Free To Touch the Clouds : The Frontier Series 5 by Peter Watt Page A

trees was mixed with the raised voice of the housemaid chiding her young assistant over the matter of the cooking fire going out.
    The previous evening spent with Albert Schumann celebrating their final agreement for a cargo hold of copra had taken its toll on Alex. He had a hangover and wished that he had not been so lax in watching his alcohol intake. But Herr Schumann had invited neighbouring planters to share in the celebration of the contract with the Macintosh companies. Alex had a vague memory of spending as much time as he could in the company of Giselle until he was steered away to speak with Schumann’s guests.
    Alex stumbled to a bureau on which a porcelain dish containing warm water stood and fumbled for his razor and shaving brush. Lathering the stick of soap, he shaved, using his reflection in the mirror fixed to the wall behind the bureau to guide his hand. With water from another dish he wiped the soap from his face and combed his hair. Finishedwith his morning preparations he made his way through the rambling house to the dining room where he was met by Albert Schumann and Giselle at their breakfast. He was greeted warmly.
    ‘It will be a pity to see you leave us, Herr Macintosh,’ Schumann said, looking up from a plate of sausages and eggs. ‘You have now been with us for almost three weeks and will always be welcome to visit us in the future. I will ensure that we see you off before you depart today but I must excuse myself for the moment to attend to plantation matters.’
    Alex nodded and sat down at the large, polished table decorated with sprays of colourful tropical flowers. Giselle sat opposite him, nibbling on a slice of bread and jam. Alex smiled weakly at her, agonising over whether he had acted foolishly the night before.
    ‘If you are wondering, Mr Macintosh,’ Giselle said when her father had left them alone in the dining room, ‘you were the perfect gentleman last night – despite the amount of alcohol you had consumed.’
    Alex blinked at her in surprise. It was as if she were reading his mind. ‘I, ah, was not sure,’ he said, poking at a plate of eggs placed before him by the housemaid who immediately left the room. ‘I think your father has bested me in the deal. I was attempting to drink away the thought that I will have to face my brother George in Sydney and explain why we have paid so much for the cargo.’
    ‘It would not have anything to do with currying favour with my father, would it?’ Giselle asked with the trace of a smile on her face.
    Alex knew exactly what she was alluding to. His interest in her over the weeks must have been very obvious, he cursed himself. He had already surmised that a youngwoman of such beauty and poise must have many suitors in her life.
    ‘No,’ he sighed, pushing aside the uneaten eggs and reaching for a ripe mango in a silver dish on the table. ‘I do not have much aptitude in business dealings. That is the domain of my brother. No doubt he will have me on the carpet for the deal but I don’t particularly care. At least the voyage brought me to a place where I could meet you.’
    ‘I am surprised that we did not meet in Sydney,’ Giselle said with a twinkle in her eye. ‘But I suppose you have little to do with the German community there.’
    Alex sliced at the mango, peeling away the skin to expose the succulent yellow flesh. Juice ran down his fingers. ‘Strangely, we do have a lot of contact with the German community in Sydney,’ Alex replied. ‘My family has many business dealings with German agencies and this deal was organised from Sydney with a German broker.’
    ‘Well, it is indeed a pity that we did not meet in Sydney,’ Giselle said. ‘Then you could have taken me on picnics and to the theatre and also to the pictures to see your sister on the screen. I like her performances.’
    Despite the throbbing in his head, her words penetrated sufficiently to make him forget his hangover. There was a mutual attraction but