Fallen Skies. Philippa Gregory

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СКАЧАТЬ cause and that Germany had to be stopped. I bought it almost at once –’

      ‘Where were you hurt?’

      ‘Lungs.’

      ‘Did it hurt very bad?’

      ‘Ohhh.’ Charlie flapped his hand at the memory. ‘Pretty bad. And then I came home and trained more poor fools in a dismal camp at the back of beyond in Wales for the rest of the war.’ Charlie lay back and closed his eyes. ‘Rhyll. It feels like a long, long time ago now.’

      ‘And Sylvia de Charmante made her name out of it,’ Lily pursued.

      Charlie chuckled. ‘Yes. You won’t have a chance like that, but I’ve got an idea for you, Lil. When we get back to Portsmouth I may have a new job. I may get the post of music director at the Kings.’

      Lily sat up at once. ‘Golly.’

      Charlie smiled. ‘Yes indeed. You may call me Mr Smith. I’ll see if I can get you an audition as an act. They’ll put a show together, like this one, and then do a two- or three-theatre tour with it. It’s a different group of theatres and it’s Variety – not old-fashioned music hall. So you’ll have a chance to do a little bit more.’

      ‘Was that your idea? That you told Ma and me about?’

      Charlie nodded.

      ‘Why are you so nice to me?’ Lily burst out. ‘You picked me out of the chorus line and asked me to sing, and then you tried out your choir boy idea using me, so I’ve got an act of my own now and billing on the posters. And now you’re thinking about something new. Why are you so good to me?’

      Charlie’s arm was over his eyes, blocking out the overhead sun. He raised it slightly and squinted at her. ‘Because,’ he said equably.

      ‘No, why?’

      He grinned. ‘Because I choose to.’

      Lily leaned over him and put her hand, tentatively, on his chest. ‘Because you like me?’

      Charlie took his arm from his face and put his hand on top of Lily’s.

      ‘Yes, I like you a lot.’

      There was a long silence. The gull, weaving back over them, cast a fleeting shadow and cried a short mournful cry.

      Lily dropped her fair head to Charlie’s upturned, passive face. The sleek bob of her hair fell forward and brushed both his cheeks. Lily hesitated, her lips an inch above his. Charlie made no gesture at all. Lily bent a little lower and kissed him.

      Charlie’s other hand came behind Lily’s waist and held her gently. Lily raised her head and sighed, scanning his dark face. Charlie smiled up at her, still unmoving.

      ‘Charlie …’

      He put his hand up and covered her lips. ‘Don’t chatter, Lil. You’ll only say things that you’ll regret.’

      Lily shot a puzzled look at him as he sat up. She leaned towards him, expecting him to put his arms around her, but he got to his feet and put out his hand and pulled her up.

      ‘Let’s go and have a paddle,’ he said.

      He led the way down the little path, Lily slipping and breaking into a little run with an affected shriek of alarm behind him. She wanted him to turn to catch her and hold her in his arms but Charlie strode on, hands determinedly in his pockets, down the steep zig-zag path to the sea. He reached the water’s edge while Lily was still hopping and limping over the stones in her little shoes. He picked up some flat stones from around his feet and skimmed them across the waves.

      Lily came up beside him and put her hand on the small of his back as he stood, watching the waves.

      ‘Charlie …’

      He gave a sudden wordless exclamation and then turned and caught her into his arms, crushing her against him, her face into his shoulder, his cheek pressed against her fair head. Lily, unable to move, hardly able to breathe, stood motionless, half-dizzy with sudden desire.

      As soon as he slackened his grip, Lily flung her arms around his neck and raised her face but Charlie did not kiss her. He held her gently, scanning her face. Lily was flushed, her eyes bright.

      ‘I thought you said spooning was beastly and you were never going to do it with anybody?’

      Lily caught her breath. ‘This is different, I feel …’ She broke off. ‘Charlie, will you kiss me?’

      His smile down at her eager face was very rueful. ‘I suppose I will,’ he said with mock reluctance, then he bent his dark head and his lips met hers.

      Lily felt herself melt with rising desire. Her conscious mind noted that her legs felt suddenly weak and her whole body was longing for the touch of Charlie all over. She tightened her arms around his neck, pressing his mouth still harder down on hers. She heard herself make a tiny noise, a little moan, and suddenly understood what her mother had meant about getting carried away. Lily felt that Charlie could have carried her away in a handcart and she would not have objected. More than anything else in the world she wanted to lie down and feel the weight of Charlie along the length of her body. She bent slightly at the knees.

      Charlie stayed determinedly upright. After a few minutes he released her, and then put his arm around her waist to steady her. Lily’s eyelids fluttered open slowly. She looked around at the blue moving sea, the shingle beach and Charlie’s tight smile.

      ‘And that’s our lot,’ Charlie said gently. ‘Your ma would skin me alive if she knew I’d brought you out into the country and then kissed you.’

      ‘No she wouldn’t, she likes you.’

      ‘She might like me when she sees me taking care of you at the theatre. She’d like me a lot less if she knew I took advantage of you when we’re away on tour.’

      ‘But you didn’t.’ Lily, finding her legs still a little unsteady, sat on the shingle and looked up at Charlie. ‘I took advantage of you.’

      ‘Well, you’re a forward hussy,’ Charlie said pleasantly. ‘And you won’t catch me in a weak moment again.’

      He turned his back to Lily and stooped and picked out another flat stone. ‘Watch this,’ he said. He threw it with a smooth sideways lob at the tops of the waves and the stone skipped. ‘Four! Four jumps. Bet you can’t do better than that!’

      ‘Bet you I can. I spent my childhood on Southsea beach, remember.’

      Lily scrambled to her feet and picked a stone. Feet astride, frowning as she took aim, she threw it at the waves. It skipped along from crest to crest. ‘Three, four, five!’ Lily yelled, diverted. ‘Beat five if you can!’

      Charlie picked another stone but it sank on four. Lily’s next was too heavy and dropped down at three. They threw for a few more moments.

      ‘It’s hot,’ Lily said. ‘I wish I’d brought my swimming costume.’

      Charlie shot a quick look along the cliff. The skyline was deserted for miles in both directions, the only access СКАЧАТЬ