She drew a deep breath. There was nothing for it but to plead for time in giving him her answer. If the situation was hopeless there was time enough to tell him the truth, and she wanted to put this obnoxious task off for as long as possible. 1 there are reasons why I can't give you an answer not straight away,' she added quickly, as she saw a flash of anger in his eyes. Then she said on a note of panic, 'Getting married isn't like going out to the supermarket !' She hesitated; that had been a stupid remark, but it did convey exactly how she felt. 'What I'm trying to say is, there are other people to consider.' Not least the person who should have been sitting right where she was at that precise time ! she thought cryptically.

  His lips thinned into a sardonic smile. 'Where we are concerned, your description was exceedingly apt,' he replied dryly. 'I gather you want to contact someone before committing yourself ? I must say,' he went on, studying her with cold disdain, 'you surprise me. This is a business arrangement; under the circumstances it can be nothing else. I'm asking nothing more from you than your signature on a marriage

  ISLAND FIESTA 27 document. Apart from having the same outlook where our personal freedom is concerned, we have absolutely nothing in common with each other,' he added haughtily. 'I do not know how long we shall have to wait for an annulment, but I can assure you that I shall seek one at the earliest opportunity.' His cold look swept over the startled Corinne. 'I think Gabriel rather overrated our charms, and we must be thankful that he did not impose any awkward clauses, apart from marriage, in his will.'

  Corinne felt the flush stain her cheeks and quickly bent her head and focused her attention on her hands tightly folded together in her lap. She was very well aware of his meaning, and he must have had a shock when he had first seen her. He had been expecting a beauty and had found himself staring at a mousy, nondescript girl. She swallowed. No wonder he was anxious to obtain an annulment ! She wondeied what his reaction would have been if Clair had come as she should have done, and was certain that his attitude would have been an entirely different one.

  Here again she was forced to agree with old Gabriel's reasoning. Juan Martel was a very attractive man. Corinne did not like him, but she had to acknowledge this, and kneW instinctively that Clair would have been very interested in him still would be, she thought musingly, if she could get a flight out there.

  Clair's blonde beauty and Juan Martel's dark good looks would go well together, quite apart from the fact that they were both fortune-seekers as well as pleasure-seekers. This thought made her feel a little better, for his bald comments, no matter how obliquely put, had hurt her, and she couldn't understand

  28 ISLAND FIESTA why. She was not normally apt to take offence at such remarks, not that any had been made in the past, and if they had, she would have shrugged them off with an amused smile.

  Corinne was not aware of the fact that there were different grades of beauty, and that she was well qualified to claim a place in the grading. She had not noticed that though Clair would invariably draw the immediate notice of the male sex, it was herself who received the longer look. There was a quality about her and a serenity that was both attractive and appealing to the opposite sex. She certainly did not come under the nondescript label that she had given herself.

  Her finely shaped arched brows, that were nature's gift and owed nothing to beauty aids, and her wide dark blue eyes that expressed her feelings so clearly, placed her far above the low rating she had attached to herself. Her short, straight nose, that Gabriel had remarked upon, and in which he had been perfectly correct, for Clair had inherited her mother's classical features, emphasised Corinne's femininity. A wide generous mouth set in a heart shaped face completed a picture that was entirely pleasing to the eye, as even the fastidious Juan Martel would have acknowledged.

  'I regret, however, that we do not possess a telephone,' Juan said, after the short pause that had followed his last rather cutting remarks. 'Gabriel refused to have one installed here, insisting on a modicum of peace in his home but that is beside the point. I do know of a public booth that you could use.' He stood up at this point. 'As I need to know your answer tonight, I shall escort you there.'

  ISLAND FIESTA 29

  After the first quick flow of relief that Corinne had felt at this helpful attitude of Juan Martel, she wondered if he realised that she would be ringing someone in England, and not someone in Las Palmas. She gave him an apologetic look as she got up from her chair. 'Thank you,' she said gravely. 'It's not a local call, you understand, so perhaps the hotel '

  He gave a curt nod as he ushered her to the door. 'I had gathered that,' he replied coldly, and gave her a hard stare. 'I wondered why you had no luggage with you. You booked into an hotel, did you ?'

  Corinne looked away from his cold stare. She ought to have done what Clair had told her to do and gone straight to the address she had given her. 'I wasn't sure that' she hesitated 'Grandfather could put me up,' she added lamely.

  'You have forgotten a lot about your family, haven't you ?' he said on an icy note, then added thoughtfully, 'Perhaps that explains a lot, but it hardly compensates.'

  He said no more, but Corinne had a nasty feeling that she knew exactly what was behind this remark. Clair might have made an effort to visit her grandfather; she hadn't even had the excuse of not being able to afford to, as all her expenses would have been paid.

  She followed the haughty back of Juan Martel out of the house, and a little way along the road until he stopped beside a heavy studded double door and producing a key, opened the doors to reveal a garage which housed an expensive-looking car. Corinne's brows rose slightly as she noted the Mercedes crest on the front of the car. If the car was a status symbol, and they usually were, then whatever share Juan

  30 ISLAND FIESTA Martel held in Gabriel Mowbray's business, it was a profitable one, she thought.

  'Which hotel have you booked into ?' he asked her, as the sleek car cruised out of the side street into the main street.

  Corinne gave him the name, mentioning that it was on the sea-front and not too far away, to which he gave another of those curt nods of his and said that he knew where it was, and that in fact the telephone box that he had in mind was only a few yards outside the hotel. He had then given her another of those quick hard looks of his and said, 'You could probably phone from the hotel, but there would not be much privacy, as you would have to use the switchboard. I gather you would prefer a little privacy ?'

  Until now Corinne had managed to thrust the thought of talking to Clair and trying to explain the position in what short time she would have out of her mind, but now she was forced to face it. She didn't quite know how she was going to get on with this frigid man probably leaning against the panels of the telephone box while he waited for her to make the call. That was bad enough without having to contend with an interested switchboard operator avidly listening to the conversation ! 'Thank you, yes, I would prefer privacy,' she replied through dry lips, praying that he would not offer to escort her to the phone booth.

  The evening traffic was very heavy, and they were held up several times on the way, but Corinne was grateful for this. She needed as much time as she could get before talking to Clair. Time to rehearse what she had to say so that Clair understood the

  ISLAND FIESTA 31

  position. That was surely plain enough; she had to get a flight out there right away or she would lose her inheritance. She couldn't blame Corinne if she lost everything, which she very probably would, she thought despondently. Corinne had had to wait for a cancellation before she had been able to make the journey, but she had been lucky and had got one within a week. How could Clair possibly get a flight within twenty-four hours ? Corinne asked herself miserably, as the vision of Joy and herself tramping the streets looking for accommodation rose like a spectre in front of her.

  'So someone got through at last, did they ?' asked Juan, breaking into Corinne's miserable musings. 'And that's a surprise too, but I gather he won't mind waiting until the annulment ?' He flashed her a quick look. 'Unless he can provide you with enough money to keep you solvent, I presume he will have to. You're in debt, aren't you ?' he stated flatly.

  Startled, Corinne stared at him, and it took a moment or two to get the gist of what he was saying. He obviously thought that it was a man that she wanted to get in touch with. As for Clair being in debt, that did not surprise her, but the fact that this smooth character was aware of this did surprise her. She gazed out at the lighted shopping area they were passing and felt a surge of hopelessness flow over her. It was becoming increasingly obvious that Clair had been well aware that her grandfather was a wealthy man. She had run through the substantial legacy her mother had left her in an amazingly short time to Corinne's way of thinking, for Corinne had had no idea that she was short of money until Clair had given her the ultimatum of going to Las Palmas in her

  32 ISLAND FIESTA place, or losing the home she had provided for her and Joy.

  It was typical of Clair to leave things to the last moment, and it would not have occurred to her that her grandfather would have imposed any clauses on her inheritance. All she had to do was to turn up at the right time, armed with what she thought would be valid excuses as to why she had not been able to visit him in the past, and charm her way back into his affections. It would have worked too, Corinne thought miserably, only like her grandfather's hopes, fate had intervened, and her well-laid plans had been disrupted by a broken ankle, an injury she had incurred while pursuing her favourite sport of ice skating.

  Corinne moved restlessly in the soft leather seat of the car. She might as well tell Juan Martel to stop the car somewhere and tell him everything. She didn't care what he thought of her or Clair. It really served them both right. She was as much to blame as Clair was; she ought never to have come. Clair would be even more in debt now, having paid out for the fare for what was a completely fruitless journey, and she wondered if the sale of the cottage would free her from debt.

  The man beside her took her silence as confirmation, and went on in that hateful smooth voice of his, 'I do hope he sees reason for both our sakes.'

  Corinne continued to look out of the window. She could not answer him. She did not know enough about Clair's affairs to argue the point. In any case, his supposition that there was a man in the background was not correct. Clair was not likely to make a mistake like that, not unless she had genuinely

  ISLAND FIESTA 33 fallen in love, and however close she had been about her financial affairs, Corinne would have heard about that.

  The road they were now cruising down looked vaguely familiar to Corinne, and when Juan guided the car into a parking space, she could see the sea ahead of her and got her bearings, for the hotel she had booked into was just around the corner of the street facing the promenade, and this was as far as the car could go.

  For an agonising moment she wavered as to whether to confess all then and there, but her courage completely failed her as she looked at the cold profile of the man beside her. She would speak to Clair first, she told herself, trying to calm her taut nerves. If she could give him some hope that Clair would make an effort to put in an appearance before the deadline, he just might not strangle her, she thought miserably as she got out of the car.

  `The box is on the right,' Juan said brusquely, as they walked towards the sea-front, and so it was, Corinne saw, and it was mercifully empty although there were many people strolling along the promenade. 'I'll be over there,' he said, indicating a cafe a short way along the promenade that had several tables out on the promenade.

  Corinne nodded and walked towards the box. Her thankfulness that Juan Martel would not be within hearing distance of her conversation with Clair was soon engulfed by her anxiety to talk to Clair.

  It took a tensed-up moment to read the directions and fumble for the amount required, thankful that she had some change from a note that she had given the taxi driver who had brought her from the airport

  34 ISLAND FIESTA to the hotel. It was as well for Corinne that she had made a point of learning the currency before coming to Las Palmas, but even so she found time to wonder at the cheapness of the call, considering the distance involved.

  'Clair must come,' she muttered to herself, as she dialled the numbers, praying that she was in because one never knew with Clair. As Joy had said, her injury had not stopped her from enjoying herself.

  A quick glance at her watch as she heard the buzzing tone at the other end of the line told her that it was just on nine o'clock, and that meant that it was only ten o'clock at home.

  'Faversham four-one-two,' Clair's voice came calmly over the line to the strung-up Corinne, who gave a quick gasp of relief and immediately forgot her well-rehearsed wording.

  'Clair ? Oh, thank goodness ! I've got to marry him, and I can't, can I ?' she babbled out frantically. 'You've got to come out here. Hire a wheelchair or something but come !' she urged frantically.

  'Marry my grandfather !' exclaimed Clair. 'For goodness' sake, what's happened ? Has he found you out ?'

  Corinne clenched the telephone receiver hard. 'Not your grandfather Juan Martel ! You know, the one who wrote to you! Oh, damn, there go the pips, and I don't think I've got another fifty pesetas, hang on while I look don't you dare go away !' she threatened, as she hunted for the necessary coin and finding one pushed it in the slot provided before the call was finished. 'Clair ? For goodness' sake, what shall I do ? He'll have to know the truth, won't he ? Clair ? You're still there, aren't you ?' she demanded,

  ISLAND FIESTA 35 in the small silence that followed.

  'Of course I'm still here,' replied Clair. 'Now calm down and tell me what's happened.'

  Corinne took a deep breath and swallowed the impulse to scream out the latest developments. She must keep calm and make Clair understand the position. 'He promised your grandfather that he'd marry you. He's his partner, you see, but he's not going to go through with it all I mean, he wants to keep his promise, but that's as far as he wants to go. He says he'll get an annulment later. If you don't marry, he can't divide the property, it's in the will, you see, and it's got to be done within twenty-four hours. You've got to get here somehow !' she wailed.

  'That's out of the question,' replied Clair irritably. `I gather Grandfather died ?' she asked abruptly, then before Corinne could confirm this she went on to say peevishly, 'I might have known he'd something like this in mind.'

  `Well, that's that,' said Corinne despondently. `I'd better come home.'

  `You stay right where you are,' Clair replied sharply. `I'm not that easily defeated, and I need that money.' There was silence for a few seconds, then Clair said excitedly, 'Wait ! There is a way it can be done you've heard of marriage by proxy, haven't you ? I don't know all the ins and outs of it, but I'm pretty sure it will work. It's got to ! ' she muttered half to herself: Took, I'll get on to a friend of mine, he handles the firm's legal work, he'll know what has to be done. I've an idea that all that's required is a document signed by me authorising you as a stand-in at the marriage. If it can't be done I'll contact you at Grandfather's.'

  36 ISLAND FIESTA

  Corinne's frantic, 'There won't be time, Clair, he wants the marriage to take place tomorrow morning,' was met with a firm, 'Well, stall him until the afternoon, he won't mind a few hours' delay when you tell him the reason. He stands to gain as much as I do.'

  Corinne's quick, `But I'm not staying at your grandfather's,' was not quick enough, for Clair had hung up on her, leaving her staring at the silent instrument in her hand, and she stayed like that until an insistent knocking on the panel of the phone box reminded her that someone was waiting to make a call.

  It took all Corinne's will power to step out of that phone box and turn her lagging steps towards the cafe where Juan Martel was waiting for her. Only a few yards the other way was the hotel that she had booked into and would give her sanctuary she was sure she was going to need after she had made her-confession, and she was grateful for the fact that it was within walking distance !

  CHAPTER THREE

  JUAN MARTEL stood up as she approached him, and there must have been something in Corinne's expression that alerted him to the fact that all was not well, although Corinne had assumed what she hoped was a bland expression.

  His harsh, 'Well ?' sounded very ominous to the over-sensitive Corinne, and she gave a swift glance around them wondering if it were possible to have

  ISLAND FIESTA 37 what promised to be a nerve-racking session over a cup of coffee at the table he stood beside.

  The arrival of a merry party of tourists who took the next table to his finally decided her. 'I have to talk to you,' she said quietly, adding in a low voice, 'but not here.'

  His dark brows rose at this, but he gave a curt nod and looked towards the hotel across the way where Corinne had booked in on her arrival. 'We shall take advantage of their lounge,' he said abruptly. 'Most of the guests will be enjoying an evening stroll by now.'

  To Corinne's vast relief his presumption proved correct, and the large lounge, well provided with ample seating in the form of dark leather club chairs grouped around tables, was practically empty apart from a couple at the further end of the room enjoying an after-dinner coffee.

  As Corinne seated herself in a deep comfortable chair placed against the lounge window that looked out on to the sea, she had no time to admire the view, that in the daytime would no doubt be a splendid one, but now at night had its own romantic charm, for further along the shore on the promenade that skirted the length of the sea-front, lamps had been lit, giving a fairytale effect to the whole area.

  The area might as well have been clothed in thick fog for all the effect it had on Corinne, who was desperately trying to assemble her thoughts in order to present the bare unpalatable truth to this hawk-eyed man sitting opposite her, and whose strong lean fingers had just switched on the lamp on the table beside her, making her feel as if she was about to undergo some sort of third degree, and in all probability she was, she thought miserably.