Read Online Women and War by Janet Tanner - Free Book Online

somewhere?’
    Alys thought briefly of her mother’s freezing disapproval, weighed it against the pleasure of being with Race, and made up her mind.
    â€˜I’d love to. Will you pick me up?’
    â€˜Yes. About half past two.’
    â€˜All right. I’ll be looking out for you so that you don’t have to face Mummy.’
    It was a perfect afternoon with a brisk breeze blowing puffs of white cloud across the sky, blue as morning glories, and whipping up matching white frills on the sea. In St George’s Road the English trees provided patches of shade but the sun shone bright and harsh on the houses, bouncing off roofs and stuccoed white walls with a brilliance that was hurtful to the eyes.
    â€˜Where are we going?’ Alys asked as Race turned the Morgan down over the hill and the vista of Melbourne, roofs and spires, patches of green amid the grey, spread out beneath them.
    He executed a racing change. ‘I had thought of Phillip Island – to see the fairy penguins and the seals.’
    â€˜Oh yes, they’re sweet …’ she broke off. ‘Wait a minute – you’re the crafty one, aren’t you? The penguins don’t parade until dusk, on their way back to their burrows in the sand dunes after a hard day’s fishing. That’s just an excuse. You want to go to Phillip Island because of the race track!’
    He laughed. ‘No, honestly, I hadn’t given it a thought. Though I have to admit it’s because of the race track that I know about Phillip Island. People from my background don’t have as much time to go out looking at wild life as you do.’
    There was a tiny, awkward silence. It was the first time he had mentioned the difference in their lifestyles.
    â€˜On the other hand,’ Race said, ‘we could just go up to the Dandenongs. But wherever it is, we’d better make the most of it. This could be the last time for outings in the Morgan.’ She turned to look at him in alarm and he gave an elaborate shrug. ‘It’s the one asset I’ve got. If I can’t get the money from anywhere else, I shall have to sell the Morgan.’
    â€˜Oh Race, you can’t do that!’ she protested.
    â€˜Don’t make it harder for me. I don’t want to, of course. But I’m damned determined to get into Grand Prix racing and if the only way I can do it is to sell the Morgan, then the Morgan has to go.’
    His tone frightened her. Yes, she had known he was determined but never before had he struck her as ruthless. If he could get rid of the Morgan which he loved so much then he would sweep aside any obstacle which he found in his way. Admirable, but also a little scary.
    â€˜Anyway, let’s not talk about it now. Why spoil a lovely afternoon? And let’s make it the Dandenongs, shall we?’ he said.
    They left Melbourne, heading east and with the wind in her hair Alys felt herself relaxing. The country, open and green, not yet scorched to match the colour of the sandy earth, quickly became rolling hills fringed with forests. Race turned the Morgan into a narrow track where the sun, filtering through the high and spidery branches of the trees, made sparkling patterns of heat on the dusty ground. On and on it went, winding now and then around a knoll of higher ground, rising and dipping, then suddenly opening out to reveal a reserve where the bush, virgin in appearance, surrounded a small clear water lake. Race pulled the Morgan off the track onto a patch of scrub and turned off the engine.
    â€˜Who wants to go all the way to Phillip Island when it’s nice so close to home?’ He put his arm around her, his touch light on her warm skin. ‘Anyway, it’s you I want to see, not a penguin, fairy or otherwise.’
    Warmth trickled through her veins, but she smiled at him teasingly, pulled away and clambered nimbly over the side of the Morgan.
    â€˜Come on, I’m going to