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meet again - some time, somewhere.
But one circumstance greatly troubled Alaine, stripping her of all
confidence: Cimon had never made any further inquiries about her
home or her job or her life in England. He knew nothing about her and
he did not appear interested. Several times she had made a halfhearted
attempt to tell him the truth about her job, to talk about Jinx and Aunt
Sue. But no real occasion had arisen and words that rose to her lips had
been held back by the sheer lack of interest on Cimon's part. Had he
wanted details about her he could have asked, knowing she would
have answered his questions without hesitation. And because of
Cimon's indifference Alaine had refrained from inquiring about his
life, so after six idyllic days neither knew anything about the other.
'How long before we land?' Hesitant the question, spoken in trembling,
husky tones.
'Not for a couple of hours or so.'
'Two hours ...' She still had her back to him, still felt his chin on the top
of her head.
'Why so forlorn, my love?' His hands caressed the backs of hers
before, turning her round to face him, he took them both in his and
stood for a long while looking down at them, not expecting an answer
to his question, apparently, because her silence brought forth no
interrogating glance from him. 'No rings ... Have you none, Estelle? -
not a diamond for your finger?'
Her heart seemed to turn right over; she scarcely heard her own voice
say,
'No, Cimon, I haven't any - any rings.' A very strange silence ensued
before Cimon said, the most odd inflection in his voice,
'Pretty hands like these and no diamond. You should have a diamond,
my love.'
Her mind spun. Could he possibly mean - an engagement ring? Surely
he must, for why else should he mention a diamond ring? She shone up
at him, and without giving herself a moment's thought she murmured
shyly,
'You mean you - you are going to give me one ?' She stopped then,
squirming as she realized what she had said. What would he think of
her? In a situation where a man was on the point of a proposal it was
his prerogative to do the talking. Surely he must consider her forward,
she thought, biting her lip in anger at herself for speaking so
impetuously. However, to her intense relief Cimon appeared not to
have noticed her eagerness - or he successfully hid it - as he smiled that
attractive smile and, drawing her attention to the sun again he changed
the subject with an abruptness that startled her.
'See, Estelle,' he said softly, into her hair, 'it's become, pear-shaped.'
She turned in his arms, not feeling as happy as she should because it
seemed very odd that he should talk of a ring before proposing to her.
And there was still the puzzling matter of their total ignorance
concerning each other's lives. Alaine thought about the lie she had told
him; she thought about Jinx and Aunt Sue and all at once the whole
situation became fraught with problems so great and unsurmountable
that she did not even wish to think about them.
'Yes, it is pear-shaped.' Alaine stared at the sun. 'It's just as if the sea's
trying to pull it back, reluctant to let it go.'
'An optical illusion, of course.' Cimon's lips touched her hair fleetingly
before he exclaimed, 'There, it's up!'
The glory took Alaine's breath away, even though it was by no means
the first time she had seen the sun rise like this. For the first three
mornings she had been up and on deck before anyone else, but since
meeting Cimon there had been very late nights, he was so reluctant to
let her go, and she herself had not the least desire to do so. In
consequence she had not wakened in time to see the sun come up. Last
night had been one of wakefulness, with the odd hour of fitful sleep,
and at four o'clock she had put on her light and made an effort to read.
But concentration was impossible and her thoughts inevitably reverted
to the parting between Cimon and herself. That she was in love with
him she had to admit, although she had valiantly fought against such
folly. Strange it was that one's heart and mind could act differently
from what their owner desired. Cimon's behaviour towards her, his
tenderness and endearments, the presents he had insisted on buying
her at every island they visited ... all these had given her hope that he
also might be falling in love. But as the days passed his complete lack
of interest in her background had hit her forcibly. Were he in any way
serious then surely he would have been eager to learn all about her and
in turn to tell her things about himself.
The sun climbed higher as they stood there, its crimson effulgence
flaring in an ever-widening arc, touching the wispy clouds and turning
them from pearl to saffron; the burnished sea quivered! with a million
points of light, emphasizing the grandeur and impressiveness of the
Eastern sunrise. Far from this glorious spectacle the sky was a soft
periwinkle blue, promising a perfect day.
'Are we taking a swim this morning?' Cimon broke the silence, looking
at her in that particular way that set her heart racing. How devastating
his charm was when he looked at her like that! Did he know? Was he
aware of the ease with which he could stir her feelings? Always she
attempted to put a stern rein on them, but they invariably ran riot for all
that.
'Yes, I'll go and change.' Together they moved from the rail; when they
reached her cabin door there was no one about and, taking her in his
arms, Cimon kissed her tenderly on the lips.
'See you in a few minutes, darling,' he told her, and was gone.
She stared after him, puzzled in the extreme. What were his
intentions? Surely he could not look at her with such tenderness were
he intending to say goodbye to her in a few hours' time. Dwelling on
his words about a ring she now sensed a strangeness about them - some
underlying meaning which he had deliberately kept to himself. Alaine
entered her cabin, confused in mind and conscious of some inner
warning which clamoured to be heard. But such was her love for
Cimon that she could not bring herself to probe her own mind,
searching for flaws in his character. He was her ideal, a man who,
having made an impact on her when first her eyes had met his, would
have remained in her thoughts for a very long while even had she and
he never become the friends they now were. Slipping into her
swimsuit, she dismissed all thoughts from her mind except the coming
couple of hours. Whatever the outcome, she had Cimon for that
precious period of time.
Alaine and Cimon were among the first to leave the ship, and although
the harbour of Mandraki blazed with a floral myriad Alaine could not
appreciate it, for there was something so final in the suitcase which her
companion carried. She would return to the ship alone this time - not
with that strong arm around her and footsteps so light that she might
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