The Red Cliffs (20 page)

CHAPTER NINE

Roger Falcon was making for the bar of the Golden Hind when he saw Alison crossing the street, walking away from him; and immediately he changed his course to follow her, guessing that she was going to lunch and deciding that he would go to the same place. He let her get well in front, and she was settled at a window table when he entered the cafe, appeared to be surprised to see her and asked if he might join her. Alison thought she had no choice and allowed him to sit down.

She expected recriminations, or at least a renewed attempt to explain and justify himself, but he was in a sunny, untroubled mood, making no reference to things past and amusing her with his anecdotes. Alison was
re
li
eved
, but she was also wary, thinking that he must credit her with a short memory if he thought she had already forgotten his lapses; and going on to wonder if all men expected to be forgiven easily, since Ralph too appeared to have forgotten the past. But surely it was these very lapses that showed their true colours, and that put her on her .guard with them.

Having found out where she lunched, Roger became a frequent compan
i
on, and as Alison appeared to accept him with good grace, he congratulated himself that she was no longer angry with him. He was clever at eliciting information, and when he heard that Lucy and Ralph were coming to Combe Russet for Whitsun, he worked hard for an invitation to the house. But without result. He felt anger and resentment rising again, and resolutely quelled it. He must play his cards more carefully this time than last, and he could always find some excuse for passing Combe Russet and calling.

Lucy and Ralph drove all night from London and arrived at breakfast time.

“
Lots of other people had the same idea,
”
said Lucy,
“
and there was a fair amount of traffic on the road
.
Not like our wild lonely night last autumn, A
l
ison.
”
They gathered round the breakfast table.
“
Well, Corinne, how is life going at Combe Russet?
”

“
Like clockwork,
”
said Corinne.
“
I love the place, and fortunately Alison and I adore each other; and we like doing quite different things, so we don
’
t tread on each other
’
s toes.
”

“
Corinne has la
i
d on an exciting round of social occasions for you,
”
sai
d
Alison.
“
There
’
s a cocktail party here and a dinner party at Neil
’
s, and a beach picnic if the weather
’
s right with a whole gang of people. It would take me twenty years to know the people that Corinne knows already. She
’
s the proverbial honey-pot for the naval types at the dockyard, and she has Neil eating out of her hand.
”
Lucy missed nothing of this. She noticed how casually Alison spoke of Neil, and that she apparently entertained the idea of dining at his house with equanimity, and wondered if the old enmity was dying down. Ralph not
i
ced it too, with vague alarm. Neil was too much on the spot, and himse
l
f too far away, for his comfort.

He need not have worried however. The
fi
rst meeting with Neil, at lunch at the Rolands
’
house, showed very p
l
ainly that h
a
s concern was with Corinne, as was hers with him. They were very much at home with each other, and it seemed that the other people present expected them to appropriate each other. Nor did A
l
ison give Nei
l
much of her attention or conversation. In fact, she seemed to turn to Ralph with more readiness and warmth than he had expected, and he was glad of it, although he had no way of knowing that it was a reaction from the shut-out feeling she had lately experienced.

He was not v
ery anxious to be involved in
Corinne
’
s arrangements and spend most of his holiday talking to strangers, and was delighted to find that Alison shared his point of view. They had been sitting on the terrace for tea, and Alison and Ralph left Lucy and Corinne to chat together, wh
i
le they walked out of the garden into the nearest field for an idle stroll.

“
Do we have to go to this cocktail party, Alison?
”
asked Ralph.

“
Not
i
f you don
’
t want to. It
’
s at Dr. Perth
’
s, and after all, you won
’
t know the people. I won
’
t go either, if you don
’
t. I
’
ll be glad to get out of it. Corinne is never happier than among crowds of people, but she did make a
ll
the arrangements tentatively, saying she might bring her guests along. She can take Lucy, because Lucy likes part
i
es too, and we
’
ll stay here.
”

“
I should like that much better.
”

“
After all, I
’
m a working girl I don
’
t have as much opportunity to be here as Cor
i
nne—and I like it here.
”

“
So do I. I would like it anyway, but because you
’
re here, Alison, the p
l
ace is never far from my thoughts.
”

“
You know you
’
re always welcome, Ralph.
”

“
But am I?
”

“
Of course.
”

“
But really welcome? More than other people, Alison?
”

“
Well, there aren
’
t many other people. Being short on re
l
atives and not having many intimate friends. That sounds rather off-putting, but it isn
’
t meant to be. Of course you and Lucy are more welcome than anybody else.
”

“
No rivals, Alison?
”
He asked it ligh
tl
y, but he did not mean it so.

“
I
’
m sure I shouldn
’
t admit it,
”
she said,
“
but it happens to be true at the moment. No r
i
vals.
”

“
That eaves the field clear, but doesn
’
t mean that I
’
m in possession. I wish I were, Alison. Do you think there
’
s any chance of getting back to where we were?
”

“
I don
’
t think one ever gets back,
”
said Alison.
“
One has to go on, and I suppose what matters is how one goes on.
”

“
Well, how do we go on, darling?
”

“
I don
’
t know, Ralph. It would be ridiculous to pretend that I
’
m not fond of you, you know that I am. But it would also be ridiculous to pretend that you didn
’
t let me down with such a bump that I haven
’
t really got over it yet.
”

“
I know. The mad things we do! It seemed reasonable enough at the time, the idea that we could join forces and keep our freedom; and now it seems to me the maddest idea I ever had. But, darling Alison, it was never a reflection on you. I think that was how you took it. That I thought less of you to be able to offer what I did—or ask for what I did. That was never true. You
’
ve always been absolutely tops for me, and you are still.
”

She did not reply. They walked on round the field, and, coming to the gate, leaned on it to look out at the view.

“
Do you think there is any hope for me, Alison?
”
he asked at last.
“
Will you marry me, if not now, then whenever you come round to it?
”

“
I don
’
t know, Ralph. I am fond of you, I often miss you when you
’
re not here and wish that you were: but when you come, I find that there
’
s that hurdle I can
’
t get over. Something sticks between us.
”

“
But it
’
s good hearing, darling, that you miss me. You
’
ve no idea how I miss you. And I can see you so rarely. May I come down for my summer holiday, or part of it?
”

“
You were going to Sweden.
”

“
I
’
d rather come here, at least for some of the time. And we could try, Alison, to get rid of that hurdle, couldn
’
t we?
”

“
We could try,
”
she admitted.

So she and Ralph stayed behind when Lucy and Corinne went off to the cocktail party, and she took him in to the workshop to show him what she was doing, and they sat in the sun room afterwards with glasses of sherry and talked about old times: a nostalgic thing to do which seemed to bring them close together. Later, they prepared supper together, and went back into the sun room to continue their talk while they watched the sunset and waited for the girls.

There Lucy and Corinne found them. They came through the house talking, and stood in the doorway looking at them.

“
How very cosy and comfortable you look,
”
said Corinne.
“
No, don
’
t get up Ralph. We brought Neil back with us for a drink, but we want to persuade him to stay for supper.
”

Alison saw then that Neil was standing behind them. They all came forward into the room, and Ralph got up and exchanged a greeting with Neil; but not before Nei
l
had seen for himself how very cosy and comfortable they looked, old and intimate friends enjoying a welcome seclusion.

“
We missed you at the Perths
’
,
”
he said politely to Alison.

“
We aren
’
t wildly enthusiastic about cocktail parties,
”
she said apologetically, unconsciously allying herself with Ralph.

“
That,
”
said Corinne,
“
is because she is antisocial.
”

“
No,
”
protested Alison.

“
Yes. She likes only a few friends. But in the country these parties are the only way people get together. You could be buried in your own house if you didn
’
t make the effort to meet people sometimes. Now, are you going to have supper with us, Neil? I will soon have it ready.
”

“
It
’
s ready. Ralph and I did it.
”

There it was again. Ral
ph and I. Or, even more casually,
“
we
”
, meaning Ralph and herself; and so
i
t was during the whole weekend and the extra day or two that Lucy and Ralph were spending there. Alison and Ralph excused themselves from some of the events that Corinne had arranged for them, but when they joined in, they still kept together, and Neil was not the only person who supposed there was an understanding between them. Corinne had suggested that Lucy, Ralph and Alison might like to see Neil
’
s efficient business concerns, and, after the bank ho
l
iday, the conducted tour took place, with Corinne showing an almost proprietorial interest in everything, and adding to Neil
’
s explanations when she thought it necessary. It was a
n i
nteresting tour for all
of
them, but it had an added interest for Alison, as Neil
’
s personality was given colour by all she saw.

It was obvious that she had to make some mental adjustments. The extremely good welfare arrangements, the rest rooms and first aid department, the light, well-furnished, well-provided canteen, gave the lie to Neil
’
s being a ruthless employer. Efficient he might be, even somewhat hard-headed and impatient of stupidity, but far from ruthless. It was Roger who had planted that seed in her mind, and she realised at
l
ast that Roger was not to be trusted. Roger was jealous. She saw that in a sudden flash. He was eaten up with jealousy of Nei
l
, the envy of a man who was a failure of another man
’
s success.