‘Was Joe ever like that with you before?’ Martin lay stretched out next to Lily on the same blanket that Helen and Adam had used to sunbathe on in Helen’s garden.
‘Violent, you mean?’ Lily understood him at once. ‘Never. There’s something else I want you to know about Joe and me …’
‘I don’t want to know anything about you and Joe,’ he cut her short.
‘Please, Marty. I don’t want any secrets between us. I need to say this and it’s nothing I’m ashamed of, or anything that will make you more upset with Joe than you already are.’ She sat up beside him. ‘You know Joe was the first boy to ask me out. He even came round to ask Auntie Norah’s permission to take me to the pictures. It felt odd to begin with because I’d only ever thought of him as Helen’s older brother, but I grew to like him and I knew Auntie Norah and Uncle Roy approved of my going out with him. And after some of the stories I’d heard from other girls about having to fight off boys, I was relieved that he always behaved like a perfect gentleman. The most we ever did was kiss and nine times out of ten it was a peck on the cheek.’
He held her look. ‘Then he never touched you …’
‘Not in the way you have – and did after a couple of dates.’
Ashamed of the jealousy that had almost finished their relationship before it had even begun, he sat up next to her. ‘That puts me in my place.’
‘You only did what I wanted you to.’ She smiled mischievously, before becoming serious again. ‘I should have known we could never be friends in the way I thought we were after I gave him back his engagement ring, because every time we accidentally met, he hinted he wanted more. But it was never more than a hint and I brushed off his invitations to dinner and balls, because they always seemed to be half-hearted – almost like a joke between us. Shortly after I began to go out with you, I told him that if I’d ever had any feelings for him they’d long gone, so when he bumped into me after work one day and suggested we become friends, there didn’t seem to be any reason not to be. I thought he’d soon find himself another girl …’
‘Can’t you see those were no accidental meetings, Lily?’ Martin interrupted. ‘And now, he broke in on us, he attacked you …’
‘And I should have seen it coming,’ she insisted, taking a share of the blame. ‘When we were together Joe spent most of his time either making up fairy stories, that with hindsight I think he half believed, or planning out the perfect future for us. Now, I think that he lived more in that story-book world than reality.’
‘Did he still talk about your future together after you gave him back his ring?’ He leaned against the wall of the house.
‘He occasionally mentioned his plans but it was always in a “remember this” kind of way and I never thought for one minute that he was waiting for it to happen. When we were about to get engaged, he said he would buy a cottage for us near Llandaff where he was going to work. It was going to have a big garden, roses round the door, leaded-glass windows, something like a cross between Goldilocks and the Three Bears’ cottage and Little Red Riding Hood’s, and to me just as fanciful. Inside it was going to be furnished like a palace. He talked about blue and silver, and gold and green colour schemes. He even planned a honeymoon in France.’ Shading her eyes against the sun, she tried to read the expression on Martin’s face. ‘Looking back, even in the beginning when he showed me the engagement ring he’d bought, I think I sensed that something was wrong but I had nothing to compare Joe and me with except your brother and Helen, and I knew from something Helen had let slip that she had made love to Jack. Judy joked about Brian pulling off her bra every time they were alone and all Joe wanted to do was kiss me goodnight and hold hands.’
‘And that wasn’t enough for you.’ His eyes were dark, enigmatic and she wished she could read his thoughts.
‘It was enough for me with Joe. But I didn’t look or think further than our engagement and that never really happened.’
‘So even when you were almost engaged to Joe you thought that some day there’d be someone else for you.’
‘It wasn’t as definite as that. I was living day to day. I’d just lost Auntie Norah, Joe was safe, steady, undemanding, a bit like an older brother, I suppose, although I’ve never had one so I don’t know what that’s like. When my mother turned up at the party and Joe walked away from me I was upset, but looking back, only because of my mother. I think even then I was relieved that it was over between us because he wasn’t the right one for me.’
‘And I am?’
She knelt in front of him. ‘I need you to know that you’re not only the first man I’ve made love to, but the first man I’ve really loved.’
He kissed her. ‘Perhaps I should talk to your uncle about what happened.’
She threw her arms round his waist. ‘With Joe or what Joe saw us doing?’
‘Better we tell your uncle everything than he find out from Joe.’
‘Uncle Roy has enough to worry about, planning his wedding. Besides, I don’t think Joe will tell anyone what happened because he’d have to admit he’s a Peeping Tom. Creeping in on us …’
‘I was a fool not to lock the front door.’
‘Helen may have given him a key, so it wouldn’t have made any difference.’
‘We might have heard it turning in the lock.’
‘And we might not have,’ she countered. ‘It happened, Marty. All we can do now is try to forget it.’
‘I can’t forget that he hurt you.’
‘Thanks to you, not for long.’ She looked into his eyes. ‘And as for what happened before Joe walked in, I never want to forget that as long as I live.’ She reached for his hand. ‘The girls won’t be in for another couple of hours.’
‘And?’
‘The sun’s getting too hot to lie out here any longer.’
‘I love you, Lily Sullivan.’
‘I know,’ she whispered as she pulled him to his feet.
Joe walked out to meet Richard Thomas as he parked his car in the drive of the house in Langland.
‘You said it was urgent.’ Richard climbed out of the driver’s seat.
‘It is.’
‘I assume it’s something to do with the house.’
‘No.’
‘I don’t work on Saturdays.’
‘You of all people, Mr Thomas, should know that I have sufficient money to pay your fees.’
‘No amount of money buys my services on a Saturday, Joseph.’ Richard opened his car door.
‘I only need five minutes.’
Richard glanced at his watch. ‘And that is all you have. I’m on my way to a golf match.’
‘Are you my father?’ Joe held Richard’s glare for what seemed like hours, although it could only have been a minute or two, and he was the first to turn his head away.
‘If you ever ask me that question again, I will sue you to the point where you won’t be able to afford the services of a shoeshine boy, let alone a solicitor.’
‘Then you deny it.’ Forgetting his resolve to stay calm, Joe allowed his anger to surface.
‘Publicly, for both our sakes, I most emphatically do.’
Joe lowered his voice. ‘And privately?’
Richard hesitated for a moment before answering. ‘If you are ever in trouble I will do whatever I can to help you.’
‘Because I am your son.’
‘Because your grandfather was my closest friend.’
‘Did you put any of your own money into the trust fund my great-aunt set up for me?’ Joe questioned harshly.
‘No.’
‘And my grandmother’s will?’
‘Was written exactly the way she dictated it. You can check with her doctor and vicar if you don’t believe me.’
‘You seduced my mother …’
‘Your mother is a fantasist, Joseph.’
‘You never slept with her?’ Joe challenged.
Richard Thomas leaned against his car. ‘Your grandmother told me that she caught your mother sneaking boys into her bedroom before her sixteenth birthday and never the same one twice. Any boy in her set could have fathered you.’
‘And you? Is it possible …’
‘The only thing I can tell you for certain, Joseph, is that John Griffiths is not your father. And I’d appreciate it if you never mention this subject again, to me or to anyone else.’
‘You give me your word about my trust fund and grandmother’s will?’ Joe pressed, realising he’d get no more from Richard Thomas than he already had.
‘I give you my word.’ Richard looked Joe straight in the eye. He almost convinced himself as well as the boy, but then he’d had a lifetime’s experience of lying.
‘No.’
‘Please, Katie, we can’t leave you alone, not on a Saturday night,’ Lily pleaded.
‘I have a headache. The last thing I want to do is to go down the Pier. I want a quiet walk on the beach.’
‘I’ll go with you,’ Judy offered eagerly, anxious to avoid Adam Jordan.
Katie refused Judy’s offer. ‘I’d rather be by myself and Martin’s expecting you, Lily.’
Lily looked at Judy and Helen in exasperation. ‘All right.’ She pulled on her gloves. ‘We’ll go down the Pier but we’ll be back early.’
‘Please don’t, not on my account.’ Katie lifted her jacket from the hook on the back of the door and checked that her front-door key was in the pocket.
‘We did what we could,’ Helen said as they followed her out of the door.
‘I just wish …’ Lily bit her lip.
‘What?’ Judy asked.
‘That I could help her,’ Lily answered, as she slammed the door behind her.
‘Will you stop looking at the door every five minutes,’ Sam griped to Martin. ‘The girls said they’d be here and they will.’
Martin paid the barmaid for the beer he’d bought for himself, Sam and Adam, and followed Sam to a table on the edge of the dance floor. He had spent the entire day with Lily, refusing to leave her until Katie, Helen and Judy had returned. But concerned that even then Joe might come back, he had found it difficult to tear himself away.
It had been an almost perfect day for him and, he hoped, Lily – almost, because although Lily had insisted she had recovered from Joe’s attack, his presence hung like a black cloud over the remainder of the time they had spent together. In the afternoon they had walked on the beach, but even there he had caught himself looking over his shoulder every time a car drove along the coast road to see if Joe was in it.
‘You and Lily have a good day?’ Adam sat down and sipped his pint.
‘The water was a bit cold, but the sun was warm.’
‘I didn’t ask about the sea.’
‘I know you didn’t.’
‘Lover boy doesn’t want to talk about his girl,’ Adam mocked.
‘No.’ Martin gave Adam a warning look.
‘Nice house Helen has there,’ Sam broke the tension. ‘And, believe it or not, the sergeant took pity on this poor rookie when he drew up the last roster and I have a whole Sunday off tomorrow. Do you fancy spending it at the beach?’
‘Limeslade beach?’ Adam asked.
‘Are there any others?’
‘Thirty or so on the Gower, more if you count Swansea Bay and head out Porthcawl way.’ Adam offered round his cigarettes.
‘We can ask the girls what they think,’ Martin suggested cautiously, not wanting Helen – or Lily – to feel they were imposing. Beyond tonight, he and Lily hadn’t made any definite plans. He would like nothing better than to spend tomorrow with her – even if the others were around – but what if she wanted to spend it with the girls and only agreed out of politeness?
‘It is a public beach.’ Adam lit their cigarettes before his own.
‘But it would be nice if we could use the house to change and make the odd cup of tea,’ Sam commented. ‘So how about it?’
‘Fine by me,’ Martin agreed.
‘Good, you’ll ask Helen, then?’
‘Why me?’ Martin questioned.
‘She’s your sister-in-law.’
‘And here are the lovely ladies.’ Rising to his feet, Adam pulled three chairs out from under their table. ‘Where’s Katie?’
‘We couldn’t persuade her to come.’ Judy took the chair furthest from Adam, leaving Helen no option but to sit next to him.
Martin winked at Lily who was wearing a white, off-the-shoulder, gypsy-style frock that showed off her tan.
‘You look smart,’ Sam complimented Judy who was wearing a dress similar to Lily’s in bottle-green. ‘What would you all like to drink – Babycham?’
‘I’ll have an orange juice, please.’ Helen, who had dressed soberly for the Pier for the first time in her life, was wearing a navy-blue shirtwaister, trimmed with white braid round the collar, edge of the short sleeves and pockets. More suitable for the office than a dance, she had chosen it in the hope of impressing on Martin that she had no intention of flirting with anyone.
‘You’re late,’ Martin complained to Lily as Adam went to the bar to help Sam with the drinks. ‘There’s nothing wrong, is there?’
‘Only Katie point-blank refusing to come with us. She said she’s tired but she’s been using that excuse for weeks now.’
‘If we leave early, I’ll walk you home and try talking to her.’
‘It might be better left until tomorrow.’ She smiled at Sam as he handed her a Babycham and a glass.
‘You want to see me tomorrow?’
‘Not if you don’t want to,’ she teased.
‘Carry on like this, Lily Sullivan, and you’ll have to throw stones to keep me from your door.’
As Sam and Adam sat down with their drinks, Martin surprised Judy by asking her to dance. She looked at Lily, but Lily only laughed.
‘Go ahead. I’m not his keeper.’
‘To what do I owe the honour?’ Judy murmured guardedly as Martin led her out on to the almost deserted floor.
‘When I returned to the flat this afternoon there was a letter waiting for me from Brian.’
‘Did he say anything in particular?’
‘He asked me to tell you that he’s missing you, thinking about you and he’d like to write to you.’
‘He has my address,’ she said shortly.
‘Shall I tell him that in my next letter?’
‘That’s up to you.’
‘Then I will.’
‘Is that all he said?’ she asked tentatively, after a few minutes’ silence.
‘About you.’
‘Is he all right?’
‘He complained that he’s worn out with doing double shifts, there’s more work than he can cope with and London is a big, hot, noisy, impersonal city, especially in summer.’
‘You’ve just reminded me of a few of the reasons why I left.’
‘Then you won’t be going back there?’ Martin asked.
‘No.’
‘That sounds very definite.’
‘It is, Martin,’ she said brusquely, ‘so don’t try to talk me out of it.’
‘I wasn’t, and remember I’m only the messenger.’
The music stopped and they stood back to applaud the band. ‘Thanks for being a friend to both of us, Marty, but I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t mention Brian again.’
‘Even if he asks me to give you a message?’
‘Just tell him what I told you. If he wants to contact me, he has my address.’
‘Just as you have his.’
‘Pardon?’
‘If both of you sit back waiting for the other to make the first move, you could be in for a long wait,’ he advised as he walked her back to their table.
John slipped the letter he’d written into his pocket as he went to his car. It had taken him over an hour to write a couple of lines and he wasn’t happy with the result.
Dear Katie,
Perhaps you could call into the office one day on your way home from work. There is something that I would like to discuss with you.
Yours sincerely,
John Griffiths
It gave no indication of what he felt – or his hopes. But then he didn’t know if there was someone new in her life. And if there was – he tried to consider all the implications objectively as he drove through Mumbles but as he passed the turn to the Pier he imagined Katie sitting there with Helen and the girls, the boys around them … Sam and Adam – he realised that he had no right even to try to contact her again after bringing her so much unhappiness. If the road hadn’t been too narrow to accommodate a three-point turn he might have been tempted to drive back.
Parking at the side of Helen’s house he walked to the front door and knocked. When no one answered he removed the letter from his pocket and looked at it for a moment.
Finally deciding that things were best left as they were, he returned to his car, stopping when he caught sight of a solitary figure walking on the beach. He opened the door and reached for his walking stick.
*……*……*
‘You haven’t asked why I danced with Judy,’ Martin murmured in Lily’s ear, as they danced to a smooch version of ‘Harbour Lights’.
‘If you want me to know, you’ll tell me.’
‘I thought all girls were curious.’
‘Not this one.’
‘Brian wrote and asked me to tell her that he was missing her.’
‘Really?’ She moved her head from his shoulder and looked at him.
‘Do you know what really happened between them after Jack’s wedding?’
‘I haven’t a clue,’ she answered quickly – too quickly.
‘You’re a terrible liar, Lily Sullivan.’
‘Just as well.’ She smiled. ‘You’ll always know when I’m not telling you the truth.’
‘Do you think it’s serious between Lily and Martin?’ Judy asked Helen as they watched them dance.
‘I hope so. It would be nice if one of us were happy.’
‘How about making me happy and having this dance with me, Judy.’ Sam held out his hand as the band played the last chords of ‘Harbour Lights’ and went into another slow dance, this time ‘The Magic Touch’.
‘Helen.’
She hesitated as Adam stood before her.
‘I was hoping you’d give me a chance to make up for the way we parted the other day. It was stupid. After all, we are friends. Jack and me and you,’ he added persuasively.
She took his hand. ‘As long as you remember that I’m married and don’t hold me too close.’
‘Hello, Katie.’
Katie looked up, instinctively checking the beach was deserted before using John’s Christian name. ‘Hello, John.’
‘All alone.’
‘The others have gone down the Pier.’
He fell into step beside her. ‘Why didn’t you go with them?’
She shrugged her thin shoulders.
His heart went out to her. ‘Oh, Katie …’
‘I don’t want your pity,’ she snapped. ‘You don’t want me …’
‘I want you to be happy. I thought that if you found someone younger …’
‘I told you I couldn’t be happy without you.’ Moving away from him, she sat on a rock, clasped her hands round her knees and stared at the sea.
He stood beside her. ‘I came to give you a letter.’ Taking it from his pocket, he handed it to her.
‘What does it say?’ The wind caught her dark hair, whipping it across her face as she looked up at him.
‘That I’d like to talk to you.’ He took a deep breath as he tried to decipher her features in the gathering twilight. ‘My divorce will be final in six weeks. If you’re still prepared to put up with the gossips, the pointed fingers and the people who will call both of us names and not very pleasant ones, we could get married.’
She stared at him as if she couldn’t believe what he’d said.
‘The last few months have been the most miserable of my life.’
‘You want me,’ she whispered.
He met her gaze. ‘Oh yes, Katie. I want you.’
When Sam left Judy to go to the bar, she returned to their table to find it empty. As she sat down a freckle-faced, ginger-haired boy approached her. ‘Hi. You’re Judy, right?’
‘Do I know you?’ Judy eyed him doubtfully.
‘Alun Jones. Don’t you remember, Brian Powell introduced us. I worked with him before he went to London.’
‘You’re a policemen.’
‘Guilty as charged.’
She wondered if she was doomed to be surrounded by police officers for the rest of her life. There were so many other professions. Why didn’t she ever meet a lorry driver or shop assistant?
‘Dance?’
‘Thank you.’ She forced a smile and took the hand he offered.
‘What did you think of the game?’ he asked as they reached the dance floor.
‘What game?’
‘Football, the Swans played Cardiff today.’
‘I didn’t know.’
‘You don’t follow football.’ He stared at her as if she were a Martian.
‘No.’
‘Ah, then you’re a cricket fan.’
‘I can’t stand it.’
‘I’ve never met a girl who couldn’t stand cricket before.’
‘Some girls lie.’
‘About liking cricket?’
‘It has been known,’ she assured him solemnly. Looking over his shoulder, she smiled broadly as she saw Jack in the doorway. Breaking free from her bewildered partner she waved to him. Jack waved back, then his face darkened. She turned, just in time to realise that Adam had seen Jack as well and was kissing Helen full on the lips.
Joe led the way to a table placed well away from the dance floor. He intended to dance as little as possible that evening, even if it meant quarrelling with Angela.
‘Waiter.’ Robin clicked his fingers. ‘Two whiskies and two brandies. No, on second thoughts make it four of each. Start the night as you mean to go on,’ he said to Joe, as the waiter left.
‘Too drunk to stand.’
‘I’m not supposed to tell you but Angie made quite an effort for you tonight. That gold lame dress of hers cost Pops an absolute fortune. It’s a genuine Balmain, whatever that means.’
‘I’m flattered.’
‘No need to be so bloody sarcastic.’
‘I wasn’t,’ Joe protested a little too vehemently.
‘So what changed your mind about the gorgeous Lily?’
‘For Christ’s sake stop calling her that.’
‘I won’t say another word. And here are the two most beautiful women in the world.’ Robin rose unsteadily from his chair and greeted Emily with a kiss. ‘I’ve ordered you two brandies. Each.’
‘That’s my boy.’ Emily sat beside Robin and leaned forward in her low-cut dress, a silver version of Angela’s that displayed her cleavage.
‘I always go weak at the knees whenever I see men in evening dress.’ Angela laid her hand over Joe’s.
‘Where are those drinks,’ Robin muttered impatiently.
‘Here, sir.’ The waiter laid eight coasters on the table.
‘Same again,’ Joe ordered recklessly, after following Robin’s example and downing one of his whiskies in a single swallow.
‘Shouldn’t you two slow down? It’s going to be a long evening.’
‘Why, Angie, this is a celebration, we’ve just finished our exams.’
‘There are other things in life besides alcohol.’
‘But few worth having.’ Robin laughed at his own joke as he tossed a ten-pound note on the waiter’s tray to cover the cost of the drinks.
Martin and Lily were so wrapped up in one another that the dance hall was in uproar before they realised anything was amiss. It was only when Helen screamed and Adam reeled across the room after Jack had punched him that they saw what was happening. Martin ran after Jack as he followed Adam. Sam was already between them, but so were two doormen. One grabbed Jack and pulled his hands high behind his back, while the other helped Adam to his feet.
‘We’ve had trouble with you before,’ the manager barked, staring at Jack.
‘I’m a police officer …’ Sam began.
‘Off duty, aren’t you, son.’ The manager gave Sam a patronising look.
‘Yes, but …’
‘We won’t need you. I’ve already telephoned the station.’
‘Please, can I talk to my husband?’ Helen was pale, but her voice was remarkably steady.
‘One of these is your husband?’ The manager was clearly unconvinced.
‘Yes.’ She looked at Jack, who turned away.
‘Ask the police when they come. Get the two of them into my office, stay with them until the police come and no visitors,’ he ordered the doormen.
‘Just so you and the missus know.’ Adam pushed his face as close to Jack’s as the doorman holding him would allow. ‘I’ve got my own back for that trick you pulled on your stag night. And frankly, mate, I don’t know what you see in her.’
‘I didn’t want to kiss him. He forced me,’ Helen cried, as the doorman dragged Jack, who was still trying to lash out at Adam, away.
‘I’ll go down the police station and see if I can sort something out, Helen,’ Martin consoled clumsily. He caught Sam’s eye and Sam shook his head doubtfully.
‘Jack saw me kissing Adam. I didn’t want to … but you saw Jack, he doesn’t believe me … I should never have danced with Adam …’
Martin drew Lily aside. ‘Get Helen and Judy home, love.’
‘And Jack?’
‘Sam will come with me down the station and if your uncle is on duty he may be able to help us. If we manage to get Jack out tonight, I’ll send him to Helen on his bike.’
She looked at Helen, white-faced, shaking as the shock of what had happened began to sink in. ‘Promise.’
‘I promise.’
‘Go, Joe! Go, Robin! Go, Joe! Go, Robin! Go, Joe …’
The chants of their fellow students resounded in Robin’s and Joe’s ears like medieval battle-cries as they stood opposite one another on high stools and downed mixed pints of whisky, beer and whatever else the boys had poured into the mugs.
Finishing his drink before Robin, Joe swayed precariously, then felt Angela’s hands steadying his legs.
‘And Joe is the winner.’ Thompson lifted him down just as he was about to fall. ‘For Joe’s a jolly good fellow …’
‘You all right?’ Angela asked, as he propped himself up on the bar.
‘Wonderful. You?’
‘Stupid question after what you’ve drunk. Joe, you know I adore you and I’d do anything for you. Will you please do one tiny thing for me?’
‘I’ll consider it.’
‘Stop drinking now,’ she begged. ‘We’ve both had enough. I’ll ask someone here to get us a taxi; we can go home to bed. Mums and Pops won’t mind you sleeping in mine. They adore you as much as I do …’
‘See you in a minute.’ Straightening his suit jacket, Joe brushed a couple of flecks of whisky from his lapel and walked out of the door. He knew he was drunk but he’d never been clearer in his mind in his life. The Watkin Morgans wanted him for a son-in-law and Angela wanted him for a husband because he had a substantial trust fund, a house in Langland, his grandmother’s money and good prospects. If Martin Clay had come knocking on their door after Angela, he would have been given the boot, yet Martin had the one girl in the world whom he loved – ‘had’ in every sense of the word.
To put it in Robin’s crude terms, Martin had taken Lily’s knickers down. The pure, virginal bride he had dreamed of marrying for over a year was soiled, damaged beyond repair. He had offered Lily everything he owned and she had thrown it back in his face for a common mechanic who lived in a rented basement.
And there was his father. He smiled grimly – both fathers; kind, generous John Griffiths who had never quite understood him and the bastard who was prepared to call his mother a whore to get out of the responsibility of having to own him. And his mother, who very probably was a whore …I’ll ask someone here to get us a taxi; we can go home to bed. Mums and Pops won’t mind you sleeping in mine. They adore you as much as I do … Was that his future – marriage to a girl as shallow, social-climbing and money-grubbing as his mother, with morals to match?
He walked out of the front door of the hotel and looked up and down High Street. A double-decker bus was coming towards him. He read the name on the front: Morriston. Only when he was certain the driver had no chance to stop did he step out in front of it.