(Part 01)
It was Christmas Eve and Samantha Dunlop, who worked at Hanratty’s Department Store in Abbottsford’s Phoenix Centre, was just on her way back to work after having had lunch with her boyfriend Darren.
“Bastard” she muttered under her breath as she entered the centre.
Sam was running the lunch time conversation through her head which was why she was so angry.
“You’re breaking up with me?” she asked in disbelieve across the table in McDonald’s.
“Don’t take it so hard babe” he said
“You’re breaking up with me on Christmas Eve?” she repeated
“I didn’t see why not I haven’t got your present yet so it was a win, win babe” he said
“You cheap bastard” she yelled and poured his chocolate shake over him
“I can see this is going to be another shit Christmas” she said to herself as she walked into Hanratty’s.
She went into the staff room and took off her coat and woollen had and shook her black hair like a wet dog.
The day before she had been passed over for promotion and then she gets dumped on Christmas Eve.
She was a 29 years old divorcee and she had worked for the department store in the cosmetics department for seven years and she was passed over for Abigail Subhan,
A 22 year old University graduate who had to take her head out of her arse to smell the perfume.
About 4 o’clock that afternoon a middle aged man entered the department and walked up to Samantha’s counter
“Good afternoon sir how may I help?”
"I would like to buy some perfume for my wife." he said
"Certainly sir" she replied. "What does your wife like?”
“I’ve no idea” he replied
“Do you have anything particular in mind?" she asked through gritted teeth
"Not really." he said "but nothing very expensive."
"I understand sir” she said and reached behind her “How about this one?"
He picked it up and looked it over and asked
"How much is it?"
"£150” she replied
“No, I did say nothing very expensive”
She place that bottle back where she had got it from and picked up its neighbour.
“This one is Eighty pounds sir”
"That's still too expensive" he replied
She presented him with a smaller bottle
“How about this one?" she said
"How much?” he asked.
"Fifty pounds sir."
"Do you have anything else?" he enquired.
"Well, there's this small bottle at twenty five pounds."
"Look love" he whispered "I want you to show me something really cheap"
Samantha smiled and said conspiratorially
“Come this way”
She led him to the makeup counter and said
“Just stand there and look straight ahead”
“What for?” he asked
Her green eyes narrowed and she said
“Because you said you wanted to see something really cheap, and that is as cheap as I’ve ever seen”
“Mrs Dunlop!!” Ms Subhan called “My office now”
So on top of missing out on promotion and being dumped by her boyfriend she was also sacked from Hanratty’s.
But then maybe saying to her boss that even with the biggest nose in Abbottsford she couldn’t tell the difference between Chanel and Dettol, didn’t really help her case.
Her first reaction was to go straight to the pub and get plastered but she was driving to Shallowfield that evening.
And the way her luck was going at that moment she was bound to get stopped by the police and lose her license along with everything else.
Samantha had phoned her best and oldest friend Emily as soon as she got back to work after Darren dumped her and Emily invited her to stay with her and her husband Matt for Christmas.
The Charlton’s had a Flat in East Cliff Lodge, on Teardrop Lake, so she went straight home after she was canned and packed a bag.
(Part 02)
As she left Abbottsford it started to snow and the snow that had fallen ten days earlier was still evident on the ground so the fresh fall quickly settled.
Samantha didn’t like driving in the snow, well she didn’t like driving full stop if she was honest, and so she was driving very cautiously.
The snow was obviously coming from the direction she was heading because as she was driving between Childean and Shallowfield the snow on the road was getting significantly deeper so she went even more cautiously.
But as she approached the last significant bend before the Shallowfield she lost control and after fighting with the steering she careered off the road into a ditch.
Richard O’Sullivan was in his mid-thirties and was one of the partners in O’Sullivan and Springthorpe Auctioneers in Shallowfield.
He had been driving in the same direction to Samantha Dunlop but then he received a phone call from his friend Jon cancelling their dinner date so he turned around and was heading back home when he witnessed her car briefly skidding across the road before disappearing from view.
He stopped the car and looked down into the ditch, the car was nose in and tilted upwards 20 degrees on the driver’s side.
The lights were on and the engine was still running and the driver’s door was open but there was no sign of the driver.
He got out of his car and shouted
“Hello”
He got no response so he clambered down into the ditch and approached the car.
He confirmed the car was empty and reached in and switched off the engine and killed the lights.
He could see footprints in the snow so he decided to follow them and resumed his calling.
After four or five minutes he found a young woman in a clearing blundering about in aimless circles.
“Are you ok?” he asked and she turned around towards him the snow was still falling and accumulating on her Wooly hat.
"It's Christmas Day. Shouldn't we be watching “White Christmas?”” she said
"No” he replied “it hasn’t started yet”
“I like “White Christmas”” she said
“Why don’t you come and watch it with me then?” he suggested and took her arm
“I wouldn’t want to miss it” she slurred and turned towards him which was when he noticed blood on her face.
He guided her slowly back the way they had come and helped her up out of the ditch and into his car.
Then he opened the boot and took out his torch and went back to her car, and located her handbag from the foot well and an overnight back and coat from the back seat and clambered back up to the road.
As he was only half a mile from his cottage and the snow was falling thick and fast he decided the best thing to do would be take her to the Old Mill Cottage.
After he settled her on the sofa he took a moment to look at her closely.
She had a bump on her forehead and a cut above her right eye but apart from that her face had a lovely shape and symmetry.
Richard got the first aid kit and cleaned and dressed her cut then he gave her another appraising look.
He noticed she had high cheekbones and flawless skin.
But her shinning black hair and wild green set her apart from every other girl he had ever met.
"My dad wants to play Monopoly" she said "Not me though”
“Quite right” he said and tucked a blanket around her legs and then he went to phone the Health Centre and was put through to the on call Doctor.
“Hello Doctor, its Richard O’Sullivan, there’s been a car accident, a young woman has banged her head, she has a bump on the head, a cut eye and she’s a little confused”
“Ok where are you?” Doctor Philips said
“Old Mill Cottage in Shallowfield” he replied
“I can’t get there myself, the roads are terrible and I’m stuck in Mornington” he said
“What should I do then?” he asked
“I will get to you when I can or failing that I’ll get someone closer to you to attend” he said
“Just don’t let her go to sleep”
(Part 03)
He hung up the phone and sat on the floor in front of her and had a nonsensical conversation with her until an hour later there was a knock on the door.
He got up stiffly and answered the door to find two snow covered figures.
“Hello Richard, where’s the patient?”
“Doctor Lutchford? Is that you?” he said “Come in, come in”
“It’s a bit Wintry” Claire said and stamped the snow off her boots “Where is she?”
“On the Sofa” he replied “Is that Peter under all that snow?”
“The roads are un-drivable” he said and shook Richards hand “so we walked”
“I guessed as much” Richard said
“It’s just as well we did there are two trees down so the Childean road is blocked”
“Come into the kitchen and let Claire do her thing” Richard said “I’ll make a hot drink”
Claire joined them in the kitchen about 10 minutes later.
“How is she?” Richard asked
“I’ve glued the cut and redressed it. The bump seems superficial and there’s no sign of a concussion”
“Good” he said
“Is it alright if you keep her here overnight?” Claire asked “Getting about is problematic at best”
“Of course it is” he said “Peter was just telling me what it’s like out there”
“Thank you Richard that’s very good of you” she said
“I’ve given her some pain killers, just let her sleep now, but keep an eye on her and call me if there is any change”
They stayed long enough to finish their drinks and then said their goodbyes and disappeared again into the snowy night.
Richard made himself another mug of coffee and went back to the lounge.
His houseguest was fast asleep on the sofa, he could have carried her into the bedroom but as she was a diminutive girl she fitted quite comfortably on the sofa, so he saw no point in moving her.
He did go upstairs and brought down the duvets, one he draped over her and the other he would use himself.
Before he settled down he put another log in the burner and picked up her handbag and rummaged inside until he found her purse.
In the front pocket of a rather gaudy pink purse was her driving license and he checked the photo and confirmed it was her.
“Samantha Dunlop” he said out loud and smiled
He also checked her mobile phone and noticed a lot of missed calls, all from the same number.
“Someone is worried about you” he said and dialed the number
He pulled the armchair closer to the fire and made himself comfortable and covered himself with the duvet.
That was the last thing he remembered until he awoke in the eerie light of Christmas Morning with a stiff neck.
He got up and stretched and then winced when he turned his head.
He checked first his watch and saw it was after eight and then his guest and found she was still sleeping peacefully.
So he revived the fire and dropped in another log and crept out of the room.
Showered, shaved and dressed he returned downstairs to the kitchen.
He looked out of the window and could see it was still snowing though much lighter than the night before.
He flicked on the kettle and turned his attention to lunch.
As he lived alone he didn’t bother with Christmas lunch and all the trimmings, not because he couldn’t cook, he was a very good cook, he just didn’t bother for himself.
In fact he hadn’t done Christmas lunch since his wife died.
Helena loved Christmas and everything that went with it and so did he.
But five years earlier his love of it died along with her.
And even though that was at a different time in a different house he still didn’t put up the decorations like Helena used to.
(Part 04)
First things first he looked in the fridge and the freezer and checked the cupboards and set about his task.
It wouldn’t be a Christmas Lunch per se but it would be a cooked lunch on Christmas Day.
Once he had everything prepared he made his drink and went back to the lounge.
It was 10 o’clock, Samantha had been asleep for more than 12 hours so he thought it was probably best if she began to come round.
He drew back the curtains and put on the radio, nothing too raucous he thought so he selected Christmas worship on the BBC, then he sat down in his armchair and drank his coffee.
Within ten minutes, helped along by a vigorous rendition of “O come all ye faithful”
She began to stir.
He was leant back in his chair as first her breathing changed and then her eye flicked open, a little at first, and then fully as her eyes tried to locate something familiar.
Eventually her eyes settled on Richard.
“Where am I?” she asked
“You’re in Shallowfield” he replied
“Have you kidnapped me?” Sam asked
“No” he replied and chuckled “You crashed your car”
She closed her eyes again and tried to remember
“How’s your head?” he asked and her eyes opened again
“Ow” she exclaimed after touching the bump
“Are you sure you didn’t bop me on the head and kidnap me?”
“I’m quite sure” he said “Merry Christmas by the way”
“Merry Christmas?” she said puzzled “I thought I’d already had that”
She sat herself up and asked
“Did I have a bag?”
“Two actually” he replied “Your overnight bag is in the hall, and your hand bag is here”
He leant over the arm of his chair and retrieved it and handed it to her.
“I took the liberty of checking your mobile last night after the doctor left”
“The doctor was here?” she asked
“Yes”
She closed her eyes tight and tried to remember.
“You’re friend Emily called you numerous times, she was clearly quite worried, so I called her and told her what happened”
“Emily” she said in a eureka moment “that’s where I was going”
She grinned broadly at successfully accessing the memory.
“They will come and get you when the roads are passable again” Richard said
“Why don’t you call her while I make a drink?”
“Ok” she agreed
“Tea or coffee?”
“Tea please” she replied and then as he was leaving the room she asked
“Who are you?”
“I’m Richard but my close friends call me Tripp”
He had had the nickname Tripp since he first started big school he was now 35.
It was all thanks to his namesake Richard O’Sullivan whose most famous character portrayal was of Robin Tripp in the shows “Man about the house” and “Robin Nest” and thanks to reruns of the shows when he was a schoolboy the name stuck with him.
While he made the drinks she made her phone call to Emily which dispelled her fears of being kidnapped and she was much happier.
He entered the room with the drinks and a pack of Paracetamol
“I spoke with Emily” she said “And I am now happy that I haven’t been kidnapped”
“Good” he said putting her mug down and giving her the pain killers
“Of course Emily and I could be in it together”
“No don’t say that” she said “my head is already messed up”
As she finished her tea she asked sheepishly
“Could I be really cheeky and have a shower”
“Of course you can” he said and laughed “I took your bag up and put it in the spare room there’s an en suite so you have complete privacy”
“Thank you Richard” she said
“Call me Tripp” he said
“But were not close friends” she pointed out
“That’s very true” he agreed “But we have slept together”
He watched her gingerly climb the narrow stairs and found himself once again admiring her.
He had not looked upon a woman in that way for a very long time, when his wife was alive he only had eyes for her and after her death he focused only on his work.
When she reached the top he said
“It’s the room on the left”
“Thank you” she called back and then she turned towards him and added “Merry Christmas Tripp”
(Part 05)
Richard smiled and walked into the kitchen and got on with the lunch
He was an ordinary looking man in fact he was so ordinary if he were to commit a crime the witnesses to it would supply a description that would fit half the population.
He was neither tall nor short or fat nor thin, his face was not unpleasant to look but it wasn’t handsome, his hair was mousy in colour and was unremarkable.
In summary he was not the type of man who would attract the attention of someone like Samantha.
In fact it occurred to him that only the particular chain of events that had already occurred could have brought them together on Christmas day.
“Apart from kidnap” he said to himself and laughed
While the Roast Potatoes were cooking he set the table in the dining room, he always ate at the dining room table, and it was a hangover from when Helena was still alive.
It was her Latin upbringing, she would always say
“Meal times are for more than just refueling”
After he’d laid the table he went into the lounge to check on Samantha and found her back under the duvet watching TV.
“Do you want more tea?” he asked
“Yes please” she said “can I do anything to help?”
“No, you just need to relax and enjoy the hospitality” he replied and returned to the kitchen
He was lacking too many key ingredients to make an authentic Christmas Lunch, Turkey, Cranberry sauce chestnut stuffing and Christmas pudding and brandy butter, so in lieu of a Turkey he cooked duck breasts, accompanied by Roast potatoes, and a selection of vegetables, desert was an apple crumble.
He had taken everything to the table, apart from the wine, which he retrieved from the fridge he then pushed open the Lounge door and said
“Luncheon is served madam”
“Oh goody” she responded
When she was seated at the table he said
“It’s not your usual Christmas fare I’m afraid, but I did quite a lot of it as I wasn’t sure how hungry you’d be”
“Wow it looks great and I’m absolutely starving” she replied “I can’t remember when I last ate”
Although she couldn’t remember at the time her previous meal was actually lunchtime the day before prior to Darren dumping her.
Richard needn’t have concerned himself about cooking too much because Samantha ate more than her share and still had room for two helpings of Apple Crumble.
Richard cleared the table and took the plates to the kitchen and found Samantha stood running the taps at the sink.
“Hey what do you think you’re doing Samantha Dunlop?” he asked crossly
“I’m washing up” she retorted
“You are my guest and guests don’t wash up, now go and sit down”
“I can’t” she replied
“You can’t what?”
“I can’t sit down” she said “I’m too full”
“Ok then I’ll let you off”
(Part 06)
With the washing up done and two reviving mugs of tea made they adjourned to the lounge.
As the day wore on the snowfall had petered out and by late afternoon the skies cleared just as the light began to fade and the temperature dropped like a stone.
So Richard put on the lights and drew the curtains then he attended to the wood burner before sitting down in his chair.
“Would you like music or TV?” he asked
“Is “White Christmas” on today?” she asked “Or did I imagine it”
“Yes it is” he replied “would you like to watch it?”
“Yes please, it’s one of my favourite’s”
“I know, I remember you saying”
“Really? When?”
He then explained the conversation they had in the woods the night before and she put her head in her hands
“Oh God how embarrassing” she said
“And then when we got back here you announced "My dad wants to play Monopoly””
“Now you’re making it up?”
“Not at all, you said, "My dad wants to play Monopoly, but not me though"”
“Because I wanted to watch White Christmas” she said “I was seven when that happened”
Samantha laughed at the memory and Richards’s rendition of her and then she shivered.
“Are you cold?” he asked and got up from his chair and retrieved the folded Duvet she had used the night before
“Here put this over you” he said unfolding it onto her lap
“Thank you” she said and smiled
“It’s definitely chilly I think I might get my fleece” he said
“We could share the duvet” she suggested and flapped the duvet aside
“Oh, ok, yes” he said and sat next to her on the sofa and she flapped it over him.
As he nervously fumbled with the TV control Samantha’s phone rang for which he was grateful as it diverted attention away from him.
“Hello” she said
“Hi Em, Merry Christmas”
Suddenly he wasn’t so grateful for the interruption once he realized it was her friend Emily presumably to arrange a time to collect her.
There was a long tortuous silence until she said
“Hold on I’ll ask” and Samantha turned her attention back to him
“Emily says the road is still closed so they can’t pick me up until tomorrow, and could you put me up for another night, or put up with me for another night”
“Of course, you can stay as long as you like” he said struggling to keep the delight out of his voice
“Ok Hun bye”
“I’m sorry” she said
“Whatever for?”
“Imposing on you”
“It’s no imposition Sam, it’s a pleasure” he said
“Now watch the film”
When he woke up on Boxing Day he was thrilled to see it was snowing again and settling fast on the frozen snow of the day before.
He showered and shaved and dressed for the day and went down stairs with a spring in his step.
When he got to the kitchen he found Samantha was up before him and was in high spirits.
“Morning Tripp” she said “It’s snowing again”
“Yes I know, it looks like I might have to put up with you for another night”
“Really?” she queried
“Well I can’t see them reopening the road today in this”
"How's the head?" Richard asked her
"Better," she told him
“Good”
“Do you mind?” she asked
“Do I mind what?”
“Being stuck with me for another day”
“Not for a second” he replied and she smiled
“In that case can I cook you breakfast?” she asked
“I don’t know, can you cook?”
“Go and set the table and then you’ll find out” she said
As she cooked the omelet’s she was feeling very happy with the situation and was not entirely sure why.
Richard O’Sullivan was not the kind of man who would normally show up on her radar, she went for a very different type, he was rather ordinary.
As she dished the omelets onto the waiting plates the thought occurred to her that, that was probably why she had never landed a good one.
Later that day they were playing cards in front of the log burner when Richard said.
“I bet this wasn’t how you envisaged spending your Christmas”
“No it wasn’t” she agreed
“So what was the plan?”
“Christmas dinner with my boyfriend’s parents” she said
“Oh” he said barely hiding his disappointment
“But that was before I was dumped by my skinflint boyfriend on Christmas Eve because he was too tight to buy me a present”
“Ouch”
“Then I lost my job because I embarrassed a miserly customer at Hanratty’s who was too mean to buy a £25 pound bottle of scent for his wife’s gift”
“Oh dear”
“So I called Emily and she invited me to stay and then I crashed the car in the snow”
“That I can verify”
“Me too” she said touching the wound above her eye
“You managed to pack a lot in to one day” he said
“Yes” She agreed “As Christmas Eve’s go, boring it was not”
“Indeed” he said
“Christmas Day on the other hand” she began and then they exchanged a smile.
(Part 07)
The road through Shallowfield was finally reopened on the day after Boxing Day so Emily and Matt Charlton arrived mid-morning to collect Samantha.
While Sam was upstairs getting her bag, Richard entertained the Charlton’s in the lounge.
“It was kind of you to take Sam in”
“It was nothing” Richard said dismissively
“It was my pleasure”
Just then he heard Samantha’s footfalls on the stairs
“We’re having a party on New Year’s Eve and you are more than welcome to come” Emily said
“Thank you but no I’m not much of a reveler”
“Oh do come” Sam said
“I’m not really much of a one for parties” he replied
“Well if you change your mind its flat 3 East Cliff Lodge any time after nine” Matt said and shook his hand
On the door step Samantha turned and kissed his cheek
“Thank you Tripp”
Samantha waved through the back window as he watched them drive down the lane and he felt a strange sense of loss.
Since his wife died he had lived in quiet isolation and he had grown content in his existence.
But Samantha had disturbed his calm and muddied the quiet waters of his life.
As Matt drove carefully along the snow covered roads, Emily chatted excitedly at a pitch that was only audile to dogs while Samantha was feeling lost and alone.
When he got up on New Year’s Eve the snow had all but gone and he still planned to spend it alone as had become the norm.
All day long he was content it would be business as usual for the turn of the year.
Samantha was in Emily and Matt’s spare room for hours getting ready for the party.
Hair, nails, legs, the whole nine yards she even borrowed one of Emily’s raciest dresses.
“You look gorgeous” Emily said
“Thank you” she replied “I thought I should make the effort”
“But you haven’t gone to all this trouble just for us, have you?”
“I don’t know what you mean” Samantha said adjusting her makeup.
“He probably won’t come you know” Emily said
“He doesn’t have to” Sam said
Richard was dressed in his smartest suit and was rushing around the lounge muttering under her breath, looking for his car keys when there was a knock at the door.
“Who’s that now” he said to himself
Abandoning his search he went to the door prepared to bark his disapproval in their direction but instead he found Samantha standing on the doorstep dressed to kill and carrying a bottle of Champaign.
“I thought if you won’t come to the party I’d bring the party to you”
She said holding up the bottle
“I was just coming to find you” he said
“Well I beat you to it” she said and smiled
“Shall we go to the party then?” he asked
“No let’s have a quiet night in” she said and closed the door behind her.
Friday, 10 February 2017
Thursday, 9 February 2017
Words on Love # 2
WHEN FIRST WE KISSED
When first we kissed
And our lips came together
In that long languid embrace
Time seemed to stand still
I wished it would last forever
But I knew that it couldn’t
I never wanted it to end
But I knew that it must
Because one perfect kiss
Had to end
Before the next
Magical kiss
Could begin
UNDER THE SUPER MOON
Under the super moon
Stood in the Orange grove
I knew I was in love
As our eyes met
My heart hoped beyond hope
That you felt the same
Our hands hold each others
And my love starts to grow
Then beneath the super moon
I hold you close too me
And your arms enfold me
In a long hold me forever embrace
And how safe I feel in your arms
Your arms wrapped around me
Like a cloak of love
Never wanting to let go
Under the super moon
Love bloomed in you
As well as I
In the Orange grove
Love was growing
Resilient and strong
A love that would never die
LEAVING
You say I suppress the sunshine
And bring you only rain
I beg you not to leave
But I know it is in vain
I know if I let you go
That would ease your pain
But I fear if we say good bye
We will never meet again?
FINAL KISS
Love has died in you
But my love for you is vast
I think this good bye kiss
Is bound to be our last
MERCIFUL RELEASE
Now has come the day
When my love must sail away
Upon a morphine sea
You drift away from me
And you breathe your last
As pain releases its bitter grasp
UNDERMINING
Our love, once sturdy
Like granite against the storm
Has been eroded
By elements of distrust
Unspoken discontents,
And bitter jealousies
Corroding like acid
Doubts and suspicion
Growing like cancers
Until they become the terminal
Silent killers of love
LOVE IS THE MOMENTS
Love is your sweet breath
Against my skin as we lay
In the quiet afterglow
PASSIONATE DREAMS
I dream of passion
In lustful obsession, waking
Still unfulfilled
When first we kissed
And our lips came together
In that long languid embrace
Time seemed to stand still
I wished it would last forever
But I knew that it couldn’t
I never wanted it to end
But I knew that it must
Because one perfect kiss
Had to end
Before the next
Magical kiss
Could begin
UNDER THE SUPER MOON
Under the super moon
Stood in the Orange grove
I knew I was in love
As our eyes met
My heart hoped beyond hope
That you felt the same
Our hands hold each others
And my love starts to grow
Then beneath the super moon
I hold you close too me
And your arms enfold me
In a long hold me forever embrace
And how safe I feel in your arms
Your arms wrapped around me
Like a cloak of love
Never wanting to let go
Under the super moon
Love bloomed in you
As well as I
In the Orange grove
Love was growing
Resilient and strong
A love that would never die
LEAVING
You say I suppress the sunshine
And bring you only rain
I beg you not to leave
But I know it is in vain
I know if I let you go
That would ease your pain
But I fear if we say good bye
We will never meet again?
FINAL KISS
Love has died in you
But my love for you is vast
I think this good bye kiss
Is bound to be our last
MERCIFUL RELEASE
Now has come the day
When my love must sail away
Upon a morphine sea
You drift away from me
And you breathe your last
As pain releases its bitter grasp
UNDERMINING
Our love, once sturdy
Like granite against the storm
Has been eroded
By elements of distrust
Unspoken discontents,
And bitter jealousies
Corroding like acid
Doubts and suspicion
Growing like cancers
Until they become the terminal
Silent killers of love
LOVE IS THE MOMENTS
Love is your sweet breath
Against my skin as we lay
In the quiet afterglow
PASSIONATE DREAMS
I dream of passion
In lustful obsession, waking
Still unfulfilled
Loves Exquisite Ache
Oh to feel loves exquisite ache
That desperate longing
That naked want
Feeling so alive in the torment
While craving the fix
Of that heady foaming brew
To quench the thirst of desire
And when that significant soul
Who holds my captive heart
Is but a kiss away
I am dragged from sorrows
Unfathomable depths
And bitter anguish evaporates
Like dew in the morning sun
And euphoria fills every pore
And in that perfect ecstasy
That blissful state of love
I remain until I am again alone
That desperate longing
That naked want
Feeling so alive in the torment
While craving the fix
Of that heady foaming brew
To quench the thirst of desire
And when that significant soul
Who holds my captive heart
Is but a kiss away
I am dragged from sorrows
Unfathomable depths
And bitter anguish evaporates
Like dew in the morning sun
And euphoria fills every pore
And in that perfect ecstasy
That blissful state of love
I remain until I am again alone
Those Memories Made on Teardrop Lake – (36) Koo-Koo-Ka-Choo Mrs Robinson
(Part 01)
It was a successful organization that phlebotomist Harriet Robinson joined on a bitter cold January morning along with another new nurse named Elena Fedeli.
It was two years to the day after Dr Claire Andrews took over The Shallowfield Surgery and in that short time she and her business partner Olivia Adamson had transformed it into the Dancingdean Heath Centre, which necessitated the expansion of staff numbers.
Equally while things had been going well for Claire and Olivia in the two years they had been in Shallowfield.
It had been quite a similar story in those two years for
Harriet, which began with her taking blood from her needle phobic husband to be.
Her full birth name was Hayley Harriet Hanson but that was before, at the tender age of 21, she married William Quimby.
And after her disastrous marriage ended though she chose to remain as Harriet Quimby as she rather liked the name.
Her ex-husband on the other hand remained a complete bastard.
She was a phlebotomist by profession and proud of it but she was really tired of people saying to her “What’s a phlebotomist?”
And then having to explain her occupation to them, so she made the decision to reply, when asked what she did for a living, that she was a nurse and volunteered no further information.
Which was a shame because she loved her job, and she really was proud to be a phlebotomist, she liked dealing with people and liked engaging with them and she was good at it.
Some of her colleagues favoured the stand offish approach, keeping a dignified distance between themselves and the patients, but that was not Harriet’s way.
Harriet found the pleasant exchanges helped the day pass by, she couldn’t do it with everyone of course, some patients thought they were customers and that she was on a par with a shop girl, but they were few and far between.
And it was through her job and her pleasant professionalism that she came to replace the name Quimby with that of Robinson.
In the years since her divorce she had not remarried or even thought of doing so.
She worked hard in a rewarding job, she had a supportive family and she had a large circle of friends, and she was content with that.
Harriet was not without admirers however and she had not exactly lived as a nun, she had had boyfriends but she had not actively sort a replacement for Mr Quimby, what would be would be in the fullness of time.
So it was a life changing moment at the Abbeyvale Health Centre when Nathan Robinson heard his name called by the willowy young Harriet with her bobbed dark brown hair, wearing a white uniform with red piping.
He was only there for a routine blood test but he was Trypanophobic but she was well used to needle phobe’s and her easy manner and playful teasing soon put him at his ease when she called him a chicken and he called her a vampire.
All of which put his mind at rest to such a degree that he was able to take a moment or two to appreciate the loveliness of the girl with the very large needle.
After he’d left the room she chuckled to herself as she remembered their humorous and pleasant exchange and she thought what a nice man he was.
(Part 02)
There was no one in her life at the time and she was content with that so that brief pleasant exchange between them would probably have been the end of it had it not been for a chance meeting just over a week later when they saw each other again in St Candida’s park.
He saw her sitting on the grass with a small group of young women and decided to approach.
“Hello nurse Nosferatu” he called and then he made the sign of the cross when she turned around
“Oh hello chicken” she responded and made it sound like a term of endearment which wasn’t her intent but she was not unhappy about it.
“Should a phlebotomist be out in the sunlight?” Nathan asked
“What’s a phlebotomist?” one of the group asked and Harriet shook her head and took it as her sign to leave.
She said her goodbyes to her friends and quickly caught up with Nathan who had gone ahead.
“Thanks for that” she said
“For what?” he asked
“For exposing me as a phlebotomist” she said
“Ay?” he exclaimed in some confusion
“But you are a phlebotomist”
“I know” she said “but I hate the fact that I always have to explain it”
“Sorry” Nathan said
“So what do you do for a living?” she asked
“I’m a University Professor” he said proudly
“A professor?” Harriet replied a little impressed
“Aren’t you a little young?”
“Not in my field” he replied
“I thought professors were intelligent” she said with a laugh
“And I thought nursing was the caring profession” he retorted
“So what are you the professor of?” she enquired
“Music” Nathan replied
“Really, what kind?” she asked impressed
“My field of expertise is early 20th century” he replied
“Like Puccini?” She said hopefully
“Like jazz” Nathan said
“Jazz? How disappointing, you got interesting for a second and then, wham! Dull as ditch water again”
“I like jazz” he said defensively “Jazz is very exciting”
“And people study that at University?” she asked derisively
“Of course, as part of a rounded degree course” he replied
“Do you play or just teach?” she asked
“Yes” Nathan replied
“Which one?”
“Both”
“What instrument? The washboard?” She asked and laughed out loud with delight
“That’s skiffle, not jazz” he corrected her “Philistine”
“What then?” Harriet persisted
“Clarinet” Said Nathan
“Really? But that’s a proper instrument” she said shocked “Are you any good?”
“Well I enjoy playing” he answered
“You’re really bad then” Harriet said and laughed again
“Why not come and judge for yourself” he said
“When?” she asked
“Now” he replied “we’re playing a set at the Jazz Shack on Finchampton Street”
“Ok” she answered although she wasn’t sure why
Nathan who was six years older than her, really liked her but worried about the age difference, however after the gig he suggested that they do it again.
Harriet was reluctant to accept, not because of the age gap or because she hadn’t enjoyed it.
Nor was it because she didn’t like him, because she did.
“We have absolutely nothing in common” Harriet said to him
“We share a sense of humour” he said
“That doesn’t count” she responded
“I think a good sense of humour is essential in a relationship if there is a prospect of someone seeing me naked” Nathan replied
“That’s really not much of a prospect” Harriet corrected him.
In the end she reluctantly agreed and much to her surprise it worked.
To the untrained eye they seemed an odd couple, she a beautiful willowy health professional and him an unspectacular looking academic.
There was the 6 year age difference for a start and they didn’t even agree on music, he was a devotee of early Jazz whereas Harriet favoured Puccini’s Operas.
But despite their differences they became a couple and learned to appreciate the others likes because that was what relationships were about, compromise.
And it was also patently obvious to everyone, that miss matched or not they were head over heels in love.
And after six months together Harriet could hardly remember the time before they met.
They did however still disagree musically but in all other matters they were simpatico.
(Part 03)
For her 30th birthday he arranged a surprise trip to see Madame Butterfly, at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City.
Which had she not already fallen in love with him would on its own have won her heart.
Harriet loved every moment and it was a wonderfully romantic trip and on the night before they returned home, on top of the Empire State Building, he proposed to her and they married the year after.
Alas because she was a divorcee they couldn’t marry in Church, so the ceremony was held in the Abbeyvale registry office which was immediately followed by a blessing at St Candida’s Church.
Their reason for moving from Abbeyvale came out of the blue, they had been perfectly happy where they lived and she remained fulfilled in her job, but within a matter of weeks her job came under threat as the local trust were rationalizing services so she started putting feelers out and within a week she had an interview in Shallowfield.
Harriet and Nathan moved into number 1 Folly Cottages just before Christmas, the previous occupant was one of her new bosses Dr Claire Lutchford, who now lived on the other side of the lake with her new husband and they fell in love with the cottage instantly.
Originally there were six dwellings but after conversion there were now three terraced cottages and they were situated high above the northern perimeter road in a rocky glade.
The two end ones had two bedroom and the one in the middle had one.
Once upon a time they were home to peasants who worked the woods but now the peasantry couldn’t afford to live anywhere near the lake.
The view of the lake was spectacular although they couldn’t see it all or discern the teardrop shape that gave the lake its name. But the view of the surrounding ancient woodland of the Dancingdean Forest was majestic.
Although much of the modest body of water was obscured from view it was still quite beautiful and relatively unspoilt which was why the she instantly fell in love with the place, and as there was snow on the ground the scene was very picturesque.
Teardrop Lake and the surrounding woodland was privately owned and divided into twelve parcels each with one significant dwelling although there were a number of cottages dotted around the woodland.
It was both idyllic and peaceful, there was little or no noise pollution and they had been reliably informed that although the lake was used there were no speed boats or jet skis, only rowing boats, canoes, dinghies and skiffs.
“What a perfect place to raise a child” Nathan said when they first looked out across the lake.
“If only” she replied sadly
“It’s just a matter of time sweetheart” he said reassuringly
“But time is running out” she replied, so he just hugged her
Fortunately Harriet was not the only new starter at the health centre or the only newbie to the area.
Elena Fedeli who was the new district nurse moved into number 3 a couple of days after the Robinsons.
However whereas Harriet’s move had been forced upon her Elena had been looking for a change.
As they both moved in before Christmas and weren’t due to start work until the New Year and as they were neighbours the two new girls gravitated towards each other especially as Nathan was only around at the weekend for the first week until the end of the semester.
Eva Christodoulou and Siti Shahara, who lived in number 2, also worked at the health centre, volunteered to show the new girls around and help them get their bearings and settle in.
(Part 04)
When they moved to Teardrop they had been together for over 7 years and married for 6, Harry was fast approaching her 37th birthday and she was convinced she could literally hear her biological clock ticking.
They had been trying for a family ever since they were married but it just wasn’t happening for them.
43 years old Nathan was medium height, slim build and had thinning sandy hair and grey eyes.
He loved her very much but he didn’t feel the same time pressure that his wife did but he was desperate to make her happy.
They had undergone all the tests imaginable but there was nothing physically wrong with either of them and everything was in good working order.
And a lack of trying was also not the problem and the love making was as great as it had always been and they didn’t stint on the quantity,
But it was all to no avail, but it didn’t prevent them from trying.
After a very active first Christmas in their new home on the Lake, the mad girls in number 2 made sure they had an enjoyable Christmas.
Harriet was really pleased that she wasn’t starting the new job on her own and she knew Elena felt the same way.
They both slotted right in at the Heath Centre and they soon found that the rest of the staff were just as friendly as their new neighbours were.
When she first walked through the doors of the Health Centre she felt instantly at home and it took Harriet no time at all to settle into a comfortable routine at work and find the natural rhythm of life on the Lake.
And in a matter of weeks it was as if they had lived there forever.
Almost as soon as her boss Olivia realised Nathan was a Professor of Music she kept making references to her about the Church choir and dropping hints about the need for someone with a professional ear to champion the Church music, but then she was married to the Vicar.
Eventually after a month or two the drip, drip, drip of Olivia’s Chinese water torture technique paid off and she succumbed or to be more accurate she made Nathan succumb and he took control of St Mary’s church choir.
As it turned out it was just what the Robinson’s needed something to put their collective efforts into, a common interest and a distraction from what was consuming her every waking thought, her failure as a woman.
As a member of the choir she threw herself into it body and soul and managed to put everything else out of her mind.
She even managed to persuade Elena to join and they were side by side when, on Easter Sunday, Nathan debuted as Choir master.
After Easter, life continued in much the same way until the summer festivities filled the calendar.
It began as it did every year on Teardrop Lake with Lynn Cooper’s birthday BBQ at Coopers Villa on the first of May and ended at the Shallowfield Lodge Hotel in September for Rob and Sheryl Browns Wedding Anniversary party.
It had been such a busy summer with the seemingly endless round of Hog Roasts and BBQ’s, parties and picnics that it wasn’t until summer drifted relentlessly into autumn that the hopeless longing for a child struck her again.
Nathan tried desperately to lift her spirits and for his sake she put on a brave face but inside she was dying.
There were other distractions in September such as
Olivia Shenton’s Wedding Anniversary and Chantelle Dooney’s birthday and Siti Shahara’s also had one in October, but overall not enough.
Throughout October at the health centre the main topic of conversation was the upcoming Lutchford’s Annual Fancy Dress Halloween party at Forest Lodge, to which all the staff were invited.
The talk was primarily of what costumes would be worn but more interestingly the gossip was mainly about past misdemeanours.
(Part 05)
Everyone at the health centre apart from Elena Fedeli and the Vicar’s wife Olivia were going to the Halloween Party at the Lutchford’s and the two of them left work early for the church as they had chosen instead to attend the Halloween celebrations at St Mary’s.
Nathan and Harriet, both conscious of each other’s feeling of inadequacy, but were equally unable to discuss “the elephant in the room”.
So as the Halloween party approached, they had both independently developed a plan designed to cheer the other one up.
Nathan was already at home when Harriet arrived and was busy in the kitchen.
“Hi Hun” she called as she walked through the door
“Something smells good”
“That must be me” he said
“Nah it’s definitely something nice” Harriet retorted
After they’d eaten and cleared away they went into separate rooms to change.
When they were ready they emerged simultaneously onto the landing, the result of which caused hysterical laughter when they discovered what the other was wearing.
Harriet was dressed as a vampire and Nathan was wearing a chicken suit.
The laughter continued as they went downstairs into the lounge in fact it only stopped when they kissed, which was prolonged and passionate.
In fact the kissing lead to a horny vampire straddling a prostrated chicken on the lounge carpet.
Needless to say they were late arriving at the party.
That lustful Halloween Night seemed to have put the destructive thoughts of inadequacy into the shade, at least for a while and then as November progressed thoughts of Christmas took over and became all consuming, it was after all a celebration of their first year on the Lake.
It was the week before Christmas and Nathan had finished work for the holiday and was looking forward to his long break as he was off until the New Year.
And as Christmas was fast approaching he was taking full advantage of the fact that Harry was at work so he could wrap her presents.
He had just safely placed the wrapped gifts under the tree when he heard her car pull up outside the cottage.
She was home early so he quickly tidied away the wrapping paper, scissors and sellotape, and had just sat down on the sofa as she came through the door.
“Hi Hun” she said
“Hello darling” he replied “are you ok?”
“No I’m a bit queasy” she replied
“That’s not good for a vampire to get queasy at the site of blood” he said flippantly
“It wasn’t the blood” she retorted
“Was it the needles then? Are you turning into a chicken?” he said and chuckled
“No it’s not the needles” she stated and sat down beside him “there are other things that can cause queasiness in the morning”
“I know Hun, like too much Pernod the night before” Nathan said
“Yes but what else causes sickness in the morning?” She asked him leadingly
“Apart from a dodgy kebab, or 6 pints of Guinness, I don’t know” he said “what could cause morning sick...”
She sat looking at him patiently as the penny finally dropped
“You’re pregnant” he said
“Well done Professor”
“You’re pregnant” he squealed and then he kissed her
“We’re having a little musician” he said proudly
“Or a little health professional”
She added and he kissed her again
“So how pregnant are you?” he asked her later “when was it, you know”
“I think we both know the answer to that” she said
“Halloween” they said in unison
It was a successful organization that phlebotomist Harriet Robinson joined on a bitter cold January morning along with another new nurse named Elena Fedeli.
It was two years to the day after Dr Claire Andrews took over The Shallowfield Surgery and in that short time she and her business partner Olivia Adamson had transformed it into the Dancingdean Heath Centre, which necessitated the expansion of staff numbers.
Equally while things had been going well for Claire and Olivia in the two years they had been in Shallowfield.
It had been quite a similar story in those two years for
Harriet, which began with her taking blood from her needle phobic husband to be.
Her full birth name was Hayley Harriet Hanson but that was before, at the tender age of 21, she married William Quimby.
And after her disastrous marriage ended though she chose to remain as Harriet Quimby as she rather liked the name.
Her ex-husband on the other hand remained a complete bastard.
She was a phlebotomist by profession and proud of it but she was really tired of people saying to her “What’s a phlebotomist?”
And then having to explain her occupation to them, so she made the decision to reply, when asked what she did for a living, that she was a nurse and volunteered no further information.
Which was a shame because she loved her job, and she really was proud to be a phlebotomist, she liked dealing with people and liked engaging with them and she was good at it.
Some of her colleagues favoured the stand offish approach, keeping a dignified distance between themselves and the patients, but that was not Harriet’s way.
Harriet found the pleasant exchanges helped the day pass by, she couldn’t do it with everyone of course, some patients thought they were customers and that she was on a par with a shop girl, but they were few and far between.
And it was through her job and her pleasant professionalism that she came to replace the name Quimby with that of Robinson.
In the years since her divorce she had not remarried or even thought of doing so.
She worked hard in a rewarding job, she had a supportive family and she had a large circle of friends, and she was content with that.
Harriet was not without admirers however and she had not exactly lived as a nun, she had had boyfriends but she had not actively sort a replacement for Mr Quimby, what would be would be in the fullness of time.
So it was a life changing moment at the Abbeyvale Health Centre when Nathan Robinson heard his name called by the willowy young Harriet with her bobbed dark brown hair, wearing a white uniform with red piping.
He was only there for a routine blood test but he was Trypanophobic but she was well used to needle phobe’s and her easy manner and playful teasing soon put him at his ease when she called him a chicken and he called her a vampire.
All of which put his mind at rest to such a degree that he was able to take a moment or two to appreciate the loveliness of the girl with the very large needle.
After he’d left the room she chuckled to herself as she remembered their humorous and pleasant exchange and she thought what a nice man he was.
(Part 02)
There was no one in her life at the time and she was content with that so that brief pleasant exchange between them would probably have been the end of it had it not been for a chance meeting just over a week later when they saw each other again in St Candida’s park.
He saw her sitting on the grass with a small group of young women and decided to approach.
“Hello nurse Nosferatu” he called and then he made the sign of the cross when she turned around
“Oh hello chicken” she responded and made it sound like a term of endearment which wasn’t her intent but she was not unhappy about it.
“Should a phlebotomist be out in the sunlight?” Nathan asked
“What’s a phlebotomist?” one of the group asked and Harriet shook her head and took it as her sign to leave.
She said her goodbyes to her friends and quickly caught up with Nathan who had gone ahead.
“Thanks for that” she said
“For what?” he asked
“For exposing me as a phlebotomist” she said
“Ay?” he exclaimed in some confusion
“But you are a phlebotomist”
“I know” she said “but I hate the fact that I always have to explain it”
“Sorry” Nathan said
“So what do you do for a living?” she asked
“I’m a University Professor” he said proudly
“A professor?” Harriet replied a little impressed
“Aren’t you a little young?”
“Not in my field” he replied
“I thought professors were intelligent” she said with a laugh
“And I thought nursing was the caring profession” he retorted
“So what are you the professor of?” she enquired
“Music” Nathan replied
“Really, what kind?” she asked impressed
“My field of expertise is early 20th century” he replied
“Like Puccini?” She said hopefully
“Like jazz” Nathan said
“Jazz? How disappointing, you got interesting for a second and then, wham! Dull as ditch water again”
“I like jazz” he said defensively “Jazz is very exciting”
“And people study that at University?” she asked derisively
“Of course, as part of a rounded degree course” he replied
“Do you play or just teach?” she asked
“Yes” Nathan replied
“Which one?”
“Both”
“What instrument? The washboard?” She asked and laughed out loud with delight
“That’s skiffle, not jazz” he corrected her “Philistine”
“What then?” Harriet persisted
“Clarinet” Said Nathan
“Really? But that’s a proper instrument” she said shocked “Are you any good?”
“Well I enjoy playing” he answered
“You’re really bad then” Harriet said and laughed again
“Why not come and judge for yourself” he said
“When?” she asked
“Now” he replied “we’re playing a set at the Jazz Shack on Finchampton Street”
“Ok” she answered although she wasn’t sure why
Nathan who was six years older than her, really liked her but worried about the age difference, however after the gig he suggested that they do it again.
Harriet was reluctant to accept, not because of the age gap or because she hadn’t enjoyed it.
Nor was it because she didn’t like him, because she did.
“We have absolutely nothing in common” Harriet said to him
“We share a sense of humour” he said
“That doesn’t count” she responded
“I think a good sense of humour is essential in a relationship if there is a prospect of someone seeing me naked” Nathan replied
“That’s really not much of a prospect” Harriet corrected him.
In the end she reluctantly agreed and much to her surprise it worked.
To the untrained eye they seemed an odd couple, she a beautiful willowy health professional and him an unspectacular looking academic.
There was the 6 year age difference for a start and they didn’t even agree on music, he was a devotee of early Jazz whereas Harriet favoured Puccini’s Operas.
But despite their differences they became a couple and learned to appreciate the others likes because that was what relationships were about, compromise.
And it was also patently obvious to everyone, that miss matched or not they were head over heels in love.
And after six months together Harriet could hardly remember the time before they met.
They did however still disagree musically but in all other matters they were simpatico.
(Part 03)
For her 30th birthday he arranged a surprise trip to see Madame Butterfly, at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City.
Which had she not already fallen in love with him would on its own have won her heart.
Harriet loved every moment and it was a wonderfully romantic trip and on the night before they returned home, on top of the Empire State Building, he proposed to her and they married the year after.
Alas because she was a divorcee they couldn’t marry in Church, so the ceremony was held in the Abbeyvale registry office which was immediately followed by a blessing at St Candida’s Church.
Their reason for moving from Abbeyvale came out of the blue, they had been perfectly happy where they lived and she remained fulfilled in her job, but within a matter of weeks her job came under threat as the local trust were rationalizing services so she started putting feelers out and within a week she had an interview in Shallowfield.
Harriet and Nathan moved into number 1 Folly Cottages just before Christmas, the previous occupant was one of her new bosses Dr Claire Lutchford, who now lived on the other side of the lake with her new husband and they fell in love with the cottage instantly.
Originally there were six dwellings but after conversion there were now three terraced cottages and they were situated high above the northern perimeter road in a rocky glade.
The two end ones had two bedroom and the one in the middle had one.
Once upon a time they were home to peasants who worked the woods but now the peasantry couldn’t afford to live anywhere near the lake.
The view of the lake was spectacular although they couldn’t see it all or discern the teardrop shape that gave the lake its name. But the view of the surrounding ancient woodland of the Dancingdean Forest was majestic.
Although much of the modest body of water was obscured from view it was still quite beautiful and relatively unspoilt which was why the she instantly fell in love with the place, and as there was snow on the ground the scene was very picturesque.
Teardrop Lake and the surrounding woodland was privately owned and divided into twelve parcels each with one significant dwelling although there were a number of cottages dotted around the woodland.
It was both idyllic and peaceful, there was little or no noise pollution and they had been reliably informed that although the lake was used there were no speed boats or jet skis, only rowing boats, canoes, dinghies and skiffs.
“What a perfect place to raise a child” Nathan said when they first looked out across the lake.
“If only” she replied sadly
“It’s just a matter of time sweetheart” he said reassuringly
“But time is running out” she replied, so he just hugged her
Fortunately Harriet was not the only new starter at the health centre or the only newbie to the area.
Elena Fedeli who was the new district nurse moved into number 3 a couple of days after the Robinsons.
However whereas Harriet’s move had been forced upon her Elena had been looking for a change.
As they both moved in before Christmas and weren’t due to start work until the New Year and as they were neighbours the two new girls gravitated towards each other especially as Nathan was only around at the weekend for the first week until the end of the semester.
Eva Christodoulou and Siti Shahara, who lived in number 2, also worked at the health centre, volunteered to show the new girls around and help them get their bearings and settle in.
(Part 04)
When they moved to Teardrop they had been together for over 7 years and married for 6, Harry was fast approaching her 37th birthday and she was convinced she could literally hear her biological clock ticking.
They had been trying for a family ever since they were married but it just wasn’t happening for them.
43 years old Nathan was medium height, slim build and had thinning sandy hair and grey eyes.
He loved her very much but he didn’t feel the same time pressure that his wife did but he was desperate to make her happy.
They had undergone all the tests imaginable but there was nothing physically wrong with either of them and everything was in good working order.
And a lack of trying was also not the problem and the love making was as great as it had always been and they didn’t stint on the quantity,
But it was all to no avail, but it didn’t prevent them from trying.
After a very active first Christmas in their new home on the Lake, the mad girls in number 2 made sure they had an enjoyable Christmas.
Harriet was really pleased that she wasn’t starting the new job on her own and she knew Elena felt the same way.
They both slotted right in at the Heath Centre and they soon found that the rest of the staff were just as friendly as their new neighbours were.
When she first walked through the doors of the Health Centre she felt instantly at home and it took Harriet no time at all to settle into a comfortable routine at work and find the natural rhythm of life on the Lake.
And in a matter of weeks it was as if they had lived there forever.
Almost as soon as her boss Olivia realised Nathan was a Professor of Music she kept making references to her about the Church choir and dropping hints about the need for someone with a professional ear to champion the Church music, but then she was married to the Vicar.
Eventually after a month or two the drip, drip, drip of Olivia’s Chinese water torture technique paid off and she succumbed or to be more accurate she made Nathan succumb and he took control of St Mary’s church choir.
As it turned out it was just what the Robinson’s needed something to put their collective efforts into, a common interest and a distraction from what was consuming her every waking thought, her failure as a woman.
As a member of the choir she threw herself into it body and soul and managed to put everything else out of her mind.
She even managed to persuade Elena to join and they were side by side when, on Easter Sunday, Nathan debuted as Choir master.
After Easter, life continued in much the same way until the summer festivities filled the calendar.
It began as it did every year on Teardrop Lake with Lynn Cooper’s birthday BBQ at Coopers Villa on the first of May and ended at the Shallowfield Lodge Hotel in September for Rob and Sheryl Browns Wedding Anniversary party.
It had been such a busy summer with the seemingly endless round of Hog Roasts and BBQ’s, parties and picnics that it wasn’t until summer drifted relentlessly into autumn that the hopeless longing for a child struck her again.
Nathan tried desperately to lift her spirits and for his sake she put on a brave face but inside she was dying.
There were other distractions in September such as
Olivia Shenton’s Wedding Anniversary and Chantelle Dooney’s birthday and Siti Shahara’s also had one in October, but overall not enough.
Throughout October at the health centre the main topic of conversation was the upcoming Lutchford’s Annual Fancy Dress Halloween party at Forest Lodge, to which all the staff were invited.
The talk was primarily of what costumes would be worn but more interestingly the gossip was mainly about past misdemeanours.
(Part 05)
Everyone at the health centre apart from Elena Fedeli and the Vicar’s wife Olivia were going to the Halloween Party at the Lutchford’s and the two of them left work early for the church as they had chosen instead to attend the Halloween celebrations at St Mary’s.
Nathan and Harriet, both conscious of each other’s feeling of inadequacy, but were equally unable to discuss “the elephant in the room”.
So as the Halloween party approached, they had both independently developed a plan designed to cheer the other one up.
Nathan was already at home when Harriet arrived and was busy in the kitchen.
“Hi Hun” she called as she walked through the door
“Something smells good”
“That must be me” he said
“Nah it’s definitely something nice” Harriet retorted
After they’d eaten and cleared away they went into separate rooms to change.
When they were ready they emerged simultaneously onto the landing, the result of which caused hysterical laughter when they discovered what the other was wearing.
Harriet was dressed as a vampire and Nathan was wearing a chicken suit.
The laughter continued as they went downstairs into the lounge in fact it only stopped when they kissed, which was prolonged and passionate.
In fact the kissing lead to a horny vampire straddling a prostrated chicken on the lounge carpet.
Needless to say they were late arriving at the party.
That lustful Halloween Night seemed to have put the destructive thoughts of inadequacy into the shade, at least for a while and then as November progressed thoughts of Christmas took over and became all consuming, it was after all a celebration of their first year on the Lake.
It was the week before Christmas and Nathan had finished work for the holiday and was looking forward to his long break as he was off until the New Year.
And as Christmas was fast approaching he was taking full advantage of the fact that Harry was at work so he could wrap her presents.
He had just safely placed the wrapped gifts under the tree when he heard her car pull up outside the cottage.
She was home early so he quickly tidied away the wrapping paper, scissors and sellotape, and had just sat down on the sofa as she came through the door.
“Hi Hun” she said
“Hello darling” he replied “are you ok?”
“No I’m a bit queasy” she replied
“That’s not good for a vampire to get queasy at the site of blood” he said flippantly
“It wasn’t the blood” she retorted
“Was it the needles then? Are you turning into a chicken?” he said and chuckled
“No it’s not the needles” she stated and sat down beside him “there are other things that can cause queasiness in the morning”
“I know Hun, like too much Pernod the night before” Nathan said
“Yes but what else causes sickness in the morning?” She asked him leadingly
“Apart from a dodgy kebab, or 6 pints of Guinness, I don’t know” he said “what could cause morning sick...”
She sat looking at him patiently as the penny finally dropped
“You’re pregnant” he said
“Well done Professor”
“You’re pregnant” he squealed and then he kissed her
“We’re having a little musician” he said proudly
“Or a little health professional”
She added and he kissed her again
“So how pregnant are you?” he asked her later “when was it, you know”
“I think we both know the answer to that” she said
“Halloween” they said in unison
Wednesday, 8 February 2017
Love Collection # 1
BUT DON’T TELL ME
I know you want to end it
But don’t tell me at the hotel
Don’t tell me at the café
I know I won’t take it well
Don’t tell me at the restaurant
Don’t tell me by the pool
Don’t tell me on the beach
Don’t make me look a fool
You can tell me in the ocean
And realise all my fears
Tell me as we swim in the sea
Then you won’t see my tears
ONLY SKIN DEEP
You are truly beautiful
But beauty is only skin deep
Isn’t that what they say?
Only skin deep?
But looking through my eyes
Who ever said those words
Would think that they
Now sound quite absurd
For to say of you
That beauty is just skin deep
Must stir the angels hearts
And make them weep
You are truly beautiful
To the core of your being
It’s not just your skin
That I am seeing
Your beauty emanates
From your soul,
Gracing every atom,
That makes the beautiful whole
From the marrow of your bones
It outwardly flows
So on your lustrous skin
Your beauty glows
I REMEMBER LINDA
I remember way back when,
And my first schoolboys crush
When just to look at Linda
Was like being hit with a sugar rush
I remember when she said
“I really like your shirt by the way”
Well I was so in love with her
That I wore that shirt every day
THAT’S LOVE THAT IS
My big sister really loves me
I know this because, you see
All her old clothes she gives to me
But that’s not all, I’ve just begun
Because when she is all done
She has to go and buy new ones
That’s love that is
WHEN WILL I REACH THE MAIN EVENT?
When will I reach the main event?
I’m tired of dainty canapés
I’ve had too many hors d'oeuvres
They are getting on my nerves
When will I reach the Entrée?
When will I meet the one I seek?
My life long dining companion
TOO OBVIOUS FOR ME
Every morning, I watched you
As you got on the bus with graceful ease
You skirt just the wrong side of modest
Your blouse low cut to tease
I never knew your name
You were just the flirt in a skirt
My friend was obsessed by you
But although I could look at you with lust
You were not for me, not quite my cup of tea
I liked the quiet girl, two seats in front
Who got on and off the bus unnoticed
Except of course for me, I saw her
And I knew her name, and I married her
FOURSOME
I’m in love with A
Alas she likes B
B fancies C
But C wants me
LONELY GIRL BY THE WINDOW
Lonely girl by the window
Looking out on the world
As ever alone in her room
By the window sits the girl
She watches from the window
As the world passes her by
As always alone in her room
She sits by the window and cries
Lonely girl by the window
Sits at the window and dreams
And hopes that life for her
Isn’t as despairing as it seems
She watches from the window
Wishing in her lonely solitude
With all the hope in her heart
That one day she will be rescued
SWEET LOVE SONG
Each word leaving
Your sweet lips
Is like a velvet caress
Your words are like poetry
Each syllable, honey coated
Every sentence
Dripping with nuance
The formed verses
Of loves refrain
All at once
Lightening my heart
And touching my soul
I know you want to end it
But don’t tell me at the hotel
Don’t tell me at the café
I know I won’t take it well
Don’t tell me at the restaurant
Don’t tell me by the pool
Don’t tell me on the beach
Don’t make me look a fool
You can tell me in the ocean
And realise all my fears
Tell me as we swim in the sea
Then you won’t see my tears
ONLY SKIN DEEP
You are truly beautiful
But beauty is only skin deep
Isn’t that what they say?
Only skin deep?
But looking through my eyes
Who ever said those words
Would think that they
Now sound quite absurd
For to say of you
That beauty is just skin deep
Must stir the angels hearts
And make them weep
You are truly beautiful
To the core of your being
It’s not just your skin
That I am seeing
Your beauty emanates
From your soul,
Gracing every atom,
That makes the beautiful whole
From the marrow of your bones
It outwardly flows
So on your lustrous skin
Your beauty glows
I REMEMBER LINDA
I remember way back when,
And my first schoolboys crush
When just to look at Linda
Was like being hit with a sugar rush
I remember when she said
“I really like your shirt by the way”
Well I was so in love with her
That I wore that shirt every day
THAT’S LOVE THAT IS
My big sister really loves me
I know this because, you see
All her old clothes she gives to me
But that’s not all, I’ve just begun
Because when she is all done
She has to go and buy new ones
That’s love that is
WHEN WILL I REACH THE MAIN EVENT?
When will I reach the main event?
I’m tired of dainty canapés
I’ve had too many hors d'oeuvres
They are getting on my nerves
When will I reach the Entrée?
When will I meet the one I seek?
My life long dining companion
TOO OBVIOUS FOR ME
Every morning, I watched you
As you got on the bus with graceful ease
You skirt just the wrong side of modest
Your blouse low cut to tease
I never knew your name
You were just the flirt in a skirt
My friend was obsessed by you
But although I could look at you with lust
You were not for me, not quite my cup of tea
I liked the quiet girl, two seats in front
Who got on and off the bus unnoticed
Except of course for me, I saw her
And I knew her name, and I married her
FOURSOME
I’m in love with A
Alas she likes B
B fancies C
But C wants me
LONELY GIRL BY THE WINDOW
Lonely girl by the window
Looking out on the world
As ever alone in her room
By the window sits the girl
She watches from the window
As the world passes her by
As always alone in her room
She sits by the window and cries
Lonely girl by the window
Sits at the window and dreams
And hopes that life for her
Isn’t as despairing as it seems
She watches from the window
Wishing in her lonely solitude
With all the hope in her heart
That one day she will be rescued
SWEET LOVE SONG
Each word leaving
Your sweet lips
Is like a velvet caress
Your words are like poetry
Each syllable, honey coated
Every sentence
Dripping with nuance
The formed verses
Of loves refrain
All at once
Lightening my heart
And touching my soul
Beneath The Weeping Willow Tree
Like the star-crossed lovers,
Romeo and Juliet,
They come from feuding kin
And must hide their love
They meet in secret
Beside the quiet lake
The only sounds,
Are of the faintest breeze
Disturbing the lofty tree tops
And ducks squabbling on the lake
But despite the quiet
Fearful of discovery
They embrace hidden from view
Beneath a weeping willow tree
Whose leafy pendulous branches
Trail down into the still water
Stirred by the gentle breeze
They dip in an out of the water
Like the toes of a reluctant bather
They kiss there in the quiet shade
And feel at once renewed
No words are spoken
Their language is of caress and kiss
Such tender converse
With limitless vocabulary
And languid pronunciation
Every syllable well employed
And when the final paragraph is reached
They end with perfect punctuation
Stirring from their lovers languor
They tread separate paths
To rejoin warring tribes
Adopting adversarial manner
No knowing looks to be exchanged
No casual brushing past
When for that exquisite moment
Hand touches hand
They must remain entrenched
Until they can once again
Embrace beneath the weeping willow tree
Romeo and Juliet,
They come from feuding kin
And must hide their love
They meet in secret
Beside the quiet lake
The only sounds,
Are of the faintest breeze
Disturbing the lofty tree tops
And ducks squabbling on the lake
But despite the quiet
Fearful of discovery
They embrace hidden from view
Beneath a weeping willow tree
Whose leafy pendulous branches
Trail down into the still water
Stirred by the gentle breeze
They dip in an out of the water
Like the toes of a reluctant bather
They kiss there in the quiet shade
And feel at once renewed
No words are spoken
Their language is of caress and kiss
Such tender converse
With limitless vocabulary
And languid pronunciation
Every syllable well employed
And when the final paragraph is reached
They end with perfect punctuation
Stirring from their lovers languor
They tread separate paths
To rejoin warring tribes
Adopting adversarial manner
No knowing looks to be exchanged
No casual brushing past
When for that exquisite moment
Hand touches hand
They must remain entrenched
Until they can once again
Embrace beneath the weeping willow tree
Those Memories Made on Teardrop Lake – (35) Relative Strangers
(Part 01)
Teardrop Lake and the surrounding woodland was privately owned and divided into twelve parcels each with one significant dwelling on it, although there were a number of cottages dotted around the woodland as well.
The 12 main properties on Teardrop Lake were not owned as such and were subject to a peculiar legal covenant dating back to the early 17th Century.
None of the residents on the Lake were owners per se, they possessed the lease but for their lifetime only, at the end of which the lease was passed on to their heir.
The houses and the land they sat upon could not be bought or sold by their occupier’s and nor could the leases.
Heirs can elect not live in the property, or elect to have a relative occupy it in their stead but no income can be derived from such a circumstance.
So when widower Daniel Travers was found dead in South View and was without issue, wheels were set in motion, to track down an heir.
Stanislas, Boivin and Champeaux, the solicitors who administered the Lakeside estate, had to find a beneficiary.
In the absence of a named heir in either Daniel Travers or his wife Winifred’s wills, a firm of genealogists had to be employed.
In the event of no heir at all being located then after a lengthy process the property would revert to the control of the trust to manage this had happened in the case of two of the 12, Dancingdean Hall and East Cliff Lodge.
Finding an heir was not a speedy process so although Daniel Travers died in March, it was September the 1st when Danni Holland, the last surviving heir of either line crossed the threshold of South View.
Danni was the 23 year old great, great, niece of Winifred Travers, a woman she had not only never met but had never even heard of.
In fact from the age of 18 until she was contacted by the solicitors she was completely unaware that she had any relatives at all.
Her mother died when she was ten and her father eight years later.
And with his death she was to the best of her knowledge the last one standing.
So they could have knocked her down with a feather when she was told she had not been alone in the world after all.
Danni inherited the lease on the house, the house contents and a small legacy but that wasn’t what she was looking for, she would have much preferred to have met Winnie and got to know her.
So after everything was signed and sealed Danni was assured by Stanislas, Boivin and Champeaux that after Winnie and Daniel’s death, this time she really was the last of the line.
In her first week in South View she did nothing but repeatedly pinch herself, expecting to wake up from a crazy dream.
In truth she was a little shell shocked
Also her arrival at South View besides the beautiful Teardrop Lake prompted her to reassess her future, at least when the dust had settled and her head had stopped spinning.
This was not the direction that she had envisaged her life would take in fact it was only in May of that year that she’d finished her Art History degree.
After leaving University she began working for an insurance company, in the claims department, while she considered what she should do with her qualification.
However inheriting the house meant that Danni could sell her flat in Nettlefield and quit the claims department.
The sale of her flat enabled her to pay off her student loans and have a reasonable nest egg to live on while she took stock.
When she met with one of the solicitors, Rizalina Pugay, she asked her what she knew about her great, great aunt and Riza spoke enthusiastically about Winnie.
“She was a wonderful woman”
“Did you know her well?” Danni asked
“Quite well, yes” she replied
She went on to tell her everything she knew about her up until her death.
“Then when she died her husband Daniel actually died of a broken heart” Riza said and sighed
“How romantic is that”
Danni had to agree that it was indeed a true love story.
She herself had never been in love true or otherwise.
She had had three rather dubious passions but she had never experienced love.
(Part 02)
On the Monday of her second week Danni phoned Riza.
“Hello Danni, how are you settling in?”
“Fine, fine” she replied “I still can’t believe it’s happened”
“Well it’s for real” Riza said “so enjoy it”
“I’m trying” Danni said and then there was a pause before Riza asked
“Was there something else?”
“Yes” she replied “am I allowed to decorate?”
And Riza laughed
After Riza explained to her that the house was hers to decorate whichever way she saw fit.
She reiterated that there were certain period features in the house that couldn’t be removed or altered and that other than that only changes to the exterior of the property had to be approved.
So armed with that information she decided she needed help.
When she was at Abbottsford University Danni shared a house for two years with three of her friends June Gough, Katie Watson and Briony Beardsmore.
After graduation Briony went to America but the other two had planned to take a year out and do some travelling before settling down.
She knew however that their reach had far exceeded their grasp and they had to curtail their sojourn.
So Danni phoned them and asked them to come and stay with her for a while.
“This is very nice Danni” Katie said looking around
“Are you sure you’re allowed to be here?”
“Apparently so” Danni replied and hugged her friend who was a tall well-built and totally unnaturally blonde woman, who although was very definitely feminine, hugged like a grizzly bear.
“Where’s June?”
“She’s fetching the bags” Katie replied as they walked into the kitchen.
June was petite and wiry and quite obviously deceptively strong because when she eventually appeared she was loaded with bags, and looked like a Hotel porter.
June dropped the bags in the hall and mopped her brow before running her fingers though her short black hair.
After closing the front door she went in search of the other two and found them sitting at the kitchen table talking.
“I might have known” she said
Over the next few weeks they went all over the house, out buildings, cellar and attic, sorting through Daniel and Winnies personal possessions.
The unwanted items were temporarily stored in the garage, clothing, music albums and knick-knack’s for the charity shop, some items of furniture which were deemed as too old fashioned but were of sufficient quality to auction and likewise for a selection of porcelain and glassware and collectables.
Books were Katie’s forte so all the books were put in one of the downstairs room and she methodically went through them all.
Any documents, paperwork or photographs were put in the study and would be gone through when Danni had the time.
There was also a considerable amount of sheet music which was of absolutely no use to her but Danni was reluctant to just throw it away.
The industrious June had hired a van so she could collect the decorating materials that she needed.
It was a good sized van, June told them that it was a Long Wheel Base Hi-Top, they just took her word for it.
But while they had it they decided to make full use of it to clear the garage which was by that time stuffed to the gunwales.
The good stuff that was designated for the charity shop ended up at St Mary’s Church Hall where it was sorted for the Church Car Boot and jumble sale being held at St Mary’s Primary School on the last weekend in October.
They then did a number of runs to the dump and finally took the items they wanted to sell to O’Sullivan and Springthorpe Auctioneers in Shallowfield.
(Part 03)
Danni left June in the van while she went into the office where a young man of a similar age to herself was sat behind the desk.
As she approached he looked up and smiled, Danni liked his smile, and she though he was quite good looking with his curly brown hair and blue eyes.
“Hello” she said “Are you Mr O’Sullivan or Mr Springthorpe?”
“Neither I’m afraid” he replied “Steve Lovett, can I help?”
“I hope so Steve” she replied
“So do I” he said in his head
“I have just inherited a house from my great, great aunt and uncle and I need to sell some of the furniture and such like” she said “is that something you can help with?”
“Certainly” he said “Let’s arrange a time and date when I can come and assess what you have”
“Ah that might be a problem” she said
“How so?” he enquired
“It’s all outside in a van” she replied
“Here?” he said “Oh ok then let’s go and have a look”
“Great” Danni said with a little relief
“So you’re new to the area too?” he said
“Yes about five weeks” she replied
“And you?”
“About the same” he replied
June had seen them approaching and jumped out of the driver’s seat and walked to the back of the van.
“I hope this isn’t a load of old tat” Steve thought to himself
“I’d hate to have to let her down”
He rather liked her, she ticked quite a few of his boxes.
She had shoulder length brunette hair, she was not beautiful in the conventional sense, and she had quite sharp features, a pointed nose and a slightly prominent chin, a small mouth and dark penetrating eyes, but he liked what he saw.
She was the perfect height for him about 4 inches shorter than his 6’ 1” and was blessed with very shapely legs.
“I’m in a B&B at the moment” he said aloud “I don’t know yet if the move here is permanent”
“Oh I hope it is” she said a little over enthusiastically which was noticed by June and when she looked at June it made Danni blush.
She had a small crescent shaped scar on her right cheek that went vivid red when she’d drunk too much or when she blushed.
At that moment it was crimson.
Danni introduced Steve to June who was grinning like a halfwit which quite understandably unnerved Steve.
“Well let’s have a look then” he said uncomfortably.
But once the doors were flung wide open he saw it was absolutely stuffed full.
“This is going to take longer than I thought” he added and had to call for some assistance from a character by the name of “Old Bob” and when it was all unloaded into the warehouse and could all be appreciated he was in his element.
“Can you leave it with us and I will call you later” he said
“Yes” she said that’s fine and jotted down her number
“I’m Danni by the way”
Out of her eye line June was grinning again which made Steve twitch.
“I’ll just get you a receipt” he said
“Well” June said as they drove back to the house
“Well what?” Danni retorted
“I felt like a proper gooseberry”
June said
“Oh do Shut up” Danni said and punched her arm, June just laughed.
When they got home they went into the kitchen and June was still cackling.
“How did you get on?” Katie asked
“She got on very well” June said and Danni picked up a tea towel and started flicking her.
Over a cup of coffee they sat at the table while June regaled them with her representation of events which caused much merriment and made Danni blush again.
After which it was Katie’s turn next to tell her how she had got on.
“I’ve just about finished with the books” she said “and I think there will be at least 50 that your Mr Lovett will be interested in”
“He’s not my Mr Lovett” Danni said
“In that case I will deal with him exclusively from now on” Katie suggested
“That won’t be necessary” Danni said and left the kitchen to peals of laughter.
When Danni and June were dropping off the jumble at the Church Hall they got chatting to the vicars wife Olivia and Danni mentioned the pile of sheet music that they had found in the house and Olivia told her that there was a music Professor living up at the Folly cottages who she thought would be very interested in looking through them.
So that was their first port of call the next day.
(Part 04)
Over the next few days Katie finished the books and all three of them cracked on with the decorating.
June had already completed two rooms before the other two got involved.
Not that Katie was much use, she didn’t like dust or cobwebs, she couldn’t use ladders or kneel down, she didn’t like the smell of paint as it made her nauseous and she didn’t like getting her hands wet or doing anything that would make them dry.
What she could do though was make teas and coffees and cook extremely well.
At the end of day three Danni’s phone rang just as she was half way down a ladder.
She looked at the caller ID and saw it was unknown and was thinking about declining it but in the end she answered it.
“Hello!” she said
“Could I speak to Miss Holland please?” the voice asked
“Speaking” she retorted
“Steve Lovett from the Auctioneers” he said
“Oh hello” she said and for some reason straightened her hair which was when she noticed she was being spied on so she took the phone into her bedroom.
“I have looked at all the items now and wondered if I might call round to discuss it” he said
“Well the house is in an awful mess as we’re decorating so could we meet at that coffee shop in Shallowfield? I think it’s called Addison’s”
“Yes that would be fine, is tomorrow at 10 ok?” he asked
“I look forward to seeing you then” Danni replied
“Likewise”
The next morning she spent a disproportionate amount of time getting ready for a coffee date and it wasn’t even a date, it wasn’t even a thing it was just a coffee with an Auctioneer, she wasn’t even sure he was an Auctioneer, she didn’t know what he was, but it was just coffee, that she was sure about.
“So why am I spending so much time getting ready” she said to her reflection in the mirror.
He was already sitting at a table when she arrived at Addison’s.
Danni walked over to him.
“Hello Steve” she said “Is it alright if to call you Steve?”
“Only if I can call you Danni” he replied
“That’s settled then” she said and sat down opposite him
“So what’s the verdict?” she asked after the coffee arrived
“Well I’ve divided up what you brought in into three different sales to maximise the prices” He said and handed her a list
“As you can see I have put down reserves on the highest value items”
“Crikey do you expect to get that much?” she asked
“Certainly yes” he said “In the right sale”
“I had no idea” Danni confessed
She was surprised at the amount they might raise, but she already knew what she was going to do with the money.
The meeting at Addison’s lasted longer than either of them intended, bearing in mind the purpose of it was dealt with in the first few minutes.
Finally Steve looked at his watch and excused himself
“I’m sorry I really have to go, I have a valuation to do in Childean”
“I understand, and thank you for this” she said tapping the valuation “And the coffee”
“My pleasure” he said “perhaps we could do it again”
“I’d like that” Danni answered
He was busy the next day so they arranged to meet at the same time the day after.
Danni returned home and told them the news about the valuation.
“Never mind that” Katie said “how did you get on with him?”
“Fine” she replied
“Only fine” June said “You’ve been gone almost 2 hours”
“Yes only fine” Danni said “but we are meeting for coffee again on Thursday”
“Well that’s promising” Katie said
“We are merely going to discuss the upcoming sale”
She told them but she hoped it might lead to more.
Katie and June seemed happy with that so Danni went to her room to change into her scruffy clothes.
(Part 05)
The first Auction sale was on the coming Saturday, and was for the porcelain, glass and collectables.
The following Wednesday was the jewellery sale in Abbottsford and then back to Shallowfield on the following Saturday for the furniture sale.
“Have you really never been to an Auction?” he asked in disbelief as they sat in Addison’s coffee shop
“Truly” she replied
“I could take you if you like” Steve suggested
“That would be nice” she said
“Great, you’re in for a real treat, Mr Springthorpe senior is in action on Saturday which is a sight to behold”
“I will look forward to it” she said though not because of Auctioneer.
Just at that moment when the conversation might have turned to something meaningful Danni looked across the table and saw that Steve had gone whiter than a sheet.
So she turned and looked behind her and there were Katie and June grinning through the window.
“It’s alright” she said “They’re friends of mine”
Then she mouthed something in their direction which caused them to roar with laugher before they departed.
And she returned her attention to Steve but the moment had passed.
On Saturday they met outside Addison’s and walked down to the Salerooms together.
It was very busy, and had been all morning, or so he was informed.
They didn’t arrive until eleven because he knew where Danni’s items were in the sale.
They only had to wait for ten minutes and the first lot appeared.
An hour and a half later and all her items had sold.
Only one failed to reach Steve’s estimate but comfortably cleared the reserve.
Steve suggested a pub lunch and Danni gratefully accepted.
“My friend Katie has been going through the books and has identified quite a number that she believes are of value” Danni said between mouthfuls of delicious Chilli at the Woodcutter’s Arms.
“Perhaps you can bring them in and I’ll get our book expert to look at them” he said “They may have to go in the December sale now though”
The following week they met up every day at Addison’s apart from Wednesday when they drove to Abbotsford for the jewellery sale and Saturday when they went to the furniture sale in Shallowfield after which they went to dinner at the Phoenix.
They had had umpteen coffee dates two lunches and a dinner but although they clearly liked each other and they enjoyed each other’s company they didn’t progress it.
The problem was they were both a little backwards in coming forwards, hence the number of coffee dates and no kissing.
Over coffee one day he gave her some bad news
“I’m not going to be around for the next week or so”
“How come?” she asked as calmly as she could
“I’ve been asked to flit between three different Salerooms, covering for holidays and sickness etc.” he explained
At the end of the evening just before she got into the cab she said
“I’ll miss you” and kissed his cheek
As it turned out it was almost 2 full weeks before she saw him again and she was quite low.
But she felt much happier when they met up in their favourite spot.
It was a Friday and Addison’s was exceptionally busy, so much so that they had to share a table with two elderly ladies, which made conversation difficult.
And then later that day Danni, Katie and June went away for a long weekend to meet up with their friend and housemate from University, Briony Beardsmore, who was back briefly from America.
When they returned she tried calling him but only succeeded in getting through to his answerphone, but she didn’t leave a message.
She left it for a few days but as she had neither seen nor heard from him she loaded the car with the boxes of books and drove them to the saleroom.
Danni pulled up in the car park and walked into the office expecting to see Steve sitting there.
But instead she saw a man in his thirties that she kind of recognised but didn’t quite.
“How can I help?” he said
“Is Mr Lovett around?” she said
“I’m afraid not” he replied
“He’s been called away for a few days on family business, a bereavement I believe”
“Oh ok” she said
“I have a car full of books he suggested I bring in”
“Well take them to the back door and Old Bob will sort you out” he said
“Thank you Mr…” she said
“Springthorpe” he replied
That was why she half recognised him he was a younger version of the Auctioneer from the first sale.
She was greeted at the door by “Old Bob” who helped her unload the car and gave her a receipt then she got back in the car and drove home disappointed.
(Part 06)
As Steve was absent and June was really cracking on with the decorating Danni decided to get to grips with the mountain of letters and personal papers in the study.
That kept her quite busy for the week following her delivering the books to the Auction house.
Then out of the blue she got a phone call from Steve, she was going to be sharp with him, for not calling her earlier.
After the conversation she was glad that she hadn’t.
The family emergency was his Grandfathers death and the subsequent funeral, which he had to arrange as there were no other family.
That kind of put a dampener on things and then he dropped the bombshell that after the book sale on Saturday he was driving up to Millmoor to supervise a number of house clearances, which really depressed her.
A few days later Danni and her friends were sitting in the kitchen when Katie said
“We’ll be out of your hair soon”
“What are you on about?”
“June’s nearly finished the decorating and we really need to get jobs and start paying off our loans” Katie said
“Oh” Danni said
“I thought you’d want to live here with me”
Danni was an orphan girl and her University girls were her only family and she wanted them near.
“Really?” June asked
“Of course really” Danni replied and the three of them hugged
About an hour later there was a knock on the front door.
June was painting the study and Katie was baking in the kitchen so Danni answered the door.
“Could I speak to Mrs … Oh it’s you” Steve said
“Hello” Danni said “This is a nice surprise”
“Yes” he said doubtfully
“Didn’t you know I lived here?” she said, and then it dawned on her that he wouldn’t because they had only met at Addison’s or the Saleroom.
“To be honest no” he admitted
“Come in” she said
“Thanks”
She led him into the lounge and a moment later Katie appeared with a tray.
Being a sucker for romance Katie just put it on the table smiled and left the room.
“I was hoping to speak with Winifred Travers” he said
“I’m afraid Mrs Travers passed away last year” Danni responded.
The news clearly shocked him and he was unable to speak for a few moments.
“Oh dear” he said “I have a letter for her”
The letter was from her deceased brother
“I’m sorry” Danni said
“What was she like?” he asked
“I don’t know, I didn’t know her” she admitted
“But everyone that did says she was a lovely woman, salt of the earth”
“So this is your house now?” he asked
“Well the lease is mine at least” Danni said
When he arrived he was carrying a folder which he placed on the sofa beside him.
But as he reached forward to pick up his drink he caught his sleeve and dragged the folder off the seat and spilled the contents, a mixture of papers and old black and white photographs, onto the floor.
Danni was immediately out of her seat and on her knees scooping up the spillage.
But she couldn’t help noticing the photograph of a soldier
“Who is this good looking young man?” she asked
“It’s my grandfather” he replied
“Oh wow” she said flatly
Steve elaborated as he showed her the other photos
After his grandfather died he wanted to deliver his letter to his baby sister, the problem was he had no idea where she could be
It was only by chance that he happened on the address.
“So how did you track Winnie down?” Danni asked
“Well when I left school I got a job with O’Sullivan’s and Springthorpe and part of the job is house clearances and one of the houses I had to clear last week was that of Elizabeth Blackett, who was a maiden lady in her 90’s.
It was my job to sort through her personal papers and among them were correspondences between her and Winifred, I couldn’t believe my luck.
Elisabeth was a distant cousin of Winnies and was also the genealogist of the family and she had a lot of old family pictures.
I just searched through her address book and here I am”
Although she had asked the question Danni wasn’t really listening to his answer as she was distracted by her own thoughts.
Steve noticed he didn’t have her full attention and said
“Well I had better be on my way, I’ve taken up too much of your time”
“Oh ok” she said and stood up and walked him to the door
“Are you on for coffee tomorrow, usual time?” he asked
“Oh no… I’m busy tomorrow” she lied
“Oh ok” he said and went to kiss her cheek, but she pull away.
“I’ll call you then”
“Yes ok fine” she said and closed the door abruptly.
(Part 07)
After Steve visited the house in search of Winifred she had distanced herself from him.
He called her several times over the few days following his visit enquiring about coffee at Addison’s but she always made an excuse.
But eventually she had to see him.
It was the first of December, a week after she had last seen him and Danni had to go to the salerooms to settle the account.
“Well after fees and commission this is the final tally” he said “how would you like it paid?”
Danni knew from talking to her neighbours that Daniel and Winnie were both heavily involved with the Church, he was the Church Warden for many years and she was the organist and they were both heavily involved with the choir.
So she replied without hesitation
“Could you please have a Cheque made payable to St Marys Church”
“That’s very generous” he said
“It’s what they would have wanted” Danni said and stood up
“Have you got time for a coffee?” he asked
“I...” she began
“Please” he added
“Ok”
The conversation was strained as they sat in Addison’s looking down at their respective drinks.
“We could go into Abbottsford one night and see a film” he suggested “What do you think?”
“I think you should find yourself a nice girl and settle down” she replied “I have to go”
“But…” he began but she was already half way out the door.
It was two weeks later and Steve had been sitting at a table in Addison Coffee House for about an hour after he’d finished his Coffee and sandwich.
He was listening to the conversations from other tables as they chatted about their Christmas plans, who was going, who was staying, how many would be there for Christmas Lunch and what they were doing on Boxing day.
Finally he’d had enough of other people’s happiness, because it hurt him, he was doing nothing, seeing no one, and he would be alone.
He mumbled to himself that he needed some fresh air and buttoned up his jacket high against the cold and walked towards the Lake.
It was still snowing as it had been all morning, he didn’t mind though he liked the snow.
He liked the way it dampened down the noise and brought silence to the world so all he could hear were his own thoughts and footsteps.
Everyone was predicting a White Christmas it would be the first one he’d seen in years if it happened, he had heard some youngsters in Shallowfield earlier talking very excitedly about the prospect.
That morning he had looked out of the small window of his B&B and watched as the kids went noisily passed with their Sledges.
They had passed on their way to one of the hills that overlooked the Town.
It reminded him of previous winters when he was a boy and the school was closed for a snow day.
Neither he nor his friends had a fancy sledge though, he and his mates used tea trays or bits of hardboard.
Sledges were a pretty useless thing to own as they sat gathering dust in sheds and garages most of the year until they were needed, if they were needed.
As the light began to fade he didn’t go up the hill where the kids were still enjoying themselves he wanted the quiet solitude only Teardrop Lake could offer.
The silence was briefly broken by the revelers as he walked past the Hotel but even their indulgent cacophony was soon lost as the snowfall snuffed it out.
Through the snowfall it was difficult even to discern the bright festive LED lights that decorated the houses.
With the Hotel well behind him and without thinking he set off along the lane that took him past the Addison family in Tower House.
It was only as he reached the next house that he realized his error as he found himself passing South View, where Danni lived, so he pulled his collar up and put his head down and went quickly past.
In the few months he had been staying in Shallowfield he had become very close to Danni Holland, they were both the same age, both of them were new to the area and neither had any family left.
Firstly he liked her as a friend and she had indeed become a best friend but almost immediately for him he wanted more than friendship.
But in recent weeks she had suddenly changed towards him and she became more distant and sisterly.
So he was, rather childishly, avoiding her which was quite frankly cutting off his nose to spite his face.
It had certainly not made him feel any better and it had probably confused the hell out of Danni, because he went from ringing her every day to avoiding her completely.
(Part 08)
Halfway along the Lane on the Southside of the Lake the darkness seemed even darker somehow and the snow was falling faster than ever.
He was unsure if he should press on or turn around and go back, visibility had been reduced to single digits.
He decided to take advantage of an old log at the side of the Lane and wait until the snow eased off again.
And tried to fathom out what had gone wrong between him and Danni.
He sat and stared straight ahead of him through the falling snow and realized it was easing as he was able to discern some of the coloured lights across the lake.
And soon all the twinkling lights of every house were visible as the snow stopped falling.
As the snowfall thinned he was able to get his bearings and was situated in between Forest Lodge and Lakeside Villa.
He decided it might be prudent to head back to Shallowfield and “get while the going was good”, and before the snow began again.
He stood up and headed back towards Shallowfield but was still lost in his thoughts as he did so
"What the hell are you doing out here?" a voice asked from the darkness.
It made him jump as he had become accustomed to the silence and was still somewhere inside his head contemplating his own situation.
He had perceived no warning that he was not alone and had not heard her approaching footfalls crunching in the snow.
He recognized the voice instantly as it belonged to Danni Holland.
“I just needed some fresh air” he replied
"What? In this weather? Are you mad” she said
"Well you’re out in it, so what’s your excuse?” he retorted
"I saw you pass the house so I came out to make sure …” she stopped
“To make sure what?” he asked angrily “that I didn’t jump in the lake”
“Well you looked furtive” Danni said defensively
“I wasn’t being furtive I was being private” he said and strode off down the lane
“I'm sorry," she said trotting after him “but you’ve been a bit off lately”
“And whose fault is that?” he asked, stopping briefly
“What do you mean?” Danni asked “what did I do?”
He stopped again and turned towards her and said
“I thought you liked me”
“I did, I do” she replied
“No I mean LIKE me” he elaborated
“I did” she admitted “but then I found out something”
“What?” he asked intrigued
“When you were at the house two week ago you had a folder with you, which you dropped on the floor and the contents spilled out” She said
“Yes I remember” he retorted “what about it?
“Well there was a photograph, a soldier in uniform” she said “and I asked you who it was”
“Yes it was of my grandfather” he said “I still don’t understand”
“He was my great aunts brother” she said “so I think we’re related, I’m not sure how, but I think we are”
(Part 09)
“And that’s why you’ve been all sisterly towards me” he said and laughed “Because you think we’re’
“Yes, but I don’t see any humour in it” she said
“Come back to the house and have a hot drink and explain, you must be frozen”
"Ok but on one condition” he replied
“What’s that?” she asked
“Don’t try to fix me up with one of your friends” Steve said
“Why would I do that?” Danni said and laughed
“Because that’s what sisters do” he said
“They have no interest in you, brother dear” she said mockingly
"Why not? What’s wrong with me?" he asked
"There is nothing wrong with you” she replied and audibly sighed, which he completely missed however
"Then why?" he persisted “they’re always smiling at me in a weird way”
“Oh dear how can I put this delicately” she mused and put her arm through his “Katie and June don’t butter their bread the same way that you do”
"What the hell does bread and butter have to… oh, oh I see” he said
“Do you understand now?” she asked and they both laughed
After they had walked a few more yards he asked
“So do they butter each other’s bread?”
“Frequently” she replied and they laughed again.
When they were back at her house he sat down at the kitchen table while she made a drink, he hadn’t realize how cold he had gotten until he stepped inside the house.
“Am I correct that the man in the photograph is Walter Tiplady?” she asked as she put a steaming mug of coffee in front of him
“Yes, my grandfather” he replied and warmed his hands on the mug
“But how can that be when Walter was killed in the fields of Normandy in 1944” she said “I’ve seen a copy of the telegram”
She had seen it all in amongst Win’s papers.
“It was Henry Lovett who died in 1944 when the Bren Gun Carrier they were in was hit by a mortar. Both men lost their tags and most of their clothes in the blast, Henry died of his wounds in hospital but was in possession of Walters tunic, so was wrongly identified”
“Why didn’t he say anything?” she asked
“He didn’t know” he replied “because along with his physical injuries he also had amnesia”
“What about Henrys family after he was discharged?”
“He didn’t have any family, he was an orphanage boy” he said “and Walter was enough like Henry in appearance for friends and acquaintances to accept him and his manner and the amnesia dissuaded any doubts”
“So how did he find out who he was?” she asked
“He started having unexplained memories when he was diagnosed with a brain tumour” Steve said
“By the time it had all been removed, it all came back, well pretty much all”
He paused to take a sip of coffee and then continued
“There were still big holes in his memory that remained right up till the end, but he died as he had lived for most of his life as Henry Lovett”
Which was why when the solicitors investigator thought that Danni was the only heir to Daniel Travers legacy.
“So you are the real heir, by rights this is your house” Danni said
“That’s not important” he said
“But I have it under false pretenses” Danni insisted
“More importantly than that Henry/Walter was Winnie’s brother and you were her great niece, by marriage, not by blood” he explained and she looked at him blankly
"We are not related" he said
“I don’t understand”
“We are not blood relations” he explained
“So I don’t have to be your sister anymore?” she said
“No”
“Thank God for that” she said and kissed him full on the mouth
As they lay in the cozy afterglow in her bed she asked
“So what do we do now?”
“Well I don’t know about you but I thought I might take your advice” he said
“Which advice was that?
“That I should find myself a nice girl and settle down” he replied
“After what we just did you had better be thinking about settling down with me” she said
Teardrop Lake and the surrounding woodland was privately owned and divided into twelve parcels each with one significant dwelling on it, although there were a number of cottages dotted around the woodland as well.
The 12 main properties on Teardrop Lake were not owned as such and were subject to a peculiar legal covenant dating back to the early 17th Century.
None of the residents on the Lake were owners per se, they possessed the lease but for their lifetime only, at the end of which the lease was passed on to their heir.
The houses and the land they sat upon could not be bought or sold by their occupier’s and nor could the leases.
Heirs can elect not live in the property, or elect to have a relative occupy it in their stead but no income can be derived from such a circumstance.
So when widower Daniel Travers was found dead in South View and was without issue, wheels were set in motion, to track down an heir.
Stanislas, Boivin and Champeaux, the solicitors who administered the Lakeside estate, had to find a beneficiary.
In the absence of a named heir in either Daniel Travers or his wife Winifred’s wills, a firm of genealogists had to be employed.
In the event of no heir at all being located then after a lengthy process the property would revert to the control of the trust to manage this had happened in the case of two of the 12, Dancingdean Hall and East Cliff Lodge.
Finding an heir was not a speedy process so although Daniel Travers died in March, it was September the 1st when Danni Holland, the last surviving heir of either line crossed the threshold of South View.
Danni was the 23 year old great, great, niece of Winifred Travers, a woman she had not only never met but had never even heard of.
In fact from the age of 18 until she was contacted by the solicitors she was completely unaware that she had any relatives at all.
Her mother died when she was ten and her father eight years later.
And with his death she was to the best of her knowledge the last one standing.
So they could have knocked her down with a feather when she was told she had not been alone in the world after all.
Danni inherited the lease on the house, the house contents and a small legacy but that wasn’t what she was looking for, she would have much preferred to have met Winnie and got to know her.
So after everything was signed and sealed Danni was assured by Stanislas, Boivin and Champeaux that after Winnie and Daniel’s death, this time she really was the last of the line.
In her first week in South View she did nothing but repeatedly pinch herself, expecting to wake up from a crazy dream.
In truth she was a little shell shocked
Also her arrival at South View besides the beautiful Teardrop Lake prompted her to reassess her future, at least when the dust had settled and her head had stopped spinning.
This was not the direction that she had envisaged her life would take in fact it was only in May of that year that she’d finished her Art History degree.
After leaving University she began working for an insurance company, in the claims department, while she considered what she should do with her qualification.
However inheriting the house meant that Danni could sell her flat in Nettlefield and quit the claims department.
The sale of her flat enabled her to pay off her student loans and have a reasonable nest egg to live on while she took stock.
When she met with one of the solicitors, Rizalina Pugay, she asked her what she knew about her great, great aunt and Riza spoke enthusiastically about Winnie.
“She was a wonderful woman”
“Did you know her well?” Danni asked
“Quite well, yes” she replied
She went on to tell her everything she knew about her up until her death.
“Then when she died her husband Daniel actually died of a broken heart” Riza said and sighed
“How romantic is that”
Danni had to agree that it was indeed a true love story.
She herself had never been in love true or otherwise.
She had had three rather dubious passions but she had never experienced love.
(Part 02)
On the Monday of her second week Danni phoned Riza.
“Hello Danni, how are you settling in?”
“Fine, fine” she replied “I still can’t believe it’s happened”
“Well it’s for real” Riza said “so enjoy it”
“I’m trying” Danni said and then there was a pause before Riza asked
“Was there something else?”
“Yes” she replied “am I allowed to decorate?”
And Riza laughed
After Riza explained to her that the house was hers to decorate whichever way she saw fit.
She reiterated that there were certain period features in the house that couldn’t be removed or altered and that other than that only changes to the exterior of the property had to be approved.
So armed with that information she decided she needed help.
When she was at Abbottsford University Danni shared a house for two years with three of her friends June Gough, Katie Watson and Briony Beardsmore.
After graduation Briony went to America but the other two had planned to take a year out and do some travelling before settling down.
She knew however that their reach had far exceeded their grasp and they had to curtail their sojourn.
So Danni phoned them and asked them to come and stay with her for a while.
“This is very nice Danni” Katie said looking around
“Are you sure you’re allowed to be here?”
“Apparently so” Danni replied and hugged her friend who was a tall well-built and totally unnaturally blonde woman, who although was very definitely feminine, hugged like a grizzly bear.
“Where’s June?”
“She’s fetching the bags” Katie replied as they walked into the kitchen.
June was petite and wiry and quite obviously deceptively strong because when she eventually appeared she was loaded with bags, and looked like a Hotel porter.
June dropped the bags in the hall and mopped her brow before running her fingers though her short black hair.
After closing the front door she went in search of the other two and found them sitting at the kitchen table talking.
“I might have known” she said
Over the next few weeks they went all over the house, out buildings, cellar and attic, sorting through Daniel and Winnies personal possessions.
The unwanted items were temporarily stored in the garage, clothing, music albums and knick-knack’s for the charity shop, some items of furniture which were deemed as too old fashioned but were of sufficient quality to auction and likewise for a selection of porcelain and glassware and collectables.
Books were Katie’s forte so all the books were put in one of the downstairs room and she methodically went through them all.
Any documents, paperwork or photographs were put in the study and would be gone through when Danni had the time.
There was also a considerable amount of sheet music which was of absolutely no use to her but Danni was reluctant to just throw it away.
The industrious June had hired a van so she could collect the decorating materials that she needed.
It was a good sized van, June told them that it was a Long Wheel Base Hi-Top, they just took her word for it.
But while they had it they decided to make full use of it to clear the garage which was by that time stuffed to the gunwales.
The good stuff that was designated for the charity shop ended up at St Mary’s Church Hall where it was sorted for the Church Car Boot and jumble sale being held at St Mary’s Primary School on the last weekend in October.
They then did a number of runs to the dump and finally took the items they wanted to sell to O’Sullivan and Springthorpe Auctioneers in Shallowfield.
(Part 03)
Danni left June in the van while she went into the office where a young man of a similar age to herself was sat behind the desk.
As she approached he looked up and smiled, Danni liked his smile, and she though he was quite good looking with his curly brown hair and blue eyes.
“Hello” she said “Are you Mr O’Sullivan or Mr Springthorpe?”
“Neither I’m afraid” he replied “Steve Lovett, can I help?”
“I hope so Steve” she replied
“So do I” he said in his head
“I have just inherited a house from my great, great aunt and uncle and I need to sell some of the furniture and such like” she said “is that something you can help with?”
“Certainly” he said “Let’s arrange a time and date when I can come and assess what you have”
“Ah that might be a problem” she said
“How so?” he enquired
“It’s all outside in a van” she replied
“Here?” he said “Oh ok then let’s go and have a look”
“Great” Danni said with a little relief
“So you’re new to the area too?” he said
“Yes about five weeks” she replied
“And you?”
“About the same” he replied
June had seen them approaching and jumped out of the driver’s seat and walked to the back of the van.
“I hope this isn’t a load of old tat” Steve thought to himself
“I’d hate to have to let her down”
He rather liked her, she ticked quite a few of his boxes.
She had shoulder length brunette hair, she was not beautiful in the conventional sense, and she had quite sharp features, a pointed nose and a slightly prominent chin, a small mouth and dark penetrating eyes, but he liked what he saw.
She was the perfect height for him about 4 inches shorter than his 6’ 1” and was blessed with very shapely legs.
“I’m in a B&B at the moment” he said aloud “I don’t know yet if the move here is permanent”
“Oh I hope it is” she said a little over enthusiastically which was noticed by June and when she looked at June it made Danni blush.
She had a small crescent shaped scar on her right cheek that went vivid red when she’d drunk too much or when she blushed.
At that moment it was crimson.
Danni introduced Steve to June who was grinning like a halfwit which quite understandably unnerved Steve.
“Well let’s have a look then” he said uncomfortably.
But once the doors were flung wide open he saw it was absolutely stuffed full.
“This is going to take longer than I thought” he added and had to call for some assistance from a character by the name of “Old Bob” and when it was all unloaded into the warehouse and could all be appreciated he was in his element.
“Can you leave it with us and I will call you later” he said
“Yes” she said that’s fine and jotted down her number
“I’m Danni by the way”
Out of her eye line June was grinning again which made Steve twitch.
“I’ll just get you a receipt” he said
“Well” June said as they drove back to the house
“Well what?” Danni retorted
“I felt like a proper gooseberry”
June said
“Oh do Shut up” Danni said and punched her arm, June just laughed.
When they got home they went into the kitchen and June was still cackling.
“How did you get on?” Katie asked
“She got on very well” June said and Danni picked up a tea towel and started flicking her.
Over a cup of coffee they sat at the table while June regaled them with her representation of events which caused much merriment and made Danni blush again.
After which it was Katie’s turn next to tell her how she had got on.
“I’ve just about finished with the books” she said “and I think there will be at least 50 that your Mr Lovett will be interested in”
“He’s not my Mr Lovett” Danni said
“In that case I will deal with him exclusively from now on” Katie suggested
“That won’t be necessary” Danni said and left the kitchen to peals of laughter.
When Danni and June were dropping off the jumble at the Church Hall they got chatting to the vicars wife Olivia and Danni mentioned the pile of sheet music that they had found in the house and Olivia told her that there was a music Professor living up at the Folly cottages who she thought would be very interested in looking through them.
So that was their first port of call the next day.
(Part 04)
Over the next few days Katie finished the books and all three of them cracked on with the decorating.
June had already completed two rooms before the other two got involved.
Not that Katie was much use, she didn’t like dust or cobwebs, she couldn’t use ladders or kneel down, she didn’t like the smell of paint as it made her nauseous and she didn’t like getting her hands wet or doing anything that would make them dry.
What she could do though was make teas and coffees and cook extremely well.
At the end of day three Danni’s phone rang just as she was half way down a ladder.
She looked at the caller ID and saw it was unknown and was thinking about declining it but in the end she answered it.
“Hello!” she said
“Could I speak to Miss Holland please?” the voice asked
“Speaking” she retorted
“Steve Lovett from the Auctioneers” he said
“Oh hello” she said and for some reason straightened her hair which was when she noticed she was being spied on so she took the phone into her bedroom.
“I have looked at all the items now and wondered if I might call round to discuss it” he said
“Well the house is in an awful mess as we’re decorating so could we meet at that coffee shop in Shallowfield? I think it’s called Addison’s”
“Yes that would be fine, is tomorrow at 10 ok?” he asked
“I look forward to seeing you then” Danni replied
“Likewise”
The next morning she spent a disproportionate amount of time getting ready for a coffee date and it wasn’t even a date, it wasn’t even a thing it was just a coffee with an Auctioneer, she wasn’t even sure he was an Auctioneer, she didn’t know what he was, but it was just coffee, that she was sure about.
“So why am I spending so much time getting ready” she said to her reflection in the mirror.
He was already sitting at a table when she arrived at Addison’s.
Danni walked over to him.
“Hello Steve” she said “Is it alright if to call you Steve?”
“Only if I can call you Danni” he replied
“That’s settled then” she said and sat down opposite him
“So what’s the verdict?” she asked after the coffee arrived
“Well I’ve divided up what you brought in into three different sales to maximise the prices” He said and handed her a list
“As you can see I have put down reserves on the highest value items”
“Crikey do you expect to get that much?” she asked
“Certainly yes” he said “In the right sale”
“I had no idea” Danni confessed
She was surprised at the amount they might raise, but she already knew what she was going to do with the money.
The meeting at Addison’s lasted longer than either of them intended, bearing in mind the purpose of it was dealt with in the first few minutes.
Finally Steve looked at his watch and excused himself
“I’m sorry I really have to go, I have a valuation to do in Childean”
“I understand, and thank you for this” she said tapping the valuation “And the coffee”
“My pleasure” he said “perhaps we could do it again”
“I’d like that” Danni answered
He was busy the next day so they arranged to meet at the same time the day after.
Danni returned home and told them the news about the valuation.
“Never mind that” Katie said “how did you get on with him?”
“Fine” she replied
“Only fine” June said “You’ve been gone almost 2 hours”
“Yes only fine” Danni said “but we are meeting for coffee again on Thursday”
“Well that’s promising” Katie said
“We are merely going to discuss the upcoming sale”
She told them but she hoped it might lead to more.
Katie and June seemed happy with that so Danni went to her room to change into her scruffy clothes.
(Part 05)
The first Auction sale was on the coming Saturday, and was for the porcelain, glass and collectables.
The following Wednesday was the jewellery sale in Abbottsford and then back to Shallowfield on the following Saturday for the furniture sale.
“Have you really never been to an Auction?” he asked in disbelief as they sat in Addison’s coffee shop
“Truly” she replied
“I could take you if you like” Steve suggested
“That would be nice” she said
“Great, you’re in for a real treat, Mr Springthorpe senior is in action on Saturday which is a sight to behold”
“I will look forward to it” she said though not because of Auctioneer.
Just at that moment when the conversation might have turned to something meaningful Danni looked across the table and saw that Steve had gone whiter than a sheet.
So she turned and looked behind her and there were Katie and June grinning through the window.
“It’s alright” she said “They’re friends of mine”
Then she mouthed something in their direction which caused them to roar with laugher before they departed.
And she returned her attention to Steve but the moment had passed.
On Saturday they met outside Addison’s and walked down to the Salerooms together.
It was very busy, and had been all morning, or so he was informed.
They didn’t arrive until eleven because he knew where Danni’s items were in the sale.
They only had to wait for ten minutes and the first lot appeared.
An hour and a half later and all her items had sold.
Only one failed to reach Steve’s estimate but comfortably cleared the reserve.
Steve suggested a pub lunch and Danni gratefully accepted.
“My friend Katie has been going through the books and has identified quite a number that she believes are of value” Danni said between mouthfuls of delicious Chilli at the Woodcutter’s Arms.
“Perhaps you can bring them in and I’ll get our book expert to look at them” he said “They may have to go in the December sale now though”
The following week they met up every day at Addison’s apart from Wednesday when they drove to Abbotsford for the jewellery sale and Saturday when they went to the furniture sale in Shallowfield after which they went to dinner at the Phoenix.
They had had umpteen coffee dates two lunches and a dinner but although they clearly liked each other and they enjoyed each other’s company they didn’t progress it.
The problem was they were both a little backwards in coming forwards, hence the number of coffee dates and no kissing.
Over coffee one day he gave her some bad news
“I’m not going to be around for the next week or so”
“How come?” she asked as calmly as she could
“I’ve been asked to flit between three different Salerooms, covering for holidays and sickness etc.” he explained
At the end of the evening just before she got into the cab she said
“I’ll miss you” and kissed his cheek
As it turned out it was almost 2 full weeks before she saw him again and she was quite low.
But she felt much happier when they met up in their favourite spot.
It was a Friday and Addison’s was exceptionally busy, so much so that they had to share a table with two elderly ladies, which made conversation difficult.
And then later that day Danni, Katie and June went away for a long weekend to meet up with their friend and housemate from University, Briony Beardsmore, who was back briefly from America.
When they returned she tried calling him but only succeeded in getting through to his answerphone, but she didn’t leave a message.
She left it for a few days but as she had neither seen nor heard from him she loaded the car with the boxes of books and drove them to the saleroom.
Danni pulled up in the car park and walked into the office expecting to see Steve sitting there.
But instead she saw a man in his thirties that she kind of recognised but didn’t quite.
“How can I help?” he said
“Is Mr Lovett around?” she said
“I’m afraid not” he replied
“He’s been called away for a few days on family business, a bereavement I believe”
“Oh ok” she said
“I have a car full of books he suggested I bring in”
“Well take them to the back door and Old Bob will sort you out” he said
“Thank you Mr…” she said
“Springthorpe” he replied
That was why she half recognised him he was a younger version of the Auctioneer from the first sale.
She was greeted at the door by “Old Bob” who helped her unload the car and gave her a receipt then she got back in the car and drove home disappointed.
(Part 06)
As Steve was absent and June was really cracking on with the decorating Danni decided to get to grips with the mountain of letters and personal papers in the study.
That kept her quite busy for the week following her delivering the books to the Auction house.
Then out of the blue she got a phone call from Steve, she was going to be sharp with him, for not calling her earlier.
After the conversation she was glad that she hadn’t.
The family emergency was his Grandfathers death and the subsequent funeral, which he had to arrange as there were no other family.
That kind of put a dampener on things and then he dropped the bombshell that after the book sale on Saturday he was driving up to Millmoor to supervise a number of house clearances, which really depressed her.
A few days later Danni and her friends were sitting in the kitchen when Katie said
“We’ll be out of your hair soon”
“What are you on about?”
“June’s nearly finished the decorating and we really need to get jobs and start paying off our loans” Katie said
“Oh” Danni said
“I thought you’d want to live here with me”
Danni was an orphan girl and her University girls were her only family and she wanted them near.
“Really?” June asked
“Of course really” Danni replied and the three of them hugged
About an hour later there was a knock on the front door.
June was painting the study and Katie was baking in the kitchen so Danni answered the door.
“Could I speak to Mrs … Oh it’s you” Steve said
“Hello” Danni said “This is a nice surprise”
“Yes” he said doubtfully
“Didn’t you know I lived here?” she said, and then it dawned on her that he wouldn’t because they had only met at Addison’s or the Saleroom.
“To be honest no” he admitted
“Come in” she said
“Thanks”
She led him into the lounge and a moment later Katie appeared with a tray.
Being a sucker for romance Katie just put it on the table smiled and left the room.
“I was hoping to speak with Winifred Travers” he said
“I’m afraid Mrs Travers passed away last year” Danni responded.
The news clearly shocked him and he was unable to speak for a few moments.
“Oh dear” he said “I have a letter for her”
The letter was from her deceased brother
“I’m sorry” Danni said
“What was she like?” he asked
“I don’t know, I didn’t know her” she admitted
“But everyone that did says she was a lovely woman, salt of the earth”
“So this is your house now?” he asked
“Well the lease is mine at least” Danni said
When he arrived he was carrying a folder which he placed on the sofa beside him.
But as he reached forward to pick up his drink he caught his sleeve and dragged the folder off the seat and spilled the contents, a mixture of papers and old black and white photographs, onto the floor.
Danni was immediately out of her seat and on her knees scooping up the spillage.
But she couldn’t help noticing the photograph of a soldier
“Who is this good looking young man?” she asked
“It’s my grandfather” he replied
“Oh wow” she said flatly
Steve elaborated as he showed her the other photos
After his grandfather died he wanted to deliver his letter to his baby sister, the problem was he had no idea where she could be
It was only by chance that he happened on the address.
“So how did you track Winnie down?” Danni asked
“Well when I left school I got a job with O’Sullivan’s and Springthorpe and part of the job is house clearances and one of the houses I had to clear last week was that of Elizabeth Blackett, who was a maiden lady in her 90’s.
It was my job to sort through her personal papers and among them were correspondences between her and Winifred, I couldn’t believe my luck.
Elisabeth was a distant cousin of Winnies and was also the genealogist of the family and she had a lot of old family pictures.
I just searched through her address book and here I am”
Although she had asked the question Danni wasn’t really listening to his answer as she was distracted by her own thoughts.
Steve noticed he didn’t have her full attention and said
“Well I had better be on my way, I’ve taken up too much of your time”
“Oh ok” she said and stood up and walked him to the door
“Are you on for coffee tomorrow, usual time?” he asked
“Oh no… I’m busy tomorrow” she lied
“Oh ok” he said and went to kiss her cheek, but she pull away.
“I’ll call you then”
“Yes ok fine” she said and closed the door abruptly.
(Part 07)
After Steve visited the house in search of Winifred she had distanced herself from him.
He called her several times over the few days following his visit enquiring about coffee at Addison’s but she always made an excuse.
But eventually she had to see him.
It was the first of December, a week after she had last seen him and Danni had to go to the salerooms to settle the account.
“Well after fees and commission this is the final tally” he said “how would you like it paid?”
Danni knew from talking to her neighbours that Daniel and Winnie were both heavily involved with the Church, he was the Church Warden for many years and she was the organist and they were both heavily involved with the choir.
So she replied without hesitation
“Could you please have a Cheque made payable to St Marys Church”
“That’s very generous” he said
“It’s what they would have wanted” Danni said and stood up
“Have you got time for a coffee?” he asked
“I...” she began
“Please” he added
“Ok”
The conversation was strained as they sat in Addison’s looking down at their respective drinks.
“We could go into Abbottsford one night and see a film” he suggested “What do you think?”
“I think you should find yourself a nice girl and settle down” she replied “I have to go”
“But…” he began but she was already half way out the door.
It was two weeks later and Steve had been sitting at a table in Addison Coffee House for about an hour after he’d finished his Coffee and sandwich.
He was listening to the conversations from other tables as they chatted about their Christmas plans, who was going, who was staying, how many would be there for Christmas Lunch and what they were doing on Boxing day.
Finally he’d had enough of other people’s happiness, because it hurt him, he was doing nothing, seeing no one, and he would be alone.
He mumbled to himself that he needed some fresh air and buttoned up his jacket high against the cold and walked towards the Lake.
It was still snowing as it had been all morning, he didn’t mind though he liked the snow.
He liked the way it dampened down the noise and brought silence to the world so all he could hear were his own thoughts and footsteps.
Everyone was predicting a White Christmas it would be the first one he’d seen in years if it happened, he had heard some youngsters in Shallowfield earlier talking very excitedly about the prospect.
That morning he had looked out of the small window of his B&B and watched as the kids went noisily passed with their Sledges.
They had passed on their way to one of the hills that overlooked the Town.
It reminded him of previous winters when he was a boy and the school was closed for a snow day.
Neither he nor his friends had a fancy sledge though, he and his mates used tea trays or bits of hardboard.
Sledges were a pretty useless thing to own as they sat gathering dust in sheds and garages most of the year until they were needed, if they were needed.
As the light began to fade he didn’t go up the hill where the kids were still enjoying themselves he wanted the quiet solitude only Teardrop Lake could offer.
The silence was briefly broken by the revelers as he walked past the Hotel but even their indulgent cacophony was soon lost as the snowfall snuffed it out.
Through the snowfall it was difficult even to discern the bright festive LED lights that decorated the houses.
With the Hotel well behind him and without thinking he set off along the lane that took him past the Addison family in Tower House.
It was only as he reached the next house that he realized his error as he found himself passing South View, where Danni lived, so he pulled his collar up and put his head down and went quickly past.
In the few months he had been staying in Shallowfield he had become very close to Danni Holland, they were both the same age, both of them were new to the area and neither had any family left.
Firstly he liked her as a friend and she had indeed become a best friend but almost immediately for him he wanted more than friendship.
But in recent weeks she had suddenly changed towards him and she became more distant and sisterly.
So he was, rather childishly, avoiding her which was quite frankly cutting off his nose to spite his face.
It had certainly not made him feel any better and it had probably confused the hell out of Danni, because he went from ringing her every day to avoiding her completely.
(Part 08)
Halfway along the Lane on the Southside of the Lake the darkness seemed even darker somehow and the snow was falling faster than ever.
He was unsure if he should press on or turn around and go back, visibility had been reduced to single digits.
He decided to take advantage of an old log at the side of the Lane and wait until the snow eased off again.
And tried to fathom out what had gone wrong between him and Danni.
He sat and stared straight ahead of him through the falling snow and realized it was easing as he was able to discern some of the coloured lights across the lake.
And soon all the twinkling lights of every house were visible as the snow stopped falling.
As the snowfall thinned he was able to get his bearings and was situated in between Forest Lodge and Lakeside Villa.
He decided it might be prudent to head back to Shallowfield and “get while the going was good”, and before the snow began again.
He stood up and headed back towards Shallowfield but was still lost in his thoughts as he did so
"What the hell are you doing out here?" a voice asked from the darkness.
It made him jump as he had become accustomed to the silence and was still somewhere inside his head contemplating his own situation.
He had perceived no warning that he was not alone and had not heard her approaching footfalls crunching in the snow.
He recognized the voice instantly as it belonged to Danni Holland.
“I just needed some fresh air” he replied
"What? In this weather? Are you mad” she said
"Well you’re out in it, so what’s your excuse?” he retorted
"I saw you pass the house so I came out to make sure …” she stopped
“To make sure what?” he asked angrily “that I didn’t jump in the lake”
“Well you looked furtive” Danni said defensively
“I wasn’t being furtive I was being private” he said and strode off down the lane
“I'm sorry," she said trotting after him “but you’ve been a bit off lately”
“And whose fault is that?” he asked, stopping briefly
“What do you mean?” Danni asked “what did I do?”
He stopped again and turned towards her and said
“I thought you liked me”
“I did, I do” she replied
“No I mean LIKE me” he elaborated
“I did” she admitted “but then I found out something”
“What?” he asked intrigued
“When you were at the house two week ago you had a folder with you, which you dropped on the floor and the contents spilled out” She said
“Yes I remember” he retorted “what about it?
“Well there was a photograph, a soldier in uniform” she said “and I asked you who it was”
“Yes it was of my grandfather” he said “I still don’t understand”
“He was my great aunts brother” she said “so I think we’re related, I’m not sure how, but I think we are”
(Part 09)
“And that’s why you’ve been all sisterly towards me” he said and laughed “Because you think we’re’
“Yes, but I don’t see any humour in it” she said
“Come back to the house and have a hot drink and explain, you must be frozen”
"Ok but on one condition” he replied
“What’s that?” she asked
“Don’t try to fix me up with one of your friends” Steve said
“Why would I do that?” Danni said and laughed
“Because that’s what sisters do” he said
“They have no interest in you, brother dear” she said mockingly
"Why not? What’s wrong with me?" he asked
"There is nothing wrong with you” she replied and audibly sighed, which he completely missed however
"Then why?" he persisted “they’re always smiling at me in a weird way”
“Oh dear how can I put this delicately” she mused and put her arm through his “Katie and June don’t butter their bread the same way that you do”
"What the hell does bread and butter have to… oh, oh I see” he said
“Do you understand now?” she asked and they both laughed
After they had walked a few more yards he asked
“So do they butter each other’s bread?”
“Frequently” she replied and they laughed again.
When they were back at her house he sat down at the kitchen table while she made a drink, he hadn’t realize how cold he had gotten until he stepped inside the house.
“Am I correct that the man in the photograph is Walter Tiplady?” she asked as she put a steaming mug of coffee in front of him
“Yes, my grandfather” he replied and warmed his hands on the mug
“But how can that be when Walter was killed in the fields of Normandy in 1944” she said “I’ve seen a copy of the telegram”
She had seen it all in amongst Win’s papers.
“It was Henry Lovett who died in 1944 when the Bren Gun Carrier they were in was hit by a mortar. Both men lost their tags and most of their clothes in the blast, Henry died of his wounds in hospital but was in possession of Walters tunic, so was wrongly identified”
“Why didn’t he say anything?” she asked
“He didn’t know” he replied “because along with his physical injuries he also had amnesia”
“What about Henrys family after he was discharged?”
“He didn’t have any family, he was an orphanage boy” he said “and Walter was enough like Henry in appearance for friends and acquaintances to accept him and his manner and the amnesia dissuaded any doubts”
“So how did he find out who he was?” she asked
“He started having unexplained memories when he was diagnosed with a brain tumour” Steve said
“By the time it had all been removed, it all came back, well pretty much all”
He paused to take a sip of coffee and then continued
“There were still big holes in his memory that remained right up till the end, but he died as he had lived for most of his life as Henry Lovett”
Which was why when the solicitors investigator thought that Danni was the only heir to Daniel Travers legacy.
“So you are the real heir, by rights this is your house” Danni said
“That’s not important” he said
“But I have it under false pretenses” Danni insisted
“More importantly than that Henry/Walter was Winnie’s brother and you were her great niece, by marriage, not by blood” he explained and she looked at him blankly
"We are not related" he said
“I don’t understand”
“We are not blood relations” he explained
“So I don’t have to be your sister anymore?” she said
“No”
“Thank God for that” she said and kissed him full on the mouth
As they lay in the cozy afterglow in her bed she asked
“So what do we do now?”
“Well I don’t know about you but I thought I might take your advice” he said
“Which advice was that?
“That I should find myself a nice girl and settle down” he replied
“After what we just did you had better be thinking about settling down with me” she said
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