CHAPTER TWO

      AS THE gleaming Citroën turned into the road leading to Acajou Beach, Claire leaned eagerly forward to catch the first glimpse of her parents’ house. For the present even her hostility towards Alain was forgotten as she scanned the dense thickets of scarlet bougainvillaea, yellow hibiscus and flapping green banana trees that hid most of the houses from view. Then, as they neared the last few buildings near the turquoise water, she let out a low cry of delight.

      ‘That’s it!’

      Like Alain’s house, it had a hedge of red ginger plants in the front garden, but there the resemblance ended. While the Beaumonts’ home might be casual and welcoming, it was undoubtedly rather shabby. The paint was peeling, weeds grew almost as profusely as flowers around the boundary fence and there was a large rusty bath sitting like a wrecked ship on the front lawn. Claire felt herself tensing uncomfortably as Alain turned into the uneven driveway. It was bad enough that he disapproved of her so violently, without the added humiliation of having him despise her home and family. She could only hope that he would drop her off quickly and make his departure. Unfortunately Alain did nothing of the kind.

      As the car came to halt, there was a sudden flurry of activity from within the house. Marie Rose, a large, buxom girl with a resonant voice, burst out of the front door, shrieking joyfully ‘They’re here! They’re here!’ She was almost tripped up by a tan-coloured mongrel of doubtful parentage that surged down the steps, yelping wildly, and hurtled towards Claire like a prize steeplechaser. There was an outburst of hugs and kisses, barks and licks.

      ‘Oh, Claire, it’s so good to see you!’ cried Marie Rose. ‘I’m sorry Paul couldn’t be here. There are some problems with the new hotel buildings on Moorea, but you’ll meet him tomorrow. Oh, I’ve got so much to tell you!’

      From inside the house there was the sound of slamming doors and more hurrying footsteps. Then suddenly Claire found herself in the midst of a human—and animal—throng with everyone talking at once and hugging her warmly, while the dog pirouetted around like a demented ballerina. When at last she was able to draw breath, she tidied her hair with one hand and held down the lunging family pet with the other.

      ‘Oh, it’s so good to see you all!’ she cried. ‘You can’t imagine how I’ve missed you.’

      ‘We’ve missed you too,’ a little girl without any front teeth assured her earnestly. ‘But I’ve missed you the most of all, because I’ve never even met you!’

      That made everybody laugh and Claire was quick to fall to her knees to give the child another hug.

      ‘Then you must be my cousin Nicole,’ she said. ‘And it’s very nice to meet you at last.’

      ‘It’s nice to meet you too,’ agreed Nicole pertly. ‘And we’re having barbecued pig for dinner because you’ve come home. A whole pig!’

      ‘Cooked the traditional way in a pit,’ agreed Claire’s father. ‘Just the way you always liked it best, chérie.’

      His hands rested warmly on Claire’s shoulders and he smiled down at her. She felt an uncomfortable tremor of emotion pass through her as she looked up at him. For there were so many coils of silver in Roland Beaumont’s hair, so many extra wrinkles that hadn’t been there when she left home. And, although he was still as massive and powerfully built as ever, the faint bluish tinge around his lips and the slight wheeze when he breathed, alarmed her considerably.

      ‘Oh, Papa!’ she exclaimed with a catch in her voice. ‘How kind of you! Thank you.’

      ‘You will stay and help us eat it, won’t you, Alain?’ continued Roland as warmly as if Alain were a member of the family. ‘You’ll be very welcome.’

      ‘But Papa!’ protested Claire. ‘I just wanted a quiet family gathering.’

      A sudden hush fell on the group and Claire was instantly conscious of her father’s frown and her mother’s horrified pantomime of disapproval. Realising how rude she had sounded, she stammered a reluctant apology.

      ‘S-sorry. I didn’t mean it quite like that. It’s just that I’m exhausted from the flight and I’m sure Alain has better things to do. Although naturally I’d be delighted if he would stay.’

      She fixed her gaze steadily on Alain, willing him to decline. But his blue eyes met hers with cruel amusement and a small, taunting smile played around the corners of his mouth.

      ‘Well, if you’d be delighted for me to stay, Claire,’ he murmured, ‘I can hardly refuse, can I? Thank you very much for the invitation.’

      As Claire’s mother ushered them all into the house, she gave her elder daughter a warning look.

      ‘I’ll just help Claire get settled in her room,’ she said brightly. ‘Then we’ll all come out on the patio and have a drink together.’

      The moment the bedroom door had closed behind them, Eve Beaumont shook her head in dismay.

      ‘Whatever came over you, Claire?’ she demanded. ‘How could you make Alain feel so unwelcome? What a dreadful thing to do, especially when he’s been so good and kind to us!’

      ‘What do you mean, good and kind?’ muttered Claire.

      Eve sighed. Watching her closely, Claire saw that her mother’s blonde hair was fading imperceptibly to silver and that there were lines of strain around her mouth.

      ‘Well, he and Marie Rose’s fiancé are like brothers,’ she explained. ‘And even though we haven’t seen much of Alain, he’s always been very kind when we have had dealings with him. Nothing is ever too much trouble for him. You know I don’t drive and he’s been wonderful about taking your father to the hospital for his medical check-ups. And when your Papa was too sick to take a four-wheel-drive tour into the mountains, Alain arranged for a substitute driver for two weeks and wouldn’t accept any payment for it. So I think the least you can do is be polite to him.’

      Claire bit her lip guiltily. However much she might resent Alain herself, the quarrel certainly had nothing to do with the rest of her family. Setting down her bag, she gave her mother a quick, awkward hug.

      ‘I’m sorry,’ she said with more sincerity than she had shown earlier. ‘I didn’t mean to cause trouble and I promise I’ll be nice to Alain.’

      ‘That’s my girl!’ replied Eve, catching her in a warm embrace. ‘Now, come on, let’s go out and see if we can produce a decent party!’

      By lunchtime everyone agreed that they