Comparative Strangers Read Online Free PDF

herself.
    On the landing, she said, ‘There isn’t any glass here, so you can put me down,’ and he obeyed so promptly it was almost an insult.
    He said prosaically, ‘Where will I find a dustpan and brush?’
    ‘In the kitchen cupboard, next to the back door.’ She moistened her dry lips with the tip of her tongue. ‘And there are some cardboard boxes, too, that you might be able to use to cover the window.’ She put a hand to her head. ‘Oh, this is all crazy! None of it can be happening.’
    ‘Of course it isn’t.’ Malory gave her a gentle push in the direction of the spare room. ‘Now, go and get some rest and tell yourself in the morning that it’s all been a bad dream.’
    But she couldn’t relax. Lying in the warm hollow his body had created, Amanda listened tensely to the sounds of movement along the passage. When they eventually ceased, she called to him.
    ‘What’s the matter?’ He came to stand in the doorway.
    ‘I’m frightened.’ Her teeth were chattering, but not because she was cold. ‘Do you think he—they will come back?’
    If he’d noticed that revealing self-correction, he made no comment. ‘I don’t think so. I imagine the purpose of the exercise—to give you a good fright— has been achieved.’
    She stared at him. ‘You really do think it’s Nigel, don’t you?’
    ‘Yes.’ His voice was matter of fact.
    ‘It can’t be!’ she denied vehemently. ‘No grown man could be so—childish.’
    He smiled. ‘I don’t think you can have known a great many grown men,’ he said with a touch of cynicism. ‘But perhaps we could continue this debate in the morning. I’d like to get some sleep.’
    A voice she hardly recognised as hers said, ‘I don’t want to be on my own. Stay with me— please?’ She saw the blank incredulity in his face and began to stammer, ‘I—I don’t mean…’
    He said rather drily, ‘I’m sure you don’t.’ He hesitated. ‘Very well, Amanda. I should have rethat appointing myself your guardian would have its drawbacks.’ He walked over to the bed. ‘At the same time, I hope you don’t think I plan to spend the rest of the night in that chair or on the floor.’ He kicked off his shoes, and lay down beside her, on top of the quilt. ‘This seems a suitably chaste arrangement under the circumstances.’
    She ventured, ‘But won’t you be rather cold? You can use the duvet, if you want.’
    He said evenly, ‘No, thank you. Don’t push your luck, Amanda. In spite of anything Nigel may have told you, I am not a eunuch.’ He reached out and switched off the lamp. ‘Now, go to sleep.’
    Face burning, she mumbled, ‘Goodnight.’
    She must be completely insane, she thought, asking Malory to share a bed with her like this, but the prospect of lying alone in the darkness, waiting for the next unnerving incident, was more than she could bear. She hadn’t really stopped to consider Malory’s feelings or reactions at all.
    Yet she couldn’t deny the reassurance of the weight of his body beside her on the bed, and the steadiness of his breathing. She didn’t feel she deserved this kindness from him, but it seemed to be there for her, just the same.
    With a little sigh, she closed her eyes, and within a few minutes, against all her expectations, was fast asleep.
    She awoke slowly the next morning to the aroma of frying bacon, and lay for a few minutes staring at her unfamiliar surroundings, wondering confusedly why she wasn’t in her own room. Then remembrance flooded back, and she shot out of bed and down the passage to her doorway.
    The square of cardboard over the broken window was like some grim exclamation mark, she thought, as she trod with care to the wardrobe and extracted jeans and a sweater. She washed and dressed swiftly, and ran downstairs.
    Malory was seated at the kitchen table. The smile he sent her was polite, but guarded. ‘I was just coming to wake you,’ he said. ‘Your breakfast is keeping warm.’
    Blushing a