Longing for Île de Ré E-Book

Dorothea Paul

• Herausgeber: novum publishing
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 285

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2025

Beschreibung

"The call came on a gray December day. A man's voice asked in English if she was the girl Adrien Vien had met in Halmstad. 'Yes,' she replied, 'that's me. There had been an accident. Adrien had died instantly. He hadn't had to suffer. Hanna's knees gave way." Just as the wind blows the leaves in autumn, Hanna's longing drives her from place to place, always in search of love, of more, away from the small town, the narrow-mindedness, the monotony of life. Only in Sweden and in the arms of Adrien does she find the feeling of having arrived. But the two are only granted a few days before fate separates them again. Can there be a time after that, even if she carries Adrien's memory with her forever?

Leseprobe

The plot is fictitious!

Pour Loïc

It is night!

It is night,

and my heart comes to you,

can't stand it,

can't stand to be with me anymore.

Lays itself on your chest,

like a stone,

sinks into,

into yours.

There first,

only there it comes to rest,

lies at the bottom

of it’s eternal You.

Introduction

The wind envelops her warmly and beautifully.

She lies very still and takes in the scent of spring flowers.

It hangs sweet and heavy in the air, close to that of a porcelain flower, that of the white hyacinths and scented violets a few meters away.

A neighbor is barbecuing and the smell is pleasant. A feeling of hunger makes itself felt. Hanna closes her eyes.

It's so peaceful and wonderful to just lie here. Very still.

Nothing disturbs her and nothing hurts, not even a single little corner of her broken body.

She dozes off and dreams of the white sandy beach, the waves lapping against it like white foam. She walks and walks - look, she can walk again, how liberating, how beautiful!

She sees him further back, pulling a boat ashore.

She'll be with him in a moment. He turns towards her. He has no face.

Hanna is startled, God in heaven, stop, stop seeing ghosts.

A dog barks incessantly, loudly and unnervingly, as if on command the neighboring child also starts screaming, barking, someone starts sawing, end of peace.

Hanna wants her peace and quiet, people have no sensitivity. They are selfish.

My children never screamed, she thinks, and knows that's not true.

She thinks of the house on Île de Ré. Why now?

She has to visit it sometime. Maybe this summer, maybe next summer ... maybe never. Because she hasn't managed that in 40 years.

Damn it, pull yourself together, just go, who's stopping you? Hanna gets up and sits down at the computer.

Chapter 1

The first blow hit Hanna completely unexpectedly. The second knocked her to the muddy ground, where she could only try to protect herself from the kicks of the heavy boots. The boots belonged to Logan, her boyfriend. He was the president of the Death Spiders. The wetness was seeping through her clothes and she was freezing. She tried to protect herself, but it wasn't that easy. Logan was standing on her hand. Hanna felt the crack. The pain made her frantic. She grabbed one of his fingers and bit down. Hanna tasted the blood, but not her own this time. It hadn't started well. The fairground was directly behind a railroad embankment. Loud music blared from the loudspeakers. Every now and then it was drowned out by a passing train. It drizzled incessantly and the wetness crept into the tent, sleeping bags and clothing. The motorcycles stood in long rows on the soggy meadow and were inspected by the mostly bearded and long-haired owners. The atmosphere was more damp than cheerful and Logan's eyes grew increasingly glazed. Vice-President Heinz stopped his buddy's bloody work and helped Hanna to her feet. Everything hurt. Blood dripped from her nose. Heinz held out a handkerchief to her. This wasn't the first time this had happened. Logan often lost his temper when he was drinking. But this time it was too much for Hanna. She pulled the engagement ring off her finger and threw it in the mud. Heinz handed her his beer and she drank in long draughts. That felt good. The people who had gathered during the incident quickly dispersed. After all, there was nothing wrong with someone smacking his bride in the face. Brides needed that. Hanna moved mechanically. Something inside her was broken. She made sure no one was following her and moved away from the fairground. It was pitch dark and the music was slowly getting quieter. She fell lengthways twice, but that didn't bother her anymore.Where she was going didn't matter what state she arrived in. The slope of the railroad embankment was slippery. Then infinite peace. The train would come soon and give her the peace she longed for. And Logan would never touch her again. The man was as big as a bear. He peed in a high arc against the embankment when he thought he heard soft crying. He listened intently into the darkness. It was coming from the top of the embankment. Blimey, he thought, the girl from earlier, and the train must be coming any minute. She struggled, but he carried her in his arms as if she were just a doll. "Gosh, girl," he said, "that's not worth a guy! You're such a pretty girl!" He smelled of beer and had a long beard. "Where's your tent?" He carried her a few meters, then Hanna wanted to walk herself. But she held him by the arm until they got to her tent. Hanna crawled inside and cried herself to sleep. He stayed up all night in front of the entrance to her tent. Just lay down in front of it, as if it were a matter of course! And in this shitty weather! Nobody moved. Logan also kept his distance. In the morning, he spoke to Heinz and he offered her a ride home with him. The atmosphere was extremely tense. Hanna's hand hurt like hell. The finger was so strangely twisted. There was nothing to cool it. Logan didn't even look in her direction. He probably had no idea what he had done. He exchanged a few words with Road Captain Mikey, got on the Harley Sportster she had helped finance, and rode off. Hanna never learned the name of her savior, but she knew he was a respected member of another club. Her heart was eternally grateful to him. He was right, no guy was worth it. One of them would have to die sooner or later. She wasn't going to put up with it any more. Now the show was over. She knew that the only thing that could help her was to get some distance. Three years could be a long time. And she had spent those three years dealing with Logan, or rather, he had spent dealing with her. He had been the cool guy for her back then, she was 16 and he was 26, someone who was different from the farmers she usually knew. He had a Harley, long hair and everything that bourgeois people didn't like. He didn't give a damn about people and he smelled of freedom. "Born to be Wild". And that was all that mattered to them. The biker life was cool, Hanna loved the bikes, the riding, the people, the rides they went on, the community, all good, but Logan had overdone it. It was enough now; the supposed freedom had shrunk to the size of a raisin. She just wanted to get away from this asshole, who was just as stupid as the others, only in a differente way. Away from the small town, the narrow-mindedness of the people and the monotony of life. The whole big world was waiting for her, she had nothing left to lose here. And then there was the pressure exerted on her at home. Hanna always felt misunderstood, nothing she did was good, all her friends were generallybad people and unacceptable company. It was difficult to combat this mood. Yes, what did they expect? That a knight in silver armor would ride into the courtyard on a white horse and ask her to marry him? Of course that would have been nice, she wouldn't have said no. She had dreamed of it as a little girl. She had climbed up alone to the old Celtic castle near the village, sat there in the sun and felt the magic of the place. A wing beat from the past had touched her. One day she would find her prince. But Logan wasn't. Sometimes she only thought that because she was different from everyone else. Society and the way people were supposed to be had literally driven her into the arms of these guys. Because they were different. Much of what she did was simply a defiant reaction against this eternal "ducking, fitting in and doing like everyone else".

"Logan could also be incredibly romantic, he cooked her favorite food, played guitar, yes, he could do that, he was even in a band, at least once in a while. Of course, he didn't earn any money from it. But he had scraped together the last of his money and bought her a mirror with a gold frame that she had once seen in a shop window and liked. And every time he hurt her, he was infinitely sorry, it would never happen again, she was the love of his life. That's how the engagement came about. His grandmother had given her a present. She had been very serious. "You treat this girl properly; do you hear me?" she had said. That made Hanna uncomfortable. She knew that he didn't and probably never would.

Logan and she had met at the local nightclub, the Metropol. The age limit was 18, but that wasn't a problem for Hanna, more of a challenge. And she loved a challenge. The bouncer had his eye on her and didn't cause any problems, even if she took Sarah with her, who was still a year younger. They drank dirty drinks, a mixture of beer and cola. Hanna was wearing tight Levi's and a black, laced suede top. Her long blonde hair was loose. Hardly any make-up. She also had a good relationship with Jochen, the DJ. He always played whatever she wanted. The disco was full that night. People were standing in three rows in front of the bar. There was nothing going on the dance floor, too early. Hanna leaned towards Jochen and whispered: "One Lola, please!" He nodded and winked at her. "You're welcome, my lady!" She danced slowly to the Kinks' song with her eyes closed, not even noticing that a ring was forming around her and she was dancing alone. Jochen grinned, yes, the girl had it in her. He had seen many in his days as a DJ, but none like her. A natural talent. When the song came to an end, there was spontaneous applause. Oops, Hanna was startled. She rushed to the bar. A guy with a beard and a frock put his arm around her. He didn't smell particularly good. "Well, my pretty, how about us?" Hanna wriggled out of his grip. "Let go of me, damn it." He held her even tighter; it was starting to really hurt. "Hey, bitch, don't be like that, you're mine!" He reached out with his free hand and grabbed her breast! Now Hanna had had enough! "I don't belong to anyone, remember that," she blurted out. She spun away from him, reached out and struck him. All her irritation at thisinsult was contained in this one blow. With success. The bearded man fell like a skittle on a bowling alley. It suddenly became as quiet as a mouse. Jochen had seen it too and turned off the music. Hanna stood there as if it wasn't about her. Rudi, the owner of the Metropol, who wasn't often seen, came in. "What's going on?" he asked. Someone said: "That guy deserved it; he grabbed her and everything." It was Logan. Rudi kicked the bearded man out. Logan's words carried weight. Hanna got rid of her nickname – Beater Elli! Hanna had made her mark right from the start and gained respect. And so, the story began. Most of the members of the Death Spiders had seen her knock-out punch. When they sat around a bonfire together later, they laughed about it. No one even thought to question it, except Logan himself. Secretly, they were proud of her. Hanna was straightforward, she didn't pretend and did what she thought was right, even if she was sometimes a little hasty. Tit shows were often arranged at the biker meetings, which Hanna found completely disgusting and humiliating. Logan always wanted her on stage, but the other members protected her there too. "I have the prettiest," she joked, "I really don't have to prove it." Logan also wanted to force a tattoo on her, but Hanna remembered her father's words. "If you're invited to the king's ball, do you want to have an ugly tattoo or be the princess of the evening?" Of course, Hanna always wanted to be a princess, what young girl didn't? And she wanted the great love. The one who makes everything feel right and perfect. But so far, pretty much everything had gone wrong!

At home, she only ever told half the story, if she told anything at all. What nobody knew couldn't upset anyone. The scenes that awaited her when something came out were enough for her. In the small village in Bavaria, there was no understanding at all for any kind of difference. The place where she was born and grew up,was idyllically situated on a lake in southern Bavaria. Her father had a sailing boat there and she loved going out on the lake. Apart from that, people here followed the prescribed norms and traditions. Nothing else was accepted. When she broke out of this world, people were up in arms. But everyone had enough to do before their own door.

Her little brother Georg, on the other hand, was a model child. He played the violin and got straight A's at school. Her parents loved him dearly. He did everything right, and if he didn't, they overlooked it. It was hard to stand up to that. But Hanna was also very fond of Georg. He was a lovely guy. They stuck together well as siblings.

Hanna and Logan went to motorcycle meetings with other clubs all over Germany. Hanna had many friends among the rockers and felt strong with them. These friends had always protected her from Logan when necessary, but they couldn't always be there. And so, it happened more and more often that Hanna had to go to hospital. Broken fingers, bruises, violets and the painful consequences of falling out of moving cars. The doctor who examined Hanna after the last incident asked about the circumstances. "I fell and got stuck." "I'm sure you did," said the doctor, "but I don't believe you. You already know that this should actually be reported."

The finger was broken. The middle finger, how fitting. When the Death Spiders arrived at the clubhouse, the members had quickly dispersed. A party like this takes its toll. Hanna's hand was swollen, the pain unbearable. Logan came over to her. "Well, what's going on here? Have you calmed down?" Hanna couldn't believe her ears, so he wasn't even sorry. That asshole, damn it, Hanna would have loved to ... but she couldn't do that now. "Let me see," he said and took her hand in his. "Looks like a hospital. Come on, I'll drive you." Shit, Hanna knew he was right. He got into HER car and drove her to the emergency room. Once there, he slammed into the wall right in front of the entrance. With her car, into the wall. "Uiii," he said, "now you have to say you were driving, I'm not sober." Hanna was stunned. Why did she keep forgiving him? Did she think he would change? Hanna suspected that it had nothing to do with love. She had been looking for freedom and, of course, love and security. So far, however, there had been none of that. Of course, Hanna also had wonderful memories of that time, especially the motorcycle rides. But there were also some terrible ones. The misery of the drug milieu, friends who died, Logan's constant beatings, the untenable situation at home and the longing for more, for a different life, finally made her brave. Her horizon probably didn't end here. After all, she was only 18, her whole life still lay ahead of her and she deservede, God knows, something else than to be oppressed by a neurotic rocker. Although she had never accepted his behavior, no, she always fought back as best she could. If she got two blue eyes, he should at least have one. But now she had finally had enough. She had understood that you can't forgive someone who hits you even once. Once is already too much. If you forgive once, you forgive twice and three times, after that it's routine. No, Logan would never change, but she would. Life in the village hadn't been her world and the rocker life even less so. Hanna woke up from the nightmare that, young as she was, had already shaped her life.

In the midst of this chaos, she had passed her journeyman's examination as a chef and so everything was open to her. The school doctor had advised her against training as a chef. She had scoliosis, which would not be helped by the difficult job. But she persevered. She loved cooking, creativity and variety. It was also a crisis-proof profession, people would eat anywhere and at any time.

So, she took a vacation and went to Mainz to visit her friend Ina. Oh, it was lovely, getting up when it suited you, strolling through the city, browsing, shopping, relaxing, going out ... Mainz as it laughs and sings, so to speak. Hanna loved the city. The many things they did together provided variety. They went to the cabaret or the theater. They went to open-air concerts or sat in the audience of a TV show. A new world, interesting people and new friends. Ina was always positive and cheerful, she never let people down. They often wandered around the market, tasting a little cheese here and a few olives there, buying a freshly baked baguette and a bottle of Beaujolais. Then they could sit and chat for hours. It was delicious.

Ina knew a lot of exciting people. She worked in the Zeitungsente, Mainz's cult pub. The great thing about this city was that there were no class differences like in the country. At the bar, the university professor could talk to the unemployed bricklayer and the bum could talk to the dentist without there being anything strange about it. One warm evening, Hanna struck up a conversation with Ismael. He worked as a cellar master in one of the city's fine hotels. "We need help in the kitchen, I'll put in a good word for you." Hanna knew what hell she would have to go through at home. But her mind was made up and once she had set her mind to something, she would see it through. It would also help her escape Logan, who she wasn't at all convinced would let her go so easily. At home, her mother was waiting for her with familiar reproaches and her father with stern admonitions. But he also understood her and supported her plans and her courage to break out. To dare to do something different. The next day, Hanna quit her job as a cook and prepared to move. Nobody really knew the real reason for this, but she didn't say anything other than that she needed a change. Logan couldn't get any more out of her either. She collected her things from the apartment they had actually wanted to move into togetherand promised to tell him her new address soon. But she never did. Logan couldn't believe she was really leaving. But she left. Without turning around or saying goodbye to anyone. Just like that.

Two weeks after Hanna started the new job, she also found a small apartment directly opposite the hotel. That's how long she lived with Ina. Hanna was immediately fully committed. It was hard work with regular overtime. On duty at weekends. But her boss liked her, trained her and gave her responsibility. Let her take part in wine tastings. "Miss Sommer, you really know your stuff." Hanna laughed. "Maybe I'm a natural." Here, too, she quickly made friends. It could go on like this, she thought. So many nice people. Ina lived above the Zillestube, a pub in Münsterstraße. It was almost next door to the Unterhaus.

The Mainz Unterhaus was one of the most important theaters for cabaret in Germany. Since it was founded in 1966, its tradition, stagecraft and history had had an impact far beyond the borders of its region and many artists had dreamed the dream of a better world here. Hanna read the text and was thrilled. Dreams came true here, she loved it, because she had them too! Ina was a diligent visitor and took Hanna with her. Ina knew the cultural elite of Mainz. A new world opened up. Over the next few weeks, she got to know Georg Danzer, the Austrian singer whose songs she liked so much, a famous inventor, a prince and many other interesting people. At one point, ZDF was looking for a volunteer to play the Russian dancer Rudolf Nureyev with a chiffon scarf during a dance show. "You can do that," said Ina and suggested Hanna to the producer. He was thrilled. Hanna bought a pair of white trousers and a red angora sweater at Karstadt. She wore her long blonde hair loose. She wasn't a bitnervous, but it was an exciting evening, especially because everyone on the TV crew went out for dinner afterwards. Hanna and Ina too. Who would have thought that Nureyev would be so nice and that she would go home happy with his autograph. Another time, she went to Ina's house after work. There was a full circus, loud music, food, champagne flowing. Hanna couldn't believe it, Les Milords were actually sitting at the table. They were acrobatic dancers, bursting with toned muscles. And they were funny guys! Hanna couldn't remember the last time she had laughed so much. She was delighted that she and Ina had been given VIP tickets to the show. She was impressed by their incredible body control and elegance. That was something very special.

One day, they had a particularly busy time at the hotel. Four coaches arrived at the same time and wanted to be catered for. A temporary cook, whom Hanna had never seen before, stepped in. He seemed strange to her from the very first moment. He radiated hostility, although Hanna couldn't for the life of her explain why. At some point she realized that he was threatening her, not openly, but unmistakably. It came from Logan. She realized this when she saw him riding away after work in a frock and on a Harley. Hanna knew that she had to be careful from now on. The work kept her going and she dreamed of working somewhere abroad. Preferably on a cruise ship. It almost worked itself out, just a little differently than she had thought. The hotel where she worked was a member of a partner program. You could swap jobs between different countries. Hanna registered her interest. Two weeks later, her boss came back with three offers. Bern, London and Halmstad in Sweden. Not London for God's sake, she hated big cities. She didn't feel like yodeling in the mountains either. But Sweden sounded good. The Astrid Lindgren and ABBA dreamland!!! She spontaneously agreed and left Mainz, as it sings and laughs, behind her.

Chapter 2

With the last drop of the old love, she drank to the new one. Against which she had fought tooth and nail and was still fighting. Against which she appealed to her reason. Without success. This love that had taken her so unawares and shook her like the wind shakes the leaves in the fall. Completely headless.

I can't be completely normal, she thought, why do I always end up with men I can't just be happy with? What would become of it?

Farewell, grief, longing, letters, hope, failure at a border or love forever?

No tears, she had learned, she no longer allowed her heart to be broken so easily. Was it really like that?

Hanna stood on the outermost tip of land, had climbed over the windswept pier, stood by the lighthouse and waved at the love that she didn't admit was hurting her. Hanna raised her arm mechanically, the hand that waved, was it really hers? She had been waiting for half an hour or more, stiff with cold, and even the thick Norwegian sweater didn't help. She watched as the tugs pulled the two ships out of the canal.

Slowly, very slowly, they moved. She could not yet tell which of the two ships was the Maillé Brézé, but deep down she knew that he had already seen her. Centimeter by centimeter, the ship slid out of the harbor basin and Hanna froze, and not just because of the cold.

She watched the ship closely, not taking her eyes off it for a second; it was the Maillé Brézé. His ship. The secondwas the Primauguet. It lay still for seconds, then it came. Slowly creeping closer, closer ... She could already see the sailors' caps. They were all standing on deck, in straight rows, at the bow, at the stern and on the upper deck. For whom, she wondered, the harbor was long behind them. Hanna looked around, no, she was alone.

A thoroughly impressive scene, 277men, 17of them officers and 100non-commissioned officers, just for her.Hanna looked at them and wondered how many of them were now sad because they had to leave a girl behind in the harbor.

But there was only one girl out here at the lighthouse. The girl searched through the rows of white caps. Then someone raised his and waved like crazy. Hanna hated saying goodbye, but she raised her arm and waved back. She saw nothing but his figure on the upper deck. She no longer felt the cold. Two pairs of eyes burned into each other, trying to catch each other. No, that only happens in movies, Hanna thought, such dramatic farewells. The ship picked up speed. Stop, she wanted to scream. She lowered her arm, desperate, pointless, no one should ever hurt her again. But then she saw that someone else was very sad, a ribbon stretched across the water and she threw him a kiss. She got it back immediately.

At that moment, they both felt the same helplessness in the face of fate, the same despair, the same anger.

They didn't want to say goodbye; they weren't even ready yet. Hanna and her Adrien! The girl at the lighthouse, the soldier set sail. A cheap cliché. But a bitter reality for them both.

Adrien saw her lonely figure at the lighthouse, his Hanna. She was strong and brave.

He couldn't do anything, he cried, he couldn't stop the tears, she was the one, the one he had longed for so long, and her name was Hanna. Alain looked at him and said: "Adrien, you've really got it now."

He disappeared from her sight. The crew became dots. The ship was getting smaller and smaller, it was probably better she left now.

Again and again, all the way back along the pier, Hanna turned around. Once she slipped and hit her knee. But she didn't feel it. Surely, he could still see her through the binoculars. ln the car, the music was loud. Feelings drowned out. But did they have to play a love song now, of all things? What now? The traffic in the city was horrible, everything was horrible. Home? Thank goodness she had the day off. She thought she could use a Black Bush, one to wash away the huge lump in her throat.

Then she had a flash of inspiration that she might be able to see the ship from the end of the bay in Grötvik for a while. She drove there. Just as she came over the hill, she saw the silhouette of the Maillé Brézé rushing towards the horizon and couldn't take her eyes off it. Almost crashed into another car.

Tried to control herself and switched off the engine. Was he still looking at the land? He certainly had his hands full now. Hanna sat there for exactly 25 minutes, waiting for the Maillé Brézé to disappear from her view. At 11:24, she did her the favor. Hanna didn't know that it was the Maillé Brézé's last journey.

The horizon was as empty as she was. Hanna just sat still for a while. Trembling. Lord in heaven, she thought, where did this man suddenly come from? This absolutely wonderful man! She tried to compose herself, drove home and lay down in thebed. Big mistake! It smelled of him. But she didn't cry. Didn't cry later either. Nobody should hurt her anymore.

Hanna had become cautious. The evening, she had met Adrien was one of the few times she had gone out. Tight jeans, silk blouse, men's jacket, all in black. She wore her long blonde hair loose as she did often. She had arranged to meet Sussie, an evening she wasn't expecting much from, apart from drinking a few beers and listening to some decent music. She took the bus to Sussie's, who was still in the middle of moving. She helped her carry a few things up to the fourth floor. They drank their first wine at Pia and Nils'. Then they set off. The Norre Kavaljeren nightclub clearly had a surplus of men today. It was full of handsome and not so handsome dark-haired boys. Oh dear, there were two large French warships in the harbor. She had read about it in the newspaper. The ships were supposed to call at Gothenburg, but environmental activists had claimed that they had nuclear weapons on board and had therefore stopped the visit. The people of Halmstad were not so easily frightened and welcomed the French.

Well, this was going to be fun. When Hanna and Sussie got their first beer, she was already being chatted up from two sides. But Hanna remembered her last French experience with Thierry all too clearly and didn't react. Thierry had made eyes at her on the student exchange in Brittany. He was funny, looked stunning and was an excellent cook. He had taught her all about cooking lobster and oysters. In the evenings he had brushed her long blonde hair, very sensually, and paid her compliments.

When Hanna fell ill after eating oysters, was very unpleasant and ended up in hospital, he had replaced her without batting an eyelid. No, thank you! The French were all talkers, and those who went to sea were even sharper. The twogirls hardly dared to turn their heads because they were completely surrounded. Not that anyone thought they were out for an adventure. That was all they needed. But since they couldn't be overlooked, they naturally became the number one topic of conversation. Sussie thought the sailor hats were so cute that she really wanted one, and if that wasn't possible, then at least one of the red bobbles.

Challenge of the evening. Hanna looked around, most of them were wearing civilian clothes, but wait a minute, there was someone in a smart uniform at the back of the bar. And he was staring over at her too. Sussie had seen him too and said that he wasn't the prettiest of them all, but Hanna found him incredibly attractive and it wasn't just because of the uniform. He looked quintessentially French, with black hair and moustache, striking facial features and a handsome figure. "Come on, Hannchen," Sussie whined. "Why don't you give it a try, you do know some French." Hanna played coy and suddenly couldn't remember a single word. When she turned around, he was still looking at her and lightning struck. Before she knew it, he was standing next to her with his beer, cap and companion. Fucking desperate sailors.

And they had all seen the movie "An Officer and a Gentleman", how stupid could you be? What the hell, now she would get Sussie the cap. He introduced himself with a bow, his name was Adrien Vien. He spoke some English and even a few words of German, very good. She immediately told the young man how great she thought it was that he went out in uniform and stood by his country in 1987. When he then told Hanna that he had cycled 40 km inland today to see some of Sweden, she was impressed. They were both amazed to realize that their conversation went beyond the usual blah-blah. He told her that the officers and some of the sailors had been invited by the Halmstad Naval Club in the afternoon, which he thought was great, a totalcontrast to the action in Gothenburg. In general, everyone was very friendly here.

Adrien looked deep into her eyes, although Hanna preferred to look away. His eyes were the color of white-blue-gray foaming spray, changing in bright shades. Eyes you could easily drown in. She sensed that something was coming at her that she wasn't up to. Go to the toilet quickly. Look at herself in the mirror and give herself the bird. But the flicker in her eyes was already there and she couldn't think it away. When she returned to the table, he was beaming at her with a strangely happy, knowing smile.