Part 43 (1/2)
”Our bird cages aren't half as nice as yours, though.” He grinned at her. ”Mind you, the artist did a good job with the murals. I must admit I do love exotic birds.” His eyes swept over her suggestively.
Paula laughed at the innuendo.
Shane moved in his chair, reached into his pocket for his cigarettes. His s.h.i.+rt was partially open down the
front and she suddenly caught the gleam of gold against his suntanned chest. She peered at him.
”Goodness, is that the St. Christopher medal I gave you?”
He looked down, fingered it. ”The very same.”
”You haven't been wearing it, though-before tonight.”
”I haven't worn it for a couple of years. I found it in the flat on Monday night when I was packing. The
catch was broken. I brought it with me, had it repaired in Holetown. They just delivered it back to me half an hour ago.”
”I'm glad you're wearing it again.”
”Do you remember when you gave it to me?”
”When you were twenty. For your birthday eight years ago.”
”And what did I give you when you were twenty?”
”A pair of antique amethyst earrings.” She frowned, then laughed lightly. ”Did you think I'd forgotten,
Shane O'Neill?”
”I was sure you hadn't forgotten. However, I bet you don't remember what I gave you when you reached the ripe old age of five.”
”Oh yes I do. A bag of blue marbles.”
He sat back, looking pleased. ”Correct. Which you promptly began to lose, one by one. You cried so much I had to promise to buy you another bag. But I never did, and so”-he put his hand in his jacket pocket-”here's the replacement. Sorry it's taken me so long to fulfill a boyhood promise.” He dropped a small opaque plastic bag in front of her.
Laughing, enjoying his mood and flirting with him, Paula picked it up, opened the bag, dipped into it. ”You are a fool, but a most adorable one-” She stopped. A pair of sapphire-and-diamond earrings, beautifully cut and of superb quality, lay glittering in her hands. ”Oh, Shane, they're absolutely exquisite. Thank you, thank you^so much.” She kissed his cheek, added, ”But you're awfully extravagant.”
”So I've been told. Like them?”
”Like them! I love them. And most especially because they're from you.” She pulled off the gold studs she was wearing, slipped them into her silk evening purse, took out a small mirror and put on the sapphires. She glanced at herself, admiring the earrings. ”Oh, Shane, they do look lovely on me, don't they?”
”Almost as lovely as those uncanny eyes of yours.”
She squeezed his hand. She was touched by the unexpected present, overwhelmed, really. Her throat tightened. She recalled the gifts he had given her when she had been a child. He had always been uncommonly generous, saving his pocket money for months to be able to buy something special. And he had had a knack for giving her exactly the right thing-like the earrings tonight. For a reason she could not comprehend, her eyes filled with tears.
”What's the matter, darling?” he asked gently, leaning across the table.
She shook her head, blinking. ”I don't know, aren't I silly.” She groped in her bag, found a handkerchief, blew her nose, gave him a watery smile.
He watched her silently, waiting for her to compose herself.
”I was thinking of our childhood,” she commenced after a few seconds. ”At the time, it seemed as if it would never end-all those lovely summers at Heron's Nest. But it did come to an end, just as those summers did.” Before she could stop herself, she added, ”As this will come to an end too.”
He put his hand over hers. ”Oh, darling, don't be sad.”
”Our days here in the sun, this magic time . . . it's just a brief sojourn, really, Shane.”
Squeezing her hand, entwining his ringers with hers, he said slowly, ”You talk of endings . . . / think of beginnings. That's what this is, Paula, a beginning. Remember what I said about time? Well, this is the future. It's here, now. All around us. Part of the flowing river of time.”
She was silent, her eyes resting on him, searching his face.
”I hadn't wanted to get into a discussion about the mess we've found ourselves in, Paula, at least, not
down here. But perhaps we'd better have a talk. Would you like to do that?”
Paula nodded.
The smile settling on his face was confident, very sure. ”You know how much I love you. I said in the car,
earlier today, that I'd never let you go, and I won't, Paula. Our feelings for each other are too strong to
be ignored- We're meant to be together for the rest of our lives. Do you agree?”
”Yes,” she whispered.
”Then it's obvious what you're going to have to do. You'll have to get a divorce so that you can marry me. You do want to marry me, don't you?”
”Oh yes, Shane, very much.”
He saw that her face had paled, and that her very bright supernaturally blue eyes had darkened with apprehension. ”Tell me what's troubling you, Paula.”
”You said I was intrepid when I was a child-but as a grown woman I'm not. I'm frightened, Shane.”