At one moment the sky was dark but tinged in the east with an arc of glowing pink; then a blend of milky blue and flamingo pink spread quickly across the heavens, followed by a clear and startling azure. The sun was up.Sensational, Sally admitted, as she looked down from her balcony at the palms and ginger bushes rising from the long strip of emerald green lawn beyond the esplanade. Behind the greenness stretched the sea, calm and silvery and edged with white where it lapped the pale gold sand. A very inviting sea.Though it was so early, a few men strolled the paved paths which led across to the beach. They wore swimming briefs and gay sports shirts, with a towel hung carelessly about the neck. All were dark and were, no doubt, Frenchmen in the army or government service. Their wives were presumably still in bed. Which vexed Sally a little. She would have loved to bathe in that serene blue and silver sea, but she couldn’t possibly be the only girl among so many men. Later on, she determined, she would find some secluded spot and enjoy herself in the waves.She showered and was served with a continental breakfast of crescent rolls, golden butter and coffee.
