Glass Ceilings (30 page)

Verity
turned
to look at Guy again
and in her peripheral vision,
caught Royce
gazing at
her from across the aisle,
tw
o rows
behind
.
H
e looked away as soon as their eyes met.
She studied
him pensively, thinking he
seem
ed
a little strange
lately
. Was
his conscience
bothering him?
She
raised a derisive eyebrow, just as
h
er ears picked up a changed
note in the plane’s motor
, heralding
the start of
its de
s
cent.

‘We’re nearly there
,’ she said breathlessly to Guy, before turning to look out the window, searching
the horizon for a sign of land. Then she saw it, a mottled green jewel
below,
surrounded by
brilliant white sand
and the
clear ocean’s
glistening blues.

T
he little plan
e carried them
down
to a smooth landing
on the
tiny
runway
.

Once in the resort, t
he delegates were able to check-
in with gratifying promptness.
Verity was pleased to drop
her bags in the corner of
her
spacious bedroom before flo
pping onto the
bed
.
Its
lace-edged white linen felt silky-soft beneath her fingers
,
and she gave an appreciative sigh. S
he caught a
hint of
floral
perfume and
looked around for its
source.
L
it candles
floated
cheerfully among fre
sh blossoms in a glass bowl on the
bedside table
, behind which
semi-closed white plantation shutters offered a glimpse of
a
leafy courtyard
.

With a
smile,
she
rose to unpack
, taking car
e to hang her outfits
so any
folding
creases would drop out.
When she
’d finished,
she decided to change
out of her suit
and take a stroll around the resort
, to get her bearings, stret
ch her legs
,
and enjoy the sea
air
.
Opening the wardrobe
, she chose a sleeveless shift
in rich blue
cotton knit
,
with
a satin-
bound neckline.
The
soft
folds
of the dress
skimmed
over
her
slender
body
to
just above ankle length
.
She
donned
sandals and
stoo
d
in front of the mirror to pin
up
her hair
. She
paused for a second before grabbing a pretty snug in soft buttercup cashmere
,
to drape around her shoulders. That should give her enough protection against the
cooling afternoon sea air
...
.

Back from her stroll, Verity sat enjoying the
serenity
of her
unit’s plant-filled private courtyard.
The resort nestled into a small hill, so from this vantage point she could enjoy a panoramic view of white sand and blue ocean.
With eyes half closed agai
nst the
late afternoon
glare
, she raised her
tumbler
and took a sip of
soda water infused with fresh lime juice
.
Ice cubes bobbed and clunked happily
as
she raised and lowered
the glass.

She
knew she should have been
going over
her meeting papers
again
, but couldn’
t tear
her eyes away from the setting sun’s rays
,
dancing
with gilded feet
on the rolling ocean waves.
It remin
ded her why she loved
Australia
, and its western region in particular,
so much.

The ferns hanging from the rafters
above her head
swayed
in a
gentle
draught
, and she sighed,
sinking further into her chair.
The nasturtium blooms that spilled
riotously from planter boxes in every corner, reflected the bright orange cushions on the courtyard’s wicker furniture. Verity closed her eyes briefly and allowed her other senses to take in the island’s delights.

The salty sea breeze played through the jasmine
curling
its way up the courtyard posts
and
join
ing
the brilliant scarlet bougainvillea on the rafters overhead. Verit
y breathed
in
the jasmine’s heady perfume
,
savouring
the aromatic offering.
A lone seabird gave a lingering
cry
as it coasted
above the water
, momentarily disturbing
the rhythmic whisper of waves on wet sand.
Spring was
definitely
the right time to visit this island paradise
....

Opening her eyes, Verity
checked her watch. S
he would soon have to dress for dinner. The serenity slipped fro
m her face. D
ining with her colleagues
that night
would be
a business meeting in pleasant surroundings
rather than an enjoyable culinary experience, with corporate dealings
the inevitable topic of conversation. Rising reluctantly,
she
promised herself she would
return
to the island
,
for a
holiday
next time
, and
soon
.

Royce stood at the restaurant’s bar, staring moodily into his scotch glass. Un
like the
other guests
, he’d hardly touched his drink
.
When h
is eyes
swept the room,
his lips tilted at the
corners a
t the sight of his esteemed colleagues
happily
lettin
g their hair down
.
He
lifted his
own
glass and
finally took a drink,
marvelling
that he
too was beginning to feel
he’d left his
worrie
s
behind on the mainland.
He gave a grim smile.

Must be the island
casting a spell on us all
.

He
wonder
ed
where Verity wa
s, and frowned.

Why do my thoughts keep going to her?

H
e
took another drink, draining
his glass
in annoyance
.
Right
at that moment
, Verity quietly entered the room.
Her eyes fell on
Royce straight away
. He’d removed his suit coat, and his long-sleeved shir
t was a brilliant white beacon which,
teamed
with his heigh
t, made him stand out from the crowd. B
ut
when she glimpsed
his
surly
countenance,
she made a mental note to
avoid him as much as possible
. If he looked
like that so
early in the piece
,
what sort of company would
he be later
?

Guy watched
Verity
come into the room
and smiled
.
H
er tailored
crepe de Chine
pant suit
,
in an eye-catching
aqua
shade
,
floated around her as she moved
. Though f
eminine and pretty
,
it was
also dignified and
be
fitting
a business function.
She had piled her shining hair high, with a few wisps curling attractively around her face.
Despite
rising very
early
that morning
to
host
the US delegates
’
refinery
tour, followed by a
two-stage journey from B
unbury to the island, she look
ed relaxed and refreshed.
Guy watched
her
ord
er a cocktail from the bar
,
and
was am
used to see the
reactions of the
other males
as
they became
aware of her presence
.

Royce too
was watching Verity, conscious
o
f the attention she’d attracted
despite her discreet
entrance.
It looked like she was being deluged with offers
of drinks and somewhat dubious
male
companionship
, until
Guy walk
ed
over to
that end of
the bar and
slip
ped
into
a chair beside her.
Hi
s good-humoured seniority prompted the others to give them some space
.

When Verity turned towards Guy, Royce
s
aw relief on her face. He s
miled cynically.

Introduce a chicken
into a
room full of roosters
and you always get the same result
.

But he’d never seen
Brenda
Sharpe
receive
this kind of attention.
Royc
e
allowed his eyes to take in
Verity’s slim figure in
her
becoming
outfit
. With an annoyed gesture, he
twisted around
and tersely
order
ed
another
scotch
.

Guy
spoke quietly to Verity
for a bit before ris
ing
to
his feet to
do
a quick head count
. He nodded at Verity and called
out
,
‘
Good evening everyone, can I have your attention please? It’s time
we were seated.
’

Obediently
, groups
made
their way
towards
the
elegantly decorated
tables
.
Starched white
cloths, f
resh floral arrangements and
silver candelabras
adorned each one
.
Guy took Verity’s arm and led her t
o a table. When
Royce took the la
st remaining seat
at it
,
almost opposite
her, s
he stared
at him until he glanc
ed her way
and
she dropped her gaze
.
S
he didn’t see the
hard
light in his dark eyes
involuntarily
soften
when they fell on her
.