Edge of Paradise by Dorothy Vernon Page B

and I think you could get hurt even worse than before.’
    â€˜Sure I could. That’s the luck of the draw. I could just as easily fall into a life of luxury.’
    â€˜I hope you do, Deirdre,’ Catherine said, and meant it.
    * * *
    The murmur of voices around them increased, growing excited as the first of the islands that formed the Bahama group came into view, denoting that the long journey was nearing its end. Soon other islands appeared; Catherine strained to look down at the scattered specks on the ocean which grew larger as the wings of the jetliner swept lower.
    The pilot identified the islands by name over the communication system, giving tantalizing snippets of information about them that whetted her appetite to know more, especially about the privately owned cays. She saw the blue-green sea edged with creamy-white surf and beaches bleached white by centuries of sunshine. It was an unspoiled, unsurpassed beauty because of its centuries of neglect since Columbus dismissed the islands as mere stopping places. The ‘useless islands,’ King Ferdinand was reputed to have called them. He had certainly been proved wrong.
    She realized with a new upsurge of excitement that they were now above New Providence and its satellite Paradise Island, connected by the spectacular Potter’s Cay Bridge. Towering hotel blocks and moving cars alike were reduced to toy proportions. The plane banked and she had a dizzy kaleidoscopic impression of sparkling blue water, yachts and cruise ships—which was hastily cut off, along with her circulation, by the urgent grip of Deirdre’s fingers ’round her wrist.
    The blond girl moaned, ‘My stomach! I wish I hadn’t gone mad with the duty free.’
    Catherine had thought that Deirdre was drinking too much, but she hadn’t liked to stress the point beyond cautioning that she’d read somewhere that alcohol was more potent while you were airborne. She felt that once you started moralizing with someone like Deirdre, it would be difficult to know when to stop.
    â€˜You’ll be all right. We’re landing now,’ she said, offering sympathy.
    Hardly had she got the words out than the wheels hit the ground and, with an increased rush of noise, the jet taxied along the landing strip.
    Her window seat immediately lost its appeal. She was trapped where she was until Deirdre decided to move, and Deirdre, looking very wan indeed, seemed incapable of doing so.
    â€˜Deirdre?’
    â€˜I feel dreadful.’
    â€˜I promise that you’ll feel better once you’re outside. Come on, I’ll help you with your hand luggage.’
    â€˜Thanks. You’re a pal,’ Deirdre said faintly.
    Wondering how anyone could pack so haphazardly, Catherine shared the untidy assortment, taking Deirdre’s rucksack and her bulging plastic carrier bag as well as her own neat shoulder travel-bag, leaving Deirdre to cope with her own canvas bag and camera. They seemed to be all she was capable of carrying.
    As they waited for the main luggage to be unloaded, Deirdre blossomed into life. ‘Sorry about that. I’m fine now, though, just as you said I would be. Look—your boss is sure to give you some time off, so how about getting in touch with me at my hotel and we can go out on the town together, mm?’
    Catherine didn’t dislike Deirdre; in fact, there was something rather likable and quite touching about the girl. But it would be miserable to go out on the town with her. She was delighted to be able to render a friendly brushoff.
    â€˜I’d love that, but I doubt if it will be possible. The island isn’t all that big, I know, but transport could be a problem. I mean, it’s unlikely that we’ll find ourselves on the same part of the island. I don’t even know if I’ll be staying in New Providence. For all I know Nassau airport might be just a convenient place for my employer to meet me before going to