they’ve let him get clean away.’

Now, as he felt the anger rising in him, he changed the subject. ‘You never got married, did you?’

Taken by surprise at his abrupt change of direction, Lilian answered warily, ‘I don’t see what that’s got to do with anything.’

He felt the barriers go up and inwardly swore at himself for being so unfeeling. ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to pry.’

She took a moment, then said, ‘No, I never did get married.’

He was curious. ‘Any particular reason?’

‘No.’ She felt uncomfortable. ‘I just never met the right man, that’s all. And with the war, and everything – there weren’t that many to choose from …’ Her voice trailed off.

‘Well, take it from me,’ he warned, ‘romance isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.’ He sounded bitter about the way things had turned out; Lilian knew there was talk of a broken engagement in his past.

They were near her house now. ‘Turn right here and straight on, then first left, Camden Street. I’m halfway down.’

For the next few minutes they continued to chat about work, and about his latest deal. ‘I’ve been after that shopping-arcade job for months,’ he admitted. ‘It’s my biggest yet.’ He chuckled. ‘I don’t mind telling you, the boss was over the moon.’

‘He would be,’ Lilian remarked. ‘Making money is what makes him smile.’

‘Ah well, if he makes money, so do we,’ Dougie answered. ‘It’s what makes the world go round, or so they say.’

Following her instructions, he drew up outside a terrace of small houses. ‘There you go.’ Lilian lived in the end one. ‘Safely home in one piece.’

Thanking him, Lilian apologised for her behaviour earlier. ‘I’m sorry I wasn’t too sociable before.’

He nodded, seeming to understand. ‘It’s Tom, isn’t it?’ He knew how she felt about him. ‘You expected him to be in touch. That’s it, isn’t it?’

She gave a nervous little laugh. ‘You know, don’t you?’

He wasn’t sure how she might take the truth, but he told her anyway. ‘If that means do I know you worship the ground he walks on, the answer is yes.’ He studied her face for a reaction. ‘I knew about three weeks after you started working with him.’

Shocked that he had guessed her secret, Lilian was slow to reply. ‘I suppose you think badly of me, since he was a married man and all.’

‘Not my business,’ he answered carefully.

‘I never told him, though!’ She thought it was important he should know that. ‘I never told anyone!’

‘Best thing,’ he agreed. ‘You know how Tom doted on his wife and kids.’

‘I know. But surely, now … with him being on his own … I mean with his wife and everything …’ Realising she had strayed onto a tricky subject without meaning to, she paused, a little nervous. ‘I’m sorry … I didn’t mean.’ She grew angry with herself for ever having mentioned it, but now it was out in the open she voiced the question, ‘Why didn’t they ever catch the driver who ran them off the road?’

Dougie took a long, noisy breath. ‘God only knows they tried hard enough,’ he answered. ‘The heavy downpour soon after managed to wash away any tyre tracks. There were no witnesses, and all they had was Tom’s account of what happened. He was in no fit state to give too much of a description. The driver was wearing a hat and dark glasses, that was all he could see. The few clues they had didn’t lead anywhere.’ He shook his head. ‘I don’t believe their theory that it might have been an accident.’

Lilian was interested. ‘So you think it was deliberate?’

‘I think whoever did it must have planned it carefully, otherwise, as you say, why haven’t they been caught?’

‘But why would anyone want to kill Tom’s family?’

‘God knows, but you said “Tom’s family”. If they rammed his car with the intention of sending it over the cliff, the murderer must have wanted Tom dead as well, don’t you think?’

Lilian shrugged. ‘Of course. I didn’t mean it like that.’

Dougie reassured her. ‘But you’re right. Whatever the intention, it was a terrible tragedy. Thank God Tom’s here to tell the tale, though.’

There was a long silence while they reflected on his words. ‘It was a terrible thing,’ she agreed. ‘I was just wondering if Tom is feeling lonely, that’s all.’ She grew braver. Unsure about whether she was saying the right thing, she suggested, ‘I was wondering if I should tell him how I feel.’

‘Sorry. I’m not the one to advise you about that.’ Dougie thought it was a tricky situation. He didn’t really want to get involved. ‘I’d say that was up to you.’

Now that she had gone this far, Lilian told him what was on her mind. ‘I was thinking of going to see him … He sent his address and everything – in case of emergencies, he said. What do you think, Dougie?’

Dougie wasn’t sure. ‘He sent me his address as well,’ he remarked. ‘I must admit, it did cross my mind to go and see him once I’d caught up with work, but, to tell you the truth, I think he’d let us know if he needed company. He’s been through a lot. He’s pushed himself hard this past year, driven by what happened and not allowing himself to come to terms with it all. Now he’s come to his senses and decided to take the time off, maybe we should give him the space he so desperately needs.’

He had given it a good deal of thought recently. ‘If you really want my opinion, I think we should wait for him to get in touch.’

‘So you don’t think he’d be pleased to see me?’

He thought about it for a minute. ‘I didn’t say that,’ he cautioned. ‘I can only speak how I find. You’ll have to make your own mind up.’

Lilian’s dark mood was creeping up on her again. ‘Don’t you think he must be lonely?’

He had to concede that point. ‘I’m sure he is. But maybe that’s what he needs for a while.’ He gave her the hint of a smile. ‘On the other hand, who am I to say? He might be grateful if you pay him a visit … I wouldn’t know.’

As she got out of the car, he called her back. ‘How about you and me going out one night?’ he suggested with a mischievous grin. ‘We could cry on each other’s shoulder.’

Her answer did not surprise him. ‘As friends … nothing else?’ Tom was the only man she wanted, he knew that.

He nodded. ‘Okay,’ he agreed. ‘As friends.’

‘All right then. We’ll talk about it tomorrow.’

Slamming shut the door, she made a run for it.

Excited with his new toy, and thrilled to have a date in the bag, Dougie roared off, water spraying from under his wheels.

Having let herself into the house, Lilian leant against the closed door, her face etched with anger. ‘Damn him. I don’t need him to tell me what to do!’

She walked down the passageway muttering to herself and softly crying. ‘Tom wants to see me. I know he does!’

Since the accident, all she had dreamed about was getting together with Tom.

The following Friday, Lilian kept a promise. She and Dougie were actually meeting up on a date.

At half past seven on the dot, he arrived at her door. ‘My! You look stunning!’

‘Thanks.’ Having shed her bad mood, Lilian was now ready for a night out. Her long auburn curls were brushed to a shine, and her make-up, as usual, was discreet. She had chosen to wear a black pencil skirt with red shoes and a jacket of the same colour, and had a polka-dot scarf at her neck.

‘Your hair is lovely,’ he said, reaching out towards her. ‘Pity you don’t wear it down in the office.’ Lilian stepped away from his touch. ‘Remember what you promised,’ she reminded him. ‘Just friends.’ He was all right, but he wasn’t Tom. She told herself to keep that firmly in mind.

Though disappointed at her reminder, Dougie reassured her nevertheless. ‘Don’t worry. I haven’t forgotten.’ Cupping his hand beneath her elbow, he walked her to the car.

‘I’ve booked us a table at a lovely little Italian restaurant I know,’ he said. ‘I hope you like it.’

Spruced up in his best suit and looking as debonair as he could manage, Dougie was actually nervous. This was his first real date in a long time.

Grinning broadly, he opened the car door for Lilian to climb in and make herself comfortable. His precious new car was polished and shining, much like Dougie himself, Lilian thought.

As they drew up outside the restaurant, another taxi drew up in front of them and out stepped a pretty woman in a black dress. Looking uncomfortable in what was clearly his best suit, the man with her was slightly older.

‘You’re in for a wonderful evening, my dear,’ he promised his companion as he offered his arm to her.

The woman laughed with excitement. ‘It’s a good job I put my best frock on.’

‘Nothing but the best for my little girl.’ Tucking her hand into his arm, he escorted her inside, like the gentleman he was.

Dougie smiled at the woman’s excitement. ‘It looks like he means to make it a night for her to remember.’ He helped Lilian out of the car. ‘I remember when I used to get excited like that … when every penny I earned had to be counted.’

Lilian began to see a more ordinary side to him that she had not seen before. ‘So, you don’t count your pennies now, is that what you mean?’

He laughed. ‘That’s exactly what I mean,’ he replied. ‘Now I let the accountants do it for me.’

The restaurant was lovely, with plush red carpets and starched white tablecloths. Lilian’s eyes travelled the room and took it all in. With crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling and long slender mirrors on the wood-panelled walls, she was overwhelmed by such opulence.

Dougie and Lilian were seated at an intimate corner table. ‘She seems a bundle of fun,’ Dougie commented as the couple from the taxi sat down nearby. He observed her companion. ‘Too old for a boyfriend, and too young to be her father,’ he remarked.

Lilian looked across to where the woman was now talking softly to her companion, while he smiled back with stars in his eyes. ‘I should think she’s hooked herself a nice little earner,’ Lilian concluded with a smile.

Dougie tended to agree. ‘Well, I hope the poor bloke knows what he’s in for.’

On ordering the food and a bottle of wine, Dougie chose the best that money could buy. They ate and drank and, as the evening wore on, the two of them began to delight in each other’s company. ‘You really do look beautiful,’ Dougie charmed her time and again. ‘I hadn’t realised just how lovely you are.’

A fool to flattery, Lilian drank another glass of wine, then another. She was enjoying herself.

Lilian dabbed at her mouth with the napkin and placed it on the table. ‘That was the nicest meal I’ve had in a long time,’ she confessed. ‘I don’t bother too much about elaborate meals … living on my own and all that.’

Appreciating the compliment, Dougie laid down his knife and fork. Leaning forward he murmured suggestively, ‘You don’t have to be on your own …’

‘Now, now!’ She wagged a finger. ‘Remember what we agreed?’

Sitting back in his chair, he gave a disappointed grunt. ‘As if I could forget.’ But, after the wine she’d consumed and the teasing little smile she gave him just now, he lived in hope.

A helping of fruit pie and another sip of wine, and she could hold out no longer. ‘I need the little girl’s room,’ she confided softly, and, taking her bag, went off in search of it. ‘I won’t be long.’

While Lilian was away, Dougie couldn’t help but overhear every word being spoken at the next table. At one point, on hearing the woman laugh, he looked up and caught her eye. When she surprised him with a wink, he looked away. ‘Cheeky little devil,’ he muttered, but he was smiling, and so was she.

As he waited for Lilian, Dougie thought about his brother Tom. He reflected on a letter that he’d received that very morning from him, letting him know he’d settled in and describing West Bay. The mention, in passing, of Kathy had not gone unnoticed by Dougie. ‘It seems to me that Tom might be taking an interest in women again.’ He smiled, raised his glass and took a sip. ‘Welcome back, Tom,’ he said, replacing his glass when he saw Lilian approach.

He wondered whether to tell her. ‘Trouble is, she’d probably be there on the next train,’ he muttered worriedly, ‘and Tom would lay the blame squarely at my door.’ He decided it was best not to tell her, for all their sakes. ‘If she suspected he was making a play for another woman, it would only upset her.’

‘I’m ready to go now.’ Lilian had surprised herself by enjoying the evening. ‘It’s been wonderful,’ she told Dougie as he waited for the bill. ‘I really didn’t think I’d enjoy it so much, but it was exactly what I needed. Thank you, Dougie.’

‘Don’t thank me,’ he replied, ‘I’ve had just as good a time. I’m only sorry it’s over so quickly.’ Chancing his luck, he asked, ‘Do you think we could do it again some time?’

Not for the first time that evening, Lilian smiled brightly. ‘We’ll see,’ she promised. ‘But if I do agree – and I’m not promising anything – it will be on the grounds of friendship, just like tonight.’

He went along with that, albeit reluctantly. ‘I’d rather it was more than that,’ he confessed, ‘but if it means we can enjoy a night out occasionally, then I’m ready to abide by the rules.’

‘Right then.’ Once the bill was paid and the waiter gone, she put her bag over her arm and stood up, slightly off-balance because of the wine. ‘Whoops!’ Stumbling against the table, she laughed at her own clumsiness. ‘I think I’ve had too much wine.’

In the car on the way back to her place, she seemed to have been affected by the rush of fresh air as they came out of the restaurant, because now she was giggling and teasing, saying things she might well regret in the cold light of day.

‘You devil! You got me drunk so’s you could have your wicked way with me!’ In fits of laughter, she poked him in the ribs. ‘I’ve never been drunk in my life before.’ Every corner they turned she threatened to throw up. ‘I feel sick!’ she wailed. ‘Stop the car.’

Dougie had an idea. ‘Look, we’re much nearer my place than yours,’ he told her. ‘Why don’t you come back with me … just until you feel better able to travel. A cup of strong coffee should do the trick.’

‘If I do come back with you, I’m not staying long.’ Feeling the way she did, Lilian couldn’t help but accept. It was either that, or throw up all over his nice new car. ‘And you can forget any ideas of any funny business.’ Throwing herself back into the seat she warned, ‘Besides, I don’t even fancy you … never have.’

‘Really?’ He glanced at her with mock horror. ‘And here’s me thinking you fancied me rotten.’

‘Hmh!’ She gave him a playful dig. ‘Then you thought wrong, didn’t you?’ Launching into another fit of laughter, she cried, ‘So, you see, you got me tiddly for nothing.’

Amazed that she seemed completely out of control, he took a sideways glance. ‘I would never have believed you could behave like this.’ Her antics made him smile, though. ‘I always thought you were ice-cool and untouchable.’ In fact it was that which made her attractive.

‘I am! And don’t you forget it.’ She fell back into the seat. ‘Oh, I do feel queasy.’

‘Hold onto it.’ Willing her not to be sick all over his seats. he pressed his foot down on the accelerator. ‘We’re nearly there.’

They soon arrived at his house, a respectable place with three bedrooms. It was more than adequate for his needs, though a little empty for a man alone.

He parked outside the front door. ‘Right then, my girl, let’s get you inside.’

By the time he’d rounded the car with the intention of helping her out, she was fast asleep. ‘Would you believe it?’ He could appreciate the humour of the situation. ‘I’ve never had a girl pass out on me before.’

Leaning heavily on his shoulder, Lilian knew nothing of how she got inside the house.

Negotiating his way into the sitting room, he laid her gently on the settee and covered her with a blanket that he fetched from his own bed. ‘Sleep tight,’ he said, lifting her legs over the edge of the settee. ‘See you tomorrow.’

It was half past three in the morning when Lilian found herself lying on the carpet. In the night she must have turned over and slipped off the settee onto the floor. Now, still half-asleep, in these strange surroundings, it took her a full minute to realise what had happened. She recalled Dougie asking if she wanted to come back to his place for a sobering cup of coffee; after that, she recalled little else.

‘Oh, Lord!’ Dragging herself up by the settee, she stood for a while, holding her temples and gently swaying. Suddenly she was chuckling. ‘He got you drunk!’ Even now, she could still feel the effects of drink, dulling her senses, making her feel somewhat disoriented. She wasn’t used to wine at all.

Worried, she looked around. In the half-light she could see the shape and size of the room in which she stood, but it wouldn’t keep still. ‘Stop moving!’ she hissed. ‘I can’t think straight!’

Suddenly she caught sight of Dougie, sprawled in a nearby armchair, fast asleep. ‘Dougie!’ She called his name, but he didn’t wake.

Crossing the room, she tugged at his arm. ‘I want to go home,’ she whispered. ‘Wake up and take me home, you devil.’ Tripping over the blanket covering his legs, she fell heavily over the arm of the chair. ‘See what you’ve done?’ Throwing out her arms, she caught him hard on the face. ‘I’m absolutely gone and it’s all your fault!’

‘For God’s sake, what the devil …?’ Shocked awake, he sat bolt upright. ‘Lilian! What’s wrong? Are you all right?’

Suddenly she had gone from the arm of the chair and was lying on the carpet, looking up at him with sleepy eyes. ‘I want to go home now.’

Sliding down in the chair, he knelt beside her. ‘Are you sure?’

‘What?’

Reaching down, he ran his hands through her tumbled auburn curls. ‘Do you really want to go home?’

She didn’t answer. Instead she looked at him with tearful eyes, her gaze searching his face. In the dreamy half-light she saw that familiar lean face and the quiet smile, and she imagined it was the man she so desperately missed. ‘Tom …’ Her voice trembled, her arms reached up to him. ‘Hold me.’

Collecting her into his arms, he kissed her, softly at first, then when she made no objection, he went a little further. Soon they were on the floor, discarding their clothes and weaving round each other half-naked; touching, feeling. It was a fast and furious coupling, with no words of affection spoken, or even a warm glance between them.

When it was over, they lay for a moment, spent and exhausted on the floor.

Dougie was the first to speak. ‘I’ll make us a drink,’ he suggested, ‘then I’ll run you home, if that’s what you want.’ Sensing her regret, he clambered up and quickly dressed. Going across the room, he turned on the light. It seemed a hard, cruel invasion into their private moment.

‘Turn it off!’ She looked away. ‘I don’t like it.’ Pulling on her clothes, she seemed highly embarrassed.

Dougie understood. ‘I’ve got whisky, beer or plain water,’ he told her as he went to the drinks cabinet. ‘Or, if you prefer, tea?’

When she didn’t answer he glanced across to see her already dressed and seated in the chair, her hair still partly dishevelled and her face flushed, much like his own. He tried to make light of it all. ‘Well, which is it to be?’

Her voice was small and reluctant. ‘Tea,’ she answered. ‘I don’t want any more to drink.’

Taking in a deep breath, he blew it out in a rush. He hoped she wouldn’t blame him too much for what had happened. ‘Okay. Tea it is, then.’

‘Afterwards … I want you to take me home.’ She lapsed into a sullen mood.

He nodded. ‘Whatever you say.’ He wondered if he had destroyed what slim chance they’d had of getting to know each other better. It would be such a pity, he thought sadly.

When he brought the tea, she cupped the mug in her hands and slowly sipped the hot, soothing liquid. She didn’t speak, and neither did he, though the atmosphere was thick and uncomfortable in that softly lit room.

While she fidgeted in the armchair, he sat opposite, occasionally glancing up to see if she might be more settled. ‘I’m sorry,’ he blurted out, ‘about what happened.’

‘So am I.’ She didn’t even look up.

He nodded. ‘We had a good evening, though … the restaurant, I mean.’ He gave a small nervous laugh. ‘I don’t suppose you’ll want to do it again, though … will you?’

Putting her cup down on the small table beside her, she gave him a shrivelling glance. ‘Never!’ Her voice was flat and hostile, like the look she was giving him now. ‘I’d like to go home now.’

Not wanting to leave it like this, he warned, ‘You’ll only waste your life, hankering after my brother. If he’d been at all interested in you … in that way, don’t you think he would have shown it by now?’

Her features hardened. ‘Not your business!’

‘It’s just that … I don’t want to see you get hurt.’

‘LIAR!’ Leaping out of the chair, she fixed him with an accusing glare. ‘You’re just out for what you can get! I should have seen all along what you were up to.’ When she darted forward he thought for a minute she was about to launch herself at him. ‘You took me out tonight with the intention of getting me drunk and then into bed. You bastard!’ All of a sudden she was lashing out, clenched fists at his head and shoulders, and shouting obscenities that shocked him to the core.

Grabbing her fists he held her off. ‘No, I didn’t. Okay, maybe I do find you very attractive. But it might not have happened at all if you hadn’t disturbed me from my sleep!’

‘GET OFF ME!’ Kicking and screaming, she only fell silent when he slapped her hard round the face. ‘Listen to me, Lilian. Do yourself a favour and think about what I said.’ Lowering his voice, he entreated, ‘Don’t make things hard for yourself. Tom isn’t interested in you, not as a lover. If he felt anything for you in that way, he’d have been in touch, wouldn’t he?’

Relaxing his hold on her, he was caught off guard when she lashed out yet again, this time scoring him on the face with the edge of her nails. Almost instantly the blood burst through the broken skin to trickle down his cheekbone. ‘How could you know how Tom feels?’ She smiled at him, a wicked, triumphant smile.

Angry at being attacked for no good reason, he blurted out what he had learned from Tom’s letter. ‘Tom is moving back into the real world … he’s thinking about love at long last. But it isn’t you he’s turning to. It’s a stranger. A woman he’s met in West Bay. So you see, Lilian, that’s how it is, so you might as well save yourself a lot of grief and accept it. Tom is starting a new life and you’re not in it. It’s as simple as that.’

In the wake of his angry outburst, the silence fell like a blanket, silencing them both before Lilian spoke again, her voice pained and trembling. ‘YOU’RE A LIAR!’ She looked at him through tear-filled eyes, yet when he went to take her in his arms she tore into him, again and again, until he staggered backwards, horrified at the look of murder in her eyes.

Suddenly she was across the room and out the front door.

By the time he got there, she was already running down the street, her arm raised to a cruising taxi. The taxi stopped and she climbed in.

A moment later, as she drove by, the look on her face was terrible to see.

Going back inside, Dougie poured himself a drink, mentally reflecting on the colourful events of the evening. ‘Christ, Tom!’ He gulped down his drink and poured another. ‘She is one dangerous woman!’

Pouring himself another drink, he took it to the chair where he sat, drinking and thinking, the twisted humour of the situation beginning to overtake his astonishment. ‘I should have let her find out for herself.’

He gulped down another mouthful of drink. ‘Whoo!’ When he recalled how she’d gone for him, he couldn’t help but chuckle, his fingers tracing the weal down his face. ‘You’d better watch out for that one, Tom,’ he laughed. ‘She’s a wildcat and no mistake.’