Girl Crusoe by Margery Hilton

Author:Margery Hilton [Hilton, Margery]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780373101634
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 1982-01-14T18:30:00+00:00

CHAPTER FIVE

“JAN…”

The soft call whispered through the partition of palm leaves and

hung on the stillness of the night.

Jan’s eyes flickered open and she lay motionless, staring into the

heavy darkness. The pale luminosity of the nylon curtain gradually

took shape in her vision and she stirred uneasily, wondering if she

had dreamed that whispered name. Slowly she sank back on her

pillow, and from the other side of the partition Nick’s voice

repeated:

“Jan… are you awake?”

“Yes,” she said warily, “now.”

“Did I wake you?”

“Not really. I - I wasn’t properly asleep.”

“Dreaming?”

“No.” Her voice held a harsh undertone of bitterness. “I gave up

dreaming a long time ago.”

“A poor substitute for reality?”

“That’s as good a way of looking at it as any.”

A silence, then she heard him moving and the rasping flint sound

of his lighter. He said, “It is, provided you go along with the

reality.”

She said tartly: “You’re breaking your own rule.”

“How?”

“Smoking in bed.”

He laughed softly. “Rules are made to be broken. And I could

make something out of that careless little reproof of yours. But I’ll

spare you - after tonight.” Jan sighed in the darkness. She allowed

a pause to elapse before she said thoughtfully:

“Nick, tell me something.”

“Anything.”

“Why can’t men leave sex out of life for more than five minutes at

a time? I can - ”

“Five minutes is exaggerating a bit,” he interrupted. “Make it an

hour.”

She ignored the muffled note of amusement in the request and

went on: “I can go around with a man, talk with him, share a job of

work with him, without ever giving it a single thought. But a

man!” She gave an explosive sigh. “Even if he doesn’t make a pass

or try on the double-edged cross-talk it’s there all the time and he’s

wondering if it’s worth baiting the trap.”

There was a long silence on the other side of the partition,

followed by what sounded suspiciously like a smothered chuckle.

Then Nick said:

“Hasn’t anybody ever told you the answer?”

“I’ve never asked the question.”

A further hesitation, then, “Doesn’t that infallible oracle, feminine

intuition, supply the answer?”

She sniffed and turned over. “Oh, forget it, if you can’t be

serious.”

“Jan…”

“Well?”

“I am being serious, deadly so. How old are you?” Positive she

could still detect amusement in the question, she said sharply,

“What’s that got to do with it?”

“I’m not sure.”

“Then why ask?”

“Well, it’s keeping the conversation going.” Another smothered

chuckle.

“Oh, for heaven’s sake go to sleep!”

“I can’t. I’m worried now - about you.”

Like hell, you are, she thought. She pulled the parachute “sheet”

close to her chin and determinedly dug herself down into readiness

for sleep. She said softly: “Sleep well, Nick.”

The ticking of his watch came faintly and steadily from the top of

the crate where she had laid it, and she listened to it, unaware that

she was tending to hold her breath, for the counted seconds of half

a minute before she sighed and closed her eyes.

“You know, Jan, I don’t think I ever met such a mixed-up girl.

Ever.”

Jan’s eyes shot-open and her mouth formed an indignant “Oh!”

She sat up furiously, temporarily speechless. Mixed-up! What the

devil did he …?

“I was just beginning to think I was learning to rub along with you,

and then - wham! The equator begins to feel it’s shifted to

Antarctica.

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