Dangerous Enchantment

by Anne Mather

  Leaving Julie outside, he went in alone, and she heard the murmur of their voices. In truth her heart was beating so loudly she felt she wouldn’t have been able to hear them had they been speaking noisily, but presently Felipe came out, and said:

  “I haven’t told him you are here. I said he had a visitor, and he expects a member of his family.”

  “You led him to believe that?” exclaimed Julie accusingly. “Oh, Felipe, I’m so nervous!”

  Felipe pushed her forward. “Go on. Take a cab back to the apartment later. You can tell us how he is.”

  He grinned, and Julie shook her head before resolutely summoning her courage and walking into the room.

  It was a large, spacious, airy room, with red curtains drawn across tall windows on the far wall. The floor was carpeted in green, and it looked more like a bedroom at home than a hospital ward.

  But it was the man lying against the pillows on the bed, absently watching the television, who drew Julie’s eyes, and when he looked and saw who it was, her heart turned completely over.

  “Julie!” he exclaimed in amazement. “You came!”

  “Hello, Manuel,” she said awkwardly, fidgeting with her gloves. “H… how are you?”

  “I’m fine. How about you?” Manuel shrugged his shoulders helplessly.

  He was wearing dark red silk pyjamas and the open V-neck revealed the mat of dark hairs on his chest. His hair was attractively tousled and he looked younger and more vulnerable somehow.

  “Fine,” she murmured, advancing a little further into the room.

  There was a plaster on his forehead, and one side of his face was still very bruised, but otherwise he looked quite well.

  “I… I came to apologize,” she said quickly. “I shouldn’t have screamed like that. I was an awful fool, and I’m sorry, for all this.” She spread her hands.

  Manuel shook his head. “I’m all right. Don’t worry about me.” His eyes were intent. “Julie, when are you leaving?”

  “In a week or so. I’m not exactly sure of the date. …”

  He leaned across the bed. “Come here. Sit down. I want to talk to you.” His eyes grew darker. “Please, Julie, don’t be afraid. I know you didn’t want to come and see me, but please, now you’re here, listen to what I have to say.”

  Julie moved slowly forward, and perched awkwardly on the side of the bed. She didn’t refute his words, not yet.

  Manuel took one of her hands and raised it to his lips, and kissed it lingeringly, then he said: “God, Julie, when you’re with me like this I can’t think straight.” He tightened his grip. “It must be all the drugs they’ve been pumping into me.”

  Julie was biting her lips to stop herself from speaking, and she saw the agony in his eyes. It was more than she could bear, and she said brokenly: “Oh, Manuel, you might have been killed.”

  He stared at her. “You care?”

  “Of course I do,” she said hotly. “Anyone would.”

  “I don’t care about anyone else,” he muttered savagely. “Julie, I know I’m crazy after the way you’ve acted, but… come here. …”

  He pulled her roughly down beside him, rolling over so that he was looking down at her. Then he put his mouth to hers, savagely and violently, revealing more potently than ever before the emotions she aroused in him.

  Julie didn’t struggle. She slid her arms round his neck and pulled him even closer, and he said achingly:

  “Julie, I can’t be gentle with you, if you act like this.” He pulled himself away and looked down at her; at her parted bare lips, and tumbled hair. “One of us has got to be sensible,” he said thickly, “the nurse is likely to walk in unannounced at any moment.”

  “You’re suddenly very conscious of appearances,” she murmured, running caressing hands down his cheeks.

  “Yes,” Manuel nodded, “I can be as proper as anyone else, if I want to be. Julie, why didn’t you come and see me before?” He turned one of the palms of her hands to his mouth. “I’ve lain here the last three weeks alternately hating you and loving you.”

  Julie’s eyes widened. “Loving me!” Love was a word Manuel had never used before.

  “Yes, loving you, damn you. Julie, I want to marry you – no, don’t say anything yet. I never thought I’d ask another woman to marry me, not after Consuelo, but you… you’ve got under my skin, and I want you so badly it’s driving me crazy. Besides, I think I’d better marry you before you are the death of me.” He smiled. “After all, you rocket my temperature when I have the fever, and cause me to have a relapse. …”

  Julie gasped, “Manuel!”

  “Yes, and then you infuriate me beyond belief in a blasted snowstorm; you leave me out at Connor Beach without the means to get home, and finally you practically kill me by startling me into crashing my car. I think you owe it to me, don’t you?” His tone was tender, and Julie felt terrible.

  “Oh, Manuel,” she whispered. “I did want to see you before this.” She sighed. “I can’t lie to you. Felipe kept me away. He… he wanted you to be thwarted for once so he never told me that you’d asked to see me. I thought… I thought that Dolores and you… well. …”

  Manuel stared at her. “The devil he did!” he exclaimed. “Felipe kept you away! Wait until I lay my hands on him!” But he was laughing a little and Julie knew his words were merely relief at finding out the truth at last. Then he said: “Dolores has gone!”

  “I know. Pilar told me.” She hesitated. “Why did you send her away?”

  “Because when she came to see me I asked her what in hell’s name she had been telling you. Pilar told me she had seen her talking to you, and knowing Dolores as I do I knew it couldn’t be anything good.”

  “And she told you!” exclaimed Julie incredulously.

  “To begin with, no. But after I had made it clear that any notions she had towards our relationship becoming a more permanent thing were ludicrous, she lost her temper and told me everything.” He caressed her fingers tenderly. “She is hot-tempered but harmless, I think. When we are married she will probably come to like you, if indeed we meet her again.”

  Julie pulled him down to her. “Kiss me, Manuel. We don’t have much more time, and I love you so.”

  Manuel was only too willing to oblige, but he kept a tight rein on his emotions and at last pushed her gently away from him.

  “I can wait,” he murmured caressingly. “But not for long. We will be married as soon as it can be arranged. Your parents can fly over for the ceremony if they want to, but you are staying here. I’m not risking you going to London, and maybe changing your mind.”

  “I shan’t do that,” replied Julie dreamily.

  Then after combing her hair into some semblance of order again, she said: “And Pilar. You won’t be angry with her any more, will you? She’s been terribly unhappy. She’s so young to be involved in all this. Whatever did you say to her?”

  Manuel sighed. “I was unhappy too, I guess,” he muttered. “You seemed the most important thing in my life, in all this jaded life of mine. When I thought she had destroyed everything between us by her jealousy, I think I hated her, but I hated myself even more. Particularly as I knew what my relationship with Dolores must have seemed like. But what about you, Julie? Will you be able to accept Pilar, in spite of all this?”

  “Oh, yes,” replied Julie, more confidently now. “Things will work themselves out. Pilar needs a woman, I think. I may be able to help her and she will certainly be able to help me.”

  “How?” Manuel was curious.

  “Well, she knows you so much better than I do, and when you are away we will be company for one another.”

  “When I am away, you will be with me,” said Manuel firmly, reaching forward and taking her hand again. “But I am considering giving up all but a few personal appearances, and concentrating on composing and writing instead. How does that appeal to you?”

  Julie bent her head and kissed his hand. “So long as we are together I don’t think I shall
mind,” she confessed truthfully. “But, Manuel, please tell me, why did you act as you did in London?”

  Manuel sighed, his eyes gentle. “Why do you think? No animal likes to be cornered, and when they are, they lash out at the nearest thing to them. I knew what you were doing to me, but by God, I fought it!”

  “And now?”

  He chuckled softly. “Oh, Julie, I’m like the patient after the sedative – I can’t fight any more. I want to give in, and I want you more than any kind of life I have ever envisaged.” He smiled. “Did I tell you that I love you?”

  “Tell me again,” she whispered. but the nurse came in just at that moment to attend to him.

  “Later,” he promised warmly, and Julie knew that all the time that was to come was theirs alone.

  ISBN-13: 9781460347645

  DANGEROUS ENCHANTMENT

  © 1969 Anne Mather

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