“That still doesn’t tell me whether you’re for me or against me,” I said.
“I’m for you,” she said.
I put my arm around her and swung her legs across mine so she was sitting on my lap. She leaned against my chest, her hair, damp and perfumed, against my cheek.
“I knew it would be fun with you,” she said.
I took her chin between my ringer and thumb and raised her face. She closed her eyes. She looked white, like a beautiful porcelain mask in the moonlight. I looked down at her, then I kissed her. Her lips tasted salty. They were firm and cool and good. We stayed like that while the raft rode the ripples; and I didn’t care what was going to happen, even though I was sure that something was going to happen.
She pushed away from me suddenly, slid off my lap and stood up. I looked at her. Her beauty gave me a hell of a buzz. She dived in as I grabbed at her, and swam away from me. I sat there and waited. After a while, she turned and came back. I tilted the raft down into the water so she slid up it on her stomach. She lay close to me, her chin in her hands, flat, her ankles crossed. She had a beautiful little back.
“Now tell me the story of your life,” I said.
She shook her head. “There’s nothing to tell.”
“There must be. How long have you been here?”
“A year.”
“Before then?”
“New York.”
“A show girl.”
“Yes.”
“How did you meet Speratza?”
“I met him.”
“Do you like him?”
“He’s nothing to me.”
“You take care of his distinguished visitors?”
“That seems to be the idea.”
“Who else beside me have you taken care off?”
“No one.”
“So I’m Paradise Palms’ first distinguished visitor?”
“You must be.”
“Like the job?”
She rolled over on her back. “Yes,” she said, and looked at me.
I could see from the expression in her eyes that from now on I’d be wasting time by staying on the raft.
“Come on,” I said. “We’ll go.”
She was the first to hit the water.
5
“I want to show the young lady the view from my balcony,” I said to the night clerk, as he gave me my key. I expected him to remind me that this was a respectable hotel, or at least leer, but he didn’t.
He bowed. “I’m delighted you find the view worth showing to madam,” he said. “Is there anything I can send up for you, Mr. Cain?”
I made sure he wasn’t being sarcastic, but he seemed to be falling over himself to give me service.
“Some Scotch would be nice,” I said.
“There is a stock of liquor in one of the cupboards in your sitting-room, Mr. Cain,” he returned. “Mr. Killeano sent it over with his compliments not an hour ago.”
I nodded. “That was a nice thought,” I said. I didn’t show him that I was surprised.
I walked with Miss Wonderly across the deserted lobby to the elevators.
She looked at me, raising her eyebrows.
“He’s just crazy to give me a good time,” I said, shrugging.
“He’s ready to come up and tuck us in.”
She giggled.
The house dick passed us. I could tell he was the house dick by the size of his feet. He didn’t seem to see us.
The elevator attendant and the bell-hops looked through Miss Wonderly as if she was the invisible woman. All these lackeys certainly had a swell line in tact.
The clock over the reception desk showed two-twenty. I wasn’t even sleepy.
As we walked along the broad, thickly carpeted corridor to my room, I said, “Do you know this guy Killeano?”
“And I was hoping you were thinking only of me,” she said, reproachfully.
“I got a split mind,” I said. “I think of two things at once.”
I unlocked my door, and she followed me in. I never did get an answer to that question.
When I closed the door I found I didn’t have a split mind after all.
Miss Wonderly disengaged herself, but only after I got a buzzing in my ears.
“I came to look at the view—remember?” she said, but I could see by the rise and fall of her chest she wasn’t much colder than me.
“It’s a swell view,” I said, and we went across the room to look at it. As I passed a mirror I saw my mouth had a smear of lipstick on it. I even got a bang out of that.
We stood on the balcony. The moon was like a pumpkin. The traffic had gone to bed, and only a straggler or two roamed along the coast road.
I undid the buttons of her blouse. She’d taken off her bolero coat on her way up. She leaned against me and held my hands.
“I don’t want you to think I do this with everyone,” she said, in a small voice.
“All right,” I said. “This is the night reserved for you and me.”
“I know, but I don’t want you to think—”
“I don’t.”
She turned and slid her arms around my neck. We stood like that for a long time. It was pretty nice. Then I carried her into the bedroom and put her on the bed.
“Wait for me,” I said.
I undressed in the bathroom, put on a silk dressing-gown and went into the sitting-room. I nosed around in the various cupboards until I found Killeano’s gifts. He’d sent me four bottles of Scotch, a bottle of brandy, and Whiterock. I took the brandy and went into the bedroom.
She was in bed. Her hair had dried and it lay like spilt honey on the pillow. She looked up at me and smiled.
I poured two brandies. I gave her one, and sniffed at the other. It had a nice bouquet.
“You and me,” I said
“No, just to you,” she said.
“All right, and then to you.”
I drank.
She put her glass down on the bed-table without touching it. Her eyes were wide and dark.
I looked at her, feeling a chill run down my spine. The liquor grabbed at my stomach.
“I should have thought of that,” I said.
The room revolved slowly, then tilted.
“Killeano’s gift,” I heard myself mumbling. “But not for the bride.”
I was staring up at the ceiling. The lights were going out the way a movie-house dims its lights. I tried to move, but my muscles wouldn’t work. I felt rather than saw Miss Wonderly get out of bed. I wanted to tell her to be
