Authors: Katrina Britt
‘
You can
’
t be dumb if you
’
re making the business pay. Who
’
s your partner? Another woman?
’
he asked sardonically.
‘
No, a man.
’
‘
Good.
’
Juan was leaning forward examining the gadgets in front of him before turning his intelligent gaze around the interior of the car.
Instantly piqued, Nora cried,
‘
What do you mean by that?
’
‘
By what?
’
His gaze came back to her.
‘
You mean working with a man? Make you more human.
’
‘
Really? You approve of that, do you?
’
Nora smiled, her composure completely restored.
‘
What have you got against girls having a career?
’
‘
Easy now. Blind corner ahead
,’
he warned as her eyes met his.
Nora took it a little wide on a screech of brakes and he cringed theatrically.
‘
Sorry,
’
she said sweetly.
‘
I hope I haven
’
t scared you.
’
‘
You probably scared the car,
’
he grinned.
‘
How
’
s it going?
’
‘
Like a dream. Want to try it?
’
‘
After our stop at
L
axey.
’
Laxey nestled in the foothills, a secluded little bay way down below the coast road. Nora stopped the car at Juan
’
s request by a picturesque inn at the entrance to beautiful gardens.
‘
We
’
ll go down to the beach another day,
’
he said, leading her to a gay canopied table for two near the
door of the inn. The other tables were occupied by holidaymakers and Nora gazed about her with shining eyes.
‘
Nice,
’
she commented.
‘
Do you come here often?
’
‘
Inside,
’
he said with a grin.
Nora gazed around her with delight at the beautiful trees leading to the gardens, presenting him with the smooth creamy curve of her cheek and the enchanting sweep of dark lashes. Sensing his eyes upon her, she turned instinctively as he captured her gaze.
‘
Cigarette?
’
he asked as she finished her drink.
She shook her head, like spun gold in the rays of the sun, and her heart missed a beat from the sudden gladness which swept over her. Suddenly she knew she liked Juan, and wanted to be friends with him. It was not just physical attraction. There was something about him—a charm entirely his own. He was the kind of man who would be completely indifferent to what anyone thought about him, and yet there was a touch of arrogance about his lack of self-consciousness.
Juan finished lighting the cigarette which he had put between his lips and, snapping shut his lighter, leaned back in his chair and pushed the skipper
’
s hat he wore to the back of rough dark curls. The cream polo-necked sweater topped
navy corduroys and his long legs tapered into sneakers.
‘
Not a bad spot, is it?
’
he said.
She laughed.
‘
It
’
s beautiful.
’
A frown flitted across her smooth forehead.
‘
Have you been courting for ten years too?
’
she asked thoughtfully.
He laughed.
‘
No, I haven
’
t. Disappointed?
’
‘
I don
’
t know. I
’
d have to think about it. The thing is that Jony has, and therefore he won
’
t be interested in marrying me for a further share of
Mr.
Kelly
’
s estate.
’
Juan blew a line of cigarette smoke thoughtfully into the air.
‘
I wouldn
’
t bank on that if I were you. He has a lot to gain by getting his hands on the lot. Land is fetching an enormous price now and speculators are queueing up for it.
’
‘
You mean to say that the man would be mean enough to ditch the girl he
’
s been going out with for ten years for a bit of extra money?
’
she burst out.
‘
It has happened.
’
A pause.
‘
Would you be interested in settling on the island?
’
‘
I
’
ve never given it a thought.
’
Nora looked up to meet his eyes.
‘
I
’
d never marry just to conform to the terms of a will.
’
‘
Marry a Manxman, you mean?
’
he said lazily.
‘
That
’
s right.
’
‘
But you haven
’
t met many, have you? I can introduce you to quite a few nice ones.
’
He grinned as he tapped ash from his cigarette.
‘
One or two of them are mad on boats. Do you like sailing?
’
‘
I haven
’
t done any.
’
She would like to bet that he was one of the
‘
mad on boats
’
kind. His strong brown hands looked suited to grasping ropes and hauling in sails and those wide, powerful shoulders had developed through wrestling against the elements while afloat. His steady intelligent eyes implied honesty, but it was his sense of humour that revealed more of his personality. She was interested, too interested in him to let their friendship go any further. Yet she could not help herself.
‘
Too much of a challenge, is it?
’
he queried, amused at her wary expression.
‘
No one will rush you into marriage although I dare say some will be interested in the bait.
’
Her cheeks coloured.
‘
That
’
s a crude way of putting it
!’
she cried resentfully.
‘
I suppose it
’
s living
by the sea that accounts for you being so down-to-earth in your attitude.
’
‘
We
’
re certainly nearer to nature than you city dwellers,
’
he said reasonably, and consulted his watch.
‘
We
’
d better move. We can go back along the mountain road and I
’
ll drive if you like.
’
He pointed out superb views as they sped on with only a few sheep for company on the hills. Several cars were parked by peat beds and whole families were carrying wads of it to their car trunk.
‘
Nice car. Goes like a dream,
’
he said.
‘
If you land a husband as tractable you
’
ll be a very lucky girl.
’
‘
I don
’
t think that
’
s funny,
’
Nora retorted.
‘
Besides, who wants a mouse instead of a man?
’
He lifted a dark brow provocatively and tossed her an approving glance.
‘
Exactly my sentiments. Like to take the wheel?
’
‘
No,
’
she said hastily, meeting a quizzical glance. She was enjoying seeing him behind the wheel, and his presence was very comforting. It was easy to imagine any girl becoming interested in him.
‘
Wonderful views from up here,
’
she added.
He said casually,
‘
You see them all the year round in the colours of all the seasons. Lucky today that there isn
’
t a mist, so your views are panoramic.
’
‘
I never knew there was so much of the countryside untouched.
’
She smiled at the beautiful pattern of browns, greens and yellows of Fields stretching for miles among the glens. The road along which they travelled was without the shelter of hedges and with few houses to be seen there was an almost primitive look about it.
They were going down into Ramsey when Juan asked,
‘
What about going out with me this evening?
We can take this car and you can discover the hazards of driving at night.
’
Nora looked at him quickly, and the clear flicker of suspicion on her face was there for him to see. After all, what did she know about him? Not as much as she knew about Jony, even
!
And to go out with him that evening driving in the dark with only open country for miles around was simply asking for trouble.
His voice was rough at the edges.
‘
Don
’
t you trust me? I don
’
t eat little girls for supper.
’
Her eyes fell away from his.
‘
I
’
m sorry,
’
she answered.
‘
I usually get more notice than a few hours for a date. I hate to be rushed into anything.
’
‘
Really? You rushed into trying out the car willingly enough this morning. Anyway, I
’
ll give you the benefit of the doubt. Forget I asked you.
’
Nora began to feel ashamed of herself. At the moment his eyes were on the road ahead and she glanced at him surreptitiously beneath her eyelashes. There was an assurance about him which belied anything small and mean, and he seemed to have an abundance of common sense. Why then was she dithering about going out with him?
} She said impulsively,
‘
What had you planned for this evening? Dining somewhere a car distance away?
’
‘
Forget it,
’
he answered in icy tones.
‘
I can
’
t. I didn
’
t mean to hurt your feelings, but you must see that ... well, lots of things have been happening since
I
came here, and...
’
‘
And you ca
n
’
t be too careful? Is that what you
’
re trying to say?
’
he
finished for her.
‘
In a way,
’
she replied in tones just as icy.
‘
I am here on holiday in a way, but that doesn
’
t mean I
’
m out for cheap thrills.
’
‘
All right, you
’
ve made your point.
’
He spoke brusquely as if there was nothing more to be said, and Nora sank back in her seat feeling somewhat
deflated. She had thrown his friendship back in his face. It was not the way she would have chosen to state her case, but Juan Cregeen had to know she was not the kind of girl to be taken lightly. There must have been many he had taken in that vein, since he was by far too attractive to women.
They were now coming into Ramsey and he made short work of the distance to her flat. Sitting in the car while he opened the garage door, Nora attempted to put a good face on it as she climbed from her seat before leaving the car. But her tense unhappy expression persisted.
She walked out of the garage while Juan set about closing the door after her. Then giving her the car keys, he said roughly,
‘
Got a problem, haven
’
t you? You
’
ll never be sure whether or not any future proposals you might have will be given with your inheritance in mind?
’
Her small laugh fell flat.
‘
That
’
s flattering, I must say
!’
‘
It
’
s the truth.
’
he said bluntly.
‘
I suppose it is, providing I accept the conditions of the will. Well, thanks for the outing. It had its moments.
’
Her fingers brushed his as they closed over the keys and she tensed against the impact, wondering what chemistry it was that made one person affect the senses above all others.
Back in her flat Nora strolled to the window to gaze out over the sea. The old frightened feeling of being alone came over her. It was the same now wherever she went. Juan had brought it all back
—
the feeling of belonging to someone, of being cosseted by a loved one.
Juan was the type of man who would look after someone rather than expect them to look after him. She had been wise to refuse to go out with him. It
had not been him that she could not trust, it was herself.
But taking a shower that evening while making up her mind whether to eat out or not after refusing to go out with Juan did not seem so smart after all. Without being aware of it Nora dressed as if for a date.
Should she decide to eat out there was nothing to prevent her going through the communicating door leading into the restaurant adjoining the flats. The sudden peal of her doorbell startled her and she went forward to open it on a subtle wave of perfume.
‘
Juan!
’
she exclaimed, with the feeling of having been running.
‘
Of course, you
’
ve come for your clothes. I
’
m sorry, I ought to have given them to you this afternoon.
’
He laughed.
‘
I suppose that
’
s as good an excuse as any for calling.
’
‘
You are the most unpredictable man!
’
she burst out.
‘
For what? For thinking you really hadn
’
t anywhere special to go this evening?
’
Her cheeks flamed.
‘
How do you know I haven
’
t?
’
she cried indignantly.
‘
I
’
m not exactly dressed for staying in.
’
His eyes roved over the slender
f
igure in swirling chiffon, taking in the darkness of her eyes against the fairness of her hair. His reaction to her youthful freshness was a faint narrowing of his eyes.
He said pleasantly,
‘
Nice to see you
’
re ready to go out. I was considering telephoning you but decided at the last moment to collect you.
’
Then, as if in afterthought, he added,
‘
Seeing that you
’
re anxious to settle your mind about driving on the island, tonight is as good as any to help you to become accustomed to driving in the dark.
’
‘
But it isn
’
t dark. It won
’
t be for hours yet.
’
‘
True, but by the time we come back it will be. Plenty of cloud tonight, so there won
’
t be a moon.
’
Nora wished he would not look at her so intently. It was distinctly unnerving. Suspicion became a tight feeling, in her stomach and she tried to hide it by flippancy.
‘
You
’
re being much too kind. I couldn
’
t take advantage of you again after this morning.
’
‘
I haven
’
t changed my plans for this evening to suit you.
’
He eyed her with the cool, aloof interest as a doctor would a patient.
‘
Now you have the car you might as well get used to it and make the most of the time you
’
re here. You can drive anywhere on the island and feel safe from attacks, and the roads are good and
well-marked
. Just take care not to speed on awkward bends, that
’
s all.
’
Nora was past speech. She saw the haughty outline of his head against the lights behind him in the corridor, the indolent posture as he leaned against the door frame with wide, immaculately clad shoulders, and felt a sudden challenge to know more about him.