completely relaxed about it.â
âAm I?â
âAll you can think about now is enjoying yourself with me,â she persisted, meeting his eyes urgently and trying to convey her message. âHold me close and look deep into my eyes, as though I was all you cared about in the world.â
If onlyâ¦
He nodded, understanding and following her lead with a good deal of skill. The house was tiny and âdancingâ consisted mainly of taking small steps from side to side, but that, too, was useful, because their âaudienceâ had a close-up view of the performance.
âSmile,â she whispered, favouring him with a dazzling smile of her own. âPretend Iâm Sylvia.â
He managed to stretch his lips, although his eyes were still blank. Dee raised her head so that her mouth was closer to his, not kissing, but conveying the impression that she would kiss him if they were alone.
Suddenly she clutched her head and said, âOh, Iâve got such a headache.â
âItâs getting late,â Helen said. âItâs been a nice evening, butââ
Obediently, everyone began to drift off. It wasnât really late at all, but everyone knew âsomething was upâ.
âShame Sylvia couldnât make it,â someone murmured. âI wonder what kept her.â
There were several curious looks at Mark, then everyone was gone.
âRight, what is it?â Helen demanded, looking from one to the other. âWhat are you two keeping a secret?â
âSylviaâs gone away, Mum,â Dee said. âShe left a letter.â
Mark handed it over and Helen read it, her face becoming like stone.
âSheâs with a man,â she said harshly. âMy daughterâs a bad girl?â She glared at Mark. âWhat do you know about this? Why didnât you stop her?â
âBecause I didnât know.â
âYouâre supposed to have been courting her all this time. Why didnât you protect her?â
Dee forced herself to be silent. She longed to cry out that someone should have protected Mark from Sylviaâs treachery, but he would have hated that. She contented herself with saying, âWhy donât you save your anger for Phil?â
âJust who is he?â Helen demanded.
âI think I saw him once, when I went to collect her from the shop,â Mark said. âThey were giggling together. We had a row about it.â
Suddenly Helen burst into sobs. Dee moved towards her, but her father appeared from the doorway where heâd been hovering and signalled for them to go. She left them in each otherâs arms, while she and Mark went out into the garden.
Once outside, Mark leaned against the wall, dazed like a man in a nightmare.
âWe canât just leave it there,â he said. âI have to find her, but I donât know how.â
âShe said she was already far away,â Dee recalled. âTheyâll probably know more at the shop. Itâs my half-day tomorrow. Iâll go over and see what I can find out.â
âShall I come with you?â he asked quietly.
She knew what it cost him to make the suggestion, for she felt everything with him: the pain of revealing himself as the rejected one, the shame of admitting how heâd been deceived, the awareness of smothered grins. Her heart ached for him.
âItâs best if I go alone,â she assured him. âTheyâll talk more freely to me.â
âThank you.â That was all he said, but she knew heâd divined her understanding and was grateful.
She went to the shop the next day and returned home that evening with a heavy heart.
âThey all know Phil,â she said. âHeâs the rep for a clothing firm so he was in and out quite a lot, and they got to know each other.â
âBut why did they run away?â Helen asked wretchedly. âWhy not just get married?â
âThey