Lady Chance (ebook)

Argumento de Lady Chance (ebook)

?From what I hear they ought to hand him over to the coastguards for target practice. Tie him to a mast and fire distress flares in the hope that one homes in.? Gregory looked from Harmony to John, ? I?ll leave you two to your fun and phone this guy.? He tapped the notebook where John had written the name of his solicitor. ?That should keep me out of the Commander?s hair until lunchtime. ?Be back as soon as I have something to report, skipper.?

?Thank you.?

Harmony dumped the bags on the end of John?s bed and proceeded to unpack them. ?How are you feeling??

?Battered, bruised. My throat feels like I?ve swallowed a mouthful of razor blades, but all in all glad to be alive. I would like to see Joseph to thank him for what he did. Do you know if he?s coming in??

?I haven?t seen him since last night, but I expect he?ll call in. He was pretty concerned about you. He refused to leave the ward until Esme arrived.? She began to stow things i nto his locker. ?I?ve brought soap, razor, towels, sponge, aftershave, deodorant, toothpaste and brush, pyjamas, slippers, hairbrush, and a dressing-gown. In short, everything the Commander could think of.?

?You?ll let me pay you when I?ve got some money,? he asked.

?The Commander paid for it all. He said it was the least he could do after all the work you?ve put in on the Jazz Age. ?

?He allowed me to berth all spring and summer in Smugglers? Creek for free.?

?Then call it friendship. Lisa told me to tell you she?ll be in later, and if there?s anything you need, all you have to do is telephone her.?

?I seem to be this week?s charity project.?

?People want to help, especially when someone they like is in trouble.?

?I suppose Esme told you my name?s not Chin??

Harmony delved into one of the bags and produced a bundle of newspapers. ?That?s the most comprehensive coverage I could find.?

He picked up the nearest paper and opened it out to see a colour photograph of the Freedom next to one of himself, with the caption,

MARK BENCHLEY HAZARD?S SON, AND THE MISSING YACHT, FREEDOM .

?I suppose you think I?m a real bastard??

?No. Esme explained the situation to me. She knows that despite the way it looks, you really love her.?

?She does??

?She?ll be in later to tell you herself.?

?And in the meantime I have you and everyone else running around in circles.?

?I had to come into Traceport anyway.? She walked over to the window and turned to face him, her figure silhouetted against the bright clear sky and sparkling sea. ?I have a fitting for my wedding dress.?

?Don?t tell me, a long white one with a veil held in place by a crown of anemones and wood violets??

?How did you guess? I think Tom and Anna are organising the wedding they really want for themselves. They may have been divorced for longer than they were married, but I think they?re still very much in love.?

?So it?s going to be a real society do??

?Probably,? she agreed carelessly. ?My mother is appalled by all the symbolism of female subservience but then she always believed in free spirits, free love, hippies, and the message of the sixties.?

?And you? What do you believe in??

?I have a father-in-law and future husband to please. If Tony?s happy so am I, and he?s prepared to go along with it for Tom?s sake, especially as Adam and Lisa are planning a quiet wedding. They?re not even honeymooning until the end of the season when the club?s quiet. But then, Adam has promised her the Bahamas.?

?And where are you honeymooning??

?Wherever Tony will take me. We?re sailing on the Lady Lay. ?

?Perhaps you should get him to change the name to the Lady Harmony after you?re married.?

?It?s unlucky to change the name of a boat.?

?It seems to me Tony has all the luck in the world. He has you.? He looked away, ashamed of the bitterness in his voice, wishing that things could have been different between them. That they could have met in other circumstances, in another time, another place. A crushing silence fell between them. When he looked at her again it seemed she was almost within reach. That all he had to do was touch her, say something ?

?The Commander told me you?re coming to the manor to convalesce,? she said, breaking the spell.

?For a few days.?

?You?ll carry on working in the club??

?If Lisa needs me. I intend to leave as soon as she finds a replacement.?

?What are you going do? Where are you going to go??

?I don?t know yet. There?re a lot of things that need sorting out.?

?Well, if there?s anything I can do, you know where to find me: the manor or the club.?

?Or Tony?s place??

?Or Tony?s place.? She took one last look at him before she walked away.0