(Part 01)
Mornington-By-Mere is a small country village lying in the Finchbottom Vale nestled between the Ancient Dancingdean Forest and the rolling Pepperstock Hills.
It is a quaint picturesque village, a proper chocolate box picturesque idyll, with a Manor House, 12th Century Church, a Coaching Inn, Windmills, an Old Forge, a Schoolhouse, a River and a Mere.
But Mornington-By-Mere was not just a quaint chocolate box English Village it was the beating heart of the Finchbottom Vale and there were a number of cottages and small houses on the Purplemere road and Dulcets Lane which formed the part of Mornington Village known as Manorside and 41 year old Rhonda Kane lived on Dulcets Road at Marigold Cottage.
She was a solicitor with Bramstock, Goodman, Crossfield and Bushe in Abbottsford.
Normally she lived alone but at that time her younger brother Brian was staying with her following his divorce.
Also living in Manorside on Dulcets Road in Brewery
House was Daniel Goman-Smith, who lived with his ex-wife Sarah.
It was a curious arrangement, they had been divorced for two years, but there was no hatred, betrayal or estrangement they just simply fell out of love.
They were still the best of friends, which they agreed that they perhaps should have stayed as such and not married in the first place.
But because they were still friends and enjoyed each other’s company and as neither of them had anyone else they decided to continue living together.
They were both doctors, Daniel worked at the Sharpington Jubilee Surgery and Sarah worked for the Dancingdean Health Centre in Shallowfield.
Sister and brother Tree surgeons, Kate and Gary Pottinger were also Manorside residents and they lived at number 5 Brooke Side Cottages.
On the first Friday in June the Goman-Smiths and Brian Kane travelled separately to Abbottsford and would be spending the whole weekend at the Abbottsford Regents Hotel, Rhonda Kane was already in town as she had to work.
But they were not the only Mornington residents planning a weekend away, Gary and Kate Pottinger would also be there but they wouldn’t set off after work on Friday evening when their fellow villagers were already there.
Sarah Goman-Smith, on arriving in town took the opportunity for a spot of retail therapy in the Phoenix Centre.
She didn’t often have the time to spend shopping in places like Abbottsford, with the big name stores, so the thought of spoiling herself was very tempting so she took full advantage of the time she had and come the end of the day she had found it very therapeutic and among her many purchases were some delicious items of lingerie.
While Gary and Kate were still working among the Mornington Estate woodland Brian Kane and Daniel Goman-Smith were both at the offices of Bramstock, Goodman, Crossfield and Bushe, though quite independently.
Daniel had a meeting with one of the Solicitors, Rhonda Kane, to discuss his late Uncles estate, which was really only a formality.
Brian Kane was there however to take his sister to lunch.
(Part 02)
After dropping his ex-wife Sarah at the Phoenix Centre Daniel Goman-Smith was sitting in reception at Bramstock, Goodman, Crossfield and Bushe, the firm of Solicitors handling his late Uncles estate, by 11 o’clock.
He had an appointment with Rhonda Kane at 11.15 but he always liked to be early but he was still waiting at 11.25.
It made him angry when people didn’t keep to time so he presumed Ms. Kane to be some Manish ball breaker who enjoyed keeping people waiting.
So when he saw an attractive woman, tall and slender in her early forties wearing a tailored business suit and spectacles he assumed she must be Ms. Kane’s personal assistant.
“Mr. Goman-Smith?” She said holding out her hand “sorry to keep you waiting”
He took the offered hand, which she gripped firmly
“Rhonda Kane, so pleased to meet you”
“Like wise, please call me Daniel”
She smiled broadly and said
“Would you like to come through then Daniel?”
She led the way and he followed on, and the receptionist caught him staring at Ms. Kane’s rather lovely legs and she frowned at him but he just shrugged and she smiled.
He spent a very pleasant hour with the very un-Manish Ms. Kane who couldn’t have been less of a ball breaker if she tried.
She went through all the papers very professionally and assured him that everything would be tied up with a bow in the coming few weeks.
He would however have had to admit that he didn’t take in everything she was saying, due to a combination of the hypnotic posh plummy tones of her voice which he found very seductive, a turn on even, especially the way she peered over the top of her specs and the fact she was very attractive.
But apart from her being pleasing on the eye, he’d always had a soft spot for well-spoken women.
Plus from where he was sitting he had a good view of her magnificent long legs.
Rhonda Kane was aware of her client admiring her legs and was flattered by the fact that a younger man found her attractive, albeit only younger by a couple of years, but nonetheless.
He wasn’t bad looking himself, blue eyes, and brown hair, tall enough so she would be able to wear heels and he also seemed to be a nice gentle man, and she didn’t meet many of those, and he wasn’t wearing a wedding ring.
As a result she did something that she had never done before, which made her feel a bit naughty, it was certainly unprofessional, and she dragged out the meeting.
Rhonda went into more detail about the process than she normally would, or was necessary, the unpleasant clients she rather hurried through and got them out the door as soon as possible.
He didn’t seem to mind, and didn’t seem in any hurry to leave so she carried on.
She didn’t even mind the fact that she would be keeping her next client waiting.
Eventually the time came to leave and she led him back to reception where they shook hands again.
“I will be in touch in due course” she said
“Thank you Ms Kane”
“Please call me Rhonda”
(Part 03)
Brian Kane travelled up to Abbottsford early on Friday with his sister, he had an important meeting with a client and then he was meeting Rhonda for lunch.
Because of the importance of the meeting he had allowed a three hour window but as it turned out it was concluded in under two.
So he went for a ridiculously expensive coffee at the Espresso Phoenix to kill some time and then made his way to Bramstock, Goodman, Crossfield and Bushe to meet his sister.
Eventually the time came to leave and she led him back to reception where they shook hands again.
“I will be in touch in due course” she said
“Thank you Ms Kane”
“Please call me Rhonda”
While Rhonda was prolonging her meeting her brother arrived at reception and exchanged pleasantries with Sandra, the receptionist, and then took a seat and a few minutes later Sandra delivered him a coffee and then he sat there about half an hour reading a magazine when he heard Rhonda’s voice which grew progressively louder as she got closer.
And when he heard his sister say
“Please call me Rhonda”
Brian thought he had misheard because she never let her clients call her Rhonda, so he assumed the client she was with must be an important one but when the man turned around he saw that he knew him and said
“Daniel”
“Hello Brian, what are you doing here?”
“I’m here to take my sister to lunch” he replied as the two men shook hands.
“Kane, der, I didn’t make the connection”
Meanwhile Rhonda, who had turned to go back to her office turned on her heels and joined them.
“You two know each other?” she asked
“Yes we were at University together” Brian said
“Are you a bean counter as well then?” Rhonda asked with a smile
“No I’m a Doctor” he replied
The following few minutes of the conversation completely excluded Brian who just looked on in from the sidelines in amusement.
In fact it only came to an end when the receptionist, Sandra, interrupted with a message.
“Mr. Bishop phoned to say he can’t make his appointment but can you squeeze him in at 2 o’clock”
Rhonda looked at her watch and replied
“Yes that’s fine”
After Sandra had left them she said
“We will have to make it an early lunch Brian”
“That’s fine with me”
“And perhaps Daniel would like to join us” she added
“I’d love to” he replied to her
They had lunch at an Italian Restaurant called Roberto’s just around the corner from her office.
“So was it just Rhonda that brought you too Abbottsford?” Brian asked
“No it wasn’t, but I would have made the trip just to see her” he thought but out loud he said
“No I’m in town for the weekend, at the Regent’s, Sarah and I are going to the cricket tomorrow”
“We’re putting up at the Regents as well” Brian said
“Never mind that who the hell is Sarah?” Rhonda asked herself and then as if he had heard her internal question Brian explained
“Sarah is Daniels ex-wife, but they’re still friends, in fact they still share a house, how odd is that?”
“I think it’s quite nice” she said
(Part 04)
The food at Roberto’s was excellent but the lunchtime service was very slow and unfortunately Rhonda had to excuse herself before desert.
“I’m sorry but I have to go” she said “I really love the desert’s here as well”
“Perhaps we might run into each other over the weekend” he said
“I hope so, that would be nice” she said then she said goodbye to her brother and left.
“Are you going to talk to me now?” Brian asked and laughed but Daniels thoughts were elsewhere.
The meeting with Mr. Bishop was even more tedious than she thought it would be but thankfully it didn’t last long, just over an hour.
She showed him out to reception and said goodbye and then Sandra called her over.
“Dr Goman-Smith dropped this off for you” she said and handed her a small white parcel tied up with a ribbon and when she opened it there was a slice of Tiramisu.
“How sweet” she said and giggled
After leaving the restaurant Brian and Daniel went their separate way but arrived at the Hotel within ten minutes of each other.
Whereas Rhonda, after eating her desert, had a very unproductive afternoon and left the office early and was at the Regents before either of them.
The Pottinger’s got stuck in the Friday night traffic and finally arrived at the Hotel at 9 o’clock by which time the Kane’s and the Goman-Smiths had already gone out for the evening.
Brian and Rhonda were dining at a trendy nouvelle cuisine restaurant off Castle Street called The Wooden Slipper which served high flavour, low-calorie, and substance lacking dishes, where minor celebrities are known to dine.
The food was good, if you like tiny artistic arrangements the size of a Hors d'oeuvre, on a slab of welsh slate but there wasn’t enough to live on.
So when it was time to leave they were almost hungrier than when they arrived, so they went into town and shared a kebab.
The Doctors Goman-Smith meanwhile went to The Empire Theatre to watch a revival on An Inspector Calls followed by a fish supper.
But back at the hotel, Gary and Kate ordered sandwiches from room service and got an early night.
On Saturday morning everyone was up early and availed themselves of the full English breakfast but due to a miracle of timing all three couples managed to avoid each other.
Gary was ready to go far too early so left for the cricket ground on foot while the Goman-Smith’s left an hour later in a cab.
Kate who planned to spend much of the day in cultural pursuits had a measured start to the day and as she was leaving the Hotel Brian Kane was just walking into the gym with his sister Rhonda.
After a good workout he had an hours swim and she had a sauna and then she spent the rest of the day being pampered and preened, massaged, manicure, pedicure and hair in fact you name it and she had it.
Brian though had coffee and read the papers before he went out.
(Part 05)
It was a glorious June day and there was a good crowd at the Cricket Ground and Gary Pottinger and the Goman-Smith’s were among them though due to the numbers they were oblivious to the others presence.
Downshire were in great form and won the match by sixty runs and the delighted fans disgorged onto the streets of Abbottsford in great spirits even before the tea interval.
When they got back to the Hotel Sarah went straight up to her room for a long soak while her ex-husband Daniel went for a swim.
The Hotel pool was a very decent size, which extended up to large glass doors at one end which opened out onto a large terrace with table, chairs and sun loungers.
He quickly changed and then dived in and swam ten lengths before he climbed out and he caught sight of her.
She was sitting on a sun lounger on the Garden Terrace drinking a large Gin and Tonic and reading a magazine when he walked up on her blind side dripping onto the terrace.
She was wearing a one piece costume which was bone dry.
“Are you not going in?” he said and made her jump
“Oh hello” she said wiping tonic off her chin
“Hi Rhonda, are you not swimming?”
“No I swam this morning” she replied “and I’ve had my hair and nails done since”
“Well if you won’t join me in the pool would you mind if I joined you for a drink?”
“Not at all” she said and gestured to the neighboring lounger.
“Please take a seat”
“Can I order you a drink?” she asked
“Thank you, yes,” he said and to the waiter who had suddenly appeared “I’ll have what the lady is having”
When the waiter left with the drinks order he said
“I was hoping to see you again, I just didn’t think it would be so soon”
“Me too” she admitted and her cheeks flushed.
The waiter returned with the drinks to cover her embarrassment.
“Cheers” he said and took a big sip of his G & T.
After a few moments he asked
“So are you going somewhere special?”
“I’m sorry”
“You said you had your hair and nails done, so are you going somewhere special?” he asked
She thought about it for a moment and then answered his question with another one
“I don’t know, where would you suggest taking me?” she asked blushing at her boldness
“Well, how about dinner?”
“Ok dinner it is, tell me more” she said
“Well this is more difficult not knowing what you like” he said “I do know you like Italian but…”
“So what are you going to choose?”
He deliberated for a moment or two and then said
“I’m going to go with Chinese, at the Scented Garden”
Rhonda almost spilled her drink and exclaimed
“That’s my absolute favourite, how did you know?”
“Well actually I didn’t but it’s my favourite”
“It’s a sign” Rhonda thought “Not that I believe in such things, but if I did it would be a sign”
So that was decided, Rhonda phoned Brian to cancel their plans which he didn’t seem to mind and Daniel broke the news to his ex-wife in person that he had a date and she was thrilled for him.
So at 8 o’clock Daniel and Rhonda went on their first date to The Scented Garden Chinese restaurant, a date which was to be the first of many.
Sunday, 9 April 2017
Downshire Diary – (41) Laundry Day
(Part 01)
The Finchbottom Vale is nestled comfortably between the Ancient Dancingdean Forest to the south and the rolling Pepperstock Hills in the north, those who are lucky enough to live there think of it as the rose between two thorns.
The Vale was once a great wetland that centuries earlier stretched from Mornington in the East to Childean in the west and from Shallowfield in the south to Purplemere in the north.
But over the many centuries the vast majority had been drained for agriculture, a feat achieved largely by the efforts of famous Mornington Mills, of which only three had survived to the present day and even those were no longer functional and were in various states of repair and the leafy village of Pangmere was situated on the Finchbottom Road between Mornington and Finchbottom.
It was a perfect early spring morning in the village and the breeze stirred the tree tops and the birds sang to the sun.
And the birds weren’t the only early risers, Charlotte Kay was lying in bed, warm and cosy beneath the duvet, as the birds twittered in the trees and the early morning light tried to penetrate into her bed room.
As she lay there half-awake, half-dreaming, Charlotte could hear him through the bedroom wall as he stood in the shower and as she listened to the splattering and splashing, she envied every droplet of water as it ran unchecked over his naked skin.
However the root of her envy was due to the fact that she had been in love with him since she was eleven years old and now that she was almost twenty she wanted him with every fibre of her being.
The subject of her fervent want was Jonathon Ovenden, the elder brother of Charlotte’s best friend Katie, who at the tender age of 18 had, to all intents and purposes, by tragic necessity become the father of his 11 year old sister.
Their parents were killed in a tragic car crash on the Pepperstock Expressway during a snow storm and all of his hopes and dreams for the future died in the snow along with them.
His plans to study engineering at University and what that might have led to, had to be set aside in order for him to raise his little sister, so that she at least would be able to fulfil her potential.
The early years of his enforced parenthood he was almost consumed by his new responsibilities, running the home, nurturing Katie and holding down a job, a menial job and far beneath his capabilities.
But the saving grace for all his sacrifice and being weighed down by responsibility’s at such a young age was that he was a stronger person for the experience and Katie was to become everything their parents would have wished her to be, and he was proud of that result.
Giving up his own academic ambitions had allowed Katie to follow her dreams and she was now at Cambridge University with Charlotte.
(Part 02)
As she lay in the cosy warmth of her bed listening to the water washing over him, images of his wet naked body filled her head and she felt aroused.
Her flesh tingled and the hairs on the back of her neck stood up and she had to start doing maths problems in her head to clear the image of him from her thoughts.
The water stopped running and the heavy foot fall told her he had stepped out of the shower and then she pictured his wet naked form as he did so, and just a thin stud wall separated her from the object of her lust and desire.
She could see in her mind’s eye each droplet of water dripping from his torso or running freely down his skin and then she had to start calculating again.
But it was to no avail she could see him in the towel now, wrapped around him as she wanted to be wrapped around him.
Charlotte was lost in those dreamy thoughts of lust when the door suddenly opened and she heard herself gasp as Jonathon walked into the room and then she held her breath as she watched him across the room, wearing just a towel.
The reason he walked into the room she was in wearing only a towel was because Charlotte was sleeping in the spare room which also housed the laundry basket and the reason he entered without knocking was that he didn’t know Charlotte was there.
Jonathon began picking up the laundry that had been discarded in and around the wash bin and there was always plenty of it when Katie was back from University and even more whenever Charlotte slept over.
Charlotte and Katie had been best friend since forever and over the years she had been a regular house guest.
They’d been back from University for a week and the washing had already built up and this was the first opportunity he’d had to get to grips with it because of his job.
So as it was Saturday and the girls had gone to a party the night before and had stayed over at another friend’s place he thought he should make a start on the washing.
As he went through the assorted jeans, T-shirts and lingerie, he began to think how quickly time had passed by and how quickly his sister and her best friend had grown up.
He smiled to himself as he remembered Katie’s first bra, which was of course a purely cosmetic device when she was only twelve.
Then as she grew she went through various stages of padded enhancements and eventually to the full cupped and underwired contraptions she wore today.
It was the same with her pants, in the early days they were childishly embellished with flowers or colourful characters, then they progressed through to practical pants and then onto more sophisticated items before progressing on to the skimpy things of lace and bows, because his little sister was a grown woman now.
(Part 03)
Charlotte watched as Jonathon stood across the room in the half light, his upper body still damp from the shower, and a towel wrapped around the lower.
He was standing sorting laundry into baskets of light and dark and as he held a pair of pink knickers she recognised them as her own and blushed deeply.
Jonathon held the pink panties briefly in his hand before dropping them into the appropriate pile.
Then a red pair, then pale blue silk and followed by black lace.
Charlotte watched as he handled her knickers one pair after another and she got more and more embarrassed.
And as Jonathon was methodically sorting through the mountain of dirty washing he had no idea she was laying there in the gloom because she and Katie were supposed to be sleeping over at Karen’s house in Shallowfield, some 20 miles away.
Had he known she was there he would not have entered the room especially wearing nothing but a towel, he would have been too self-conscious.
Jonathon had known Charlotte since she was an awkward clumsy eleven year old girl who seemed to spend her entire time either falling over or picking herself up and showing off her floral knickers in the process.
But she was a young woman now and Charlotte was a far cry from the klutzy eleven year old in the flowered briefs, she had grown up to become a swan, a socially awkward swan, but a swan nonetheless.
He could never tell her that though, nor could he tell his sister Katie how he felt about her.
Jonathon fished out the last item from the bottom of the bin, a pair of yellow knickers with white bows.
“They’re mine” she said in her head “Oh God how embarrassing”
Jonathon smiled and dropped them in the appropriate pile and turned to leave the room when Charlotte let out a sigh.
“Who’s that?” he asked startled “Is that you Charlotte?”
Charlotte bit hard on her lip after her sigh.
“Yes” she replied through clenched teeth
He walked to the window and opened one curtain, spilling gentle spring light into the room.
The sunlight fell across the rumpled screwed up duvet and a shapeless bulge beneath it.
“I thought you and Katie were staying over at Karen’s” Jonathon said
“Katie did, but I didn’t fancy it” she lied “I have a paper to finish”
She didn’t fancy staying the night at Katie’s because she fancied Jonathon and she wanted to spend some time with him on her own, she knew that on Saturday he would be in all day on his own so she made an excuse to Katie and went home.
Charlotte had no other plan than to be in the house with him on her own, she had no idea what to do about her crush.
She wasn’t even sure she should do anything if she did know, what if he rejected her, or what if he didn’t reject her but Katie got angry.
It was not inconceivable that she could lose them both and she may never be in close proximity to him ever again.
(Part 04)
As he stood there looking at her he knew she had lied about the paper, he could always tell when she fibbed, he just wasn’t sure why, he hoped she hadn’t had a falling out with Katie.
He wouldn’t be able to bear it if they stopped being friends and he wouldn’t see Charlotte again.
Charlotte looked up at him and smiled and despite his fear he felt a passion welling up in him, a passion he had suppressed over the last two years which he dare not have hoped to have acted upon until that moment.
The very appealing sight of Charlotte laying beneath the duvet with the spring sunshine spilling through the curtain he decided that he should seize the day.
“Well as you can see it’s a lovely morning” he said “so get yourself up and showered and I’ll make us some breakfast”
“Ok I have time for a quick breakfast before I start on my paper” she replied indifferently
“Oh that’s a shame” he replied “I thought I might take you out for a pub lunch once I’ve done the laundry, but if your too busy we could do it another time”
“Well I’m sure if I crack on I could have it finished by lunchtime” she said coolly
“Good” he said and scooped up one of the of washing baskets
“Time to get on then”
Charlotte showered while Jonathon made poached eggs on toast and after he had put the first load of washing on they sat in the kitchen and enjoyed an unhurried breakfast.
“So what is the paper on?” he asked as he drained his coffee cup
“What?” she gasped
“What is the paper that you need to complete” he clarified
“Finite Mathematics and Applied Calculus” she replied
“Really?” he asked and smiled because he was pretty sure that was actually an A level text.
“Well I’d better get on” She said heading towards the door
“Charlotte?” he called after her
“Yes” she replied looking like a startled rabbit
“It was a really nice surprise to see you this morning” he told her
He got the chores done that he wanted to do and then he got changed and then knocked on her door.
“Come in”
Jonathon opened the door
“Its…” he began but couldn’t finish because she looked so stunning in a yellow dress with white dots.
Obviously she hadn’t spent a moment on Finite Mathematics and Applied Calculus and she had spent the entire time since breakfast making the best of herself.
When he saw how gorgeous she had made herself it reinforced his belief that he had a chance with her.
She had gone to all that trouble because even with her limited experience with the opposite sex she knew when he said
“It was a really nice surprise to see you this morning”
That he liked her as well, which just left the fly in the ointment, Katie.
How would she ever explain to Katie?
“It’s time to go” he said at the second attempt “you look great”
(Part 05)
So they left Pangmere and he drove her to Dulcet-on-Brooke where they ate lunch at The Waterside Inn.
But there were awkward silences as the two of them battled with the internal struggle on whether to take a chance, expose themselves and risk rejection even if the reward could be their hearts desire.
They spent a pleasant couple of hours of a warm summer afternoon in the beer garden on the banks of the River Brooke but had resolved nothing by the end of it.
But it was really the fear of upsetting Katie that played heavily on both their minds.
Jonathon and Charlotte ambled disconsolately away from the pub garden with the burning issues unresolved but despite that neither of them wanted to call a halt to their first outing together so Jonathon blurted out
“Let’s go into Sharpington”
And Charlotte had no hesitation in saying
“Oh yes what a lovely idea”
Sharpington-by-Sea is a traditional seaside resort complete with a Victorian Pier, seafront hotels, crazy golf, The Palladium ballroom, well maintained gardens, promenade, theatre and illuminations, all the usual things to have a great time by the seaside, as well as amusement arcades and of course the Sharpington Fun Park.
Which was the first purpose built amusement park to open in Britain, which had an assortment of rides, like the Rotor and the Wild Mouse, The Cyclone and the Morehouse Galloper, all very tame compared to a 21st century roller coaster but was still great fun.
They managed to park at the Southern end of the promenade.
“We’re a bit away from the action but we can get the bus down to the pier” he suggested
“Would you mind if we walked?” Charlotte asked “I’m in no hurry to get back”
“Nor am I” he said “and it’s such a beautiful day”
They walked along the promenade with a gentle breeze blowing off the sea and reminisced about the times he brought her and Katie to the seaside when they were little and they both talked about the places in the town that held special memories for them.
The Ghost Train in the Fun Park, Sharpington Day Parades, Halloween Fright Nights, Firework displays, Candy Floss, sand castles and paddling in the sea.
“Can we go and paddle now?” she asked
“Why not” he replied and they spent the next hour on the water’s edge, splashing in the waves, and they were so totally absorbed in what they were doing that they didn’t realize how far down the beach they had gone and when they looked up they were close to the pier.
They looked at each other and then the pier and then each other again
“Ice cream” they said in unison and raced up the beach towards the steps.
Whenever they went to Sharpington on day trips they always went to the Bizzoni’s Ice Cream Parlour on the Pier.
With his longer stride he could have easily beaten her but he held back to give her a chance and when they were 10 yards from their objective they were neck and neck but one more stride and Charlotte went head first into the sand.
“Oh God are you ok?” he asked and pulled her to her feet but she couldn’t answer because she was laughing so much.
Jonathon used his handkerchief to brush the sand off her laughing face and when he had finished she stopped laughing and they had their first kiss at the bottom of the steps by the Pier.
(Part 06)
It was not a short kiss it was long and simmering after all it had been a long time coming and when it was over they smiled at each other and he asked
“Do you still want that ice cream?”
“Of course” she replied “it wasn’t that good a kiss”
The moment she finished speaking she ran squealing up the stairs, she paused at the top, briefly to claim victory in the race but set off again towards the pier when she realized how close behind her he was.
After ice cream they walked to the end of the pier where they kissed again as the day drew to a close and the most perfect day was made more so by another perfect kiss and then they walked hand in hand back towards the car.
They were about fifty yards from the car park and totally absorbed by each other that they hadn’t noticed Katie Overton pull up to the kerb and park, nor did they notice her exit the car and lean against the side of the car with her arms folded while she waited for them to reach her.
In fact they would have missed her altogether had she not yelled
“Oi”
They both turned around and looked in the direction of the call and then froze when they saw Katie standing with her arms folded and wearing a face like thunder.
“Shit” he exclaimed
“Oh God” Charlotte thought
“So what all this then?” she asked crossly as she walked towards them
“Well er…” he began
“It’s kind of…” Charlotte added
“It looks to me like you two are an item” Katie said only a yard away from them and then her face cracked and she hugged them both
“It’s about bloody time” Katie added and the three of them stood on the promenade in a group hug which expressed a warm hearted beginning to their love.
It turned out not to be a flash in the pan or a silly crush and they had many more trips to Sharpington over the next three years, for Ice creams at Bizzoni’s, chip suppers from Cod’s Plaice and kiss me quick hats.
But the most significant visit was three years after they had that first kiss.
They parked at the southern end of the promenade and walked along the beach paddling in the waves and as they reached the steps up to the Pier, Charlotte said wistfully
“This is where it all began”
“Yes it was” he agreed “But that was three years ago”
“Yes but it was a beautiful day” she mused “the most special day”
“It was but…” he began
“But what?” she asked with alarm
“I think I can do better this time” he said
“Really?” she said “I don’t think so, I don’t think you could ever top that day”
“Well I disagree” he said and knelt down in the sand and she went pale “Charlotte Kay will you marry me?”
When she regained the ability to speak Charlotte said yes and then he kissed her and another perfect day was made more so by another perfect kiss.
The Finchbottom Vale is nestled comfortably between the Ancient Dancingdean Forest to the south and the rolling Pepperstock Hills in the north, those who are lucky enough to live there think of it as the rose between two thorns.
The Vale was once a great wetland that centuries earlier stretched from Mornington in the East to Childean in the west and from Shallowfield in the south to Purplemere in the north.
But over the many centuries the vast majority had been drained for agriculture, a feat achieved largely by the efforts of famous Mornington Mills, of which only three had survived to the present day and even those were no longer functional and were in various states of repair and the leafy village of Pangmere was situated on the Finchbottom Road between Mornington and Finchbottom.
It was a perfect early spring morning in the village and the breeze stirred the tree tops and the birds sang to the sun.
And the birds weren’t the only early risers, Charlotte Kay was lying in bed, warm and cosy beneath the duvet, as the birds twittered in the trees and the early morning light tried to penetrate into her bed room.
As she lay there half-awake, half-dreaming, Charlotte could hear him through the bedroom wall as he stood in the shower and as she listened to the splattering and splashing, she envied every droplet of water as it ran unchecked over his naked skin.
However the root of her envy was due to the fact that she had been in love with him since she was eleven years old and now that she was almost twenty she wanted him with every fibre of her being.
The subject of her fervent want was Jonathon Ovenden, the elder brother of Charlotte’s best friend Katie, who at the tender age of 18 had, to all intents and purposes, by tragic necessity become the father of his 11 year old sister.
Their parents were killed in a tragic car crash on the Pepperstock Expressway during a snow storm and all of his hopes and dreams for the future died in the snow along with them.
His plans to study engineering at University and what that might have led to, had to be set aside in order for him to raise his little sister, so that she at least would be able to fulfil her potential.
The early years of his enforced parenthood he was almost consumed by his new responsibilities, running the home, nurturing Katie and holding down a job, a menial job and far beneath his capabilities.
But the saving grace for all his sacrifice and being weighed down by responsibility’s at such a young age was that he was a stronger person for the experience and Katie was to become everything their parents would have wished her to be, and he was proud of that result.
Giving up his own academic ambitions had allowed Katie to follow her dreams and she was now at Cambridge University with Charlotte.
(Part 02)
As she lay in the cosy warmth of her bed listening to the water washing over him, images of his wet naked body filled her head and she felt aroused.
Her flesh tingled and the hairs on the back of her neck stood up and she had to start doing maths problems in her head to clear the image of him from her thoughts.
The water stopped running and the heavy foot fall told her he had stepped out of the shower and then she pictured his wet naked form as he did so, and just a thin stud wall separated her from the object of her lust and desire.
She could see in her mind’s eye each droplet of water dripping from his torso or running freely down his skin and then she had to start calculating again.
But it was to no avail she could see him in the towel now, wrapped around him as she wanted to be wrapped around him.
Charlotte was lost in those dreamy thoughts of lust when the door suddenly opened and she heard herself gasp as Jonathon walked into the room and then she held her breath as she watched him across the room, wearing just a towel.
The reason he walked into the room she was in wearing only a towel was because Charlotte was sleeping in the spare room which also housed the laundry basket and the reason he entered without knocking was that he didn’t know Charlotte was there.
Jonathon began picking up the laundry that had been discarded in and around the wash bin and there was always plenty of it when Katie was back from University and even more whenever Charlotte slept over.
Charlotte and Katie had been best friend since forever and over the years she had been a regular house guest.
They’d been back from University for a week and the washing had already built up and this was the first opportunity he’d had to get to grips with it because of his job.
So as it was Saturday and the girls had gone to a party the night before and had stayed over at another friend’s place he thought he should make a start on the washing.
As he went through the assorted jeans, T-shirts and lingerie, he began to think how quickly time had passed by and how quickly his sister and her best friend had grown up.
He smiled to himself as he remembered Katie’s first bra, which was of course a purely cosmetic device when she was only twelve.
Then as she grew she went through various stages of padded enhancements and eventually to the full cupped and underwired contraptions she wore today.
It was the same with her pants, in the early days they were childishly embellished with flowers or colourful characters, then they progressed through to practical pants and then onto more sophisticated items before progressing on to the skimpy things of lace and bows, because his little sister was a grown woman now.
(Part 03)
Charlotte watched as Jonathon stood across the room in the half light, his upper body still damp from the shower, and a towel wrapped around the lower.
He was standing sorting laundry into baskets of light and dark and as he held a pair of pink knickers she recognised them as her own and blushed deeply.
Jonathon held the pink panties briefly in his hand before dropping them into the appropriate pile.
Then a red pair, then pale blue silk and followed by black lace.
Charlotte watched as he handled her knickers one pair after another and she got more and more embarrassed.
And as Jonathon was methodically sorting through the mountain of dirty washing he had no idea she was laying there in the gloom because she and Katie were supposed to be sleeping over at Karen’s house in Shallowfield, some 20 miles away.
Had he known she was there he would not have entered the room especially wearing nothing but a towel, he would have been too self-conscious.
Jonathon had known Charlotte since she was an awkward clumsy eleven year old girl who seemed to spend her entire time either falling over or picking herself up and showing off her floral knickers in the process.
But she was a young woman now and Charlotte was a far cry from the klutzy eleven year old in the flowered briefs, she had grown up to become a swan, a socially awkward swan, but a swan nonetheless.
He could never tell her that though, nor could he tell his sister Katie how he felt about her.
Jonathon fished out the last item from the bottom of the bin, a pair of yellow knickers with white bows.
“They’re mine” she said in her head “Oh God how embarrassing”
Jonathon smiled and dropped them in the appropriate pile and turned to leave the room when Charlotte let out a sigh.
“Who’s that?” he asked startled “Is that you Charlotte?”
Charlotte bit hard on her lip after her sigh.
“Yes” she replied through clenched teeth
He walked to the window and opened one curtain, spilling gentle spring light into the room.
The sunlight fell across the rumpled screwed up duvet and a shapeless bulge beneath it.
“I thought you and Katie were staying over at Karen’s” Jonathon said
“Katie did, but I didn’t fancy it” she lied “I have a paper to finish”
She didn’t fancy staying the night at Katie’s because she fancied Jonathon and she wanted to spend some time with him on her own, she knew that on Saturday he would be in all day on his own so she made an excuse to Katie and went home.
Charlotte had no other plan than to be in the house with him on her own, she had no idea what to do about her crush.
She wasn’t even sure she should do anything if she did know, what if he rejected her, or what if he didn’t reject her but Katie got angry.
It was not inconceivable that she could lose them both and she may never be in close proximity to him ever again.
(Part 04)
As he stood there looking at her he knew she had lied about the paper, he could always tell when she fibbed, he just wasn’t sure why, he hoped she hadn’t had a falling out with Katie.
He wouldn’t be able to bear it if they stopped being friends and he wouldn’t see Charlotte again.
Charlotte looked up at him and smiled and despite his fear he felt a passion welling up in him, a passion he had suppressed over the last two years which he dare not have hoped to have acted upon until that moment.
The very appealing sight of Charlotte laying beneath the duvet with the spring sunshine spilling through the curtain he decided that he should seize the day.
“Well as you can see it’s a lovely morning” he said “so get yourself up and showered and I’ll make us some breakfast”
“Ok I have time for a quick breakfast before I start on my paper” she replied indifferently
“Oh that’s a shame” he replied “I thought I might take you out for a pub lunch once I’ve done the laundry, but if your too busy we could do it another time”
“Well I’m sure if I crack on I could have it finished by lunchtime” she said coolly
“Good” he said and scooped up one of the of washing baskets
“Time to get on then”
Charlotte showered while Jonathon made poached eggs on toast and after he had put the first load of washing on they sat in the kitchen and enjoyed an unhurried breakfast.
“So what is the paper on?” he asked as he drained his coffee cup
“What?” she gasped
“What is the paper that you need to complete” he clarified
“Finite Mathematics and Applied Calculus” she replied
“Really?” he asked and smiled because he was pretty sure that was actually an A level text.
“Well I’d better get on” She said heading towards the door
“Charlotte?” he called after her
“Yes” she replied looking like a startled rabbit
“It was a really nice surprise to see you this morning” he told her
He got the chores done that he wanted to do and then he got changed and then knocked on her door.
“Come in”
Jonathon opened the door
“Its…” he began but couldn’t finish because she looked so stunning in a yellow dress with white dots.
Obviously she hadn’t spent a moment on Finite Mathematics and Applied Calculus and she had spent the entire time since breakfast making the best of herself.
When he saw how gorgeous she had made herself it reinforced his belief that he had a chance with her.
She had gone to all that trouble because even with her limited experience with the opposite sex she knew when he said
“It was a really nice surprise to see you this morning”
That he liked her as well, which just left the fly in the ointment, Katie.
How would she ever explain to Katie?
“It’s time to go” he said at the second attempt “you look great”
(Part 05)
So they left Pangmere and he drove her to Dulcet-on-Brooke where they ate lunch at The Waterside Inn.
But there were awkward silences as the two of them battled with the internal struggle on whether to take a chance, expose themselves and risk rejection even if the reward could be their hearts desire.
They spent a pleasant couple of hours of a warm summer afternoon in the beer garden on the banks of the River Brooke but had resolved nothing by the end of it.
But it was really the fear of upsetting Katie that played heavily on both their minds.
Jonathon and Charlotte ambled disconsolately away from the pub garden with the burning issues unresolved but despite that neither of them wanted to call a halt to their first outing together so Jonathon blurted out
“Let’s go into Sharpington”
And Charlotte had no hesitation in saying
“Oh yes what a lovely idea”
Sharpington-by-Sea is a traditional seaside resort complete with a Victorian Pier, seafront hotels, crazy golf, The Palladium ballroom, well maintained gardens, promenade, theatre and illuminations, all the usual things to have a great time by the seaside, as well as amusement arcades and of course the Sharpington Fun Park.
Which was the first purpose built amusement park to open in Britain, which had an assortment of rides, like the Rotor and the Wild Mouse, The Cyclone and the Morehouse Galloper, all very tame compared to a 21st century roller coaster but was still great fun.
They managed to park at the Southern end of the promenade.
“We’re a bit away from the action but we can get the bus down to the pier” he suggested
“Would you mind if we walked?” Charlotte asked “I’m in no hurry to get back”
“Nor am I” he said “and it’s such a beautiful day”
They walked along the promenade with a gentle breeze blowing off the sea and reminisced about the times he brought her and Katie to the seaside when they were little and they both talked about the places in the town that held special memories for them.
The Ghost Train in the Fun Park, Sharpington Day Parades, Halloween Fright Nights, Firework displays, Candy Floss, sand castles and paddling in the sea.
“Can we go and paddle now?” she asked
“Why not” he replied and they spent the next hour on the water’s edge, splashing in the waves, and they were so totally absorbed in what they were doing that they didn’t realize how far down the beach they had gone and when they looked up they were close to the pier.
They looked at each other and then the pier and then each other again
“Ice cream” they said in unison and raced up the beach towards the steps.
Whenever they went to Sharpington on day trips they always went to the Bizzoni’s Ice Cream Parlour on the Pier.
With his longer stride he could have easily beaten her but he held back to give her a chance and when they were 10 yards from their objective they were neck and neck but one more stride and Charlotte went head first into the sand.
“Oh God are you ok?” he asked and pulled her to her feet but she couldn’t answer because she was laughing so much.
Jonathon used his handkerchief to brush the sand off her laughing face and when he had finished she stopped laughing and they had their first kiss at the bottom of the steps by the Pier.
(Part 06)
It was not a short kiss it was long and simmering after all it had been a long time coming and when it was over they smiled at each other and he asked
“Do you still want that ice cream?”
“Of course” she replied “it wasn’t that good a kiss”
The moment she finished speaking she ran squealing up the stairs, she paused at the top, briefly to claim victory in the race but set off again towards the pier when she realized how close behind her he was.
After ice cream they walked to the end of the pier where they kissed again as the day drew to a close and the most perfect day was made more so by another perfect kiss and then they walked hand in hand back towards the car.
They were about fifty yards from the car park and totally absorbed by each other that they hadn’t noticed Katie Overton pull up to the kerb and park, nor did they notice her exit the car and lean against the side of the car with her arms folded while she waited for them to reach her.
In fact they would have missed her altogether had she not yelled
“Oi”
They both turned around and looked in the direction of the call and then froze when they saw Katie standing with her arms folded and wearing a face like thunder.
“Shit” he exclaimed
“Oh God” Charlotte thought
“So what all this then?” she asked crossly as she walked towards them
“Well er…” he began
“It’s kind of…” Charlotte added
“It looks to me like you two are an item” Katie said only a yard away from them and then her face cracked and she hugged them both
“It’s about bloody time” Katie added and the three of them stood on the promenade in a group hug which expressed a warm hearted beginning to their love.
It turned out not to be a flash in the pan or a silly crush and they had many more trips to Sharpington over the next three years, for Ice creams at Bizzoni’s, chip suppers from Cod’s Plaice and kiss me quick hats.
But the most significant visit was three years after they had that first kiss.
They parked at the southern end of the promenade and walked along the beach paddling in the waves and as they reached the steps up to the Pier, Charlotte said wistfully
“This is where it all began”
“Yes it was” he agreed “But that was three years ago”
“Yes but it was a beautiful day” she mused “the most special day”
“It was but…” he began
“But what?” she asked with alarm
“I think I can do better this time” he said
“Really?” she said “I don’t think so, I don’t think you could ever top that day”
“Well I disagree” he said and knelt down in the sand and she went pale “Charlotte Kay will you marry me?”
When she regained the ability to speak Charlotte said yes and then he kissed her and another perfect day was made more so by another perfect kiss.
Saturday, 8 April 2017
Tales from the Finchbottom Vale – (40) Down to Earth
(Part 01)
Although Alison Williams was originally from Shallowfield but had lived in Sharpington for five years and she had a nice little flat in Jubilee Court.
The traditional seaside resort of Sharpington-by-Sea suited her very well with its Victorian Pier, seafront hotels, crazy golf, The Palladium ballroom, well maintained gardens, promenade, theatre and illuminations, all the usual things to have a great time by the seaside, as well as amusement arcades and of course the Sharpington Fun Park.
To her mind the whole place, like her, was vibrant and fun.
Her parents still lived in Shallowfield and her Auntie Penny was in the Dulcets and Uncle Bob and his family were in Mornington so the family were all far enough away for her to be totally independent but close enough for her to have peace of mind.
Alison was 35 years old and she was a self-employed gardener and she was best described as a buxom young woman, though quite muscular, about 5ft 10, big chested with a great unruly shock of vivid ginger hair.
At the opposite end of Sharpington from where she lived was very popular with retiree’s with a mixture of Victorian houses and cottages as well as post Second World War bungalows and she had a numerous clientele among them which was growing all the time.
The problem was she was reaching the point when she couldn’t take on anymore.
But she was on the horns of a dilemma because she had too much work for her but not enough yet to employ another full time person.
She had tried a number of casuals and part timers but they had proved very unreliable and to be honest not up to her standard.
She really wanted an apprentice, someone she could train up to eventually become full time, and someone who wanted to learn what she knew.
So when she was working in David Goodman’s garden at the beginning of June his suggestion was music to her ears.
It happened when she was bent over attending to one of the planters
“Alison!” David called
“Morning” Alison said “I’m just packing up”
“Hang on; I need to ask you a favour”
“Ok ask away,” she said
“Do you ever take on casual labour?” He asked
“Yes, but its hard finding someone reliable who turns up when they say they will” she said “Why do you have someone in mind?”
“Yes”
“It’s not some lecherous git you’re trying to set me up with is it?” Alison asked suspiciously
“No it’s a local girl, Wendy Corney”
“Ok I’ll give her a trial” she said “But its hard graft and the money’s shit”
“She won’t mind” David said
“I hope this one works out” she said to herself as she was loading the van
“Then perhaps I might be able to spend some quality time at Ravensbrooke”
Ravensbrooke was a nursery and Garden Center, on the outskirts of Sharpington, where she got all of her plants and gardening supplies and it was also where Ged Kelly worked and he was very much a work in progress and as she was so busy progress was very slow.
(Part 02)
The Monday after she spoke to David she had arranged to have Wendy Corney meet her in David Goodman’s garden.
Alison was pottering about in the garden when she caught sight of a girl in the corner of her eye.
She was a tall skinny waif with short mousy blonde hair which made her look like a shaggy dog.
Wendy was obviously a tomboy, a pretty one with elfin features, but a tomboy none the less.
She didn’t turn around to look at her properly instead she waited until the girl walked cautiously towards her to introduce herself and was amused when she noticed she looked terrified.
“Aaaalison” she said
“Hello sweetie, you’re just in time,” Alison said “come and help me unload the mower”
From the first moment Wendy showed herself to be hard working, willing and eager and a quick learner.
That first day they did five gardens and at the end of the day Alison noticed Wendy was looking very nervous when they had finished loading the truck and she smiled to herself and then Alison said
“Jump in, I’ll take you Ravensbrooke and get you some safety boots and overalls”
Ravensbrooke was a nursery and Garden Center, on the outskirts of Sharpington, where she got all of her plants and gardening supplies. “Did I do alright then?”
“You did great, now jump in” she said but Wendy didn’t move “What’s the matter?” Alison asked
“I don’t have any money” she said
“You don’t need any” Alison said “Now get in”
Apart from being a nursery and Garden Center Ravensbrooke was also a Country Store so it was possible to buy anything from top soil to designer leisurewear.
The variety on offer was what originally attracted Alison to Ravensbrooke because being a one woman operation time was at a premium.
But what drew her back there on a regular basis was to see a big bear of a man with a big black beard called Ged Kelly.
He was the same age as Alison and was a local man who had worked as a nurseryman for the Raven family since he left school
Alison had been a customer for ten years but Ged had only been on her radar for two when a promotion brought him out of the greenhouses and onto the shop floor.
She was taken with him the first time she laid eyes on him on bright sunny morning in May as he loaded bags of compost into the back of a customer’s Range Rover.
And after that day she always looked out for him in the store and if she was lucky he would serve her.
Alison knew that he liked her because he stammered when he spoke to her but she knew from hearing him speak with other customers that he didn’t stammer all the time.
As she and Wendy walked through the automatic doors, Alison surveyed the shop floor in search of him but there was no sign so she led Wendy to where the work boots were on display.
They found a suitable pair for Wendy and then went in search of overalls and then as they were looking at work gloves Ged appeared from the stock room right where they were standing.
“Hhhhello Aaaalison” he said
“Hi Ged” she replied
(Part 03)
Alison was so pleased with Wendy over the first month she worked for her, so by the time it was over she was working with Alison for four days a week.
So halfway through July she was working up a sweat cutting the grass in David Goodman’s garden and when she stopped to empty the grass box she saw him coming towards her.
“Morning” he called
“Hello David” she called back just at that moment Wendy appeared wearing identical dungarees as Alison, carrying some empty sacks.
“Hello” she shouted
“Hi Wendy” he shouted back
Then in a lower voice he asked Alison
“How’s she doing?” nodding in Wendy’s direction
“Excellently” Alison replied beaming
“She a quick learner, hardworking, eager and reliable”
“Really?”
“I couldn’t ask for better, and she’s a real sweetie” she said
“I’m so pleased” he said and left them toiling in the soil to go to Abbottsford.
When Alison and Wendy were finished at David Goodman’s they went over to Ravensbrooke to pick up some more materials and Wendy remarked that they made a lot of trips over there.
There was a very good reason why she was spending more and more at the Country Store and that was because in the month since she employed Wendy she didn’t have to rush from pillar to post and had more time to devote to flirting with Ged.
But despite the extra time she was devoting to it she still wasn’t getting anywhere.
The following week it was raining and Alison was going to Ravensbrooke again so she told Wendy to meet her outside David Goodman’s bungalow, it was time to make a concerted effort to snag Ged.
When she got inside the store she went straight to the counter hoping to find him but there was no sign but when she turned around he was standing there.
“Argh” she exclaimed and leapt backwards
“I’m sorry” he said “I didn’t mean to make you jump”
“Oh hello Ged” she said trying to compose herself
“You didn’t stammer”
“No I didn’t did I” he said and smiled
“No you didn’t” she agreed
“Then I had better do it before it comes back” he said
“Do what?” Alison asked
“Ask you out” he said quickly
“Oh” she responded speechless
“So how about dinner?” he said “Friday night?”
“Yeeess” she stammered
“I’ll pick you up at 7.30” Ged said confidently
“Ok” she replied just at the moment there was a tannoy announcement that called him away.
“I’ll call you” he said which would have been very awkward to say had he stammered it.
“Ok” Alison responded shell shocked and encouraged by how well it was going he kissed her.
And he continued to kiss her as the tannoy repeated the announcement.
Alison was going to be late and tardiness was something she did not approve of and she was not setting a very good example to her employee but she was not thinking about that as she drove towards Southern Sharpington.
She was preoccupied with trying to figure out how, despite her intention to ask him out, shy stammering Ged had beaten her to the punch.
Then she concluded that it didn’t actually matter who asked, what mattered was that she was going for dinner on Friday night with Ged Kelly.
When Alison got to David Goodman’s bungalow she was surprised that Wendy hadn’t already started pottering about in the garden but she wasn’t cross.
She was in far too good a mood, in fact she was like the cat that got the cream.
Although Alison Williams was originally from Shallowfield but had lived in Sharpington for five years and she had a nice little flat in Jubilee Court.
The traditional seaside resort of Sharpington-by-Sea suited her very well with its Victorian Pier, seafront hotels, crazy golf, The Palladium ballroom, well maintained gardens, promenade, theatre and illuminations, all the usual things to have a great time by the seaside, as well as amusement arcades and of course the Sharpington Fun Park.
To her mind the whole place, like her, was vibrant and fun.
Her parents still lived in Shallowfield and her Auntie Penny was in the Dulcets and Uncle Bob and his family were in Mornington so the family were all far enough away for her to be totally independent but close enough for her to have peace of mind.
Alison was 35 years old and she was a self-employed gardener and she was best described as a buxom young woman, though quite muscular, about 5ft 10, big chested with a great unruly shock of vivid ginger hair.
At the opposite end of Sharpington from where she lived was very popular with retiree’s with a mixture of Victorian houses and cottages as well as post Second World War bungalows and she had a numerous clientele among them which was growing all the time.
The problem was she was reaching the point when she couldn’t take on anymore.
But she was on the horns of a dilemma because she had too much work for her but not enough yet to employ another full time person.
She had tried a number of casuals and part timers but they had proved very unreliable and to be honest not up to her standard.
She really wanted an apprentice, someone she could train up to eventually become full time, and someone who wanted to learn what she knew.
So when she was working in David Goodman’s garden at the beginning of June his suggestion was music to her ears.
It happened when she was bent over attending to one of the planters
“Alison!” David called
“Morning” Alison said “I’m just packing up”
“Hang on; I need to ask you a favour”
“Ok ask away,” she said
“Do you ever take on casual labour?” He asked
“Yes, but its hard finding someone reliable who turns up when they say they will” she said “Why do you have someone in mind?”
“Yes”
“It’s not some lecherous git you’re trying to set me up with is it?” Alison asked suspiciously
“No it’s a local girl, Wendy Corney”
“Ok I’ll give her a trial” she said “But its hard graft and the money’s shit”
“She won’t mind” David said
“I hope this one works out” she said to herself as she was loading the van
“Then perhaps I might be able to spend some quality time at Ravensbrooke”
Ravensbrooke was a nursery and Garden Center, on the outskirts of Sharpington, where she got all of her plants and gardening supplies and it was also where Ged Kelly worked and he was very much a work in progress and as she was so busy progress was very slow.
(Part 02)
The Monday after she spoke to David she had arranged to have Wendy Corney meet her in David Goodman’s garden.
Alison was pottering about in the garden when she caught sight of a girl in the corner of her eye.
She was a tall skinny waif with short mousy blonde hair which made her look like a shaggy dog.
Wendy was obviously a tomboy, a pretty one with elfin features, but a tomboy none the less.
She didn’t turn around to look at her properly instead she waited until the girl walked cautiously towards her to introduce herself and was amused when she noticed she looked terrified.
“Aaaalison” she said
“Hello sweetie, you’re just in time,” Alison said “come and help me unload the mower”
From the first moment Wendy showed herself to be hard working, willing and eager and a quick learner.
That first day they did five gardens and at the end of the day Alison noticed Wendy was looking very nervous when they had finished loading the truck and she smiled to herself and then Alison said
“Jump in, I’ll take you Ravensbrooke and get you some safety boots and overalls”
Ravensbrooke was a nursery and Garden Center, on the outskirts of Sharpington, where she got all of her plants and gardening supplies. “Did I do alright then?”
“You did great, now jump in” she said but Wendy didn’t move “What’s the matter?” Alison asked
“I don’t have any money” she said
“You don’t need any” Alison said “Now get in”
Apart from being a nursery and Garden Center Ravensbrooke was also a Country Store so it was possible to buy anything from top soil to designer leisurewear.
The variety on offer was what originally attracted Alison to Ravensbrooke because being a one woman operation time was at a premium.
But what drew her back there on a regular basis was to see a big bear of a man with a big black beard called Ged Kelly.
He was the same age as Alison and was a local man who had worked as a nurseryman for the Raven family since he left school
Alison had been a customer for ten years but Ged had only been on her radar for two when a promotion brought him out of the greenhouses and onto the shop floor.
She was taken with him the first time she laid eyes on him on bright sunny morning in May as he loaded bags of compost into the back of a customer’s Range Rover.
And after that day she always looked out for him in the store and if she was lucky he would serve her.
Alison knew that he liked her because he stammered when he spoke to her but she knew from hearing him speak with other customers that he didn’t stammer all the time.
As she and Wendy walked through the automatic doors, Alison surveyed the shop floor in search of him but there was no sign so she led Wendy to where the work boots were on display.
They found a suitable pair for Wendy and then went in search of overalls and then as they were looking at work gloves Ged appeared from the stock room right where they were standing.
“Hhhhello Aaaalison” he said
“Hi Ged” she replied
(Part 03)
Alison was so pleased with Wendy over the first month she worked for her, so by the time it was over she was working with Alison for four days a week.
So halfway through July she was working up a sweat cutting the grass in David Goodman’s garden and when she stopped to empty the grass box she saw him coming towards her.
“Morning” he called
“Hello David” she called back just at that moment Wendy appeared wearing identical dungarees as Alison, carrying some empty sacks.
“Hello” she shouted
“Hi Wendy” he shouted back
Then in a lower voice he asked Alison
“How’s she doing?” nodding in Wendy’s direction
“Excellently” Alison replied beaming
“She a quick learner, hardworking, eager and reliable”
“Really?”
“I couldn’t ask for better, and she’s a real sweetie” she said
“I’m so pleased” he said and left them toiling in the soil to go to Abbottsford.
When Alison and Wendy were finished at David Goodman’s they went over to Ravensbrooke to pick up some more materials and Wendy remarked that they made a lot of trips over there.
There was a very good reason why she was spending more and more at the Country Store and that was because in the month since she employed Wendy she didn’t have to rush from pillar to post and had more time to devote to flirting with Ged.
But despite the extra time she was devoting to it she still wasn’t getting anywhere.
The following week it was raining and Alison was going to Ravensbrooke again so she told Wendy to meet her outside David Goodman’s bungalow, it was time to make a concerted effort to snag Ged.
When she got inside the store she went straight to the counter hoping to find him but there was no sign but when she turned around he was standing there.
“Argh” she exclaimed and leapt backwards
“I’m sorry” he said “I didn’t mean to make you jump”
“Oh hello Ged” she said trying to compose herself
“You didn’t stammer”
“No I didn’t did I” he said and smiled
“No you didn’t” she agreed
“Then I had better do it before it comes back” he said
“Do what?” Alison asked
“Ask you out” he said quickly
“Oh” she responded speechless
“So how about dinner?” he said “Friday night?”
“Yeeess” she stammered
“I’ll pick you up at 7.30” Ged said confidently
“Ok” she replied just at the moment there was a tannoy announcement that called him away.
“I’ll call you” he said which would have been very awkward to say had he stammered it.
“Ok” Alison responded shell shocked and encouraged by how well it was going he kissed her.
And he continued to kiss her as the tannoy repeated the announcement.
Alison was going to be late and tardiness was something she did not approve of and she was not setting a very good example to her employee but she was not thinking about that as she drove towards Southern Sharpington.
She was preoccupied with trying to figure out how, despite her intention to ask him out, shy stammering Ged had beaten her to the punch.
Then she concluded that it didn’t actually matter who asked, what mattered was that she was going for dinner on Friday night with Ged Kelly.
When Alison got to David Goodman’s bungalow she was surprised that Wendy hadn’t already started pottering about in the garden but she wasn’t cross.
She was in far too good a mood, in fact she was like the cat that got the cream.
Mornington-By-Mere – (40) Affair of the Heart
(Part 01)
Bryan and Michelle Robinson boarded the train at Abbottsford Station and quickly made themselves comfortable.
But they had barely left the station before Michelle was asleep with her head on her husband’s shoulder.
It didn’t take much for her to succumb to the long blinks, the cancer saw to that.
It was so unjust 30 years old and unlikely to make old bones.
They had been up to the Winston Churchill Hospital for the second time in just under a month.
The Robinson’s lived in the village of Mornington-By-Mere which is a small country village lying in the Finchbottom Vale nestled between the Ancient Dancingdean Forest and the rolling Pepperstock Hills.
It is a quaint picturesque village, a proper chocolate box picturesque idyll, with a Manor House, 12th Century Church, a Coaching Inn, Windmills, an Old Forge, a Schoolhouse, a River and a Mere.
They lived in one of the Brewery Cottages in the part of the Village known as Manorside.
While she was sleeping against his shoulder he indulged in a spot of people watching.
The carriage was very quiet and sparsely populated and most of the passengers were at the other end.
But there was one young woman sitting diagonally across the aisle from them, a tall willowy brunette with outstandingly stellar legs.
She was very pretty and doubtless very aware of the fact and she positively preened when she realized Bryan was admiring her legs.
So she crossed her legs slowly and deliberately so he could marvel at them further but when he smiled at her she blushed.
The young woman’s name was Lorraine Chapman and she was a Staff Nurse at the Winston Churchill Hospital which was where they had met although she was also from Mornington.
As she worked in Abbottsford, rather than commute back and forth she shared a flat with two other Nurses, Jane Hall, and Rosie Parsons who also lived in Mornington and worked at the Churchill.
It wasn’t a huge flat and nor was it in the smartest part of town but it was perfect for them as it meant that they had a place to live that was close to work, which was ideal for them all as they worked shifts, and it meant that split between the three of them their expenses were less than their travelling would have been.
The three of them were all single, all looking and all quite pessimistic regarding their prospects in the relationship department which was how Lorraine slipped into and adulterous affair with Bryan.
Bryan was her guilty pleasure because he was a married man, normally a big no-no for her, but he turned out to be the exception to her rule, which she was not entirely happy with but she seemed powerless to resist him.
The fact that his wife was terminally ill just made her feel even more wretched, and the wretchedness had lasted almost a year.
Their first get encounter was unplanned and unexpected but their second assignation was anything but.
Lorraine was a Nurse but she was not nursing Michelle so Bryan met her by chance in the coffee shop.
They were getting the train back to Shallowfield where the Robinsons car was parked in the long stay carpark, while Lorraine would get the bus to the quaint chocolate box English Village of Mornington-By-Mere, like the “poor relation” such as a mistress might fittingly feel.
(Part 02)
As they approached the station Lorraine got up and carried her bag to the door, and Bryan followed close behind, leaving his wife asleep, then shortly before the train stopped, they shared a long succulent kiss.
He knew there was no need to rush as the train terminated at Shallowfield.
Lorraine however felt uncomfortable with Michelle only feet away on the other side of the bulkhead and curtailed it.
The doors opened and Lorraine got off so he returned to his wife and gently woke her and helped her gather her things together.
Lorraine was already at the bus stop when she saw Bryan help Michelle into the car like a doting husband, but it suddenly dawned on her that he wasn’t feigning being a doting husband he actually was one.
“My God, what am I doing?” she asked herself “He doesn’t love me, I’m just a bit on the side”
It hadn’t dawned on her until that moment, she imagined herself to be the love of his life, but in reality she wasn’t even close.
She thought he was only staying with Michelle out of duty because it would have been cruel to leave her, but in truth he wanted to have his cake and eat it.
“I deserve better than this” she muttered and just at that moment a car horn sounded which brought her back from her self-pitying reflections.
She looked up to see a car parked in the bus bay with the passenger window down.
“Can I give you a lift Lorraine?” The driver called.
She bent down and looked through the window and smiled broadly when she saw that the driver was Jim Todd
She had met Jim a few weeks earlier when he had to attend the Emergency Department at the Churchill.
He lived and worked up at Mornington Field, living in apartment 3 of Lancaster House, which was converted from the old Officers Mess and he worked at Topliss Engineering.
It was while he was working at Topliss that he received the injury that lead him having to visit the Winston Churchill Hospital.
After he got a nasty cut on his hand courtesy of a jagged piece of aluminium.
Lorraine was on duty on the day and just happened to get lucky and get the good looking engineer with a cut hand rather than a vomiting homeless man or a boil on an octogenarians arse.
During the hour they spent in the cubicle together she spent as much of the time looking into his blue/grey eyes as she did the wound on his hand.
But she cleaned, stitched and dressed the wound and said goodbye fully expecting to never see him again.
So no one was more surprised than she was to run into him at the Old Mill Inn one evening in the spring, but apart from exchanging smiles and half a dozen words they went their separate ways.
Which was why she was so pleased when she saw him through the car window.
“That’s ok” she said “I’m going to Mornington”
“So am I” he replied
“Oh ok then thanks” she said through the open window “As long as it’s not out of your way?”
“It’s not a problem” She said to him.
So Lorraine opened the door and got in, the door made that whirring sound as the window was raised as she belted herself in.
“Are you sure it’s not out of your way?”
“Not at all” he replied “I live there now”
“Well that’s promising” she thought
(Part 03)
A week after Jim picked her up from the bus stop Lorraine was at her dad’s house in Windmill Cottages when there was a knock at the door.
She opened it to find Bryan Robinson standing on the door step.
“Hello gorgeous” he said with a smile, a smile that she used to succumb to but now she saw it for what it was, a leer.
“Hello Bryan what are you doing here?”
“Well I have half an hour to spare and I thought of you” he replied and stepped inside
“Oh how romantic” she retorted and closed the door
They were in the lounge and Lorraine could feel his eyes undressing her.
“So where does Michelle think you are?” she asked
“I told her I needed a walk to get some inspiration” he replied
“A lie then” She said bitterly
“Well I think what we do is pretty inspirational” Bryan said.
“What a characteristically glib response” Lorraine said disappointedly
Lorraine Chapman was a nurse and had been having an affair with Bryan Robinson for nearly ten months until she realized that he loved his wife and was just using her for sex.
She had come to the conclusion that she deserved better than him and so did his terminally ill wife Michelle.
She described to her friends that she and Bryan were dating but in truth it was never more than an affair, sordid and shameful.
Their affair had started after his wife was diagnosed with a terminal brain tumour but that wasn’t why he was seeking solace, he would have done the same thing had she been in rude health.
Lorraine found the guilt over the affair was consuming her as much as the tumour was consuming Michelle’s brain.
“I don’t know what’s wrong with you Lorraine I thought what we had was quite memorable” Bryan said
“I’m glad you thought it was memorable because it’s over”
“What?” he exclaimed
“For you it’s never been more than guilt free sex, but I feel the guilt, and if I thought for a moment that you truly loved me then I could carry on” she said
“But you don’t so this unbearable betrayal is at an end”
“And what? You think the guilt will ease if I was to leave her?”
“Leave her?” she said
“You don’t want to leave, you’ll never leave her, and only death will induce her to leave you, but I don’t want you to leave her, we would tear each other apart within a year and every time I looked at you it would be a constant reminder of what I had done, what we had done, to an innocent woman”
“But I do love you” he said
“No you don’t” she replied “you lust for me, but that’s not the same thing is it?”
“But I thought you loved me” he said
“I thought I loved you too” Lorraine said “but I was wrong”
“So what about….” he said nodding towards the stairs
“What? A last hurrah” she retorted “I don’t think so”
He remained silent while she slipped her coat on then he said
“Then she must never know about us”
“Seriously?” Lorraine said “you really imagine that she doesn’t know?”
Just then a car horn sounded out in the lane so she picked up her bag
“I’m going out so you need to leave”
He showed him the door and then followed him out and after locking the door she opened the passenger door of Jim’s car and got in.
And as they drove out of Mornington-By-Mere, which was the beating heart of the Finchbottom Vale, she looked at the man beside her and knew he was the beating heart of her life.
Bryan and Michelle Robinson boarded the train at Abbottsford Station and quickly made themselves comfortable.
But they had barely left the station before Michelle was asleep with her head on her husband’s shoulder.
It didn’t take much for her to succumb to the long blinks, the cancer saw to that.
It was so unjust 30 years old and unlikely to make old bones.
They had been up to the Winston Churchill Hospital for the second time in just under a month.
The Robinson’s lived in the village of Mornington-By-Mere which is a small country village lying in the Finchbottom Vale nestled between the Ancient Dancingdean Forest and the rolling Pepperstock Hills.
It is a quaint picturesque village, a proper chocolate box picturesque idyll, with a Manor House, 12th Century Church, a Coaching Inn, Windmills, an Old Forge, a Schoolhouse, a River and a Mere.
They lived in one of the Brewery Cottages in the part of the Village known as Manorside.
While she was sleeping against his shoulder he indulged in a spot of people watching.
The carriage was very quiet and sparsely populated and most of the passengers were at the other end.
But there was one young woman sitting diagonally across the aisle from them, a tall willowy brunette with outstandingly stellar legs.
She was very pretty and doubtless very aware of the fact and she positively preened when she realized Bryan was admiring her legs.
So she crossed her legs slowly and deliberately so he could marvel at them further but when he smiled at her she blushed.
The young woman’s name was Lorraine Chapman and she was a Staff Nurse at the Winston Churchill Hospital which was where they had met although she was also from Mornington.
As she worked in Abbottsford, rather than commute back and forth she shared a flat with two other Nurses, Jane Hall, and Rosie Parsons who also lived in Mornington and worked at the Churchill.
It wasn’t a huge flat and nor was it in the smartest part of town but it was perfect for them as it meant that they had a place to live that was close to work, which was ideal for them all as they worked shifts, and it meant that split between the three of them their expenses were less than their travelling would have been.
The three of them were all single, all looking and all quite pessimistic regarding their prospects in the relationship department which was how Lorraine slipped into and adulterous affair with Bryan.
Bryan was her guilty pleasure because he was a married man, normally a big no-no for her, but he turned out to be the exception to her rule, which she was not entirely happy with but she seemed powerless to resist him.
The fact that his wife was terminally ill just made her feel even more wretched, and the wretchedness had lasted almost a year.
Their first get encounter was unplanned and unexpected but their second assignation was anything but.
Lorraine was a Nurse but she was not nursing Michelle so Bryan met her by chance in the coffee shop.
They were getting the train back to Shallowfield where the Robinsons car was parked in the long stay carpark, while Lorraine would get the bus to the quaint chocolate box English Village of Mornington-By-Mere, like the “poor relation” such as a mistress might fittingly feel.
(Part 02)
As they approached the station Lorraine got up and carried her bag to the door, and Bryan followed close behind, leaving his wife asleep, then shortly before the train stopped, they shared a long succulent kiss.
He knew there was no need to rush as the train terminated at Shallowfield.
Lorraine however felt uncomfortable with Michelle only feet away on the other side of the bulkhead and curtailed it.
The doors opened and Lorraine got off so he returned to his wife and gently woke her and helped her gather her things together.
Lorraine was already at the bus stop when she saw Bryan help Michelle into the car like a doting husband, but it suddenly dawned on her that he wasn’t feigning being a doting husband he actually was one.
“My God, what am I doing?” she asked herself “He doesn’t love me, I’m just a bit on the side”
It hadn’t dawned on her until that moment, she imagined herself to be the love of his life, but in reality she wasn’t even close.
She thought he was only staying with Michelle out of duty because it would have been cruel to leave her, but in truth he wanted to have his cake and eat it.
“I deserve better than this” she muttered and just at that moment a car horn sounded which brought her back from her self-pitying reflections.
She looked up to see a car parked in the bus bay with the passenger window down.
“Can I give you a lift Lorraine?” The driver called.
She bent down and looked through the window and smiled broadly when she saw that the driver was Jim Todd
She had met Jim a few weeks earlier when he had to attend the Emergency Department at the Churchill.
He lived and worked up at Mornington Field, living in apartment 3 of Lancaster House, which was converted from the old Officers Mess and he worked at Topliss Engineering.
It was while he was working at Topliss that he received the injury that lead him having to visit the Winston Churchill Hospital.
After he got a nasty cut on his hand courtesy of a jagged piece of aluminium.
Lorraine was on duty on the day and just happened to get lucky and get the good looking engineer with a cut hand rather than a vomiting homeless man or a boil on an octogenarians arse.
During the hour they spent in the cubicle together she spent as much of the time looking into his blue/grey eyes as she did the wound on his hand.
But she cleaned, stitched and dressed the wound and said goodbye fully expecting to never see him again.
So no one was more surprised than she was to run into him at the Old Mill Inn one evening in the spring, but apart from exchanging smiles and half a dozen words they went their separate ways.
Which was why she was so pleased when she saw him through the car window.
“That’s ok” she said “I’m going to Mornington”
“So am I” he replied
“Oh ok then thanks” she said through the open window “As long as it’s not out of your way?”
“It’s not a problem” She said to him.
So Lorraine opened the door and got in, the door made that whirring sound as the window was raised as she belted herself in.
“Are you sure it’s not out of your way?”
“Not at all” he replied “I live there now”
“Well that’s promising” she thought
(Part 03)
A week after Jim picked her up from the bus stop Lorraine was at her dad’s house in Windmill Cottages when there was a knock at the door.
She opened it to find Bryan Robinson standing on the door step.
“Hello gorgeous” he said with a smile, a smile that she used to succumb to but now she saw it for what it was, a leer.
“Hello Bryan what are you doing here?”
“Well I have half an hour to spare and I thought of you” he replied and stepped inside
“Oh how romantic” she retorted and closed the door
They were in the lounge and Lorraine could feel his eyes undressing her.
“So where does Michelle think you are?” she asked
“I told her I needed a walk to get some inspiration” he replied
“A lie then” She said bitterly
“Well I think what we do is pretty inspirational” Bryan said.
“What a characteristically glib response” Lorraine said disappointedly
Lorraine Chapman was a nurse and had been having an affair with Bryan Robinson for nearly ten months until she realized that he loved his wife and was just using her for sex.
She had come to the conclusion that she deserved better than him and so did his terminally ill wife Michelle.
She described to her friends that she and Bryan were dating but in truth it was never more than an affair, sordid and shameful.
Their affair had started after his wife was diagnosed with a terminal brain tumour but that wasn’t why he was seeking solace, he would have done the same thing had she been in rude health.
Lorraine found the guilt over the affair was consuming her as much as the tumour was consuming Michelle’s brain.
“I don’t know what’s wrong with you Lorraine I thought what we had was quite memorable” Bryan said
“I’m glad you thought it was memorable because it’s over”
“What?” he exclaimed
“For you it’s never been more than guilt free sex, but I feel the guilt, and if I thought for a moment that you truly loved me then I could carry on” she said
“But you don’t so this unbearable betrayal is at an end”
“And what? You think the guilt will ease if I was to leave her?”
“Leave her?” she said
“You don’t want to leave, you’ll never leave her, and only death will induce her to leave you, but I don’t want you to leave her, we would tear each other apart within a year and every time I looked at you it would be a constant reminder of what I had done, what we had done, to an innocent woman”
“But I do love you” he said
“No you don’t” she replied “you lust for me, but that’s not the same thing is it?”
“But I thought you loved me” he said
“I thought I loved you too” Lorraine said “but I was wrong”
“So what about….” he said nodding towards the stairs
“What? A last hurrah” she retorted “I don’t think so”
He remained silent while she slipped her coat on then he said
“Then she must never know about us”
“Seriously?” Lorraine said “you really imagine that she doesn’t know?”
Just then a car horn sounded out in the lane so she picked up her bag
“I’m going out so you need to leave”
He showed him the door and then followed him out and after locking the door she opened the passenger door of Jim’s car and got in.
And as they drove out of Mornington-By-Mere, which was the beating heart of the Finchbottom Vale, she looked at the man beside her and knew he was the beating heart of her life.
Downshire Diary – (40) In an English Country Garden
(Part 01)
The village of Brocklington was on the River Brooke about six miles downstream from Sharping St Mary in the Finchbottom Vale which was nestled comfortably between the Ancient Dancingdean Forest to the south and the rolling Pepperstock Hills in the north, those who are lucky enough to live there think of it as the rose between two thorns.
The Vale was once a great wetland that centuries earlier stretched from Mornington in the East to Childean in the west and from Shallowfield in the south to Purplemere in the north.
But over the many centuries the vast majority had been drained for agriculture, a feat achieved largely by the efforts of famous Mornington Mills, of which only three had survived to the present day and even those were no longer functional and were in various states of repair.
There were only three small bodies of water left in the Vale now one in Mornington, one in Childean and third of course was Purplemere.
One of the newest inhabitants of Brocklington was a Purplemere native, Sam Townsend, who had moved to the village to live with his widowed sister Ruth and her two children Olivia and Cecily.
Ruth was five year older than her brother and was a few months short of her milestone 30th birthday.
They were unmistakably siblings with their dark curly hair and green eyes.
Sam wore his hair collar length while Ruth’s tumbled lavishly onto her shoulders.
She was originally from Purplemere but her husband Jack was Brocklington born and bred and when they married she moved into his house and they raised their family and they were very happy and content.
They met while at University and married when they graduated and they were married and a year later the twins were born.
Jack Martin was 33 years old and by profession was a gamekeeper, when he died suddenly and tragically of anaphylactic shock when he was on a charity bike ride and he was stung by a single bee.
His death came completely out of the blue and left her high and dry, with the only bread winner dead she struggled to make ends meet and very soon went through what little savings they had and because she was originally from Purplemere and living in Brocklington she was a long way from her support network.
Which was why her brother Sam moved in with her, he still worked in Purplemere and travelled back and forth to work by train and in the evenings and he babysat the girls while Ruth worked behind the bar at the Mulberry Tree and thanks to Sam stepping into the breach Ruth was able to get her finance’s back in the black.
He became a vital part of the household and Olivia and Cecily loved their uncle Sam but far apart from his babysitting duties he also regularly took the girls to school in the morning and often picked them up when they did after school clubs, the school had a breakfast club and an after school as well as clubs during the summer holidays, when Sam’s involvement would lead to some confusion later.
(Part 02)
Glyn Tucker was the newly appointed Deputy Head Teacher of St Cuthbert’s School, which was only the second school he had taught at in the whole of his professional life.
He had previously lived and worked in Northchapel which was a much larger and more challenging location but he didn’t move to Brocklington because of that.
Since July, 31 year old Glyn Tucker, was a resident of Brocklington where he lived alone, though that wasn’t always the case in Northchapel.
He had been married, he still was married for that matter, but not for much longer.
He had been separated from his wife Brenda for two years at her suggestion and he was still angry about it.
It had come completely out of the blue, he loved the very bones of her and he thought she felt the same about him but he was clearly mistaken because she left him, and children were at the root of “irreconcilable differences”.
And his abandonment became the second great sadness of his life.
The first one being his inability to father a child which eventually led to the second.
Brenda saw her husband’s inability to get her pregnant as a personal slight which diminished her as a woman.
Glyn pointed out to her that there were other options like fertility treatment or adoption, but she refused point blank even to consider adoption as that would undermine her even further and to even suggest that she participate in IVF was an insult to her and how dare he suggest that she humiliate herself.
So she left him and her vehemence and anger rang in his ears for days after.
Although she spoke of separation as she packed her bags, after the angry outburst he knew that it was only ever going to end in divorce.
Even in the unlikely event that she wanted to return he could never forgive her aggressive behaviour or the things she said to him, demeaning and belittling him.
So as soon as he realized that the writing was on the wall he made the decision to start afresh somewhere new and started looking around for a new position and couldn’t believe his luck when he heard about the vacancy at St Cuthbert’s School which not only catered for students from years 1 to 6 which just happened to be what he was looking for but the Head teacher Sophie Welby was a very good friend of his and she was able to persuade the governor’s to offer him the Deputy Head’s position.
He soon fell in love with Brocklington and St Cuthbert’s School and the children in it and they would love him back.
He was also accepted by the people in the village and he had made many new friendships inside and outside of the Church.
He also found that he had fallen in love with one of the villagers when he became a regular at the Mulberry Tree.
(Part 03)
His last day at his old school was the 19th July and on the 20th Glyn Tucker moved to Brocklington, and he quickly settled into village life and on his first day he took a walk to the local hostelry to have a pint of Mornington Ale at the Mulberry Tree and that was when he saw her.
She was pulling a pint and sharing a joke with a regular, she was very attractive with her long curly dark hair tumbling over her shoulders, green eyes and a lovely smile and she had a tall and slender figure with nice long legs, though he would have had to admit she was fairly shapeless and her chest was as flat as a bowling green.
She had seen in her peripheral vision a man walk in wearing a t-shirt and shorts and then he stood at the end of the bar but it wasn’t until she had finished serving one of her regulars that she actually got a good look at him.
He wasn’t a big man, 5’ 9” at most and quite wiry, with skinny legs that made his baggy shorts look even baggier, but he stretched himself up to his maximum height to greet her approach and he brushed his Sandy coloured hair off his forehead and smiled.
His craggy features and tanned skin made him look older than his thirty three years but not drastically so.
But Ruth liked what she saw.
“Hello” she said “what can I get you?”
“Hi, a pint of Mornington please” he replied
“I haven’t seen you in here before” she remarked as she pulled his pint
“No I only moved here today” he replied “I’m Glyn”
“Pleased to meet you Glyn” she said “I’m Ruth”
She finished pulling his pint, and they exchanged pleasantries while he paid and then he went and sat down, which was a decision he immediately regretted as he could no longer stare at her legs.
He was rather taken with her eyes as well, which were the most stunning green, and a lovely smile which he could still see.
As he walked home that evening he surprised himself somewhat with his appreciation of the barmaid because he hadn’t looked at anyone in that way since his separation from his wife and then said
“Nothing will come of it”
But he was in the pub the next evening however, but it was a really busy night, the pub was packed and the place was really buzzing in fact the landlord regretted not putting more staff on, and so did Ruth.
The large attendance was as a result of a quiz night which was obviously very popular.
He stayed for two drinks, but she didn’t serve him either time.
The next day he took himself along to St Cuthbert’s School because he had agreed to help out at the summer holiday club, which was when he first met Olivia and Cecily Townsend Martin when their Uncle Sam dropped them off
All the teaching staff devoted some of their time to the Holiday Club, in a supervisory capacity only, as most of the activities were run by students from the village.
And although he didn’t technically start at the school until September he volunteered to help out for two or three days a week as and when he was needed and that evening he was back at the Mulberry Tree.
(Part 04)
Although he didn’t technically start at the school until September he volunteered to help out for two or three days a week as and when he was needed and that evening he was back at the Mulberry Tree.
He decided to go in earlier in the evening in the hope that it wasn’t too busy and he might get to engage Ruth in conversation and so he walked in and walked straight up to the bar and she wasn’t there because it was her night off.
But he didn’t know that so he had a pint and went home.
Over the weekend he was working around the house, DIY, painting and decorating and at the end of each day he was so knackered he didn’t bother going for a drink.
The following week he spent Monday to Wednesday supervising at the Holiday Club and each evening finishing the decorating and Thursday and Friday ferrying all his worldly goods from Northchapel with the help of his mate Danny and a hire van.
On Friday morning a small DIY Van Hire vehicle pulled up in Riverview Road outside number 24 and two men climbed out and went to the back and opened the doors.
At the same time Ruth, who saw the van pull up, was walking home after dropping the girls at Club.
As she was about level with the open door a figure suddenly jumped out and made her jump out of her skin.
“Oh God” she exclaimed “You almost gave me a heart attack”
“I’m so sorry” Glyn said and then recognized who it was he had almost frightened to death
“Oh hello Ruth” he said
“I’m sorry I startled you”
“Oh that’s ok” She said and laughed
“I haven’t seen you in the pub all week”
“No I’ve been decorating before I moved the last of my stuff in and by the evenings all I have the energy for is dozing off in front of the TV” he admitted
“Oh that’s a shame” she said and blushed lightly
“Where does this one go Glyn?” a man asked
“Bedroom two” he replied and then thought he should introduce his best friend to the woman he had been talking about all the way over from Northchapel.
“Danny this is Ruth, who I was telling you about” he said
“Ruth this is my best mate Danny”
“Pleased to meet you” Ruth said and offered her hand
“Likewise” he said and was about to shake her hand but realized just in time that they were dirty.
After avoiding dirtying her hand Danny carried the box into the house and Ruth said
“I’ll leave you to it
“Oh ok” he said “Bye”
He watched as she walked away before picking up another box and following Danny into the house.
“That’s was a shame” he thought to himself
He was enjoying their little chat and he would have liked to have invited her in for coffee, maybe another time.
He wasn’t certain sure, due to his being out of practice with the opposite sex, but he thought there was definitely some flirting.
(Part 05)
At the end of the day, with everything from the old house moved Glyn took Danny to the Mulberry Tree for a pint but it was really busy by the time they got there so apart from admiring her legs and exchanging a smile or two it was a fruitless visit.
On Saturday and Sunday Glyn and Danny were in the formers old house cleaning and decorating as it was being listed with the estate Agents after the weekend and his absence had been noted by Ruth who had passed by his house on her way to work and noticed it was uninhabited.
On Monday he was back in Brocklington and on duty at School Club when Sam dropped Olivia and Cecily off and he was looking forward to seeing Ruth again, at the pub that evening.
He decided to go in earlier in the evening in the hope that it wasn’t too busy and he might get to engage her in conversation and so he walked in and walked straight up to the bar and she was there immediately to greet him.
“Hello” she said “Glyn”
“Hi Ruth”
“A pint of Mornington?” she asked
“Yes please”
Once she had delivered him his pint he decided not to go and sit down at a table but instead he pulled up a stool and sat at the bar so he could continue to admire her legs.
Which proved to be exactly the right decision as she spent prolonged periods of the time chatting with him.
“So what brought you to the village?” she asked, he didn’t particularly want to go into all the details of his failed marriage so he just replied
“Work”
“Oh really, what do you do?” she asked
“I’m the new deputy head at St Cuthbert’s” he said “And I have been helping out at the Holiday club, in between everything else”
“Really?”
“Yes” he replied “it’s been fun”
“Then you must have met my….” She began but was drowned out by a rowdy group who appeared nosily at the bar and she had to go a serve them.
When she had finished with the rowdies she returned her attention to Glyn, the fact that she was about to tell him about her twin daughters had gone right out of her head and the conversation became more general and lasted pretty much the whole evening.
Of course what he wanted to do was ask her out so he could take her out for dinner but he was so out of practice he didn’t know what to say and even in his dating days he wasn’t particularly good at it.
The last bell rang and he knew it was now or never so he took a deep breath and steeled himself and said
“I was wondering if, sometime, maybe, but feel free to say no, you had a free evening, we might, possibly…”
“I’d love to” she said putting him out of his misery
“You would?”
“Yes”
“Great, when are…”
“I’m not working at all on Friday” she said and wrote her number on a beer mat
“Friday it is” he said “Goodnight”
(Part 06)
On Friday morning Glyn Tucker was on duty at the Holiday Club and was there about half an hour before Sam dropped Olivia and Cecily off and he spent the whole morning looking forward to seeing Ruth again, when he was taking her out for dinner that evening.
Holiday Club was open for morning and afternoon sessions and parents could pick and choose which sessions they needed in order to make it the most cost effective for them, so just before lunch Glyn positioned himself by the gate to supervise the children being collected by their parents.
He had only been there for a few minutes when he spotted Ruth approaching which lifted his spirits, but then Olivia and Cecily ran out through the gate towards her
“Mum, Mum” they cried
“Look what we’ve made”
“Wow” she said in response
“They called her mum” he said to himself “I must have misheard
“Do you like it mum?” Olivia asked
“Yes I do poppet” she replied
“No apparently I didn’t mishear” he thought “I knew she was too good to be true”
He was totally deflated, the first time he let his guard down since his separation and he picks a married woman, well that was not acceptable, and he did not behave that way.
“I’m looking forward to tonight” Ruth whispered and smiled
“I’m afraid I can’t make it” he said “Somethings come up”
“Oh! Ok another time then” she said disappointedly
“Yes another time” he lied
The twins chattered away incessantly but Ruth was very quiet on the walk home, she just couldn’t understand why Glyn had been so cold, she had clearly misjudged him, it had to be because she had kids, she couldn’t think of any other reason why he would behave like that.
Glyn was convinced he had misjudged her, he had looked at her hand when she delivered his pint the first time he met her and there was no ring, so not only was she married but she was deceitful as well.
Not that he had a problem with the fact she had children, they were lovely girls, but why didn’t she say anything.
He stayed on at school until after lunch and then walked slowly towards home and bumped into Sam coming out of Stephenson’s shop with a pretty black girl on his arm.
“My God they’re both at it” he thought “what kind of a half arsed marriage do they have”
“Hello Mr Tucker” Sam said
“Hello” he responded “Are you not spending the afternoon with your girls?”
“My girls?”
“Yes Olivia and Cecily” Glyn said
“They’re not my children” Sam said with a laugh
“They’re my nieces”
“What?” Glyn exclaimed
“I’m their uncle Sam, not their Dad” He explained
“Oh my God what have I done” he said and put his hands on his head “I’ve made a terrible mistake”
“Why what have you done?” Sam asked with concern
“Where’s Ruth? I must talk to Ruth” he said
“She’s at home” he replied “In the garden on a lounger knowing her”
“Great” Glyn said and ran off “I just hope I’m not too late
(Part 07)
Once Glyn realised that Sam and Ruth were not husband and wife but were brother and sister he was desperate to find Ruth and try to redeem the situation.
The last time they spoke he was quite brusque because he thought she was a married woman.
They were supposed to be having dinner together but he brushed her off and he was afraid he may have burned his bridges with her.
The good news was that Ruth had the afternoon off and he had it on good authority that she was in her back garden, the bad news was he didn’t know what to say to her to repair the damage he had done.
He had liked her from the first moment he saw her and she had been the first woman to reignite his interest in the opposite sex since he separated from his wife.
It took him an age to summon up the courage to ask her out and he was thrilled when she said yes.
But then he hit the panic button when he jumped to the wrong conclusion which was why he traipsed around the village for an hour trying to compose himself.
It was a glorious day and very hot, when he reached over the top of the gate and opened the latch and swung open the back gate and walked in.
It was a nice garden, much nicer than his, but he supposed you get out of it what you put in, and Ruth had obviously put a lot in to hers while the previous resident in his house had kept the garden simply functional and had put absolutely nothing into it and no effort was expended whatsoever.
Ruth’s on the other hand, clearly loved her garden and loved working in it and the result was there for him to see a delightful English country garden.
He could see Ruth immediately as he walked in, she was on the deck lying on a sun lounger wearing a pink bikini.
She had her back to him and was lying on her side reading a magazine the curve of her hip to her waist was like a mountain slope and her dark curly hair was tied back to reveal her neck and shoulders.
She was up on the decking which was located at the bottom of the garden, which was a real suntrap.
The garden sloped from there back to the house and was landscaped to form four distinct steps the decking being the highest and the patio outside the lounge being the lowest.
The second tier was predominantly herbaceous planting and the third was laid to lawn.
Ruth’s eight year old twin daughters were jumping in and out and splashing around in a paddling pool on the lawned area of the third tier.
He still didn’t know what to say or how it would be received so he took a deep breath and walked up behind Ruth and said
“Hello Ruth” and she turned and looked over her shoulder at him.
(Part 08)
He could see Ruth immediately as he walked in, she was on the deck lying on a sun lounger wearing a pink bikini.
She had her back to him and was lying on her side reading a magazine and her eight year old twin daughters were jumping in and out and splashing around in a paddling pool on the lawned area of the garden as he entered
He still didn’t know what to say or how it would be received so he took a deep breath and walked up behind Ruth and said
“Hello Ruth” and she turned and looked over her shoulder at him.
“At last” Ruth said with a smile
“What kept you?”
“Were you expecting me then?” he asked a little confused
“Of course” she replied and sat herself up
“But how?”
“Sam phoned me” she said “So what did keep you?”
“Well I’ve been walking around for an hour trying to find the right words to apologize for being an idiot” he explained
“Aww that’s really sweet” she said and stood up and walked towards him and kissed him
“Aren’t you worried the girls will see?” he asked
Ruth looked over the trellised fence that surrounded the deck, and down to where the girls were splashing around but even if they were looking they wouldn’t have been able to see them clearly.
“They can’t see us from there” she said and kissed him again
“Are you sure?” he asked uneasily
“Positive” she said, and then they kissed again and then came the tell-tale chimes of the ice cream van playing “colonel bogey” in a nearby street, and nothing says come and get an ice-cream more than “Hitler has only got one ball”.
Then suddenly the twins were running up the garden
“Ice cream. Ice cream” they called
“Ok just a minute kids” Ruth shouted to them a little breathless,
He dug around in his pocket and brought out two, two pound coins which he tossed over the herbaceous border and landed them expertly on the lawn a few feet from the girls.
“Thank you Mr Tucker” the twins chimed in unison “do you want one”
“No thanks” he shouted back
“What about Mum?”
“I want a snog” she said with a leer
“No mum’s fine” he replied
“Ok” they chorused and went off squealing excitedly
“No you can relax and snog me properly” she said licking her lips “the twins will be at least ten minutes”
“Am I forgiven then?” he said
“We’ll see” she replied and kissed him again
By the time the twins returned from their ice cream expedition Ruth had forgiven him and they were sitting on the patio drinking coffee and laughing at his misunderstanding.
“I have a confession to make” Ruth said
“Oh!”
“I thought the reason you went all cold earlier was because you found out I had children” she admitted
“No not at all” he asserted
“I’m glad” she said and smiled
“Girls!” he called
“Yes Mr Tucker”
“How would you like to go out for dinner tonight with your mum and me?” he asked
“Yes please!!!” they squealed and Ruth squeezed his hand.
The village of Brocklington was on the River Brooke about six miles downstream from Sharping St Mary in the Finchbottom Vale which was nestled comfortably between the Ancient Dancingdean Forest to the south and the rolling Pepperstock Hills in the north, those who are lucky enough to live there think of it as the rose between two thorns.
The Vale was once a great wetland that centuries earlier stretched from Mornington in the East to Childean in the west and from Shallowfield in the south to Purplemere in the north.
But over the many centuries the vast majority had been drained for agriculture, a feat achieved largely by the efforts of famous Mornington Mills, of which only three had survived to the present day and even those were no longer functional and were in various states of repair.
There were only three small bodies of water left in the Vale now one in Mornington, one in Childean and third of course was Purplemere.
One of the newest inhabitants of Brocklington was a Purplemere native, Sam Townsend, who had moved to the village to live with his widowed sister Ruth and her two children Olivia and Cecily.
Ruth was five year older than her brother and was a few months short of her milestone 30th birthday.
They were unmistakably siblings with their dark curly hair and green eyes.
Sam wore his hair collar length while Ruth’s tumbled lavishly onto her shoulders.
She was originally from Purplemere but her husband Jack was Brocklington born and bred and when they married she moved into his house and they raised their family and they were very happy and content.
They met while at University and married when they graduated and they were married and a year later the twins were born.
Jack Martin was 33 years old and by profession was a gamekeeper, when he died suddenly and tragically of anaphylactic shock when he was on a charity bike ride and he was stung by a single bee.
His death came completely out of the blue and left her high and dry, with the only bread winner dead she struggled to make ends meet and very soon went through what little savings they had and because she was originally from Purplemere and living in Brocklington she was a long way from her support network.
Which was why her brother Sam moved in with her, he still worked in Purplemere and travelled back and forth to work by train and in the evenings and he babysat the girls while Ruth worked behind the bar at the Mulberry Tree and thanks to Sam stepping into the breach Ruth was able to get her finance’s back in the black.
He became a vital part of the household and Olivia and Cecily loved their uncle Sam but far apart from his babysitting duties he also regularly took the girls to school in the morning and often picked them up when they did after school clubs, the school had a breakfast club and an after school as well as clubs during the summer holidays, when Sam’s involvement would lead to some confusion later.
(Part 02)
Glyn Tucker was the newly appointed Deputy Head Teacher of St Cuthbert’s School, which was only the second school he had taught at in the whole of his professional life.
He had previously lived and worked in Northchapel which was a much larger and more challenging location but he didn’t move to Brocklington because of that.
Since July, 31 year old Glyn Tucker, was a resident of Brocklington where he lived alone, though that wasn’t always the case in Northchapel.
He had been married, he still was married for that matter, but not for much longer.
He had been separated from his wife Brenda for two years at her suggestion and he was still angry about it.
It had come completely out of the blue, he loved the very bones of her and he thought she felt the same about him but he was clearly mistaken because she left him, and children were at the root of “irreconcilable differences”.
And his abandonment became the second great sadness of his life.
The first one being his inability to father a child which eventually led to the second.
Brenda saw her husband’s inability to get her pregnant as a personal slight which diminished her as a woman.
Glyn pointed out to her that there were other options like fertility treatment or adoption, but she refused point blank even to consider adoption as that would undermine her even further and to even suggest that she participate in IVF was an insult to her and how dare he suggest that she humiliate herself.
So she left him and her vehemence and anger rang in his ears for days after.
Although she spoke of separation as she packed her bags, after the angry outburst he knew that it was only ever going to end in divorce.
Even in the unlikely event that she wanted to return he could never forgive her aggressive behaviour or the things she said to him, demeaning and belittling him.
So as soon as he realized that the writing was on the wall he made the decision to start afresh somewhere new and started looking around for a new position and couldn’t believe his luck when he heard about the vacancy at St Cuthbert’s School which not only catered for students from years 1 to 6 which just happened to be what he was looking for but the Head teacher Sophie Welby was a very good friend of his and she was able to persuade the governor’s to offer him the Deputy Head’s position.
He soon fell in love with Brocklington and St Cuthbert’s School and the children in it and they would love him back.
He was also accepted by the people in the village and he had made many new friendships inside and outside of the Church.
He also found that he had fallen in love with one of the villagers when he became a regular at the Mulberry Tree.
(Part 03)
His last day at his old school was the 19th July and on the 20th Glyn Tucker moved to Brocklington, and he quickly settled into village life and on his first day he took a walk to the local hostelry to have a pint of Mornington Ale at the Mulberry Tree and that was when he saw her.
She was pulling a pint and sharing a joke with a regular, she was very attractive with her long curly dark hair tumbling over her shoulders, green eyes and a lovely smile and she had a tall and slender figure with nice long legs, though he would have had to admit she was fairly shapeless and her chest was as flat as a bowling green.
She had seen in her peripheral vision a man walk in wearing a t-shirt and shorts and then he stood at the end of the bar but it wasn’t until she had finished serving one of her regulars that she actually got a good look at him.
He wasn’t a big man, 5’ 9” at most and quite wiry, with skinny legs that made his baggy shorts look even baggier, but he stretched himself up to his maximum height to greet her approach and he brushed his Sandy coloured hair off his forehead and smiled.
His craggy features and tanned skin made him look older than his thirty three years but not drastically so.
But Ruth liked what she saw.
“Hello” she said “what can I get you?”
“Hi, a pint of Mornington please” he replied
“I haven’t seen you in here before” she remarked as she pulled his pint
“No I only moved here today” he replied “I’m Glyn”
“Pleased to meet you Glyn” she said “I’m Ruth”
She finished pulling his pint, and they exchanged pleasantries while he paid and then he went and sat down, which was a decision he immediately regretted as he could no longer stare at her legs.
He was rather taken with her eyes as well, which were the most stunning green, and a lovely smile which he could still see.
As he walked home that evening he surprised himself somewhat with his appreciation of the barmaid because he hadn’t looked at anyone in that way since his separation from his wife and then said
“Nothing will come of it”
But he was in the pub the next evening however, but it was a really busy night, the pub was packed and the place was really buzzing in fact the landlord regretted not putting more staff on, and so did Ruth.
The large attendance was as a result of a quiz night which was obviously very popular.
He stayed for two drinks, but she didn’t serve him either time.
The next day he took himself along to St Cuthbert’s School because he had agreed to help out at the summer holiday club, which was when he first met Olivia and Cecily Townsend Martin when their Uncle Sam dropped them off
All the teaching staff devoted some of their time to the Holiday Club, in a supervisory capacity only, as most of the activities were run by students from the village.
And although he didn’t technically start at the school until September he volunteered to help out for two or three days a week as and when he was needed and that evening he was back at the Mulberry Tree.
(Part 04)
Although he didn’t technically start at the school until September he volunteered to help out for two or three days a week as and when he was needed and that evening he was back at the Mulberry Tree.
He decided to go in earlier in the evening in the hope that it wasn’t too busy and he might get to engage Ruth in conversation and so he walked in and walked straight up to the bar and she wasn’t there because it was her night off.
But he didn’t know that so he had a pint and went home.
Over the weekend he was working around the house, DIY, painting and decorating and at the end of each day he was so knackered he didn’t bother going for a drink.
The following week he spent Monday to Wednesday supervising at the Holiday Club and each evening finishing the decorating and Thursday and Friday ferrying all his worldly goods from Northchapel with the help of his mate Danny and a hire van.
On Friday morning a small DIY Van Hire vehicle pulled up in Riverview Road outside number 24 and two men climbed out and went to the back and opened the doors.
At the same time Ruth, who saw the van pull up, was walking home after dropping the girls at Club.
As she was about level with the open door a figure suddenly jumped out and made her jump out of her skin.
“Oh God” she exclaimed “You almost gave me a heart attack”
“I’m so sorry” Glyn said and then recognized who it was he had almost frightened to death
“Oh hello Ruth” he said
“I’m sorry I startled you”
“Oh that’s ok” She said and laughed
“I haven’t seen you in the pub all week”
“No I’ve been decorating before I moved the last of my stuff in and by the evenings all I have the energy for is dozing off in front of the TV” he admitted
“Oh that’s a shame” she said and blushed lightly
“Where does this one go Glyn?” a man asked
“Bedroom two” he replied and then thought he should introduce his best friend to the woman he had been talking about all the way over from Northchapel.
“Danny this is Ruth, who I was telling you about” he said
“Ruth this is my best mate Danny”
“Pleased to meet you” Ruth said and offered her hand
“Likewise” he said and was about to shake her hand but realized just in time that they were dirty.
After avoiding dirtying her hand Danny carried the box into the house and Ruth said
“I’ll leave you to it
“Oh ok” he said “Bye”
He watched as she walked away before picking up another box and following Danny into the house.
“That’s was a shame” he thought to himself
He was enjoying their little chat and he would have liked to have invited her in for coffee, maybe another time.
He wasn’t certain sure, due to his being out of practice with the opposite sex, but he thought there was definitely some flirting.
(Part 05)
At the end of the day, with everything from the old house moved Glyn took Danny to the Mulberry Tree for a pint but it was really busy by the time they got there so apart from admiring her legs and exchanging a smile or two it was a fruitless visit.
On Saturday and Sunday Glyn and Danny were in the formers old house cleaning and decorating as it was being listed with the estate Agents after the weekend and his absence had been noted by Ruth who had passed by his house on her way to work and noticed it was uninhabited.
On Monday he was back in Brocklington and on duty at School Club when Sam dropped Olivia and Cecily off and he was looking forward to seeing Ruth again, at the pub that evening.
He decided to go in earlier in the evening in the hope that it wasn’t too busy and he might get to engage her in conversation and so he walked in and walked straight up to the bar and she was there immediately to greet him.
“Hello” she said “Glyn”
“Hi Ruth”
“A pint of Mornington?” she asked
“Yes please”
Once she had delivered him his pint he decided not to go and sit down at a table but instead he pulled up a stool and sat at the bar so he could continue to admire her legs.
Which proved to be exactly the right decision as she spent prolonged periods of the time chatting with him.
“So what brought you to the village?” she asked, he didn’t particularly want to go into all the details of his failed marriage so he just replied
“Work”
“Oh really, what do you do?” she asked
“I’m the new deputy head at St Cuthbert’s” he said “And I have been helping out at the Holiday club, in between everything else”
“Really?”
“Yes” he replied “it’s been fun”
“Then you must have met my….” She began but was drowned out by a rowdy group who appeared nosily at the bar and she had to go a serve them.
When she had finished with the rowdies she returned her attention to Glyn, the fact that she was about to tell him about her twin daughters had gone right out of her head and the conversation became more general and lasted pretty much the whole evening.
Of course what he wanted to do was ask her out so he could take her out for dinner but he was so out of practice he didn’t know what to say and even in his dating days he wasn’t particularly good at it.
The last bell rang and he knew it was now or never so he took a deep breath and steeled himself and said
“I was wondering if, sometime, maybe, but feel free to say no, you had a free evening, we might, possibly…”
“I’d love to” she said putting him out of his misery
“You would?”
“Yes”
“Great, when are…”
“I’m not working at all on Friday” she said and wrote her number on a beer mat
“Friday it is” he said “Goodnight”
(Part 06)
On Friday morning Glyn Tucker was on duty at the Holiday Club and was there about half an hour before Sam dropped Olivia and Cecily off and he spent the whole morning looking forward to seeing Ruth again, when he was taking her out for dinner that evening.
Holiday Club was open for morning and afternoon sessions and parents could pick and choose which sessions they needed in order to make it the most cost effective for them, so just before lunch Glyn positioned himself by the gate to supervise the children being collected by their parents.
He had only been there for a few minutes when he spotted Ruth approaching which lifted his spirits, but then Olivia and Cecily ran out through the gate towards her
“Mum, Mum” they cried
“Look what we’ve made”
“Wow” she said in response
“They called her mum” he said to himself “I must have misheard
“Do you like it mum?” Olivia asked
“Yes I do poppet” she replied
“No apparently I didn’t mishear” he thought “I knew she was too good to be true”
He was totally deflated, the first time he let his guard down since his separation and he picks a married woman, well that was not acceptable, and he did not behave that way.
“I’m looking forward to tonight” Ruth whispered and smiled
“I’m afraid I can’t make it” he said “Somethings come up”
“Oh! Ok another time then” she said disappointedly
“Yes another time” he lied
The twins chattered away incessantly but Ruth was very quiet on the walk home, she just couldn’t understand why Glyn had been so cold, she had clearly misjudged him, it had to be because she had kids, she couldn’t think of any other reason why he would behave like that.
Glyn was convinced he had misjudged her, he had looked at her hand when she delivered his pint the first time he met her and there was no ring, so not only was she married but she was deceitful as well.
Not that he had a problem with the fact she had children, they were lovely girls, but why didn’t she say anything.
He stayed on at school until after lunch and then walked slowly towards home and bumped into Sam coming out of Stephenson’s shop with a pretty black girl on his arm.
“My God they’re both at it” he thought “what kind of a half arsed marriage do they have”
“Hello Mr Tucker” Sam said
“Hello” he responded “Are you not spending the afternoon with your girls?”
“My girls?”
“Yes Olivia and Cecily” Glyn said
“They’re not my children” Sam said with a laugh
“They’re my nieces”
“What?” Glyn exclaimed
“I’m their uncle Sam, not their Dad” He explained
“Oh my God what have I done” he said and put his hands on his head “I’ve made a terrible mistake”
“Why what have you done?” Sam asked with concern
“Where’s Ruth? I must talk to Ruth” he said
“She’s at home” he replied “In the garden on a lounger knowing her”
“Great” Glyn said and ran off “I just hope I’m not too late
(Part 07)
Once Glyn realised that Sam and Ruth were not husband and wife but were brother and sister he was desperate to find Ruth and try to redeem the situation.
The last time they spoke he was quite brusque because he thought she was a married woman.
They were supposed to be having dinner together but he brushed her off and he was afraid he may have burned his bridges with her.
The good news was that Ruth had the afternoon off and he had it on good authority that she was in her back garden, the bad news was he didn’t know what to say to her to repair the damage he had done.
He had liked her from the first moment he saw her and she had been the first woman to reignite his interest in the opposite sex since he separated from his wife.
It took him an age to summon up the courage to ask her out and he was thrilled when she said yes.
But then he hit the panic button when he jumped to the wrong conclusion which was why he traipsed around the village for an hour trying to compose himself.
It was a glorious day and very hot, when he reached over the top of the gate and opened the latch and swung open the back gate and walked in.
It was a nice garden, much nicer than his, but he supposed you get out of it what you put in, and Ruth had obviously put a lot in to hers while the previous resident in his house had kept the garden simply functional and had put absolutely nothing into it and no effort was expended whatsoever.
Ruth’s on the other hand, clearly loved her garden and loved working in it and the result was there for him to see a delightful English country garden.
He could see Ruth immediately as he walked in, she was on the deck lying on a sun lounger wearing a pink bikini.
She had her back to him and was lying on her side reading a magazine the curve of her hip to her waist was like a mountain slope and her dark curly hair was tied back to reveal her neck and shoulders.
She was up on the decking which was located at the bottom of the garden, which was a real suntrap.
The garden sloped from there back to the house and was landscaped to form four distinct steps the decking being the highest and the patio outside the lounge being the lowest.
The second tier was predominantly herbaceous planting and the third was laid to lawn.
Ruth’s eight year old twin daughters were jumping in and out and splashing around in a paddling pool on the lawned area of the third tier.
He still didn’t know what to say or how it would be received so he took a deep breath and walked up behind Ruth and said
“Hello Ruth” and she turned and looked over her shoulder at him.
(Part 08)
He could see Ruth immediately as he walked in, she was on the deck lying on a sun lounger wearing a pink bikini.
She had her back to him and was lying on her side reading a magazine and her eight year old twin daughters were jumping in and out and splashing around in a paddling pool on the lawned area of the garden as he entered
He still didn’t know what to say or how it would be received so he took a deep breath and walked up behind Ruth and said
“Hello Ruth” and she turned and looked over her shoulder at him.
“At last” Ruth said with a smile
“What kept you?”
“Were you expecting me then?” he asked a little confused
“Of course” she replied and sat herself up
“But how?”
“Sam phoned me” she said “So what did keep you?”
“Well I’ve been walking around for an hour trying to find the right words to apologize for being an idiot” he explained
“Aww that’s really sweet” she said and stood up and walked towards him and kissed him
“Aren’t you worried the girls will see?” he asked
Ruth looked over the trellised fence that surrounded the deck, and down to where the girls were splashing around but even if they were looking they wouldn’t have been able to see them clearly.
“They can’t see us from there” she said and kissed him again
“Are you sure?” he asked uneasily
“Positive” she said, and then they kissed again and then came the tell-tale chimes of the ice cream van playing “colonel bogey” in a nearby street, and nothing says come and get an ice-cream more than “Hitler has only got one ball”.
Then suddenly the twins were running up the garden
“Ice cream. Ice cream” they called
“Ok just a minute kids” Ruth shouted to them a little breathless,
He dug around in his pocket and brought out two, two pound coins which he tossed over the herbaceous border and landed them expertly on the lawn a few feet from the girls.
“Thank you Mr Tucker” the twins chimed in unison “do you want one”
“No thanks” he shouted back
“What about Mum?”
“I want a snog” she said with a leer
“No mum’s fine” he replied
“Ok” they chorused and went off squealing excitedly
“No you can relax and snog me properly” she said licking her lips “the twins will be at least ten minutes”
“Am I forgiven then?” he said
“We’ll see” she replied and kissed him again
By the time the twins returned from their ice cream expedition Ruth had forgiven him and they were sitting on the patio drinking coffee and laughing at his misunderstanding.
“I have a confession to make” Ruth said
“Oh!”
“I thought the reason you went all cold earlier was because you found out I had children” she admitted
“No not at all” he asserted
“I’m glad” she said and smiled
“Girls!” he called
“Yes Mr Tucker”
“How would you like to go out for dinner tonight with your mum and me?” he asked
“Yes please!!!” they squealed and Ruth squeezed his hand.
Friday, 7 April 2017
Tales from the Finchbottom Vale – (39) Christmas Miracles
(Part 01)
20 miles inland from Sharpington-By-Sea, equidistant between Finchbottom and Pepperstock Green was the sprawling village of Denmead and it was Christmas day.
Nick Waterfield was at his parents’ house for the big day and it was heaving with all of his happy semi intoxicated relatives, his Mum and Dad, his kid brother, two older sisters, aunts, uncles and numerous cousins and Nick was glad they were all happy even if he wasn’t.
He just wished they would take their festive happiness elsewhere as he had no need of it even if he was the main reason the entire Waterfield clan had assembled in Denmead that day.
It was his well-meaning mother’s idea to invite everyone and his dog in order to make Christmas, noisy, happy and jolly to keep Nick distracted.
His mother, Jeanette, was the matriarch of the clan and was something of a force of nature so when she “invited” you, it was generally accepted to be an order, she meant well of course.
He thought Christmas Dinner was tolerable enough, the jollity was blissfully muted when they had their mouths full of his mums excellent cooking but then as soon as the last spoonful of Christmas Pud had been consumed it all ramped up again.
Jeanette Waterfield organized the girls in the kitchen and his Dad got everyone else clearing away in preparation for an afternoon of fun and frivolity.
Nick took that as his cue and retreated to the hall and got his coat on, the last thing he needed was fun.
“Where are you going Nick?” his mum asked
“I just need to walk my dinner off” he replied patting his stomach.
She nodded her understanding and knew it was nothing to do with needing a constitutional.
“Do you want some company?” she asked
“No mum I’ll be fine, I won’t be long”
“You’ll need your hat and scarf” she insisted and draped a scarf around his neck and pulled his woolen hat on his head, then she put a hand on each cheek and kissed him like she did when he was just a boy and he smiled a weak smile in response.
“You’ll need gloves as well” she said “its bitter cold out there”
Her voice cracked as she said it and she walked quickly back into the kitchen to energize the labour force.
He wished for her sake that he could hide his sadness, it had almost been as difficult a year for her as it had for him.
“I'll be fine mum,” he said to himself “I just need time”
He braced himself as he opened the front door and then walked outside and saw it was still snowing.
Nick reached the end of the path and turned back to look at the Waterfield house where he had spent such a happy childhood.
And it really was happy, his parents made sure of that and he and his siblings had everything they could need, he heartily wished he could have just a spoonful of the happiness he felt in his youth to ease the pain that he felt at that moment.
(Part 02)
It was midafternoon when Nick left his parents’ house and stepped out into the snow and it was already getting dark so he decided to stick to the main road until his eyes became accustomed to the gloom.
It had been years since he had seen a white Christmas, it was a shame he wasn’t in a better frame of mind to enjoy it.
Even in the semi darkness there was clear evidence the village children had been out in force.
There was no sign of them as the light began to fail he assumed they were probably lured back indoors with mugs of hot chocolate by their concerned families but the evidence of their play was evident.
As he made his way up the hill towards St Jane’s church the snow started to fall harder and as he trudged through the deepening snow he looked at the houses as he passed them with their coloured lights resplendent and he wondered about what sadness lurked in their homes behind the happy facade and then he chastised himself, not for the first time, for his self-pity.
He had tried to lift himself from the black mire which surrounded him but try as he might he just kept being sucked back in.
That Christmas had been a big downer for him, it was just that he had had such high hopes for that Christmas, it had held so much promise for him, them.
Nick was an engineer by profession and he had started a new job in Abbottsford the previous February and as every other new hire would, he got the full first day office tour, and in his case it was conducted by his new boss Gary Ash.
After shaking hands with an indeterminate number of employees he began to understand what the Queen had to contend with.
“This is the procurement department” Gary said and half a dozen heads turned around to greet their progress and one smartly dressed young woman stepped out of a corner office.
“Ah Gina” Gary called “This is Nick Waterfield the new head of Engineering”
Gina smiled and reached out her hand which he took and shook warmly.
“Gina Davies” she said and that was that, from that very first moment she had him hook line and sinker, and she was equally bowled over.
So they had their first date that Friday, which was the first of many in their whirlwind romance and they were engaged by Easter and married in June.
And while they honeymooned when they had their whole lives ahead of them they made plans upon plans.
Of course what they had never planned for was for a drunk driver to cross the central reservation on the Pepperstock Express Way and hit her head on as she drove home on the day before Halloween.
Nick should have been with her, they always drove home together but at the last minute he had to go to Nettlefield on an emergency call out, so she died alone.
He wished he’d been in the car with her, he wished he’d died with her so he didn’t have to feel so shit.
(Part 03)
The snow was falling thick and fast and the wind was blowing it straight at him as he trudged up the hill, so discretion being the better part of valour, he decided to take refuge in the Church of Saint Jane Frances de Chantal.
He hadn’t set foot in a church since the funeral, he and God had not been on speaking terms since he took Gina, he was still angry.
He didn’t plan to go in on that day either, he just intended taking shelter in the porch until the snow eased off a bit, and then he would set off again but the door suddenly opened.
“What on earth are you doing out here?” said a voice behind him so he turned around to see that the voice belonged to Charli Newcombe.
He and Charli had gone to school together and they had even dated briefly on two separate occasions.
Once when they were still at secondary school and again when he returned from University but it just never seemed to happen for them.
“Hey Charli” he said “I was just out for a walk.”
“What in this?” she said
“I needed to walk off my dinner” he pointed out
“Yes but in this?” she repeated
“Well it wasn’t this bad when I left home”
“So what are you really doing out here?” she asked
“Trivial Pursuits” Nick replied
“What?”
“The family are all playing Trivial Pursuits, I really didn’t fancy it” he said
“Oh I see”
“Anyway it’s Christmas Day” he retorted “Shouldn't you be at home watching The Sound of Music?”
“You’d think so wouldn’t you” Charli said “My folks are both asleep in front of the TV and I had sole control of the remote, and I suddenly got the notion I should come and get the church ready for tomorrows service”
Even she seemed surprised by her answer and wore a quizzical expression.
Apart from running the General Store and Post Office, Charli was also the church warden and her late husband Tony had been the Vicar of St Jane’s.
Charli was the same age as him, give or take a month or two, he was thirty and she was a month short of that milestone and like him she was born and bred in the village.
She had married Tony shortly after he got the appointment as the Vicar of St Jane’s he was quite a few years older than her but she loved him to distraction, and you can’t argue with love.
She was devastated when he had a heart attack in Church one day before matins and died.
That was shortly after he had performed the wedding ceremony for Gina and Nick.
He had seen a lot of her since he came back to stay with his parents in the village.
He had sought her out because of their history together and he knew she would understand how it felt to lose someone you loved and maybe help him come to terms with the grief.
They had talked it through endlessly and had burnt the midnight oil on many occasions and as a result some of the old feelings for her had come to the surface, for which he felt immensely guilty and completely disloyal to Gina’s memory.
(Part 04)
Nick and Charli were standing in the porch of Saint Jane Frances de Chantal as the snow continued to fall.
“You look like you could do with a hot drink” she said opening the door
“No I won’t come in thanks” he said
“It’s Christmas, I’m sure you could call a truce for the sake of the day at least”
“Oh ok” he relented and hesitantly followed her through the door into the church and the most overwhelming feeling washed over him and the moment he crossed the threshold into the sanctuary of the church he’d felt a weight lift from him.
The overwhelming feeling he felt was one of great happiness as he remembered that wonderful day in June when Gina and he were married.
He would have expected to feel deep sorrow at the memory but it was actually pure joy that he felt combined with immense pride.
He took off his hat, scarf and gloves as he stood at the back of the church.
Charli had gone into a side room and switched on the light but he found he was walking down the aisle towards the altar where he paused briefly before an effigy of the Saint and then sat down on the front pew.
When he got up from his seat on the front pew he found all the anger and resentment that had plagued him had washed away and he felt more positive than he had in weeks and he even felt he could look forward.
Nick stood up and smiled at St Jane and then went in search of the drink he was offered.
He found Charli in the little kitchen sat at a small table and she looked up at him and smiled and as he walked in and he returned her smile.
“Is this mine?” he asked pointing at a mug by the kettle.
“Yes” she replied “but I’ll make you a fresh one”
“No this will be fine” he said and took a sip “urgh”
“I told you” Charli said laughing
“How long was I sitting out there?” he asked her and she checked her watch
“About forty minutes”
“You’re kidding, how long was it really?”
“About forty minutes”
“I’m sorry” he said “it only seemed like only two or three”
“So how do you feel?” she enquired
“Surprisingly good” he replied and sat down “St Jane was very helpful”
“Yes she is isn’t she” Charli said as she re-boiled the kettle
“I’m still angry that I didn’t get to say goodbye to her” he admitted
“I know that feeling” Charli retorted
“We had such a short time together, we should have had decades, and instead we only had months” And then he surprised himself when he smiled at her and added
“But those months were so special and so filled with joy that the time we had together was priceless”
“Amen to that” Charli said
“Which is precisely what you’ve been telling me all these weeks” he confessed
“Uh huh” she responded
(Part 05)
Nick and Charli were sitting in the kitchen of Saint Jane Frances de Chantal Church and they sat and drank their coffee in a comfortable silence when Charli’s suddenly flicked her eyes upwards and caused him to do the same and he saw the mistletoe hanging above the table and then she leant across the table and kissed him and after the kiss it was Nick who broke the silence.
“So do you have someone special in your life?”
“Do you mean a boyfriend?” she replied
“Yes” said Nick
“I was kind of hoping you might want the job” Charli said
“I rather think that I would” he said and reached across the table and took hold of her hand.
“If you’ll have me”
She leant across the table and kissed him again only this time it was a long and lingering sensual kiss.
“Are we allowed to do that in church?” he asked
“Only on Christmas Day” she replied and kissed him again.
Charli locked up the Church and they stepped out from the shelter of the porch and the heavy snow had abated but it was still falling and he smiled as it accumulated on top of her hat.
He offered her his hand which she accepted gladly and then he walked her home and they trudged hand in hand through the snow.
Her parents’ house was only two doors down the lane from the Waterfield’s so walking her home wasn’t out of the way, not that it would have made any difference if she had lived on the other side of the village he would still have walked with her.
They stopped by the front gate and stood facing each other and he leant in and kissed her, and her response was immediate and yielding.
It was a long purposeful kiss full of tenderness and hope for the future.
When he reluctantly broke away he said
“I’ll see you tomorrow then?”
“Yes” Charli replied and went up the path, pausing at the door to turn and wave before she went inside.
“Are you alright dear?” Mum asked with concern as he walked through the front door.
“Yes” he said and smiled “I rather think I am”
And the effect on her was instant as the worry and anxiety she had been feeling melted away and she looked five years younger in that instant.
“I’m so glad” she said and rushed forward to hug him.
Over the months that followed he gave a good deal of reflective thought about exactly what happened that snowy Christmas Day afternoon.
Was it coincidence that he chose to walk in the direction of St Jane’s Church, when he could have gone in any direction or that he needed to take shelter precisely as he passed its sanctuary, or that Charli would open the church door to leave just as he stood sheltering beneath the porch?
And what compelled Charli to leave the warmth and comfort of her parent’s cozy fireside on a snowy Christmas Day and yield sole control of the remote in order to tidy a cold and draughty Church.
But only nick Waterfield knew exactly what transpired between him and the Saint as he sat on that Church pew and that secret remained between him, St Jane and God.
20 miles inland from Sharpington-By-Sea, equidistant between Finchbottom and Pepperstock Green was the sprawling village of Denmead and it was Christmas day.
Nick Waterfield was at his parents’ house for the big day and it was heaving with all of his happy semi intoxicated relatives, his Mum and Dad, his kid brother, two older sisters, aunts, uncles and numerous cousins and Nick was glad they were all happy even if he wasn’t.
He just wished they would take their festive happiness elsewhere as he had no need of it even if he was the main reason the entire Waterfield clan had assembled in Denmead that day.
It was his well-meaning mother’s idea to invite everyone and his dog in order to make Christmas, noisy, happy and jolly to keep Nick distracted.
His mother, Jeanette, was the matriarch of the clan and was something of a force of nature so when she “invited” you, it was generally accepted to be an order, she meant well of course.
He thought Christmas Dinner was tolerable enough, the jollity was blissfully muted when they had their mouths full of his mums excellent cooking but then as soon as the last spoonful of Christmas Pud had been consumed it all ramped up again.
Jeanette Waterfield organized the girls in the kitchen and his Dad got everyone else clearing away in preparation for an afternoon of fun and frivolity.
Nick took that as his cue and retreated to the hall and got his coat on, the last thing he needed was fun.
“Where are you going Nick?” his mum asked
“I just need to walk my dinner off” he replied patting his stomach.
She nodded her understanding and knew it was nothing to do with needing a constitutional.
“Do you want some company?” she asked
“No mum I’ll be fine, I won’t be long”
“You’ll need your hat and scarf” she insisted and draped a scarf around his neck and pulled his woolen hat on his head, then she put a hand on each cheek and kissed him like she did when he was just a boy and he smiled a weak smile in response.
“You’ll need gloves as well” she said “its bitter cold out there”
Her voice cracked as she said it and she walked quickly back into the kitchen to energize the labour force.
He wished for her sake that he could hide his sadness, it had almost been as difficult a year for her as it had for him.
“I'll be fine mum,” he said to himself “I just need time”
He braced himself as he opened the front door and then walked outside and saw it was still snowing.
Nick reached the end of the path and turned back to look at the Waterfield house where he had spent such a happy childhood.
And it really was happy, his parents made sure of that and he and his siblings had everything they could need, he heartily wished he could have just a spoonful of the happiness he felt in his youth to ease the pain that he felt at that moment.
(Part 02)
It was midafternoon when Nick left his parents’ house and stepped out into the snow and it was already getting dark so he decided to stick to the main road until his eyes became accustomed to the gloom.
It had been years since he had seen a white Christmas, it was a shame he wasn’t in a better frame of mind to enjoy it.
Even in the semi darkness there was clear evidence the village children had been out in force.
There was no sign of them as the light began to fail he assumed they were probably lured back indoors with mugs of hot chocolate by their concerned families but the evidence of their play was evident.
As he made his way up the hill towards St Jane’s church the snow started to fall harder and as he trudged through the deepening snow he looked at the houses as he passed them with their coloured lights resplendent and he wondered about what sadness lurked in their homes behind the happy facade and then he chastised himself, not for the first time, for his self-pity.
He had tried to lift himself from the black mire which surrounded him but try as he might he just kept being sucked back in.
That Christmas had been a big downer for him, it was just that he had had such high hopes for that Christmas, it had held so much promise for him, them.
Nick was an engineer by profession and he had started a new job in Abbottsford the previous February and as every other new hire would, he got the full first day office tour, and in his case it was conducted by his new boss Gary Ash.
After shaking hands with an indeterminate number of employees he began to understand what the Queen had to contend with.
“This is the procurement department” Gary said and half a dozen heads turned around to greet their progress and one smartly dressed young woman stepped out of a corner office.
“Ah Gina” Gary called “This is Nick Waterfield the new head of Engineering”
Gina smiled and reached out her hand which he took and shook warmly.
“Gina Davies” she said and that was that, from that very first moment she had him hook line and sinker, and she was equally bowled over.
So they had their first date that Friday, which was the first of many in their whirlwind romance and they were engaged by Easter and married in June.
And while they honeymooned when they had their whole lives ahead of them they made plans upon plans.
Of course what they had never planned for was for a drunk driver to cross the central reservation on the Pepperstock Express Way and hit her head on as she drove home on the day before Halloween.
Nick should have been with her, they always drove home together but at the last minute he had to go to Nettlefield on an emergency call out, so she died alone.
He wished he’d been in the car with her, he wished he’d died with her so he didn’t have to feel so shit.
(Part 03)
The snow was falling thick and fast and the wind was blowing it straight at him as he trudged up the hill, so discretion being the better part of valour, he decided to take refuge in the Church of Saint Jane Frances de Chantal.
He hadn’t set foot in a church since the funeral, he and God had not been on speaking terms since he took Gina, he was still angry.
He didn’t plan to go in on that day either, he just intended taking shelter in the porch until the snow eased off a bit, and then he would set off again but the door suddenly opened.
“What on earth are you doing out here?” said a voice behind him so he turned around to see that the voice belonged to Charli Newcombe.
He and Charli had gone to school together and they had even dated briefly on two separate occasions.
Once when they were still at secondary school and again when he returned from University but it just never seemed to happen for them.
“Hey Charli” he said “I was just out for a walk.”
“What in this?” she said
“I needed to walk off my dinner” he pointed out
“Yes but in this?” she repeated
“Well it wasn’t this bad when I left home”
“So what are you really doing out here?” she asked
“Trivial Pursuits” Nick replied
“What?”
“The family are all playing Trivial Pursuits, I really didn’t fancy it” he said
“Oh I see”
“Anyway it’s Christmas Day” he retorted “Shouldn't you be at home watching The Sound of Music?”
“You’d think so wouldn’t you” Charli said “My folks are both asleep in front of the TV and I had sole control of the remote, and I suddenly got the notion I should come and get the church ready for tomorrows service”
Even she seemed surprised by her answer and wore a quizzical expression.
Apart from running the General Store and Post Office, Charli was also the church warden and her late husband Tony had been the Vicar of St Jane’s.
Charli was the same age as him, give or take a month or two, he was thirty and she was a month short of that milestone and like him she was born and bred in the village.
She had married Tony shortly after he got the appointment as the Vicar of St Jane’s he was quite a few years older than her but she loved him to distraction, and you can’t argue with love.
She was devastated when he had a heart attack in Church one day before matins and died.
That was shortly after he had performed the wedding ceremony for Gina and Nick.
He had seen a lot of her since he came back to stay with his parents in the village.
He had sought her out because of their history together and he knew she would understand how it felt to lose someone you loved and maybe help him come to terms with the grief.
They had talked it through endlessly and had burnt the midnight oil on many occasions and as a result some of the old feelings for her had come to the surface, for which he felt immensely guilty and completely disloyal to Gina’s memory.
(Part 04)
Nick and Charli were standing in the porch of Saint Jane Frances de Chantal as the snow continued to fall.
“You look like you could do with a hot drink” she said opening the door
“No I won’t come in thanks” he said
“It’s Christmas, I’m sure you could call a truce for the sake of the day at least”
“Oh ok” he relented and hesitantly followed her through the door into the church and the most overwhelming feeling washed over him and the moment he crossed the threshold into the sanctuary of the church he’d felt a weight lift from him.
The overwhelming feeling he felt was one of great happiness as he remembered that wonderful day in June when Gina and he were married.
He would have expected to feel deep sorrow at the memory but it was actually pure joy that he felt combined with immense pride.
He took off his hat, scarf and gloves as he stood at the back of the church.
Charli had gone into a side room and switched on the light but he found he was walking down the aisle towards the altar where he paused briefly before an effigy of the Saint and then sat down on the front pew.
When he got up from his seat on the front pew he found all the anger and resentment that had plagued him had washed away and he felt more positive than he had in weeks and he even felt he could look forward.
Nick stood up and smiled at St Jane and then went in search of the drink he was offered.
He found Charli in the little kitchen sat at a small table and she looked up at him and smiled and as he walked in and he returned her smile.
“Is this mine?” he asked pointing at a mug by the kettle.
“Yes” she replied “but I’ll make you a fresh one”
“No this will be fine” he said and took a sip “urgh”
“I told you” Charli said laughing
“How long was I sitting out there?” he asked her and she checked her watch
“About forty minutes”
“You’re kidding, how long was it really?”
“About forty minutes”
“I’m sorry” he said “it only seemed like only two or three”
“So how do you feel?” she enquired
“Surprisingly good” he replied and sat down “St Jane was very helpful”
“Yes she is isn’t she” Charli said as she re-boiled the kettle
“I’m still angry that I didn’t get to say goodbye to her” he admitted
“I know that feeling” Charli retorted
“We had such a short time together, we should have had decades, and instead we only had months” And then he surprised himself when he smiled at her and added
“But those months were so special and so filled with joy that the time we had together was priceless”
“Amen to that” Charli said
“Which is precisely what you’ve been telling me all these weeks” he confessed
“Uh huh” she responded
(Part 05)
Nick and Charli were sitting in the kitchen of Saint Jane Frances de Chantal Church and they sat and drank their coffee in a comfortable silence when Charli’s suddenly flicked her eyes upwards and caused him to do the same and he saw the mistletoe hanging above the table and then she leant across the table and kissed him and after the kiss it was Nick who broke the silence.
“So do you have someone special in your life?”
“Do you mean a boyfriend?” she replied
“Yes” said Nick
“I was kind of hoping you might want the job” Charli said
“I rather think that I would” he said and reached across the table and took hold of her hand.
“If you’ll have me”
She leant across the table and kissed him again only this time it was a long and lingering sensual kiss.
“Are we allowed to do that in church?” he asked
“Only on Christmas Day” she replied and kissed him again.
Charli locked up the Church and they stepped out from the shelter of the porch and the heavy snow had abated but it was still falling and he smiled as it accumulated on top of her hat.
He offered her his hand which she accepted gladly and then he walked her home and they trudged hand in hand through the snow.
Her parents’ house was only two doors down the lane from the Waterfield’s so walking her home wasn’t out of the way, not that it would have made any difference if she had lived on the other side of the village he would still have walked with her.
They stopped by the front gate and stood facing each other and he leant in and kissed her, and her response was immediate and yielding.
It was a long purposeful kiss full of tenderness and hope for the future.
When he reluctantly broke away he said
“I’ll see you tomorrow then?”
“Yes” Charli replied and went up the path, pausing at the door to turn and wave before she went inside.
“Are you alright dear?” Mum asked with concern as he walked through the front door.
“Yes” he said and smiled “I rather think I am”
And the effect on her was instant as the worry and anxiety she had been feeling melted away and she looked five years younger in that instant.
“I’m so glad” she said and rushed forward to hug him.
Over the months that followed he gave a good deal of reflective thought about exactly what happened that snowy Christmas Day afternoon.
Was it coincidence that he chose to walk in the direction of St Jane’s Church, when he could have gone in any direction or that he needed to take shelter precisely as he passed its sanctuary, or that Charli would open the church door to leave just as he stood sheltering beneath the porch?
And what compelled Charli to leave the warmth and comfort of her parent’s cozy fireside on a snowy Christmas Day and yield sole control of the remote in order to tidy a cold and draughty Church.
But only nick Waterfield knew exactly what transpired between him and the Saint as he sat on that Church pew and that secret remained between him, St Jane and God.
Mornington-By-Mere – (39) Angela’s Mission
(Part 01)
Twenty eight year old Matthew Burnham lives alone in the village of Mornington-By-Mere which is a small country village lying in the Finchbottom Vale nestled between the Ancient Dancingdean Forest and the rolling Pepperstock Hills.
It is a quaint picturesque village, a proper chocolate box picturesque idyll, with a Manor House, 12th Century Church, a Coaching Inn, Windmills, an Old Forge, a Schoolhouse, a River and a Mere.
But Mornington-By-Mere is not just a quaint chocolate box English Village it is the beating heart of the Finchbottom Vale and there were a number of cottages and small houses on the Purplemere road and Dulcets Lane which form the part of Mornington Village known as Manorside where Matthew lived in a small two bedroom cottage in the row of West Gate Cottages on the banks of the River Brooke.
He had only lived there for around 9 months when he moved there from Purplemere.
Matthew made the move because the company he worked for, Bespoke Furniture, had decided to up sticks, so he decided to pick up sticks along with them because it was a well-paid job and he was good at it, and he enjoyed working with his hands.
It was on Wednesday morning in between Christmas and New Year when the phone rang and when he viewed the caller ID he could see it was his mum.
“Hi mum” he said
“Hello Matthew darling, I can’t talk long, I have another favour to ask of you”
“Ok ask away” he said
“Could Angela stay with you again for a couple of nights before she leaves for the missions?”
Angela was an old family friend, she was actually the daughter of his mum’s best friend Sharon and she was also his first crush and she was going to be staying under his roof again.
Angela was six years older than him and he was smitten with her from the very first moment he saw her but nothing ever happened, apart from a kiss, one single solitary kiss, a kiss that blew his mind.
She had stayed with him when she first arrived in the country at the end of November when their unrequited love was finally made manifest.
So yes Angela could most certainly stay for a couple of nights under his roof.
His mum told him that Angela would be arriving with him some time that afternoon so he went off and made up the spare bed for her although he hoped she wouldn’t be needing it.
Unfortunately the weather had taken a turn for the worse with heavy snow moving across the country from the east.
So as he sat in his house watching the clock Matthew had no way of knowing exactly where Angela was.
Because he didn’t know exactly where she was coming from he couldn’t ascertain whether or not she would be effected by the snow, and he didn’t even have a phone number to contact her on.
When he began to get concerned Matthew phoned his mum, it was about seven o’clock by then, and she did have a phone number for Angela but all she could do was leave a voice mail as she wasn’t picking up.
(Part 02)
In the month since Matthew heard Angela’s blessed declaration of love, words that he lad longed to hear for 12 long years and he made love with her, he had thought of nothing else.
She was literally all he could think of during every waking moment and every dream filled night.
He just hope and prayed that he had had the same effect on her as she had on him.
Angela said it was love but in their case absence may not have made the heart grow fonder.
About an hour after Matthew had spoken with his mum regarding Angela’s current location he had a call from Lily Mumford’s brother to say that Lily and Angela were stuck on the Pepperstock Express Way in heavy snow and would get to him just as soon as they possibly could.
They finally arrived a little after eleven o’clock with the snow falling fast again.
Due to the lateness of the hour and the treacherous road conditions he insisted that Lily stay the night as well, which meant sadly that he wouldn’t be having the kind of reunion with Angela that he had been anticipating.
Matthew left them both in the kitchen making a hot drink while he went upstairs to get the spare duvet.
Angela could sleep in his bed, alone unfortunately, and Lily could sleep in the spare room while he would sleep on the sofa.
Both Angela and Lily protested and volunteered to take the sofa in his stead but Matthew stood his ground.
Matthew found it more than a little frustrating having the expectancy all day of being reunited, however briefly, with the love of his life, for it only to be denied by the vagaries of the British winter weather and his generosity of spirit.
It was the only thing to do though so he consoled himself with that fact.
Matthew had a very disturbed night’s sleep, partly because of the uncomfortable sofa but partly because of the vivid dreams about Angela.
As a consequence he awoke early the next morning un-rested and as stiff as a board so he decided to get up and have a shower in an attempt to liven himself up, but although he felt clean and fresh afterwards it merely masked his fatigue.
So he slipped on his dressing gown and went downstairs and was surprised to find Lily Mumford sitting at the kitchen table nursing a mug of coffee.
“Morning” he said far more brightly than he felt “Sleep well?”
“Good morning Matthew, yes very well thank you” she replied formally before continuing
“I hope it was ok, but I made myself breakfast”
“Yes of course it was” he replied as he looked out the window.
“It’s stopped snowing then?” he observed
“Yes” she replied, “I’m going to make a move shortly, get while the going is good as it were”
And she smiled broadly after her statement, Matt didn’t know if it was because he was feeling so washed out or not but Lily certainly appeared to be a much brighter person than he was expecting compared to the Ms. Frosty knickers that he met the last time she was in his home.
(Part 03)
While Lily Mumford was outside defrosting her Morris Minor he sat at the kitchen table drinking a coffee and he was so tired that it didn’t even dawned on him what the significance of Lily’s early departure was.
After about twenty minutes Lily came back inside after clearing the snow off the car and warming up the engine.
“I won’t disturb Angela” she said
“She could use the rest”
“Good idea” he agreed
“Well I will see you on Saturday Matthew” she said “Bless you for your kindness”
Matthew watched the Morris Minor drive away and then switched on the kettle again.
He opened the cupboard and took out a second mug and then stopped as he remembered Lily’s parting words about not disturbing Angela but then he thought.
“Why not?”
So he put his mug in the sink, locked the door and ascended the stairs.
Matthew gently opened the bedroom door and tiptoed inside and he could see the shape of her in his bed and he could see glimpses of her blue and white pajamas above the duvet.
He slipped off his dressing gown and let it drop to the floor and then he slipped under the duvet and cuddled up close to her.
Angela was on her side with her back to him and Matt leant over her and kissed her lips but got no response so he put his arm around her and snuggled up to her warm body so close he was like her second skin and Angela murmured softly in response.
He woke up about an hour later and Angela was facing him.
“Hello” she said “I thought you would never get here”
“Hey” he replied “I got here as soon as I could”
“I was expecting you would come and see me last night” she said, “Why didn’t you by the way?”
“I didn’t think you’d want me to with Lily in the house just in case she heard us,” he replied
“You didn’t need to worry” Angela added, “She’s a bit deaf and she sleeps like the dead”
“Oh well never mind I got here eventually,” he said
“Mmmmm” Angela replied and kissed him
After making love they slept again and when they awoke they spent the rest of the day in each other’s company.
They would have been the first to admit that it was fairly mundane, Angela did her washing and ironing while he pottered around doing the housework.
However the mundanity of the day was more than compensated for by the intimate nature of their nights.
She wanted to make the most of the time they had together as well as packing for the journey, her time with him was almost up and when Angela left his house on the morning of the 30th of December and she travelled to China he would probably never see her again.
But she left an indelible impression on him so as they lay in each other’s arms on that morning together he said
“Don’t go”
“I have to go” she replied sadly “You know that”
“But I love you Angela” he said and she gasped
“And I love you too”
“Then don’t go”
(Part 04)
“But I love you Angela” he said and she gasped
“And I love you too”
“Then don’t go”
“But I have to” she said “it’s my life’s work”
“I know that” he replied “But we belong together”
Angela just lay there silently and grasped his hand in hers and put it to her lips and kissed it.
“I know you feel the same” he said “So if you can’t stay here with me then I’ll just have to come to you”
Angela looked up at him through tear filled eyes and said
“Do you mean you’ll come and visit me?”
“No I mean I will come and live with you” he said “as your husband”
“What?” she asked as she wiped away the tears from her now saucer sized eyes.
“I want to marry you and go to the missions with you” he asked and his question was met with a disbelieving silence.
“Or” he continued “I could just make it a holiday”
“No, no” she snapped “married…husband…China”
“I’m confused, does that mean you want to marry me?” he teased her
“Yes, yes, yes” she squealed “Yes please”
She wrapped herself around him like a serpent and showered him with kisses.
“Then we need to make some calls” he said
Matthew wanted them to be married before they left for the missions so there were a considerable number of calls to be made and favours to be asked and arms to be twisted.
The benefit of being a veteran missionary held in high regard in the Christian church was that when favours were requested they were normally granted.
So a special license was granted and after a brief conversation with Reverend Peter Cockcroft he agreed to marry them at St Winifred’s on New Year’s Day.
It did mean that they could no longer live under the same roof unchaperoned so his sister Fiona was sent to fill the roll and on New Year’s Eve she spent the night at the Vicarage with the Cockcroft’s.
The morning began with a frosty glaze decorating the rooftops and lightly dusting the evergreens and as the bells rang out to celebrate the birth of the New Year the joyous faithful arrived under a clear blue sky.
As usual St Winifred’s was well attended for the New Year’s Day service despite the bitter cold.
But that day it was even more so because of the added attraction of a New Year’s Day wedding.
It was a most glorious morning and Matthews’s spirits were high and as he stood at the front of the church with the sun streaming through the stained glass his mother tapped him on the shoulder and whispered
“Are you sure this is what you want?”
“I have never been more sure of anything in my life” he replied and then the music started.
He could not turn around, he dare not turn around, in case he broke the spell so he just stared straight ahead.
Until the moment she was stood beside him and he turned to look at his beautiful angel wearing her mother’s wedding dress and looking even more beautiful than he could have imagined.
After they left the church there was no time for a wedding breakfast and so they had a glass of Champaign at the Old Mill Inn before saying their goodbyes and getting in Lily Mumford’s Morris Minor and she drove them straight to the airport for their new life together in China.
Twenty eight year old Matthew Burnham lives alone in the village of Mornington-By-Mere which is a small country village lying in the Finchbottom Vale nestled between the Ancient Dancingdean Forest and the rolling Pepperstock Hills.
It is a quaint picturesque village, a proper chocolate box picturesque idyll, with a Manor House, 12th Century Church, a Coaching Inn, Windmills, an Old Forge, a Schoolhouse, a River and a Mere.
But Mornington-By-Mere is not just a quaint chocolate box English Village it is the beating heart of the Finchbottom Vale and there were a number of cottages and small houses on the Purplemere road and Dulcets Lane which form the part of Mornington Village known as Manorside where Matthew lived in a small two bedroom cottage in the row of West Gate Cottages on the banks of the River Brooke.
He had only lived there for around 9 months when he moved there from Purplemere.
Matthew made the move because the company he worked for, Bespoke Furniture, had decided to up sticks, so he decided to pick up sticks along with them because it was a well-paid job and he was good at it, and he enjoyed working with his hands.
It was on Wednesday morning in between Christmas and New Year when the phone rang and when he viewed the caller ID he could see it was his mum.
“Hi mum” he said
“Hello Matthew darling, I can’t talk long, I have another favour to ask of you”
“Ok ask away” he said
“Could Angela stay with you again for a couple of nights before she leaves for the missions?”
Angela was an old family friend, she was actually the daughter of his mum’s best friend Sharon and she was also his first crush and she was going to be staying under his roof again.
Angela was six years older than him and he was smitten with her from the very first moment he saw her but nothing ever happened, apart from a kiss, one single solitary kiss, a kiss that blew his mind.
She had stayed with him when she first arrived in the country at the end of November when their unrequited love was finally made manifest.
So yes Angela could most certainly stay for a couple of nights under his roof.
His mum told him that Angela would be arriving with him some time that afternoon so he went off and made up the spare bed for her although he hoped she wouldn’t be needing it.
Unfortunately the weather had taken a turn for the worse with heavy snow moving across the country from the east.
So as he sat in his house watching the clock Matthew had no way of knowing exactly where Angela was.
Because he didn’t know exactly where she was coming from he couldn’t ascertain whether or not she would be effected by the snow, and he didn’t even have a phone number to contact her on.
When he began to get concerned Matthew phoned his mum, it was about seven o’clock by then, and she did have a phone number for Angela but all she could do was leave a voice mail as she wasn’t picking up.
(Part 02)
In the month since Matthew heard Angela’s blessed declaration of love, words that he lad longed to hear for 12 long years and he made love with her, he had thought of nothing else.
She was literally all he could think of during every waking moment and every dream filled night.
He just hope and prayed that he had had the same effect on her as she had on him.
Angela said it was love but in their case absence may not have made the heart grow fonder.
About an hour after Matthew had spoken with his mum regarding Angela’s current location he had a call from Lily Mumford’s brother to say that Lily and Angela were stuck on the Pepperstock Express Way in heavy snow and would get to him just as soon as they possibly could.
They finally arrived a little after eleven o’clock with the snow falling fast again.
Due to the lateness of the hour and the treacherous road conditions he insisted that Lily stay the night as well, which meant sadly that he wouldn’t be having the kind of reunion with Angela that he had been anticipating.
Matthew left them both in the kitchen making a hot drink while he went upstairs to get the spare duvet.
Angela could sleep in his bed, alone unfortunately, and Lily could sleep in the spare room while he would sleep on the sofa.
Both Angela and Lily protested and volunteered to take the sofa in his stead but Matthew stood his ground.
Matthew found it more than a little frustrating having the expectancy all day of being reunited, however briefly, with the love of his life, for it only to be denied by the vagaries of the British winter weather and his generosity of spirit.
It was the only thing to do though so he consoled himself with that fact.
Matthew had a very disturbed night’s sleep, partly because of the uncomfortable sofa but partly because of the vivid dreams about Angela.
As a consequence he awoke early the next morning un-rested and as stiff as a board so he decided to get up and have a shower in an attempt to liven himself up, but although he felt clean and fresh afterwards it merely masked his fatigue.
So he slipped on his dressing gown and went downstairs and was surprised to find Lily Mumford sitting at the kitchen table nursing a mug of coffee.
“Morning” he said far more brightly than he felt “Sleep well?”
“Good morning Matthew, yes very well thank you” she replied formally before continuing
“I hope it was ok, but I made myself breakfast”
“Yes of course it was” he replied as he looked out the window.
“It’s stopped snowing then?” he observed
“Yes” she replied, “I’m going to make a move shortly, get while the going is good as it were”
And she smiled broadly after her statement, Matt didn’t know if it was because he was feeling so washed out or not but Lily certainly appeared to be a much brighter person than he was expecting compared to the Ms. Frosty knickers that he met the last time she was in his home.
(Part 03)
While Lily Mumford was outside defrosting her Morris Minor he sat at the kitchen table drinking a coffee and he was so tired that it didn’t even dawned on him what the significance of Lily’s early departure was.
After about twenty minutes Lily came back inside after clearing the snow off the car and warming up the engine.
“I won’t disturb Angela” she said
“She could use the rest”
“Good idea” he agreed
“Well I will see you on Saturday Matthew” she said “Bless you for your kindness”
Matthew watched the Morris Minor drive away and then switched on the kettle again.
He opened the cupboard and took out a second mug and then stopped as he remembered Lily’s parting words about not disturbing Angela but then he thought.
“Why not?”
So he put his mug in the sink, locked the door and ascended the stairs.
Matthew gently opened the bedroom door and tiptoed inside and he could see the shape of her in his bed and he could see glimpses of her blue and white pajamas above the duvet.
He slipped off his dressing gown and let it drop to the floor and then he slipped under the duvet and cuddled up close to her.
Angela was on her side with her back to him and Matt leant over her and kissed her lips but got no response so he put his arm around her and snuggled up to her warm body so close he was like her second skin and Angela murmured softly in response.
He woke up about an hour later and Angela was facing him.
“Hello” she said “I thought you would never get here”
“Hey” he replied “I got here as soon as I could”
“I was expecting you would come and see me last night” she said, “Why didn’t you by the way?”
“I didn’t think you’d want me to with Lily in the house just in case she heard us,” he replied
“You didn’t need to worry” Angela added, “She’s a bit deaf and she sleeps like the dead”
“Oh well never mind I got here eventually,” he said
“Mmmmm” Angela replied and kissed him
After making love they slept again and when they awoke they spent the rest of the day in each other’s company.
They would have been the first to admit that it was fairly mundane, Angela did her washing and ironing while he pottered around doing the housework.
However the mundanity of the day was more than compensated for by the intimate nature of their nights.
She wanted to make the most of the time they had together as well as packing for the journey, her time with him was almost up and when Angela left his house on the morning of the 30th of December and she travelled to China he would probably never see her again.
But she left an indelible impression on him so as they lay in each other’s arms on that morning together he said
“Don’t go”
“I have to go” she replied sadly “You know that”
“But I love you Angela” he said and she gasped
“And I love you too”
“Then don’t go”
(Part 04)
“But I love you Angela” he said and she gasped
“And I love you too”
“Then don’t go”
“But I have to” she said “it’s my life’s work”
“I know that” he replied “But we belong together”
Angela just lay there silently and grasped his hand in hers and put it to her lips and kissed it.
“I know you feel the same” he said “So if you can’t stay here with me then I’ll just have to come to you”
Angela looked up at him through tear filled eyes and said
“Do you mean you’ll come and visit me?”
“No I mean I will come and live with you” he said “as your husband”
“What?” she asked as she wiped away the tears from her now saucer sized eyes.
“I want to marry you and go to the missions with you” he asked and his question was met with a disbelieving silence.
“Or” he continued “I could just make it a holiday”
“No, no” she snapped “married…husband…China”
“I’m confused, does that mean you want to marry me?” he teased her
“Yes, yes, yes” she squealed “Yes please”
She wrapped herself around him like a serpent and showered him with kisses.
“Then we need to make some calls” he said
Matthew wanted them to be married before they left for the missions so there were a considerable number of calls to be made and favours to be asked and arms to be twisted.
The benefit of being a veteran missionary held in high regard in the Christian church was that when favours were requested they were normally granted.
So a special license was granted and after a brief conversation with Reverend Peter Cockcroft he agreed to marry them at St Winifred’s on New Year’s Day.
It did mean that they could no longer live under the same roof unchaperoned so his sister Fiona was sent to fill the roll and on New Year’s Eve she spent the night at the Vicarage with the Cockcroft’s.
The morning began with a frosty glaze decorating the rooftops and lightly dusting the evergreens and as the bells rang out to celebrate the birth of the New Year the joyous faithful arrived under a clear blue sky.
As usual St Winifred’s was well attended for the New Year’s Day service despite the bitter cold.
But that day it was even more so because of the added attraction of a New Year’s Day wedding.
It was a most glorious morning and Matthews’s spirits were high and as he stood at the front of the church with the sun streaming through the stained glass his mother tapped him on the shoulder and whispered
“Are you sure this is what you want?”
“I have never been more sure of anything in my life” he replied and then the music started.
He could not turn around, he dare not turn around, in case he broke the spell so he just stared straight ahead.
Until the moment she was stood beside him and he turned to look at his beautiful angel wearing her mother’s wedding dress and looking even more beautiful than he could have imagined.
After they left the church there was no time for a wedding breakfast and so they had a glass of Champaign at the Old Mill Inn before saying their goodbyes and getting in Lily Mumford’s Morris Minor and she drove them straight to the airport for their new life together in China.
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