For their part, Dorothy’s parents were delighted that her daughter had the attention of such a handsome and successful young man, and wondered how long it would be before an announcement would be made.
Dorothy was desperately happy, falling head over heels in love with her gorgeous man. But, secretly, she wondered ifsomething was missing. She longed for Douglas to take her in his arms and kiss her passionately, like they did in the movies, but the most she had got was a bit of hand holding and a chaste farewell kiss at the end of each outing. He was full of compliments, but from the words he used – dear, pretty, little, sweet, adorable – she worried he saw her as a child, and not as the hot-blooded woman she was fast becoming, fighting to keep a lid on her increasing passion and desire.
Dorothy longed to talk to Clara about it and ask for her friend’s advice. She was far more experienced when it came to men, but from the outset, Clara had shown little enthusiasm about her and Douglas’s burgeoning relationship. It had even become a source of tension between the pair. From time to time, Clara tried to warn her off him, but Dorothy refused to listen.
‘All I’m saying is be careful, Dorothy. There’s talk, you know. People are saying that Douglas and Maria—’
‘Oh for goodness’ sake,’ Dorothy had interrupted angrily. ‘Why are you listening to gossip, Clara? What do they know? I know that it’smeDouglas is interested in;methat Douglas is courting. Maria da Costa is engaged to another man, it’s over between them.’ Her forehead creased in an angry frown. ‘I don’t understand why you’re being so unkind. Are you jealous, Clara, is that it?’
‘No Dorothy, don’t be so ridiculous,’ Clara had snapped back. ‘I’m your friend and I just don’t want to see you get hurt. I don’t trust Douglas and I don’t think you should, either.’
‘Enough, Clara! Please stop. I don’t want to hear malicious gossip about the man I love.’ Dorothy closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself. Then she opened her eyes and pasted a smile on her lips. ‘Now, let’s change the subject, please, I don’t want us to fall out.’
Five blissful months passed, during which time Dorothy did her best to ignore the occasional mutterings that she heard about Douglas. She also tried hard to ignore the niggling worry about the lack of passion in their courtship. Douglas was just being gentlemanly, she reassured herself. It would be different when they were married. And hewasgoing to propose, she was sure of it. They were in love with each other and nothing could persuade her otherwise.
It was the night of the St Andrew’s ball and Douglas had invited Dorothy to go as his date. Unfortunately, she had been forced to let him down at the last minute, after coming down with a rotten headache in the afternoon. She had given up the idea of dancing the night away with her handsome man and gone to bed feeling rather sorry for herself instead.
Shortly afterwards, Ah Ling had tiptoed into the room carrying a tray bearing a glass of muddy brown liquid.
Dorothy raised her eyebrows questioningly, but knew enough about Ah Ling’s ancient remedies to trust her.
Ah Ling smiled as she handed her the glass. ‘It called Chuan Xiong Cha Tiao San. I make it for you, make head feel better.’
Yet again, Ah Ling’s magical cure did the trick and when Dorothy woke from her nap, just before eight o’clock, she was feeling completely better. She saw her new dress hanging on the wardrobe door and felt a pang of disappointment that she was missing all the fun. Moments later, she was out of bed and calling for Ah Ling to help her get ready. She couldn’t wait to see Douglas at the club and smiled to herself as she pictured the surprise on his face.
Less than an hour later, Dorothy stepped out of the car and into the lobby of the Tanglin Club. She spotted her friend Rebecca Dalziel there with her beau, Jeremy, cooling off witha long glass of something on ice. Rebecca smiled as she came in and complimented her on her new dress.
‘You haven’t seen Douglas, have you?’ Dorothy asked.
‘Yes.’ Rebecca’s brow creased in thought. ‘Just a few minutes ago, actually. He was heading outside, in the direction of the tennis—’
Jeremy cut her off, his normally cheerful face turning suddenly serious. ‘But come and get a drink first, Dorothy. I’m sure Douglas will be back in a minute. He’s probably gone for a smoke, you know what he’s like. Come on.’
He took her elbow and made to steer her towards the bar. Dorothy wondered why he was so serious tonight; this wasn’t the usual, jolly Jeremy she knew. But she didn’t spend long pondering it. Instead, she thanked them, slipped out of Jeremy’s grasp and rushed out into the dark.
Dorothy grinned as she made her way along the lamplit path towards the tennis courts. She couldn’t wait to see Douglas’s reaction at her arrival. Past the terrace she hurried, then down the hill. The lights ended here and it took her eyes a moment to adjust to the darkness. She could hear a male voice up ahead and stopped to listen. Yes, it was Douglas.
Dorothy followed the direction of the sound and it led her all the way to him. He was in the equipment store at the side of the tennis court. She pushed the door open and was surprised that it was dark inside. But she could tell that he was not alone. Dorothy’s face twisted in confusion as she tried to make sense of what she saw. A tangled mess of red satin fabric and black evening dress. Among this, the moonlight highlighted bare flesh, as arms and legs writhed together.
Hot and sweaty, moaning and panting; there could be no misinterpretation of the scene. She heard a startled cry andrealised it had come from her. The movement stopped and she found herself staring into the dark, sultry eyes of Maria da Costa.
Clara took no pleasure in having been right. She consoled her friend as best she could, reassuring her that she was better off without the cheating Douglas. But Dorothy was bereft. He called at her home several times but she stayed in her bedroom and refused to see him. She instructed Ah Ling to send him away and return the stream of messages, cards and flowers that followed.
Dorothy’s parents were disappointed that the courtship had ended, but she did not elaborate on the reason. Despite the way he had treated her, she was not a spiteful person and, given that Douglas worked with her father, she did not wish to ruin his opinion of him.
Over the next few months, Dorothy’s life in Singapore found a gentler rhythm. She avoided the parties and clubs where she might bump into Douglas. Instead, she applied herself to her dream of working for a newspaper and enrolled in a secretarial course. She spent time quietly at home, practising her typing and shorthand, or with the new girlfriends she had met on the course. It was a relief to make new friends away from the social scene in which Douglas was involved.
Despite the earlier unpleasantness over Douglas, Dorothy was glad that Clara remained a close friend. The two would go shopping together, or spend time sunbathing by the pool in Clara’s garden. From time to time, Clara’s cousin Matthew would join them when he came home from work, and Dorothy found herself looking forward to these occasions more and more.
Matthew’s gentle, steady manner was exactly what she needed after the rollercoaster of emotions she had experienced with Douglas. There was no great fuss or fanfare with him, no flattery or great charm offensive; Matthew was kind, gentle and honest. He treated Dorothy with nothing but the utmost respect. Little by little, she recovered from the whirlwind of Douglas’s romantic attentions and felt she had grown wiser from the experience.
Time ticked by and a whole year in Singapore had passed. Dorothy spent her days helping her mother with her various charities and practising her secretarial skills. She was achieving excellent marks in her tests and, as hoped, Clara’s father, Walter Davies, had managed to pull some strings and arrange some work experience for her at a local newspaper.
Dorothy was feeling content. She felt busy and useful, not to mention safe in this quieter, steadier post-Douglas life. She had a devoted friend in Matthew and felt entirely comfortable with him. After his initial six months of training at the bank, he had extended his stay in Singapore indefinitely and that had made Dorothy very happy. She enjoyed their conversations and his easy company, and, little by little, he helped her feel more like her old self again.
Despite Clara’s gentle teasing to the contrary, Dorothy was adamant that her friendship with Matthew was just that; a friendship. After her experience with Douglas, she was not ready for any more romance. But maybe, one day, that might change. Dorothy hoped it would.
CHAPTER 14
