Frances held on to Pete's arm. He moved forward a step ahead of her, his shoulder turned slightly sideways to form a buffer against the swirling tide of people coming towards him. Buster led the way, cutting a path with his big shoulders for Bunty who walked immediately behind him, hanging on to his shirt tail.
They crawled past the low wooden buildings that housed fortune tellers, photographers with their comic animals and still more comic backgrounds, the freak shows and the hamburger stalls, being jostled, coming to a standstill, then moving on again.
From time to time Pete looked over his shoulder, but he couldn't see any sign of Moe, and he hoped feverishly that they had lost him in this crowd.
Finally they reached the rails at the outer edge of the sea front. Not far away was the snake-like structure of a roller coaster whose cars roared and clattered up and down the steep inclines, carrying a screaming, shouting cargo of people, determined to enjoy themselves and determined to scream or shout louder than his or her neighbour.
Outlined against the sky was the colossal Giant Wheel that slowly revolved, carrying little cars slowly up into the heavens; cars that spun and swayed ominously on what appeared to be thread-like anchors.
The four of them faced the beach, looking along the three-mile strip of sand at the seething mass of humanity that lay on the sand, played ball, deck tennis, leap-frog or rushed madly into the oncoming breakers and filled the air with noise.
'Phew! Half the town seems to be here,' Buster said, surveying the scene with his wide, india-rubber grin. 'Let's get at it. We'll have a swim first, then something to eat, then we'll go to the amusement park. How about it?'
'Did you bring a swim-suit?',Frances asked, turning to Pete.
He shook his head.
'I'm afraid I don't swim.'
He saw Bunty pull a little face and lift her shoulders in a why-on-earth-didyou-come-then ? gesture, and he felt the blood rise to his face, and that angered him, for he knew when he flushed the naevus on his skin turned livid and made him look repulsive. He saw Bunty turn away so she need not look at him. But Frances was looking at him with no change of expression in her eyes.
'It doesn't matter,' she said quickly. We'll sit on the beach and watch the others swim. I don't feel like swimming myself.'
'No! Please; I want you to swim,' he said, trying to control his embarrassment.
'Burt will guard our clothes,' Buster said. 'We shan't be long. Come on, girls, let's get to it.'
They began to make their way cautiously through the sprawling crowd, until they finally came upon a small clearing in the sand and hurriedly staked out their claim.
Buster was wearing a pair of swimming-trunks under his clothes, and he was quickly stripped off. Pete eyed his muscles and his tanned body enviously.
Both the girls took off their shoes and stockings and slid out of their dresses. They both wore one-piece suits under their dresses, and Pete felt a little pang run through him when he looked at Frances. She had on an oyster- coloured swim-suit that moulded itself to her body. He thought she had the most beautiful figure he had ever seen.
As she adjusted her bathing cap, she went over to him.
'You're sure you don't mind being left? I'd just as soon stay.'
'No, it's all right. I'll wait for you.'
'Oh, come on, Frankie!' Bunty cried impatiently, and catching hold of Buster's hand she ran with him down to the breakers and plunged in.
Frances smiled at Pete. It was unbelievable, he thought, a lump coming into his throat, that a girl as lovely as she was could look at him and smile at him like this: just as if he were an ordinary human being like Buster.
'I'll be right back,' she said, and went after the other two.
Pete sat with his fingers laced around his knees, his shoulders hunched, and watched her long, slim legs, her straight boyish back as she ran with that slightly awkward movement most young girls have when they run.
He watched her plunge into the water and swim with powerful strokes after the other two.
'Wad the hell are yuh playin' at?' a voice snarled near him.
Pete stiffened and his heart skipped a beat. He looked quickly round.
Moe was sitting on his haunches, staring at Frances's bobbing head as she swam farther out to sea. He looked an incongruous figure in his black suit, his hand-painted tie and his pointed white shoes with black explosions, among the half-naked sun-bathers sprawling around him.
'The man came to the door,' Pete said, speaking rapidly and trying to keep his voice steady. 'Then the two girls came out. They mistook me for someone else. I hadn't a chance to get going, so I went with them, and I'm waiting now to get her alone.'
'That's wad happens when yuh don't case the joint,' Moe said, his small eyes bright with suspicion. 'I told that bum Louis.' He looked at his wrist-watch. 'The cops will be at her place by now. Yuh got to hit her quick, Pete.'
'Amongst this lot?' Pete said sarcastically.
Moe turned his head and looked at the Big Wheel as it carried the little cars far into the sky.
'Get her on the Big Wheel,' he said. 'Yuh can be nice an' private in one of those cars. Hit her when yuh get to the top and shove her under the seat. They won't spot her before yuh get away.'
