Then you will have to talk to me, Mrs. Bryant,” Gerald said. “No one else seems to wish for my company tonight.”
He took another brandy, picked up a large cigar and strolled from the dining room onto the verandah.
“Come and sit down,” he said, pointing to one of the big wicker armchairs filled with cushions, “and tell me the story of your life.”
He spoke with a slightly mocking air and yet Lydia felt that in some extraordinary way he was embarrassed by this tête-à-tête that had not been of his seeking.
Ann’s bedroom, like her mother’s, looked out onto another side of the house and only Lydia’s was above the verandah and there was no chance of their being overheard.
‘Shall I tell him about Ann?’ she thought. ‘I cannot take the responsibility of this all by myself.’
But before she coul
