Expensive Halo by Josephine Tey

Author:Josephine Tey [Tey, Josephine]
Language: eng
Format: epub

“Doesn’t what?”

Gareth leaned over and kissed her on the mouth. He did it without expression, as if a compulsion outside him had bent his body over to her. As he straightened himself realisation woke in him. “I’m sorry,” he said stupidly.

“You should never apologise for kissing a woman. It’s adding insult to injury. You’ve spilt my cocktail.”

“I’m terribly sorry!” Gareth said desperately. “Really, I’m terribly sorry!”

“It doesn’t matter. I hate the frock anyhow.”

“I didn’t mean the frock.”

“Well, you should have meant the frock.” She looked up at him in the process of rubbing the stain, and laughed. “My dear Gareth, don’t look so abashed. One would think you had never kissed anyone but your mother and your fiancée!”

“I haven’t.”

“If it weren’t for the practical demonstration I shouldn’t believe it. You’ll have to take a course. I should speak to Molly, if I were you.”

“Don’t laugh at me!” Gareth burst out. “Don’t laugh at me—please! I can’t bear it. I adore you. I can’t think of anything but you since that first night at Raoul’s. I worship you, and you just think of me as a poor little beast of a musician who amuses you because he’s different. I can’t bear it. I wrote that thing for you, and hoped that that would get it off my chest, but it just goes on getting worse. Every time I see you it gets worse. At the concert yesterday I couldn’t think of anything but you. I knew you were just being nice to me. I knew I was a fool, but I couldn’t help it. And I didn’t want to help it, somehow, because it was so wonderful being with you. It was something that might never happen again. I’ve never known anyone like you. I never meant to kiss you, or to say all the things I’m saying now. I know I’m crazy, and I’m going before you throw me out.”

“Gareth, my dear—” she said, rising.

“Oh, don’t be kind to me, for God’s sake. That would be the last—”

“Gareth, be quiet.” She caught him by the shoulders as he was turning away, and swung him round to face her. “Listen to me. You are the loveliest thing that ever happened in my life. If anything could make me believe in the essential decency of things it would be you. Don’t you think I have felt all that too? Why, these last days the whole world has been different. I’ve even suffered fools gladly because you happen to be alive. When I walked into Regan’s that morning, and saw you, something happened to me that never happened before. And everything has been—new, ever since. I’ve done all the old boring things and found them beautiful, just because somewhere in London you were doing something too.”

“Ursula! It’s not true.”

“No? Do you think I’m being unmaidenly and immodest just for fun!”

“Do you mean—? Do you actually mean—”

His voice died away. It would be like blasphemy to say it aloud.

“Yes, I mean just that. Are

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