Delilah. Eleanor Jong De

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СКАЧАТЬ an inventory of the goods, and then accompanying them back again to be stored.’

      ‘And where are those?’

      ‘We have two on the western side of the city – they are visible from the roof of the house if you wish to see them for yourself. But I wouldn’t take you there on my own. It’s not the safest part of town for a young lady.’

      Jered’s cheeks had reddened, but Delilah pretended not to notice. He was really rather sweet, a beguiling mixture of confident merchant and attentive suitor, yet with a slight awkwardness she hadn’t noticed the first time she’d met him. He had none of Joshua’s easy charm, but those berry-stained hands and his earnest expression as he tried to decipher whether she was serious or joking, lent him an inner softness that balanced his good looks.

      ‘I won’t pretend otherwise, but robbery in the streets and theft from businesses are a problem in Ashdod. This is the wealthiest of the Philistine cities, and we get a lot of customers from the region, and even from as far away as Lachish and Jerusalem. I suppose that those with lots of money will always draw envy from those who haven’t any.’

      Delilah thought of the Israelite families on the road this morning, but she knew she couldn’t talk about them to Jered. Achish had been right. It was possible to be pretty or clever, but not both. As they turned onto the market street she pulled her shawl a little further back on her head to show off a little more of her neck and the clusters of tiny pearls that dropped from her ears.

      In the mornings or late afternoons these streets were probably very busy, but now the place was mostly empty and Delilah could see servants dozing on benches in the shade. But the array of wares was amazing and she shook her head at the sheer variety of it all – furniture and carpets, bolts of cloth, and spreads of food that rivalled even Mizraim’s stock.

      One particular stall immediately caught her eye. It was piled high with plates, bowls, jugs and jars. The edges of each piece had been delicately fluted by some tiny tool, which had presumably been used to pinch the clay back and forth. The base of each piece had been fired white and painted with a geometric design in black.

      ‘This is so beautiful,’ she said, ‘but I’ve never seen anything like it before.’

      ‘I believe it comes from a land beyond Egypt,’ said Jered.

      Delilah picked up one of the very smallest bowls and cupped it in the palm of her hand. The fluting would make it messy to drink from, but it would look beautiful on her dresser, full of hairpins or jewellery, or better still just empty in the centre, white and black against the pale wood. The jugs were wonderful too, and perhaps if there was time she could bring Achish here on the way home so that he might buy some for his finest vintages. That would be a nice touch, presenting the best of the vineyard’s riches in something more exotic, more memorable than the usual—

      Her attention was caught by movement at the next stall, a saddler, but no sooner had she looked up than she quickly snapped her gaze back to the bowl again, her legs suddenly weak, all imaginings of the future swept away by the cold shadow of the past. It might have been three years since she’d last seen Samson, but nothing about him had changed. He still stood two feet taller than her, with thick woven braids tethered to his head. But it wasn’t his size that made Delilah’s heart thump under her breast. It was his eyes, those bright blue eyes that seemed to chill and burn her at the same time.

      Chapter Eight

      Delilah regretted having pushed her shawl back so far from her face. It would be too conspicuous to start playing with it now, and had it been as far forward as it should have been, she could have been reasonably confident of anonymity on this hot afternoon. But it was too late now and the knowledge of Samson’s presence only a few paces away was impossible to ignore, as was the unmistakeable feeling of his attention on her. It was all she could do to lay the bowl calmly back on the top of the pile without breaking it.

      Her fingers had barely left its edge when she felt a hand on her shoulder and she almost squealed with shock. But it was Jered – yes, Jered – how had she forgotten about him so quickly? She raised her eyes to meet his and forced composure into her expression through a sweet smile, seeking reassurance in his face.

      ‘I was quite carried away,’ she murmured. ‘It’s all so lovely to look at.’

      ‘Well, I’d like to give it to you if you will have it, a small gift to thank you for coming to Ashdod, a memento of a good day’s work and, as we would have it, an omen of the plentiful relationship to come.’

      ‘I – I should like that. But I’m sure it’s very expensive if it has come from so far away.’

      ‘I thought we were leaving business behind at the house.’

      Delilah lowered her head a little, sure that Samson must now be standing right behind her, watching her every move. ‘Then I’ll accept gracefully. Thank you.’

      ‘The giving of bowls is my favourite Philistine tradition and this particular bowl is almost as beautiful as you are—’

      At any other time, a glowing, if unimaginative, compliment such as this from a man like Jered would have lifted Delilah’s heart, but seeing Samson again had made her so flustered that all she wanted to do was run back to the courtyard to the soothing comfort of being beside Achish again.

      Jered wasn’t in such a hurry to leave, and with agonising slowness he picked up the bowl she’d been holding, and offered it to her in the conventional manner, his hands cupped beneath it. She made herself look at him and smile into his eyes as she cupped her own hands to accept the gift, first her hands beneath his, then slowly his hands withdrawing against hers, releasing the bowl into her palms, and then his hands recupping beneath hers.

      ‘Delilah.’

      ‘Jered.’ Delilah completed the customary gesture. Her stomach churned, not with the intensity of Jered’s wide-eyed gaze in which she might drown, but with the thought that she was now completely trapped. If Jered had not said her name aloud, there might have been a glimmer of hope that Samson wouldn’t have known who she was, but now that was all gone.

      Jered however seemed suddenly to wake up to the tension in her face, and she saw him glance over her shoulder.

      ‘It’s late. We should be getting back.’ He held out his arm to guide her, then tucked himself in behind her, almost driving her back along the street.

      ‘Is everything all right?’ Delilah forced herself to say as calmly as she could when they were surely out of earshot. Was Samson still standing at the stall, watching them?

      ‘It’s as well I didn’t notice him sooner, because he might have spoiled a rather special moment. I had hoped to buy you something today as a gift, give it to you in some sort of privacy instead of among our families—’

      ‘Notice whom?’ she asked innocently.

      ‘There was a man at the stall with us, a hulking beast. I’m surprised you didn’t spot him, though perhaps you might know his name, as I think he spends more of his time in the lands around Ashkelon than here.’

      ‘His name?’

      ‘Samson.’

      ‘Oh. I think I may have heard of him. Isn’t he what the Israelites call a Judge of the People?’

      ‘That’s СКАЧАТЬ