The River Flows On Read Online Free PDF Page B

You’ve got a lot on your plate. And it’s not fair.’
    She turned to him. His face looked different in the dim light. And when had he got that much taller than her? He outstripped her now by several inches.
    ‘Oh, Robbie, why do we have to grow up?’
    He smiled, his teeth a gleam of white. ‘Do you not think that growing up might have some advantages, hen?’
    Kate looked at him warily, her eyes growing used to the darkness. There was something mischievous about that smile.
    ‘What are you looking at me like that for?’
    His smile grew broader. He took a step towards her. Kate, in response, took a step back, coming up hard against the railings.
    ‘You can’t go any further,’ pointed out logical Robbie. ‘Forbye you want to end up in the river. And,’ he went on, raising his eyebrows quizzically, ‘as far as I know, Miss Kathleen Cameron, you can’t swim. So you might as well let me kiss you.’
    That statement took Kate’s breath away.
    ‘Kiss me?’
    ‘Aye. Why not? After all, it is New Year.’
    She curved her fingers in their woollen gloves around the cold metal of the railings. ‘So ... This is just a friendly New Year kiss, is it?’
    ‘Yes, of course.’
    ‘But,’ Kate pointed out, ‘you’ve already had a friendly New Year kiss.’
    ‘Well, I want another one. A proper one this time. Without half o’ Yoker looking on.’ Taking a step forward, Robbie put an end to any further discussion, bobbing his head down and planting a firm kiss on her cold cheek. He lifted his head.
    Behind them, the Clyde continued on its steady course. The railings which Kate’s fingers gripped were no less cold or hard than they had been before, the ground beneath her feet no less solid. Nothing had changed. Everything had changed.
    ‘Kate ...’ Robbie whispered. They stood so close together she could feel his breath warm on her face. ‘Och, Kate, don’t look so worried, hen.’ He bent his dark head once more, and this time he kissed her full on the lips. His arms came around her, pulling her against him. Kate’s hands released their hold on the railings. She felt... she didn’t know what she felt. His lips were firm and soft at the same time, warm on her cold mouth.
    ‘No!’ she said, struggling in his embrace.
    Robbie loosened his hold immediately. ‘No?’
    ‘I don’t want this, Robbie,’ she gasped. ‘You’re my friend.’
    She could hear his breathing, quick and shallow. For a few frozen seconds they stared at each other before he dropped his arms, allowing her to step out of his embrace. He tossed his head, clearing the lock of hair which had fallen across his forehead.
    Kate’s own breathing was coming too fast, her breasts rising and falling with the rapidity of it. She put a hand out towards Robbie, but he ignored it.
    ‘Come on then. I’ll take you home.’ He turned on his heel and headed off without waiting to see if she was following him.
    ‘Robbie?’ She struggled to keep up with his longer stride. ‘Robbie, I’m sorry. It’s just... Well, I want us to be friends. I want it to stay that way. The way it’s always been . ..’
    He didn’t answer at once, leading the way back up to the main road. Then he stopped so abruptly under a streetlight that Kate cannoned into him. His hand shot out to grip her arm in support.
    ‘All right?’ he asked.
    Kate nodded, impatiently pushing a strand of hair under her knitted hat. She saw Robbie’s eyes follow the movement. There was something in that look which made her very uncomfortable.
    Just when she was beginning to think that he hadn’t taken in what she’d said about being friends, he spoke. His voice was gentle.
    ‘We’ll always be friends, Kate. Always.’
    Kate looked up at him and wondered why what he had said made her feel so sad.
    When she finally got to bed she lay awake, staring into the dark in the silent house. Everyone else was sound asleep. It was a gey lonely feeling. Sometimes, on other nights, she would hear her