Rainbow for Megan (10 page)

`Your chair,' corrected Alain, then stared. down into his glass. 'Are you game ?' he said abruptly.

Megan grinned. They were back on the old status. The times he'd said that in the past ! She couldn't help responding, 'Of course ! You'll have to lead the way. I'm not very experienced in these matters, I'm liable to put my foot in it.'

`Right !' Alain grinned back at her. 'just follow my lead. And don't look surprised at anything I do.'

Megan was already surprised, but nodded her head.

It was as well he had warned her, for the rest of the evening turned out to be a revelation for her. When supper was over, Alain courteously stood behind her chair and moved it away from her when she stood. If she felt he rather overdid the chivalry act she held her tongue, but it was nothing to what followed.

It was the custom for a few selected guests to stay on after the supper and take coffee in Alain's sitting-room. As they walked from the barn to the house, Megan found Alain's arm around her waist. Her first surprised reaction was to jerk away, but the pressure

he held her in reminded her of their pact. Iris was forced to follow behind with Mr. Browne, but Megan could feel her eyes on her back and wondered which obituary would be written up first, hers or Ray's.

When they reached the house, Iris pointedly reminded Megan that Mrs. Smith could do with some help in serving the coffee. Alain stepped in smartly by remarking that he thought Megan had done enough already. She was a working girl these days, and entitled to a little relaxation. The 'working girl' bit must have hit Iris, a lady of leisure until she found something befitting her station, and that something, Megan presumed, was marriage to a man in the high income bracket—such as Alain.

When his guests were seated, Alain joined Megan on the settee, sitting close to her, his arm placed along the back, encompassing her within the circle of his arm. Embarrassing as it was, Megan had to go through with it. Iris flounced out of the room, for she was now committed to helping Mrs. Smith herself. Megan felt sorry for Mrs. Smith—in that mood Iris would be more of a liability than a help.

`Perhaps I ought,' she murmured, and began to get up,. but Alain's arm came down from the back of the seat and round her waist, pulling her firmly back again.

`You'll stay put, Tuppence,' he chided. 'This is only the start,' and then he joined in a lively discussion developing between the rest of his guests.

Megan was absolutely astounded that no one seemed to think Alain's behaviour towards her odd. It appeared to be taken as a normal happening, and of no especial interest to anybody but Iris. She began to feel slightly apprehensive. Surely Alain had done enough to bring Iris to heel ? She must, thought Megan, have given him an awfully bad time to have brought this punishment on her head. At this rate, by the end of the evening she should be ready to fall into his arms, and the wedding date fixed.

After coffee, Mrs. Smith joined the company. All available seating was taken, and Alain beckoned her to join them on the settee, obligingly moving even closer to Megan to make space for her. He still did not relinquish his arm around Megan, and she found she had only to move her head a fraction and it would be resting on his wide shoulder.

At this stage she was quite unable to look in Iris's direction, but knew she was, to all intents and purposes, finding Don Lamb's company fascinating, if the fluted laughs coming from that part of the room were anything to go by. One thing Megan did know for certain; if Alain and Iris did marry, she did not expect to be on the list of accepted guests at Clock House !

A tiny pain caught her heart. It was not physical, but something entirely different. In his determination

to win Iris, Alain had not foreseen that, or if he had —he just hadn't cared. Iris was not one to forget an evening like this, and Megan really couldn't blame her.

If she thought Alain had gone far enough, there was worse to follow. Eventually most of the guests drifted away and Mrs. Smith retired, leaving only Megan, Alain and Iris, plus Don Lamb, whom Iris clung to with as much determination as Alain had clamped on Megan.

Megan wanted to go home. She was tired of the game and felt it had gone on long enough. She was even beginning to feel sorry for Iris.

To her horror, Iris suggested a walk before the close of the evening. 'It's such a beautiful night,' she declared, giving Don a provocative glance under her lashes. 'I adore moonlight, don't you?'

As a gentleman, and having spent most of the evening receiving come-hither signs, he was hardly likely to refuse, Megan thought apprehensively as she glanced at Alain, who to her annoyance agreed.

`Good idea. Come on, Tuppence, I'll race you to the old spinney !'

In spite of her keenness to take the night air, Iris lingered on the walk, making certain that Alain and Megan were in the near vicinity; and when Alain stormed to show Megan where he had planted some young firs to replace the Dutch elms lost through

disease, she came back to join them. When the sudden cry of a barn owl shrilled out near them, she flung herself into Alain's arms, but Alain proved most ungentlemanly about the whole thing by immediately disengaging himself from her hold and chiding her on her nervousness. 'Surely you know the hoot of an owl by now?' he mocked.

Don, who had gone on ahead in the hope of Iris joining him, now returned to the company and the four resumed the walk.

A slightly desperate Iris now threw all guns into the fray. She caught hold of Don's arm. 'I'm cold,' she said prettily, and obligingly Don placed his arm around her.

`How about you, Tuppence ?' asked Alain.

`I'm fine,' said Megan hastily, guessing his intention.

Iris pulled Don's attention to a gnarled old oak they were just passing. 'A witch was supposed to live in that,' she commented, 'there's a large hole the other side of it. Come on, I'll show you, we ought to be able to see it.'

Recognising the tactics, Megan wondered whether Alain would rise to the bait and accompany them, thus refusing to give Iris the opportunity of the quiet little session with Don that she was angling for in order to arouse some jealous response from him. But he strode on ahead regardless. The spinney came into

view, and catching Megan's hand Alain ascended the hill, pulling her up with him. When they reached the top, although breathless, Megan had to admit it was worth the effort. She had seen the view many times before, but never in moonlight. The gentle rays washed over the surrounding countryside, catching here and there the graceful silver birches and giving them a magical glow.

She gazed out, lost in wonder, unaware that Alain still held her hand. When he pulled her gently towards him she came to with a start, and giving him an indignant look attempted to pull away from him.

`We should,' he said softly, 'be well outlined up here, don't you think?'

Megan saw the plan. No matter where Iris was, she could not fail to see the two figures silhouetted on the top of the hill. She straightened her lips and allowed herself to be pulled into his arms, whispering fiercely, 'What I do for England ! How long do we have to keep this up ?' she muttered, gazing up at him.

His answer was the last one she expected. He bent his head and she thought he was going to say something, but instead he kissed her gently, his lips touching hers with feather-lightness.

Megan gasped. 'That,' she said furiously, 'was not cricket ! There was no need to go that far. I'm going back, I ...'

The sentence hung in mid-air as his lips stifled it. Megan was through with acting and struggled to free herself, but he had the advantage of already having his arms firmly around her. She was forced to accept the kiss, no longer light and certainly not brotherly ! Megan had never been kissed like that before. Her heart thudded and her senses swam. She felt as if he were draining her very life blood.

When he lifted his head, she was too weak to move out of the warmth of his arms and he did not attempt to put her away from him. Just held her close. Finding her breath, she said weakly, 'I want to go home, Alain.'

He kissed her forehead. 'Home we go, then,' he murmured.

Megan had forgotten about Iris and Don. She had forgotten everything except the way she felt. On the way back to her home, Alain chatted about this and that, and Megan tried hard to concentrate and quell the thoughts pounding through her brain. She had made an awful discovery. She was in love with Alain ! As his kiss had not been brotherly, so her feelings were far from sisterly ! She was utterly horrified, for how had it come about? She had often wondered if she would recognise love when it came, but had never thought it would come in such a devastating way, or that the quest would be such a hopeless one.

When they reached her home, she was surprised

when he got out too, and stood gazing down at her. `Come and help us demolish the rest of the roast beef tomorrow,' he said lightly.

Megan started. Surely he wasn't going to go on with it? Her heart jerked. She couldn't ! It was unthinkable. He knew her so well, it would not take him long to spot what had happened, and he would feel awful then, she knew he would.

`No,' she said hastily, 'I can't.'

He stiffened. 'Going to Hallett's ?' he said softly yet menacingly. 'Even though I need your help ?'

Megan closed her eyes. He was putting her on the rack, although he didn't know it. He was only concerned with his love. She very nearly broke down, but managed to get out, 'I must ... you don't understand.' She couldn't go on, couldn't tell him that she loved him desperately, and always would.

She heard the indrawn breath. 'You really have gone overboard for him, haven't you ?' he said quietly. `I won't say I admire your choice. You're going to get hurt, Tuppence.' He turned away abruptly. 'Well, have it your way,' he added through clenched teeth, `just remember that I warned you!'

Megan stood watching the tail lights of the car disappear down the lane through a haze of tears. `Going to get hurt'. The words echoed around her. As if it hadn't already happened, she thought bitterly.

MEGAN did not go to see Ray the next day. Things were complicated enough, without adding fuel to the fire. In a village that size, not much went on that was unobserved; her visit to The Foxes, for instance, on a weekend, especially as it was probably common knowledge by now that Ray was off colour, would be bound to cause more speculation.

Normally, Megan would not have worried, but life was no longer normal. She had been shaken out of her placid existence with a resounding crash. She sighed as she looked out of the sitting-room window, idly noticing that the lawn wanted cutting—well, that would give her something to do. Above all, she had to keep busy.

Keeping busy was one thing, stopping one's thoughts entirely another, Megan found, as she passed up and down the strip of lawn in front of the house with the mower. She had only to close her eyes to feel again the warmth of Alain's arms. Was he at that moment holding Iris the same way? Her heart jolted when she recalled the way he had kissed her forehead afterwards. His way of saying thank you

for playing the part so well? She thought it must have been. It was just the sort of thing a brother would have done to a kid sister he was fond of.

Megan was grateful when Monday came. She hated to think how she would have fared had she not had a job to lose herself in. As she let herself in at The Foxes, she wondered whether Ray had recovered, and was pleased to hear his cheery greeting when he joined her in the office.

`Joanna's here,' he said. 'She'll come and introduce herself later, she's just slipped down to the village for some extra groceries.' He grinned. 'We've decided to do a spot of entertaining, and you're cordially invited to dinner tonight—your father, too, of course.'

For one awful moment Megan wondered whether it was going to be an invitation extended to Alain as well in return for his harvest supper invitation. She visibly blanched. In her present state of mind, she couldn't imagine a more uncomfortable evening. Ray mistook her reaction.

`She won't bite you,' he teased. 'And it's not a big occasion, just the four of us.'

Megan breathed a sigh of relief and accepted, warning Ray that she couldn't answer for her father, but would do her best to persuade him to come.

Remembering Megan's worried look when the invitation was extended, Ray soothed, 'Of course, I'm biased, but I think you'll like Joanna, Megan.'

Ray was right. Megan did take to Joanna, although on first sight she had her doubts. Joanna's dress and looks somewhat daunted Megan. She was a slim, petite dark-haired beauty, somewhere in her early thirties, Megan presumed. Her hair was beautifully coiffured, and her two-piece was no off-the-peg model. The only likeness Megan could find between them was Joanna's dark brown eyes, so like her brother's. As soon as she had introduced herself, and held out her hand smilingly to Megan, Megan found herself relaxing. The smile was so open and friendly. `Ray's told me a lot about you,' she said.

That evening Megan and her father dined at The Foxes. To her delight, Mr. Shaw accepted the invitation, without his usual comment of 'We'll see,' which meant 'most probably not'.

After dinner, they settled in the beautifully furnished lounge for coffee. Ray and Mr. Shaw soon became immersed in literary matters, leaving Megan and Joanna on their own.