Authors: Jane Corrie
`In that case, we'll both see you home,' said Main determinedly.
One on either side of her, they started off. Megan
felt awful, like a small girl who had been caught out in some dreadful misdemeanour, now being marched to the headmistress's office by the prefect. It was an uncomfortable journey. Ray had tried once or twice to introduce a casual topic of conversation, mostly addressed to Megan and once to Alain, the result being an offhand answer bordering on a deliberate snub.
Megan marvelled at Ray's patience, and had a feeling that he was only biding his time until she was out of earshot before giving Alain a piece of his mind. She wished fervently she could be present. It would make a nice change for Alain to be on the receiving end. To think she had longed for him to be home again.! She had forgotten the way he used to treat her as a small child, and the way he used to order her around. She had got used to her independence, and here he was trying to take up where he had left off. Well, she wasn't going to let him! It would be a good thing when he married Iris, she thought crossly. Iris would not let him spend his time harassing her; she wasn't one to take a back seat.
When they reached Megan's home, Alain did not carry out his threat of seeing her father. He might, of course, have changed his mind after she told him he had a visitor—on the other hand, Megan had a feeling he had sensed Ray's determination to have things out. Knowing Alain, Megan was sure he would
welcome such a confrontation with relish. She devoutly hoped it would not come to a fight between them, for she was very fond of both of them and it was all so ridiculous.
She resisted the temptation to stand back a little way in the hall after the door had closed on her. If they had it out there and then, she could have heard what was said, but Megan was no eavesdropper and she went to her room after calling goodnight to her father, for which she received an absentminded grunt in response.
Usually she fell asleep as soon as her head touched the pillow, but not that night. A note of dissension had entered her hitherto peaceful existence. She had predicted Alain's reaction to Ray, but she had not foreseen the outright, barely concealed hostility he had shown that evening.
THE following morning when Ray entered her office, Megan glanced up at him anxiously. She could see no signs of a fight. She almost gave a sigh of relief as her gave her his usual cheery, 'Good morning, Megan.' She longed to know what the result of the confrontation had been, but couldn't very well ask.
After a few desultory remarks, Ray brought up the subject himself. 'I have a feeling Sir Galahad will try and persuade you to leave,' he said with a grin.
Megan's brows raised and she shot him a look of comic exasperation. 'I'm way ahead of you,' she replied. 'Knowing Alain, I guessed that would be his move. Was it very bad last night? He went for you afterwards, didn't he?'
His smile widened. 'He didn't exactly have things all his own way,' he said. 'He was extremely vocal. I won't bore you with the details, but I was, as you might say, well and truly warned off.'
Megan's eyes sparkled. 'Isn't he the pink limit !' she exclaimed.
Ray's expression sobered for a moment. 'You know, in his position I'd have done the same thing.'
Megan stared at him.
`Look at it this way,' he explained. 'He doesn't know me from Adam. I could be a second Bluebeard; being a success doesn't automatically make me a pillar of society, does it ? In some cases it works out quite the opposite. Then he has this thing about you.'
Megan interrupted quickly. 'Only because he still thinks of me as his kid sister,' she assured him.
He gave her a considering look, then continued. `Well, as I was saying, in his shoes I'd have done the same thing. In fact I would most probably have knocked the fellow down, and he almost did. I could see he was itching to plant me one. However, I managed to keep my temper and swallow the extremely cutting remarks calculated to make me take a swing at him.' He smiled. `I'm sure he's now convinced I'm a coward as well as a lady-killer !'
Megan looked contrite. 'It must have been hateful for you. I know Alain when he gets on his high horse. He didn't give you a chance, did he?'
`I don't think he's anything against me personally,' Ray replied. 'Any male would have come within fire in those circumstances.' He shot her a quick, bemused look. 'Can I take it you will stand by me ?' he asked, half seriously.
Megan looked surprised at the question. 'Of course !' she said indignantly, then grinned. 'Besides, I need the money, remember ?'
Later, as she sat typing, Ray's words came back to her; not only what he had said but what he had implied. He really did think there was more to Alain's protective attitude towards her. She sighed. Like Iris, he didn't know the background, although she thought she had explained that to him. Iris. ... Her eyes widened. Of course ! It explained the whole thing ! Alain's aggressive approach ... everything. Her lips straightened. Iris must have laid it on with a trowel ! She did it purposely, Megan thought, just to make Alain jealous, and it had worked. It wasn't Megan he was warning Ray off, but Iris, using Megan as an excuse to have a go at Ray.
In a way she felt sorry for Alain, and was absolutely furious with Iris. Alain was too nice a person to be put through those kind of hoops. She was a little sad too, for she had not thought Alain would fall for such obvious tactics, and she sighed. That was love. The most rational of men were apt to behave in a most irrational way.
When Megan reached home that day, she found her father pottering in the garden. She frowned, for that was a sure sign he was worried. The garden, such as it was, was mostly lawn and shrubs, the easiest arrangement for a busy man with little interest in the horticultural line. As she walked towards him she rehearsed in her mind how she would bring up the subject of the U.S. publishers.
He glanced up from his perusal of a rhododendron bush. `Ah, you're back,' he said, then turned and looked towards the house. 'It's a bit big for us, you know,' he mused. 'Ought to put it on the market and look for a smaller place.'
Megan gulped. She realised he was only facing facts. What he really meant was that he couldn't afford the upkeep of the house much longer. Considering how much he loved the place, it must have been a painful decision for him; she chided herself for not mentioning Ray's suggestion, although there had not been a suitable occasion before now.
In the event it was easier than she had imagined. She casually mentioned her conversation with Ray, after her father had informed her of the returned manuscript. He had glanced up at the innocent-looking Megan and muttered, 'I wonder ?'
Megan would have loved to have produced the names Ray had given her, but it would have looked too obvious. Mr. Shaw looked back at her. 'You might ask him if he's any particular firm in mind,' he said slowly.
Megan threw caution to the winds. 'He has,' she said quickly, and giving him a wicked grin produced the names.
`That was quick work,' he commented dryly. Megan chuckled, and gave him a quick hug. 'He's
absolutely certain the first one will be interested. You will send it, won't you ?' she pleaded.
`I suppose I shall have to,' he said musingly, 'considering the trouble you two have gone to.'
Collecting Chas later for his walk, Megan felt as if a weight had been taken off her shoulders. She somehow knew that everything was going to work out fine. Her father would place the book. She felt a rush of gratitude towards Ray, and blessed the day he came to the village. Even the previous day's incident did not mar her thoughts. It would not take long for Alain to see that Ray had absolutely no interest in his Iris, and the whole thing would just blow over. In fact, it was highly probable that they would become firm friends.
Mrs. Jones was talkative. She was full of the previous evening's happenings. 'Dear Chas,' she said. `Mr. Drew told me what happened when he brought him back. Just think, if Chas hadn't stopped with you you'd have had to spend the night in that place ! I do think it's about time Mr. Sims did something about that lock, you know.' She carried on quickly, 'I was beginning to be worried, you know, and I did wonder whether you'd gone back to The Foxes with Mr. Hallett. Is he really Vernon Hood?' she broke off to ask suddenly.
Megan nodded. There was no point in denying the fact.
`Oh, isn't it exciting !' exclaimed Mrs. Jones. 'Why, only a few months ago they did a serial on TV of one of his stories, The Golden Glove. Just fancy that ! Our little village will soon be in the limelight, won't it?'
`I do hope not,' Megan said hastily. `Mr. Hallett came here for peace and quiet, you know.'
Mrs. Jones nodded understandingly, then said with a note of satisfaction in her voice, `To think that I actually met him ! I've read all his books !'
Megan's happy mood continued as she walked Chas across the recreation field. It did not even disperse when she caught sight of Alain striding towards her. She guessed his mission, but felt confident of allaying his suspicions of Ray's character.
For a while he walked beside her and talked of the estate matters. Although suspecting she was just being lulled into a false sense of security, Megan listened with interest, because she was interested. She had grown up roaming about the estate, tagging along behind Alain. She understood the problems entailed in running it, apart, that was, from the farm area.
When he suddenly changed the subject, she was ready for it.
`Tuppence, I don't think you ought to continue working for that man,' he said abruptly.
Megan feigned surprise. 'Ray, you mean?'
He shot her a quick look of warning. The trouble was, thought Megan, he knew her too well.
`Christian names with employers, especially employers you don't know very well, is to my way of thinking impertinent. Doesn't he object ?'
Megan refused to take exception to that. If Ray could keep his temper, so could she. 'As if I would use his Christian name if he hadn't requested me to do so,' she said patiently.
`I suppose it makes him feel popular,' murmured Main disparagingly, then snorted, 'A writer !'
`My father is a writer,' said Megan, finding it hard to keep a rein on her feelings.
`Authentic,' snapped Main, 'not fictional.'
`Both,' ground out Megan, 'give pleasure in their own way.'
Main did not answer for a few seconds, then he suddenly barked out at her, 'Was he telling the truth last night ?'
Megan gasped. She stood still and glared at him. `What's got into you ?' she demanded. 'Of course he was. For goodness' sake ! What would a man like that see in me? I'm as safe with him as I am with you or Father.' It occurred to her quite suddenly that he was genuinely worried about her. 'He'd have to be jolly well hard up to make a pass at me, wouldn't he ? Not that I'd recognise one if he did.' She grinned at him. 'Remember me? The plaguey pest ?'
Alain stood looking at her. With slightly narrowed eyes he took in her slight, boyish form, her hands on her hips and feet slightly apart. Her wide grey eyes humorously watching him, her curly head on one side.
`Congratulations,' he said quietly. 'You've grown up.'
Megan laughed delightedly. 'I told you so, didn't I? But I'm still the same. I haven't changed.'
`Haven't you?' he murmured, and his eyes swept slowly over her again.
`Stop looking at me as if I were some farm animal you were thinking of putting an offer in for !' she said indignantly.
His brows rose. 'Nothing was further from my mind,' he said softly. 'I do wish you would watch your words. Can't you see how a man like Hallett would take a speech like that?'
Megan did not answer; she was thinking sadly of how Alain had lost his sense of humour. She was positive he would have seen the funny side of the whole thing by now.
Alain continued, 'Not that he'll try anything now, he got the message last night.'
Megan was too sad to argue the point any longer. She was still a little girl where Alain was concerned, in spite of what he'd just said. 'No, Alain,' she said submissively.
He gave a quick piercing stare, not sure if she were
really meek or playing him up. Her eyes gave him the answer. 'Tuppence ?' he said. There was a note of surprise in his voice. 'You haven't got a crush on him, have you?'
Megan sighed. Of course, it would have to be an adolescent thing like a crush, wouldn't it ? He wouldn't register the fact that she might have fallen in love. It also occurred to her that Iris had not passed on the message, in spite of her assertion that Alain would be relieved that she had turned her sights elsewhere. She was back to square one, she thought. She sighed dramatically. 'I think he's wonderful,' she said, and sighed again for good measure.
He stared at her, his lips thinned. 'That settles it,' he said firmly. 'You leave this weekend. Do you hear? No—you'll leave straight away.' He sounded exasperated. 'I'm going to have a word with that father of yours. It's time he came down from the clouds and looked after you. Why on earth he didn't marry again and provide you with someone to look after your welfare I'll never know. You're fair game for a man of Hallett's stamp.'
Megan came out of her miserable musings. He wasn't even being brotherly now, but treating her as a nuisance he could have done without. Clearly he felt responsible for her. 'You'll do no such thing !' she rounded on him furiously. 'Leave me alone, Alain Drew ! I don't need your lectures or interference.