The Widening Stream

by Rachel Lindsay

  "Is anything worrying you, Miss Cameron?"

  She gave a guilty start. "Not at all, Mr. Halliday. Why do you ask?"

  "I just wondered why you were gazing at me so earnestly," he grinned. "I hope you don't take me for a confidence trickster?"

  Loris blushed painfully. "I beg your pardon, I didn't realize I was staring. It was only that your English accent puzzled me."

  "That's easily explained, Miss Cameron. My mother was English and I was educated in England."

  She flushed again, stung by the slight mockery in his tone. But Melanie appeared not to notice it and rushed into the silence with more questions about Dickson, leaving Loris to study Halliday covertly as he turned away.

  Apart from occasional visits to relatives in London and Scotland, Loris had spent all her life at the vicarage, and her experience of the world was very limited. She had met few men, and certainly none had ever impressed her as deeply as this complete stranger.

  She judged him to be about thirty-five. His wavy dark hair sprang back from a high forehead and his mouth was mobile and firm. Erect, she had taken him to be about six feet tall and had noticed his athletic build and easy stance, The hands playing with the stem of his glass were thin and brown and his movements were confident and casual. Suddenly she felt his eyes upon her again—those piercing hazel eyes which seemed to look right through her.

  "Do you find me so out of the ordinary, Miss Cameron?" he demanded quizzically.

  Melanie burst out laughing. "Oh, you mustn't mind Loris, Mr. Halliday! She's spent all her life in a country vicarage and I'm afraid she's terribly unworldly. If -she's staring at you it's probably because she's trying to fit you into a little pigeon-hole. She feels safer if she can label people."

  "Loris," Brett Halliday murmured. "What an unusual name."

  "Yes, isn't it?" Melanie said effusively. "I can't imagine her called anything else, though. I don't think it's too bad, do you?"

  "On the contrary, I think it's one of the loveliest names I've ever heard." He turned to Loris. "You must forgive me if I seem rude, but I've never come across it before."

  For a long moment the man and the girl looked at one another, grey eyes staring into hazel. Loris felt as if his gaze penetrated the surface of her mind, revealing her very thoughts and drawing them out, and it was with an effort that she dropped her eyes, feeling as she did so that in that moment two spirits had touched.

  The rest of the evening was hazy to her, although she vaguely remembered going into dinner with Melanie and meeting Brett Halliday afterwards for coffee in the lounge. She sat listening to her friend's excited chatter and the man's amused replies, but seldom joined in the conversation, and it was nearly eleven o'clock when she decided they had better go to bed; for the strangeness and excitement of the day had tired them both, and she did not like the hectic flush colouring Melanie's thin cheeks.

  "Come along, darling, it's time we went." Loris stood up and held out her hand to the man and her fingers were imprisoned in his warm grasp. "Good sight, Mr. Halliday. It's been so nice meeting you."

  Still holding Loris's hand, Brett Halliday turned to Melanie. "I can't let you go off like this without arranging to see you both again. How about meeting me on the Sun Deck in the morning? Have you booked your deck chairs yet? You haven't? Well, we'd better see about it first thing tomorrow. I'll be on deck about ten-thirty and I'll look out for you."

  As they made their way out of the lounge his eyes followed the tall, slim figure of the dark-haired girl. "Loris Cameron," he murmured to himself. "Loris. What a lovely name."

  When they had disappeared he took out a cigarette, and tapping it reflectively on the back of his hand before he lit it, settled back in an armchair and picked up a magazine. But a pair of wide-set grey eyes in a heart-shaped face remained in his mind long after he had forgotten all about Dickson's fiancée.

  Loris meanwhile lay awake in her narrow bed, listening to the creaking of the timbers as the ship rolled gently in the lap of the restless waves. Once again she seemed to feel those hazel eyes piercing through her, as though they saw into her very heart, and it was some time before she fell asleep, rocked into slumber by the tossing Atlantic.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Loris was awakened next morning by the sun shining on to her eyelids through the porthole window and reaching out for her watch saw with surprise that it was nine o'clock. Unless they got up immediately they would be too late for breakfast. She debated whether to awaken Melanie or not and finally decided the poor child still looked so tired that it would be better to let her sleep on. She dressed quickly and quietly, but just as she was creeping out of the room Melanie awakened.

  "Oh, Loris, I do feel peculiar! I've got the most dreadful headache and I think I'm going to be sick."

  Loris went to her bedside and looked anxiously into the small, white face. "Perhaps you'd feel better if you had some tea and toast," she suggested gently.

  But at the mention of food Melanie groaned. "For heaven's sake don't talk about breakfast! If you do, I'll make a complete fool of myself."

  Her tone was so long-suffering that Loris laughed and Melanie herself gave a feeble grin. "I feel such an idiot, Loris, but I'm afraid I'm going to be terribly seasick."

  "Don't let it worry you—you can't help being a bad sailor, it's just one of those things. I'll ring and have my breakfast sent down. Are you sure you won't have anything?"

  "Positive."

  Loris put her finger on the bell and when the stewardess came in she cast a professional eye upon the recumbent figure in bed. "There's nothing much the matter with your friend, miss," she told Loris. "I'll get something for her—just the thing for sea-sickness."

  Melanie moved her head impatiently on the pillow. "Don't bother about having your breakfast sent down, Loris. I'd really much rather be alone. Anyway, we promised to meet Mr. Halliday on the Sun Deck at half past ten and he'll think it odd if neither of us appears."

  Loris regarded her doubtfully. "Are you sure you'll be all right on your own? After all, your mother didn't ask me to come with you so I could gallivant while you're lying in bed."

  "Oh, Loris, for heaven's sake! Mummy would want you to enjoy the trip as much as I do. It isn't as if I'm really ill. Hundreds of people get seasick."

  "That's right," the stewardess interposed cheerfully. "One crossing last November only two people appeared in the dining-room the whole time. You go on up, miss. I'll keep an eye on the young lady for you."

  "All right, then. I'll just have breakfast and find Mr. Halliday to make our apologies to him."

  When Loris made her way up to the Sun Deck the sun was shining in a clear, blue sky. The ship scarcely seemed to be moving, but as she stepped out from under cover she was nearly knocked over by the force of the wind which beat against her. She dug her hands deeply into the pockets of her coat and buried her chin in the folds of her scarf as the wind flattened her skirts against her legs, whipping her hair into tiny tendrils that beat crazily against her face. As she battled her way along the deserted deck it seemed as though she were the only passenger to be struggling against the elements that morning. Making slow progress towards the bows, a particularly strong gust of wind nearly blew her off her feet, and with a feeling of complete helplessness she felt herself being driven towards the side.

  "What a fool I'll look if I fall down!" she thought, and in that instant a pair of strong arms reached out and steadied her.

  "Easy does it! I don't mind if women fall for me metaphorically, but it's liable to be embarrassing if they do it too literally."

  As he spoke, the man pulled her against him shielding her from the force of the wind, and Loris found herself gazing into Brett Halliday's eyes. With what dignity she could muster she drew away, only to be flattened against him by another gust of wind. Her head was buried against the rough tweed of his coat and she felt his breath warm against her cheek.

  "Sorry," she said shakily. "Evidently I haven't found my sea-legs yet."
r />   "Think nothing of it," he replied easily, drawing her into a more sheltered part of the deck. Before Loris knew what was happening he had dragged two deck chairs together and settled her into one of them, tucking a rug around her.

  He sat down beside her and flipped open his cigarette case.

  "Have one? Or don't you like American cigarettes?"

  "No, thanks, I don't smoke at all."

  "Ah." There was a note of satisfaction in his voice. "I rather thought you didn't. Where's your friend this morning?"

  With a start Loris realized she had completely forgotten about Melanie. "And here I am," she thought, "allowing myself to be settled next to him as though he had expressly invited me."

  "Melanie isn't feeling very well," she explained hastily. "She's staying in bed, so I just came up to tell you and make our apologies." She made a movement to free herself from the rug, but a firm arm came across the chair and prevented her.

  "You don't have to get in such a frenzy about it, honey. I guess there's no need for you to run away so soon, is there? You act as if I'm going to eat you!"

  With his voice low and amused, his drawl was even more pronounced. "Insufferable man!" thought Loris, and looked down helplessly at the tweed-clad arm resting so firmly across her chair.

  "I must go down to Melanie. I really can't leave her alone any longer," she said with determination.

  "But I'm sure she wouldn't want to keep you in the cabin the whole time, would she?"

  "Oh no. She insisted on my coming…" Loris stopped abruptly.

  "You see?" There was gentle irony in his tone. "You're not a good liar, Miss Cameron. Do you dislike me so much that you can't bear the idea of my company for a morning?"

  "Oh no, it isn't that at all. It's just that…"

  "Just what? Go on." And then, as she did not speak, he bent closer. "Or are you afraid I might believe you wanted to stay with me?" She still did not answer, and he went on: "Be honest, honey. You wanted to see me again almost as much as I wanted to see you. Isn't that so?"

  Lifting her eyes, she saw an urgent sincerity in his face which belied the flippancy of his tone.

  "You still haven't answered me, Loris."

  But her voice when she did answer was so low that he had to bend forward to hear it.

  "I—I didn't think there was any need for me to answer it."

  For a moment their eyes held. Then Brett moved his arm away from her chair and settled himself back into his own.

  "Well, honey, now that I'm not afraid you're going to run away we can take things more easily!"

  As if glad of release from the tension they both laughed.

  "I won't run away, Mr.—"

  "The name's Brett," he said quickly. "You'll have to get used to calling me that, so you may as well start now. I do believe you're still shy!"

  Loris flushed. "I'm not really. It's just that things have happened so quickly I don't know where I am."

  "I'm sorry if I've rushed you, honey, but I'm not a very patient man and I had the feeling that unless I used shock tactics you'd run away so fast I'd never be able to catch you." His face lit up with a brilliant smile. "You aren't the sort of girl I'd want to rush, but I was sure about you the first moment we met, and I had a feeling it was the same way with you."

  Subterfuge seemed unnecessary. It was as if they both knew they had waited all their lives for this meeting, and Loris gave him a slow smile which transfigured her face.

  While Melanie was still confined to the cabin Brett and Loris spent every moment together. As the ship ploughed its way across the Atlantic they dined and danced, went for walks on the Sun Deck, or when the Gulf Stream brought warmth and humidity, lazed on deck chairs, talking idly or lying in companionable silence. For Loris it was a time of enchantment. The realization that she was a woman with a woman's ability to inspire love in a man's heart gave her a sense of confidence she had never felt before. In those few days Loris grew up and left behind for ever the safe, sheltered garden of her girlhood to embark on the more hazardous course of a woman.

  Sensitive to her shyness and inexperience, Brett did not attempt to make love to her at first. It was as if he sensed that by revealing the passion of which he was capable he would make her withdraw into herself and he accepted the tender little advances she made towards him without allowing himself to lose the gentle solicitude which hid his desire.

  On the last night of the voyage Melanie tried to get up, but the motion of the boat soon sent her back to bed.

  "It looks as if I'll have to stay here until we dock," she said ruefully.

  Loris stroked her hair affectionately. "It's a shame, darling. You haven't been able to enjoy the trip at all."

  "In a way I have." Melanie's eyes twinkled. "I've enjoyed watching you!"

  "Watching me?"

  "Yes. Don't you think I saw from the very first moment you met Brett Halliday you fell in love with him? You see, you're blushing!" She laughed gleefully. "It's a good thing I've been laid up, so you two could be on your own!"

  Loris joined in her laughter and hugged her, but Melanie pulled herself eagerly away. "Has he told you he loves you?" she asked. "Has he proposed to you yet? Oh, Loris, I've been dying to ask you, but didn't dare!"

  Loris walked over to the dressing-table and ran a comb through her hair, refusing to meet the girl's glance. She had wondered when Brett would let down his barrier of reserve, hoping he might say something about the future before the voyage was over and secretly afraid that as far as he was concerned it was merely a shipboard romance, a love affair which would peter out when they went ashore. Melanie's eager questions, bringing into the open what she had striven to hide even from herself, made her realize how frail were the threads which bound Brett to her, and with a throb of fear she recalled that he had never even taken her into his arms and kissed her.

  Straightening the folds of her dress, she moved away from the mirror. "Don't be a nosy-parker," she said in mock reproof, and tweaked a lock of the fair hair. "Are you getting up for supper?"

  "I don't think so." Melanie snuggled down. "I may as well spend the last few hours here. After all, you must have the last evening alone with Brett."

  Loris left the cabin a few minutes later, her spirits soaring as she went to meet Brett. They dined, that last night, in the Veranda Grill, the windows open to the dark sky and cool breeze, and later walked along the Sun Deck to the part they had made their own particular retreat.

  Lovingly Loris regarded Brett's finely etched profile as they stood idly at the rail together, the tip of his cigarette glowing in a vivid point of light as it travelled up to his lips. She looked out over the dark water shimmering under the moon and the breeze lifted her hair from her shoulders, letting it fall softly back again and rustling the skirt of her white dress.

  With a sudden movement Brett threw away his cigarette and drew her into his arms. Loris leant against him, his nearness overwhelming her, feeling the hard maleness of his skin as he pressed his cheek against hers.

  "I've wanted to do this for such a long time, my darling. But you're such a shy little thing that I was afraid of frightening you. Do you remember how scared you were that first morning on the Sun Deck? You didn't know whether to run away from me or humour me like an idiot child!"

  "I never thought of you as an idiot or a child, Brett. It was just that your suddenness surprised me."

  "I suppose it way rather surprising. But when you know me better you'll realize that once I make up my mind about anything I never sit back and wait for it to drop into my lap. You aren't smart or sophisticated, Loris, but the moment I saw you I knew neither of us could fight against what was going to happen. Our falling in love was as inevitable as night following day, and no one can stop the moon rising."

  Dawning wonder shone in Loris's eyes. "It seems unbelievable that you should fall in love with me. You must have met so many other girls who can give you much more than I can."

  "I have met them, Loris, and sometimes I though
t I'd found what I was looking for. But none of them had your honesty and sweetness, none of them loved me for what I was, only for what I could give them. You've never asked me about my past or my future, you've taken me on trust for what I am."

  "Your past belongs to you, Brett."

  "And my future belongs to you, my heart."

  Brett's words let loose an uprising of emotion she could not stem. He had opened the floodgates to all the love her young heart was longing to give and she did not attempt to hide the adoration in her eyes.

  His arms tightened around her. "You are real, aren't you, Loris?"

  "Quite real, Brett. Why don't you find out?"

  "Aren't you shy any longer?" he asked tenderly.

  "A little. You see, no one's ever made love to me before."

  "And I'll make sure no one else ever does! You're mine, Loris, mine," he murmured urgently. "I'm the only one who's going to teach you how to love."

  With an incoherent exclamation his mouth came down hungrily on hers. A swift shudder ran through her body and her lips trembled and then, after an instant, responded to his as her arms encircled his neck and she gave herself tremulously up to his embrace. His kiss deepened, thrilling her to an ecstasy she had never dreamt of, and she moved closer into the circle of his arms.

  With a sudden convulsive movement Brett put her away from him. "Here endeth the first lesson," he said thickly.

  With a little murmur Loris buried her face against his shoulder. "Oh, Brett, I love you," she breathed.

  "And I love you, my darling. Which is why I'm going to send you to bed right now. I want to go on kissing you, but I'm afraid of myself."

  She looked up at him with startled eyes. "But I want to stay with you."

  "I know. And I want you to."

  "Then why…?"

  "When we're both old and grey I'll tell you why." He smiled and tilted her chin up gently. "Come along, darling, I'll see you to your cabin."