The Waters of Love Read online

  “How brilliant of you. How ever did you find this magnificent ship?”

  “I thought we had a better chance of seeing Europe this way than any other. I have been on a journey on one of these ships before, where I found the food was excellent and the service good and as we are exploring the world for ourselves, we might as well be comfortable about it.”

  “I still think I am dreaming,” sighed Lexia. “Have we really managed to escape?”

  “I certainly hope so. I expect your father is still at the meet, which will go on for hours and the servants who gossip in my house will have no idea where I really am. At least, I sincerely hope not.”

  “And now our great adventure starts.”

  The Marquis nodded.

  “This is the kind of adventure I used to dream about when I was eighteen,” he said. “Now, at last, my dream has come true.”

  “Nonsense! exclaimed Lexia. “You must have had lots of exciting things happen to you – far more than me – a man always does. Oh, if only we can be successful! It would be too terrible to come back empty-handed.”

  “We will have only ourselves to blame if we do. By the way, I think we should keep out of sight until we are out to sea, which I gather will be in about half-an-hour.”

  He walked to the porthole.

  “I can see people coming on board now. Cross your fingers that they won’t guess who we really are.”

  “If they are holidaymakers they won’t be concerned with anyone but themselves,” observed Lexia.

  “That’s true enough. Who will worry about two unimportant people, who have nothing to recommend them but their appearance?”

  Lexia laughed.

  “I thought you were going to say their pockets. You booked us the most expensive accommodation.”

  “I could hardly expect you to travel any other way, especially if you want to meet congenial company, perhaps even a future husband.”

  “I suppose I shouldn’t ask too much, but you never know! Perhaps the Gods will be on our side and we will find exactly what we are seeking.”

  “At the very least,” he said, “just being with people who have no idea who we are will be a change and if we want to be convincing, we too should forget our true identities. If our enterprise succeeds we may live happily ever after. But if we fail – you know what will happen.”

  Lexia nodded.

  “Marriage,” she murmured darkly. “To each other.”

  They both shuddered.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  When Lexia and Annie had put all her clothes away it was time to dress for dinner.

  She was in a mood to celebrate, so she chose a gown of pale green silk, with matching lace flounces. Around her neck she wore a three-stranded gold chain.

  She knew that she looked her best and she saw it in the Marquis’s eyes when he came to collect her.

  He himself was fine in evening clothes and she wondered why he had not been able to find a woman to love him for himself. Surely a man so handsome must draw all eyes.

  They walked to the upper deck where the dining room was situated and he escorted her to her chair. They were seated by a window, through which she could see that the coast was already out of sight and the sun was setting on the water.

  “Now that we have a moment to breathe,” began Lexia excitedly, “I want to know everything. So far, all you’ve told me is that we are going to the Mediterranean.”

  “We’ll be crossing the Bay of Biscay tonight,” he replied, “then going South to our first stop in Gibraltar and after that we’ll hug the coast of Spain for a while and stop in Valencia. From there we will go straight on to Greece.”

  “Greece?” she echoed. “How wonderful. I have always wanted to see that country. Will we be there long?”

  “We have one day in Athens and two days touring the Greek islands.”

  Lexia gave a cry.

  “The islands! They have always sounded so romantic and exciting.”

  “And of course, one of them belongs to Apollo, the God of Love.”

  “It gets more thrilling every moment,” cried Lexia. “I had no idea, when we escaped, that you would be so clever as to find a ship which was going to all the places I have always wanted to visit.”

  “It was just a bit of luck,” confessed the Marquis, “but I do agree with you that we have been very fortunate.”

  “What happens after that?”

  “After Greece we begin the journey back and we will stop in different ports than we did on the way out – Sicily, Naples, Monte Carlo.”

  “The perfect trip,” she sighed blissfully.

  “I hope so. Now, let’s have something to eat.”

  As they studied the menu she murmured,

  “Did you manage to settle things with your creditors?”

  “I sent most of the money to London to be put into the hands of the man who handles my affairs and he will see to everything. The rest of the money I used to book our tickets on this ship.”

  “So I sent you enough?”

  “It was far more than I expected,” he said uneasily. “In fact I had a big shock when I saw the amount.”

  Lexia had a feeling of walking on thin ice. Any mention of her vast wealth was awkward for him and she was not quite sure how to make it less so.

  Somehow the lessons in etiquette she had received never seemed to cover this kind of situation.

  “Frank, please don’t feel badly about the money. You will be spending most of it on me.”

  “I am glad to hear it.”

  “As you did when you bought our travel tickets,” she hurried on, “and you will be paying all our expenses, which is why – ”

  She took a deep breath.

  “I have brought some more money with me and I want you to take it, because I wouldn’t feel safe carrying it about myself.”

  To her relief he laughed.

  “Lexia, the diplomatic service lost a genius in you!”

  His eyes told her that he had understood her desperate attempts at tact and appreciated them.

  “I promise you,” he declared stoutly, “that somehow, some day, I will pay you back.”

  “I don’t want you to,” said Lexia at once. “It is I who am in your debt for coming with me. I could never have made this trip alone and you have made it possible and the money is my contribution.”

  She then rather spoiled her effect by adding comically,

  “Besides we are in this mess together and if we can get out of it without disaster, then what does it matter who pays the bills?”

  The Marquis laughed.

  “Thank you a million times. It is no use pretending that I am not grateful, because I am.”

  “Well I did rather blackmail you into coming with me, didn’t I?”

  “Yes,” he agreed promptly and they both chuckled.

  A waiter hovered beside them.

  “Mr. Malcolm?”

  When the Marquis did not react, Lexia said hastily,

  “Yes, this is Mr. Malcolm.”

  “Are you ready to give me your order now, sir?”

  “Yes,” he said hurriedly, frowning at Lexia to stop her laughing.

  When the waiter had gone she giggled,

  “Who was it told me not to forget my new identity?”

  He grinned sheepishly.

  “You’d think I would have remembered, wouldn’t you? I am so glad to get rid of the title for a while.

  “You see, I have always been bullied about my position and the first thing I remember was being told I was too important to do this and that. When I grew older they told me that, as I was so important, I must do this and I must do that and all the things I really didn’t want to do. But now just for a short time, let me forget it!”

  He paused thoughtfully, before he added,

  “In fact I intend to enjoy this trip as I have never enjoyed anything before and I want you to do the same.”

  “And I am going to have the time of my life,” said Lexia, her eyes s
parkling.

  He regarded her tenderly.

  “You look so pretty when you make a remark like that,” he told her, “that I am sure any man would be at your feet in no time.”

  “I do hope so and I want you to be lucky too. You must have a look at the girls on board and be very careful to fall in love with the right one and not be swept off your feet by the first beauty who smiles at you.”

  “I promise not to be, ma’am.”

  “You must have had plenty of experience of beauties smiling at you,” she observed cheekily. “Well, I know you have, because I saw for myself at Lady Overton’s.”

  “But the beauties will think I am just plain Mr. Malcolm,” he reminded her. “So perhaps they won’t bother to smile.”

  There was no danger of that, she thought. He was easily the most attractive man in the restaurant.

  Then a startling idea came to her. She gasped and put her hands to her cheeks.

  “Lexia, what is it?” he asked at once.

  “Oh, Frank, I’ve just had the most terrible thought.”

  “For goodness sake, tell me.”

  “I can’t bear to. It’s so awful – ”

  He went pale.

  “I beg you not to keep me in suspense. Tell me at once if some new danger has occurred to you.”

  “The worst danger of all,” she moaned.

  “Tell me!”

  “We are embarking on this trip,” she said solemnly, “in an attempt to find love as ourselves, not a man with a title and a woman with money, but just as people. In doing so, we shall discover our true worth in the eyes of others.”

  She took a deep breath.

  “Frank, have you thought of what we might discover?”

  She dropped her voice melodramatically.

  “Suppose we have no worth!”

  For a moment he stared at her and then he sat back in his chair, blowing out his cheeks and covering his eyes with his hands.

  “Lexia, don’t scare me like that.”

  She grinned impishly at him.

  “You are a terrible, terrible girl,” he scolded, trying to sound severe through his laughter.

  “I know I am. I just can’t help it. And actually, it’s something we ought to consider. We just blithely assumed everyone would want us anyway. Suppose they don’t?”

  He nodded.

  “We might find out that we are nothing without our worldly advantages. What a shocking prospect! Let’s immediately drink champagne and banish the thought.”

  He began to laugh again and she joined in.

  Suddenly she knew a moment of pure happiness, such as she had never known before. To be sitting here and laughing with him was the nicest thing she had ever done.

  “We’re both crazy,” he exclaimed.

  “Yes,” she agreed happily. “Yes, we are.”

  He filled both their glasses with champagne and raised his. She raised hers and they clinked.

  “To us,” he toasted. “To our escape and above all, to the future.”

  *

  It was night when they passed through the Bay of Biscay and the passage was less rough than Lexia had feared.

  In fact after the first hour when Lexia stayed awake because she was a little nervous, she fell into a pleasant dreamless sleep.

  She awoke just as the ship was gliding into Gibraltar.

  ‘So far, so good,’ she told herself. ‘We have escaped and everything has gone so well so far.’

  She had breakfast in her cabin, thinking it wiser not to go exploring without Frank, as she now thought of him. In fact she was dressed and growing a little impatient when he arrived.

  “Good morning!” he called. “As I expect you’ve seen through the porthole, it’s a lovely morning with lots of sunshine.”

  “Are we going ashore?” she asked eagerly.

  “No, I think we must give up that pleasure. There are too many English ships here and too much chance of us being recognised.”

  “You being recognised,” she asserted. “Your face must be better known than mine. Are you sure no one has seen you?”

  “Quite sure. But since we dare not go ashore, why don’t we spend the day exploring the ship? It’s so big that it will be almost as good as exploring a City.”

  Lexia found that he was right. The Maybelle was built to carry over a thousand passengers and five hundred crew and was equipped with five restaurants, a variety of shops and a theatre.

  There was even a shop selling English newspapers, which they picked up in various ports.

  “But the ones they will buy in Gibraltar will be two days old,” he explained. “So, even if our flight has been discovered, we won’t be in the newspapers yet.”

  Lexia shuddered.

  “Don’t. I don’t even want to think about it.”

  A memory came back to her.

  “Now that you are here let me give you the money to look after, as we agreed last night.”

  But when she took it out things began to go wrong.

  “Two thousand pounds!” he exclaimed horrified. “I had no idea you were talking about so much.”

  “It’s the same as before – ”

  “That was different. That was to set this trip up and pay necessary expenses, but – this – I am sorry Lexia, I cannot explain – I cannot take this kind of money from you.”

  There was a look of revulsion on his face that alarmed her. Money meant so little to her that she had not quite appreciated just how the lack of it felt to him, but she sensed that if she put another foot wrong there would be a disaster.

  “You are right,” she agreed. “I will keep it. This drawer locks and it will be quite safe.”

  She locked the money back in the drawer and turned to him smiling. He smiled back, although it looked a little forced, as she guessed did her own.

  They both had the feeling of having come to the edge of a cliff and only just escaped.

  “Let’s go and take a walk,” he proposed.

  For the next hour they enjoyed a stroll in the sunshine from one end of the ship to another.

  “I think it would be a good idea to look in at the Purser’s Office,” suggested the Marquis. “I have had an idea that might help us.”

  Once in the office he enquired casually,

  “I suppose there is no chance of my having a look at the passenger list, just in case I spot any of my friends?”

  “I am not really supposed to do that,” the Purser began to say.

  A note changed hands – the list appeared and the Purser left the room.

  The Marquis quickly ran his eyes down the two hundred and fifty First Class passengers and heaved a sigh of relief.

  “No names that I recognise, but I suppose I should check the rest.”

  Two hundred Second Class and six hundred Third class passengers failed to produce any cause for concern.

  Relieved, they were about to depart when the Purser returned.

  “Thank you,” said the Marquis. “I found nobody.”

  “What a shame! Lord and Lady Allerton were supposed to come on this sailing, but at the last moment they changed their minds.”

  “Indeed?” replied the Marquis, glassy-eyed. “How interesting! Good day to you!”

  Seizing Lexia’s arm he ushered her firmly out of the office.

  “Frank, what is it?”

  “We’ve just escaped disaster by the skin of our teeth. Allerton is one of my oldest friends.”

  As if by a signal they grasped each other’s hands and began to run and did not stop until they reached the deck.

  “Why are we running?” Frank asked her as they reached the rail. “It can make no difference now.”

  “I just feel safer up here in the open air,” Lexia told him. “What a narrow escape!”

  “Well, it proves that Providence is on our side. Now let us cast care aside and promenade on the deck until we have calmed down.”

  They made a handsome couple strolling in the sun and many admiring glances w
ere cast at them, both from men and women.

  “I must say, I am not impressed by anyone I can see,” the Marquis remarked. “I don’t think I could approve of you associating with any of them.”

  “You couldn’t approve – ?”

  “Do not forget that you are my sister and I have to look after you and protect you from the men who would pursue you.”

  Lexia laughed.

  “You take your duties very seriously, Frank, but please remember that I have to look after you in the same way.”

  The Marquis chuckled.

  “You protect me and I will protect you. This is the start of chapter one in the most exciting drama there has ever been.”

  “You must tell me when you reach the last chapter, if the book will be a success or a failure,” she asked him.

  “It will be the success we make it, which means that our success is assured.”

  “I only hope you are right,” replied Lexia.

  “You will learn I am always right and I intend to continue being so.”

  *

  As twilight fell the ship pulled out of Gibraltar and began the trip to Valencia. Lexia was looking forward to seeing that City, but first she had something else in mind.

  “The ship has a casino,” she told Frank. “Let’s have dinner early and then go and play.”

  “Gambling? I am not sure that I approve.”

  “Nonsense! In my brother’s company I shall be perfectly respectable.”

  “Just the same – ” he teased.

  “I shall stamp on your foot any minute!” she threatened.

  “In that case, I give in.”

  The casino was a blaze of light and colour as Lexia entered on the Marquis’s arm with a skip in her step and looked around her thrilled.

  She had dressed a little more daringly tonight in an off-the-shoulder gown of deep blue. Sapphires adorned her throat and ears.

  Her hair had been dressed more extravagantly than usual with three perky little blue feathers springing from her elaborate coiffure. It had taken her a while to get those feathers right and Annie had had to change them several times.

  “I want to look adventurous,” she had said with relish.

  And it had taken her three feathers to look as adventurous as she wanted and she would have preferred four, but Annie flatly refused, saying four would make her look like a hussy.