"I hear Irene has come back into the picture," the younger girl said, helping herself to a scone. "It's a good thing for you she didn't appear earlier."
"Why?"
Melissa hesitated and then shrugged. "I don't suppose there's any harm in telling you now. After all, possession is nine-tenths of the law! But at one time it was thought that Nikolaos would marry Irene. It was years ago of course, when I was too young to know what was going on, but I've often heard my mother and Andreas discuss it. Apparently Nikolaos' parents approved of the match, so you can imagine the consternation in the family when Irene suddenly eloped with Harry Ridgeway. I believe he was an archaeologist."
"Good heavens! I can't imagine her eloping with anyone other than a millionaire."
"He was the heir to a title or something."
"I see," Laura said dryly. "I thought he must have had something to make him attractive."
Melissa grinned. "I've never known you be catty before. Don't tell me you're jealous?"
"Of course not. What a ridiculous thing to say."
Yet later, alone before the fire, Laura wondered whether she had been truthful in saying she was not jealous of Irene. She knew she had no right to be possessive of Nikolaos, but one's emotions were rarely logical. After all, she had done everything in her power to disillusion him; what was more natural than that he should turn to someone else?
There was the sound of voices in the hall and she stood up and smoothed her dress, wondering whether Nikolaos had brought someone back for dinner. She was halfway across the room when he came in.
"Oh there you are, Laura."
He moved aside and Irene Ridgeway came through the door. The two women stared at one another and it was Irene who spoke first.
"I hope you don't mind my coming along like this, but I met Niko at a friend's house this evening and as I wasn't doing anything for dinner he took pity on me. I told him you wouldn't like it but "
"Of course Laura will like it," the man intervened. "I'm dull company when I've been working all day."
Laura forced a smile. "I'm delighted to have you here, Mrs. Ridgeway. Now if you'll excuse me, I'll go and have a word with Louis. I'd only ordered a simple dinner for us."
"Please don't alter it for me." Irene moved over to the fireplace. "I must keep an eye on my figure. I've put on three pounds in the last few weeks." She smoothed her velvet cocktail suit, the same colour as her eyes, and glanced provocatively at Nikolaos. "Don't you think I'm fatter than when you last saw me?"
"Your figure is as wonderful as ever. Now sit down and stop showing off."
The woman laughed huskily and curving herself into a corner of the sofa, patted the place beside her. Nikolaos sat down and Laura, standing by the door, saw the two profiles etched in the firelight. There seemed such an intimacy between them that she felt unwanted and with a murmured excuse left the room. Outside she leaned against the door trembling, hearing behind her Irene's throaty laugh and Nikolaos' voice, low as he spoke in Greek. '
Holding her head high Laura walked towards the kitchen. There would be one extra person for dinner: there was nothing unusual in that and no logical reason whatever for her to tremble with anger.
Throughout the following months Irene was a regular visitor to the flat but though Laura tried, she could not overcome the dislike that the woman aroused in her. She was also convinced that her husband was seeing Irene alone a great deal, yet pride would not let her question him, and whenever he returned home late she made a point of going to her room the moment she heard his key in the door.
It was nearing the end of winter when he told her they had been invited to spend a weekend with George Limark, an exporter friend of his, and asked her to be ready to leave town early on Friday afternoon.
"If it's a business weekend," she demurred, "surely there's no need for me to go with you?"
"It is not a business weekend," he retorted. "And even if it were, I would still want you with me. A wife's place is beside her husband, Laura."
"It applies in reverse as well."
He raised an eyebrow. "And what am I supposed to infer from that?" She said nothing and he frowned. "Come, my dear, it is unlike you to be tongue-tied."
She tossed her head angrily. "I was merely referring to the fact that on three occasions this week you went out and left me by myself."
"I should have thought you would have been delighted. After all, you've never made any pretence of liking my company."
"I like being alone even less!"
"In that case I do not see why you are arguing about coming to the Limarks with me!"
Realising he had skilfully brought the conversation back to its original starting place, she gave an exclamation of annoyance. "I don't even know why I bother talking to you. You're the most self-opinionated man I've ever met!"
"I'm sorry," he said smoothly, "but it is difficult to alter the habit of years! However, we are straying from the point again. If you do not like me to go out at night, you have merely to say so."
"I can hardly believe you'd stay in just because I asked you."
"Possibly not. But you could always come with me."
"Always?" she said sarcastically.
"Well, nearly always!"
Angrily she walked to the door, knowing that if the conversation continued she might be tempted to mention Irene's name, a fact which — to judge from the glint in Nikolaos' eye — he was obviously expecting her to do.
"Laura!"
She stopped on the threshold. "Yes?"
"About the weekend. Tell Maria to pack two cocktail dresses and a full-length dinner dress. The Limarks are giving a ball on Saturday."
"Very well, sir. I will see your orders are obeyed."
"Dammit, Laura…"
Triumphant at having scored the final point, she closed the door behind her.
She did not see Nikolaos to speak to for the rest of that week. The following day he flew to Brussels and did not return till late on Thursday night, when he was closeted in the library with Andreas and two other men. A couple of times she hesitated outside the door, listening to the drone of voices, but she could think of no excuse for going in, and even when she saw Bingham enter with hot coffee and sandwiches, she remained alone in the drawing-room.
On Friday afternoon, cases packed, she waited for him in the hall, and had the pleasure of seeing him look discomfited as he came out of the bedroom and saw her.
"I know I asked you to be ready early," he said, "but I didn't mean you to take me quite so literally."
She did not reply and in silence followed him to the lift. Outside the flat the Rolls was parked and she was about to climb into the back when he touched her arm.
"I'm driving myself, Laura. If you sit in front with me we can have a little chat!"
Still in silence she did as he asked, wondering whether his decision not to take the chauffeur had been a sudden one, calculated to irritate her.
Smoothly they pulled away from the kerb and she watched him manoeuvre the heavy car through the congested rush hour traffic. It was the first time she had driven alone with him, and he handled the car as she would have expected: with verve, dash and confidence.
Soon London was left behind and imperceptibly the gentle rhythm of the car soothed her nerves. She lit a cigarette and then, at his signal, passed it over to him and lit herself another one.
"Tell me," she said, "are the Limarks your most important clients?"
"They are one of my biggest," he corrected. "But no one is important to me in business any more."
"What a strange thing to say."
"Is it?" He flashed her a look. "I am not interested in making more money, Laura. If the Dimar empire collapsed today, my own personal fortune would be sufficient for me to found another dynasty."
She half smiled. 'I suppose after the first million, money no longer has any meaning."
"I wouldn't say that. I enjoy my wealth and my one regret is that it hasn't given me the freedom I want."
/>
"You could always give up work!" she retorted.
"I would be bored. When I married you, my intention was to work for six months of the year and live the life of a lotus eater for the other six." His hands tightened on the steering wheel. "But that would not be desirable now, so I work harder than ever."
Usually when they discussed their marriage Laura felt sorry for herself, but today, unexpectedly, she felt sorry for Nikolaos. "We've been married nearly seven months now," she said quietly. "We'll soon be able to part and you can make another life for yourself." She waited for him to refute her statement but to her surprise he nodded his head.
"Possibly I will," he said briefly. "I do not want to live my years alone and I would like a wife who says her marriage vows and means them. A proper marriage can never be broken, Laura." He paused and sighed. "I would also like children."
Instantly she pictured his son or daughter: tall and dark as he was, with the same proud carriage and zest for living. Unobtrusively she studied him. Because they had been confined to London his tan had paled and he appeared older than his thirty-six years. His temples were already flecked with grey but the hair on his wrists was still thick and black. She closed her eyes, remembering how gentle his hands had been when he had made love to her. It was a long time ago, yet the memory was so vivid that it seemed like yesterday.
When she opened her eyes again they had come to a standstill in a curving drive in front of a large, gabled house. Lights shone from every window and as she followed her husband into a timbered hall she heard a noise of talk and laughter coming from a room on their left. It was thronged with people, but as they entered it her eyes instantly went to the ivory piano by the windows where a tall, dark woman sat playing softly. Irene Ridgeway! Had Nikolaos known she would be here? Laura glanced at him but his expression was inscrutable and he merely raised his hand in greeting before turning to talk to his host and hostess.
This weekend, Laura realised, was going to follow the same pattern as the others she had spent with Nikolaos' friends. The days would be spent walking, riding or shooting, according to one's tastes, and in the evenings everyone would come together for an elaborate dinner. After this the men would retire to the smoking room to talk business for an hour or so, leaving the women to discuss their homes and children. To this conversation Laura had nothing to contribute. Alone of them all she did not regard her husband as the be-all and end-all of her existence; alone of them all she found no pleasure in wealth or idleness.
As soon as the men returned there would be dancing or bridge. Her husband always took his place at a card table and Laura guessed it was to avoid having to dance with her. In self-defence she played cards too, but the stakes were high and although money no longer mattered to her, it sickened her to gamble for an amount for which, in the old days, she would have had to work a year.
Now, accepting a cup of tea, she sat down and watched the people around her, irritably conscious that Nikolaos had gone over to talk to Irene in the far corner of the room. Gradually the sky outside darkened and as six o'clock approached, the room emptied until only a few people were left. Brushing the crumbs from her skirt, Laura stood up. She had been alone long enough and if Nikolaos was so afraid of gossip that he insisted on her remaining his wife, he should at least be taught to treat her as such.
"Nikolaos!" she called out sharply. "I'm tired and I want to go upstairs."
Surprised, he turned and seeing the expression on her face, walked over. "What's the matter?"
"I'm tired," she repeated. "I want to go to my room and as it's the first time I've stayed here ..
"Of course. I'm sorry. Why didn't you come over while I was talking to Irene?"
"I thought you'd prefer to be alone."
He gave her a sidelong glance but she ignored it and walked over to the door. They were at the foot of the stairs when Mrs. Limark hurried out of the drawing- room.
"Oh Nikolaos, you're not in the blue suite this time. George invited six extra people without telling me and we were so pressed for space. I had to put you in the south wing. I hope you don't mind."
"Don't worry about it, Olga," he said easily. "I'm sure we'll be quite comfortable wherever you put us."
Laura smiled her agreement but it was not until she followed her husband into their bedroom that she realised the implication of what her hostess had said. Instead of the two rooms she had come to expect there was only one opulently furnished bedroom with a large bathroom leading off it. Aware of his sardonic expression, she walked over to the dressing table and busied herself taking off the heavy gold ear-rings and bracelet which he liked her to wear. That finished, she concentrated on combing her hair and through the mirror saw him walk over to one of the beds and sit down.
"I'm sorry about this, Laura. I need hardly tell you I did not deliberately arrange it. But short of telling Olga the position between us I don't see what we can do."
She shrugged. "Surely we're civilised enough to share a room without becoming embarrassed."
"Of course. You needn't be afraid that—"
"I'm not afraid," she said coldly. "We know perfectly well where we stand with each other. Now if you'll excuse me I'll go into the bathroom and change."
The evening took its expected course and after dinner, when the men had returned from the library, the carpets were rolled back for dancing. As usual
Nikolaos took his place at the bridge table but before he could sit down Irene was by his side, the full skirts of her vivid red dress rustling as she swayed in time to the music.
"Do you remember this tune, Niko?" she tilted her head as the strains of Night and Day filled the room. "They played it the night of my seventeenth birthday party."
He smiled. "And you wore a white satin dress and a pearl necklace."
"Ah yes, my pearls. I had to sell them two months ago."
Overhearing the conversation, Laura could not find it in her heart to feel any sympathy for Irene. The woman might profess poverty in her widowhood but even to the most inexperienced eye the dress she wore bespoke Paris, while the diamonds round her throat and in her ears did not glitter with synthetic brilliance. Laura turned away but even so was conscious of her husband taking the floor with Irene in his arms. They made an elegant picture: both tall and dark, the woman's voluptuous body curving close within the circle of his arms.
Many times during the evening they danced together and it was nearly midnight before he came over to Laura. Pushing back her chair she preceded him to the floor, holding herself straight as his arm encircled her waist.
"Look as if you're enjoying it," he commanded. "People are looking at us."
"I'm not surprised," she said coldly. "This is the first time you've been with me all the evening."
"You were playing cards and then talking to Mrs. Limark's mother."
"What else was I supposed to do — bake a cake?"
"I would have enjoyed eating it if you had!" There was a twinkle in his eyes. "If I haven't asked you to dance as frequently as I should, the women here will assume you are expecting an addition to the family."
"You're hateful!" Her eyes sparkled with anger and his grip tightened.
"Don't look at me like that, Laura. I find your anger stimulating."
Instantly she forced herself to be calm, but all the while was itensely conscious of his nearness and the warmth of his hand around her waist. The music stopped but as she went to draw away from him, his hold tightened. "Not yet, Laura. I want to dance with you again."
"I'm tired. I prefer to go to bed."
"But it's early."
She shrugged. "I'm always tired when I'm bored."
"I see." His eyes glittered. "In that case I won't detain you. But just tilt up your head so that I may kiss you goodnight."
Conscious that they were being watched she did as he asked and he touched his lips to her forehead. "Goodnight Laura, don't lock the bedroom door!"
No trusting herself to answer him, she walked out and, alone
in the hall, paused to control the trembling of her limbs. How hateful Nikolaos was when he taunted her.
Lying between the scented sheets, her tiredness disappeared and she listened to the muted strains of the orchestra. Gradually these died away and she heard the sounds of the other guests going to their rooms. Soon all was quiet but Nikolaos still did not come up and she wondered whether he was with Irene and what they were doing. Restlessly she tossed from side to side and it was nearly three o'clock before she heard a step on the stair. She lay still, her eyes half closed as the door opened. She had not drawn the curtains and moonlight seeped through the windows so that Nikolaos did not bother to switch on the light. Quietly he walked over to the dressing table and there was a slight clatter as he removed his cigarette case and money from his pocket, then the creak of the wardrobe as he hung away his jacket and finally the click of the electric light switch as he went into the bathroom. When he came out again he was in his pyjamas and Laura's hands grew clammy as he came towards her. She closed her eyes tightly but was aware that he was looking down at her. Then she heard a sigh, followed by the creak of the other bed. Even after the sound of his rythmic breathing told her he was asleep she found it impossible to settle down. How strange to have someone share her room, to turn her head and be able to see the broad sweep of his shoulders and his face dark on the pale linen of the pillow.
Dawn slowly lightened the horizon and resting cautiously on her elbow, she leaned forward and looked more closely at him. Stubble darkened his chin and his hair, unruly in slumber, fell over his forehead. Relaxed in sleep his face had lost its hard lines, his mouth softer, his aggressive expression smoothed out. Tenderness tugged at her heart. Poor Nikolaos. If only things could have been different between them. She lay back on her pillow and remembered their first meeting at Melissa's birthday party. It seemed like another world and she herself another person, bearing no resemblance to the girl she was today. She closed her eyes, relaxing unexpectedly into sleep.
Rachel Lindsay - The Taming of Laura Page 14