SHE’S THE BUTTERFLY KIND

 

She’s the butterfly kind

With a butterfly mind

Always moving she never sits

Her head is full of thoughts that flit

The butterfly miss

With the butterfly kiss

The Clerembeax Palace Hotel and Spa – The Glorious 12th

 

The beautiful Downshire village of Clerembeax St Giles was situated to the west of Abbeyvale located between Grace Hill and Bushy Down and on the outskirts was the Clerembeax Palace Hotel and Spa.

It was once the home the Clerembeax’s, who arrived in Downshire following the Norman conquests and stayed for a thousand years before the name died out following the death of the reclusive Marcus Clerembeax at the age of 96.

The current owner was Yvonne Labuschagne, who decided to open it as a Hotel and Spa.

The Spa was a good attraction, but it was crucial for them to maintain a high occupancy rate, however things were tough in the Hotel trade with the success of Travelodge, Premier Inn and Holiday Inn Express and so places like the Palace needed to offer something extra to attract the guests, apart from the Spa. 

So, they put on novelty weekends, such as “Murder Mysteries” and in addition, they had a sizable Ballroom which was used for special occasions, high days and holidays, which boosted occupancy and Spa numbers at the same time.

But it was necessary to offer guests as wide a range of activities as possible during their stay, to attract them in the first place, and hopefully to come back, which was why they bought and stabled horses up at Stevens Farm, in order to offer riding.

 

The Stevens farm bordered the Clerembeax Estate, so it was a natural choice and it was a large farm which had at its centre a large farmhouse, parts of which dated back six centuries, which had been added to over the years to accommodate the changing needs of the family.

There were also a significant number of out buildings, including a stable block.

The farm was run by Russ Stevens and his three sisters, Mary, Rose and Muriel.

However, they had plenty of farm work to keep them busy, so they had little or nothing to do with the horses, so Hotel Manager Hannah Morgan employed the Storey Brothers, Adam and Craig to do the job.

 

Russ Stevens was the oldest of the Stevens clan and was tall muscular, rugged and bald and nothing like the Stevens girls, who were all good looking, with red hair and striking Celtic green eyes.

 

He had taken the reins at the farm after his father’s death which was also the point he gave up on his choice of career and a personal life as he had to raise his sisters as well as run the farm.

So, his hopes of being a Chef were dashed and because he didn’t have a minute spare in his life he had no significant other.

But now the girls either all had someone in their lives, or someone in their sights, he was left feeling lonely, he loved his sisters dearly, and they him, but that wasn’t the same as having someone to snuggle up to at the end of the day, someone to share the mundane minutiae of the day.

But he couldn’t think of himself, not when he had the girls to raise and had to be strong for them.

 

It was 10.00am on a glorious July morning and Russ was sat in the yard taking a well-deserved coffee break and he was in melancholic mood as he had just seen Rosie and Phil pass by and although they had only been together for a relatively short while it was oblivious even to a blind man that they were in love.

They looked so happy that he found he was quite envious, which made him feel very guilty, and it made him feel lonelier than ever.

However, he chastised himself for his selfishness and consoled himself with the fact that he at least had more mouths to feed and more opportunities to show off in the kitchen.

 

After the investment that the Hotel had made, Hotel Manager Hannah Morgan, was anxious to see the fruits of that investments, so early one morning she drove up to the farm on the way to work.

 

The Storey brothers, Adam and Craig, had worked hard to get the riding stables up and running, and as they walked across the yard towards the farmhouse, Hannah’s car pulled into the yard and she called out the window.

“Morning guys”

“Hannah?” Adam said, “is that you?”

“What are you doing out in the real world?”

“I’ve come to see what you’ve both been up to” she replied

“Come on then we’ll give you the tour” Craig said

 

“You’ve done a lot” Hannah said after being shown around

“Well if your satisfied, come and get breakfast” Adam said

“No, I won’t stop” she replied

“Just come in for a coffee then” Craig added

“No, I wouldn’t want to impose” she insisted

“Russ won’t be happy” Adam said “He’s very big on hospitality” 

“Oh ok, just a coffee”

 

Adam pushed open the door and stepped in and said

“Morning Russ, we’ve brought you another victim”

“Oh good, the more the merrier” he retorted, and then he looked at the lovely dark-haired woman

“This is Hannah”

“Ah I’ve heard a lot about you” Russ said and shook her hand, and

“All good I hope” Hannah said

“Absolutely not” Adam replied “And she’s turned her nose up at your breakfast”

“That’s ok, sit down” he said amiably “Can I get you a tea or coffee?”

When breakfast was first mentioned, she was expecting it to be the usual greasy full English, but the aromas in the kitchen got her taste buds going, devilled kidneys, kedgeree, masala eggs and fresh baked rolls so she said.

“I may have been a little hasty”

“Well there are other attractions” Adam said as the door opened and two of the Stevens girls walked in

“So, I see” Hannah re-joined and smiled at Russ

 

It was a long leisurely breakfast with good conversation and great banter.

“My God that was good” Hannah said after clearing her second plate “No wonder you two enjoy it up here so much”

“He’s good, isn’t he?” Muriel said

“Oh yes” she replied, but she wasn’t entirely referring to the cooking.

 

Over the following few weeks Hannah made several more visits to the stables, always around meal times, but Muriel was sure that her interest in the farm wasn’t restricted to the status of the stable’s or Russ’s culinary skills.

She had also noticed how her bothers demeanour changed whenever Hannah walked in, however knowing her brother as she did she also knew that nothing would progress between them without an intervention from her and her sisters, Mary and Rosie.

 

Mary wasn’t entirely convinced by Muriel’s assertion and was the only one of the Stephens family who hadn’t met Hannah before.

So, Muriel suggested she should be in the kitchen when she arrived to witness her brother’s reaction for herself, and when she did her chin almost hit the floor.

“My God, its true” she whispered to Muriel

“I told you so” she retorted

 

“So, you’re the Hotel manager?” Mary said

“I am”

“Well Muriel is very grateful to you for sending the Storeys” Mary said and giggled

 

“So, have you given Hannah her invitation?” Muriel said

“Invitation?” Hannah asked

“Yes, its Russ’s birthday next week, and we’re having a big celebration dinner” Mary said

“Oh…er… yes” Russ stammered

“So, you must come” Muriel insisted

“I would really like that but, I can’t do next week, my sister Charlotte is visiting” she said in reply to Muriel, while looking at Russ, and he looked visibly deflated until Mary suggested

“Bring her along”

 

Hannah and Charlotte left the Hotel together, both wearing summer dresses and made up to the nines and they both looked stunning with the sun shining on their raven black hair, as it was such a pleasant August evening they decided to walk up to Stevens Farm, which was a gentle walk that Hannah had made many times before.

It was obvious even to the casual observer that they were sisters, Charlotte was just a curvier version of her older sibling.

“Are you sure we needed to dress up?” Charlotte asked

“Of course, I am” Hannah replied

“After all, how often do we get the chance to dress up?”

“But why couldn’t I just wear jeans?”

“Because it would have looked like I was trying to hard” Hannah replied

“Why do you have to make life so complicated?” Charlotte asked and laughed

 

Russ Stevens was, under normal circumstances, a confident and unshakeable cook, but that night he was a bag of nerves, and the girls all tried to calm things down by lightening the mood but were only partially successful.  

 

As they approached the farm house Hannah suddenly stopped and said in alarm

“Do I look ok?”

“Yes” Charlotte replied

“Really?” she asked, “Are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure, you look gorgeous, the same as always” Charlotte retorted

“Ok” she said doubtfully and exhaled a long slow breath and then when they reached the door Hannah knocked lightly on it and then went straight in

“Hello” she called, and Muriel was the first to appear

“Wow you two look stunning” she said and kissed Hannah’s cheek and then Hannah introduced her to Charlotte and then she in turn introduced her to the rest of the family and their partners.

“Where’s the birthday boy?” Hannah asked “I have a gift for him”

“He’s in the kitchen and he’s unusually flustered” Mary explained “Why don’t you go in and settle his nerves”

“Oh, I think you over estimate my influence” she said rather superciliously

“And I think you underestimate it” Muriel said “Go on, in you go, we’ll look after Charlotte”

 

When she walked in, Russ had his back to her, so she said tentatively

“Hello” and made him jump

“Oh hello” he said suddenly feeling even more flustered and she smiled at the sudden realisation that Muriel had been right

“Happy Birthday!” she said and handed him an envelope

“There’s a little gift in there, or at least the promise of a gift,

An IOU if you like, in lieu of the actual gift”

“You shouldn’t have really” he replied as he opened the envelope and read the inscription “Wow”

“Well as it’s the Glorious 12^th, and you like to cook, I thought a brace of Grouse would be quite appropriate or is the plural grouses or Grice or ….”

She was prevented from rambling on any further because he was kissing her.  

 

The remaining guest were assembled on the patio enjoying pre-dinner drinks.

“I hope it won’t be long” Rosie said “I’m starving”

“I’ll go and see” Mary said and there was a murmur of approval

But she was only gone for a minute and as she reappeared Muriel asked

“How is it going in there?”

“Ok, but dinner may be a little delayed” Rosie replied

“Not the food” Muriel said, “how is it going?”

“Oh, I see” Rosie said “Well they’re kissing so I suppose it’s going quite well”

“What exactly do you mean by kissing?” Mary asked, “was it a peck on the cheek or a “thank for the birthday card” kiss or was it something else?”

“Something else I’d say” Rosie said “They’re snogging”

 

LOVE CAME ON A WAVE

Love came on a wave

But it soon drifted away

On the ebbing tide 

WITH MY PETTY JEALOUSY

 

Sibilant whisperings

Greeted me

For it was I

Who stole their glee

 

The gathering

Looked upon me

As the architect

Of their misery

 

They could barely

Keep their hate inside

At this wedding

Without a bride

 

It was all my doing

With my petty jealousy

And with it in me

I had made her flee

HAPPINESS WAS THE HARBINGER

 

Happiness was the harbinger

Of my doom

Happy laughter echoed

In every joyful room

 

But we were too happy

That was our crime

The God’s couldn’t bear

To see us happy all the time

 

So they sent the angels

To take you from my side

They took your life

And left me dead inside

 

Sadness envelops me

As I kneel by your grave

I try to keep back the tears

I try my hardest to be brave

 

But they come anyway

My grief is unconfined

My dear sweet angel,

Resides with others of her kind

 

I curse the selfish Gods

For their spiteful jealousy

And pray to them also

To come soon and take me

 

Those Memories Made on Teardrop Lake – (47) Rosie Memories

 

Downshire is a relatively small English county but like a pocket battleship it packs a lot in, a short but beautiful coastline, a channel port, the Ancient forests of Dancingdean and Pepperstock, the craggy ridges and manmade lakes of the Pepperstock Hills National Park, the rolling hills of the Downshire Downs, the beautiful Finchbottom Vale and farm land as far as the eye can see from the Trotwood’s and the Grace’s in the south to the home of the Downshire Light infantry, Nettlefield, and their affluent neighbour’s, Roespring and Tipton in the North but it’s in leafy Shallowfield where our story takes place but it actually begins in the fringes of the busy town of Finchbottom in the village of Lower Gracewood on the other side of the Finchbottom Vale which nestles 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.

And it was in the Vale where Kevin Bush was born and raised in quiet and unexciting village near Finchbottom called Lower Gracewood and for the first 17 years of his life the Vale was his playground until the family moved.

 

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 the 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 was in Purplemere,

But the most magnificent body of water in Downshire was Teardrop Lake.

Which was where Kevin, an 18 year old callow youth, first laid eyes on Rosie Byrne.

 

He had been living in Shallowfield for six months and as winter gave way to spring he had just begun to discover the treasures of Teardrop Lake and the surrounding Woodland.

It was the spring of what was to become the long hot summer of 1976, the summer against which every subsequent one has been compared.

He was up at one of his favourite places, up above the northern perimeter road in a patch of meadow in front of the row of derelict woodman’s cottages where the view of the lake was quite spectacular.

The lake was shaped like a teardrop, hence its name, and surrounded by ancient woodland of the Dancingdean Forrest.

It wasn’t a huge body of water, just over two miles long and almost a mile at its widest point.

But it would shrink considerably during the summer drought.

It was as beautiful and unspoilt a place as he had ever seen which, was the reason he loved it so much.

And as he sat there admiring the view he couldn’t imagine a more beautiful sight and then Rosie strolled into view.

She was stunning and way out of his league of course he knew that right from the outset, he guesstimated her be four or five years older than him for a start and she was drop dead gorgeous into the bargain, with jet black hair, stunning green eyes and great figure.

But as she hadn’t seen him in the meadow he figured there was no harm in looking, so he did, until she and her dogs disappeared from view.

Shallowfield’s fortunes had always relied largely upon forestry and agriculture for its survival.

In the post war years with rationing and a shortage of work a lot of people moved away, to Abbottsford, Abbeyvale and beyond and it only barely survived.

And the community around Teardrop Lake fared even worse.

Only a few of the houses around the Lake were thriving, a lot of the houses had been rented out and those that hadn’t were in a poor state of repair, some too such an extent they were little more than ruins.

But by the 1970s things were beginning to change, thanks mainly to tourism and an increase in leisure time.

More importantly these people had money in their pockets.

This trend was reflected by the fact that the derelict Shallowfield Lodge, which had been inherited by a young couple from Lincolnshire, Rob and Sheryl Brown, was being turned into a hotel.

Its completion formerly marked the rebirth of Teardrop Lake and by extension, Shallowfield.

 

It was as a result of the resurgence of Shallowfield that prompted Kevin Bush’s parents to leave Lower Gracewood and move to pastures new.

They also had aspirations for their son to become the first member of their families to go to University which he was set to do in September of 1976.

 

Having finished college nothing would have given him greater pleasure than to spend the summer on the lake frittering away his time, however that was not to be because he needed to earn some money.

Teardrop Lake and the surrounding woodland was privately owned and divided into twelve parcels each with one significant dwelling on it, although there were a number of cottages dotted around the woodland as well, some in use and some were not and some were near to collapse.

Only a few of the houses around the Lake were thriving, a lot of the houses had been rented out and those that hadn’t were in a poor state of repair, some too such an extent they were little more than ruins.

Things were changing though, there was a new optimism in the area and only two years earlier the Shallowfield Lodge Hotel Opened and it was the Hotel that provided him with a summer job and more opportunities to see Rosie.

Although he didn’t get to see her as much as he would have liked as she worked in the bar and restaurant and he was more of a general dog’s body.

When he was working inside the Hotel he was sometimes rewarded with the occasional glimpse of the lovely Rosie and on a few of those he was blessed with a smile.

But apart from seeing Miss Byrne working at the Hotel it also afforded him the opportunity to get out on the water in one of the Hotels Dinghies.

And that was how things would have continued for the summer had he not been invited to a house party at the home of the friend of a friend in Forestdean, but not being a fan of House parties he was inclined to say no.

Kevin Bush was invited to a house party at the home of the friend of a friend in Forestdean, he wasn’t going to go at first, house parties weren’t really his kind of thing, but he allowed himself to be persuaded and as it turned out he was glad that he had changed his mind because one of the other guests was Rosie Byrne and he thought she was gorgeous but at the same time even more out of his league than ever.

He had only seen her either in her work clothes of short black skirt and crisp white blouse or walking her dogs around the lake in more practical garb but in her party clothes she was indescribably gorgeous.

All he could do was look at her with awe because there was no way she was going to give him a second look.

Rosie was four years older than him for a start and drop dead gorgeous into the bargain, with jet black hair, stunning green eyes a great figure, and he figured that there was no harm in him looking, so he did, at every opportunity.

 

However after a couple of beers he got brave and started to flirt with her and he was really chuffed that she flirted back, though Kevin actually thought she was just being a really good sport.

They kept up the mutual flirtation for a while and then Rosie asked for a refill of her glass so Kevin reluctantly went off to the kitchen.

He thought it was probably just a ruse to get rid of him because she had tired of the flirtatious converse but he didn’t mind, after all it had only been a bit of fun.

However much to his surprise and delight, not only had she not done a runner while he was in the kitchen, she was actually waiting for him in the hall and steered him expertly into the utility room and planted a hot wet kiss on his mouth.

After a few moments their mouths parted long enough for him to put the drinks down and get a short sentence out.

“I thought we were only flirting”

“You have a lot to learn about women” she said closing in on him again.
“Perhaps you could teach me then” he suggested
“Ok” she replied and leant her face towards him and gently touched her lips against his.

“A little more I think” he said

“You’d like me to teach you some more?” she asked smiling.
“Oh yes” He replied and wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close to him then their lips met again and their mouths opened on contact.

He had never had a French kiss before and he desperately hoped she wouldn’t notice.

She pulled herself away from his over enthusiastic efforts and looked into his eyes and smiled.
“You're not a bad kisser” she said kindly
“You're obviously a good teacher” he told her

 

Her lesson in the art of kissing kept them in the cupboard for 20 minutes and when they emerged from the cupboard the party had rather taken off during their absence, Rosie announced she needed to spend a penny and he watched her walk away.

He was amazed that Rosie Byrne had kissed him!

Apart from the occasional smile he hadn’t realized that she had even noticed him, but it transpired that she looked at him in the same lustful way that he looked at her.

But he began to doubt the evidence of that when her trip to the bathroom appeared to have been contrived so that they would go

their separate ways and as the party was by then in full swing their paths didn’t cross again, even though he searched high and low.

 

After midnight Kevin left the party, which was still going strong, to catch the last train home to Shallowfield.

As he walked towards the station, Kevin was reliving his encounter in the cupboard with Rosie and repeatedly pinched himself in case it were a dream.

He hadn’t walked more than one hundred yards along the road when a car pulled up to the curb in front of him.

“Hey lover” Rosie called as he passed alongside the car

“Do you want a lift?”

“Thanks” he said as he got in the car and Rosie drove away

“So where did you get to?” she asked

“I was going to ask you the same thing” he replied

“Well I got delayed because of the queue for the toilet” she said rolling her eyes “and when I finally got my turn and returned to the cupboard you were gone”

“Well I went to look for you” he said

“I thought you’d gone because you didn’t like my kissing” she said

“Oh you can rest assured on that point” he said

“Good answer” Rosie said 

When they got into Shallowfield she drove passed the end of his road.

“I live the other way” he pointed out

“We’re not going to your house” she replied

“Where are we going then?”

“Just wait and see” she replied mysteriously

“Oh”

She continued driving and took the lane which led to Teardrop Lake, she then drove passed the Hotel where they both worked and followed the northern perimeter road and parked beside a patch of meadow in front of a row of derelict woodman’s cottages.

It was his favourite place on the Lake where the view of the lake was so spectacular although before that night he hadn’t seen it in the moonlight, it was also the place where he had first seen Rosie as she walked her dogs, and where he often watched her in secret.

Kevin turned and looked at her and she was smiling, apparently it wasn’t as secret as he believed.

 

Because Rosie knew that Kevin watched her walk by from the safety of the meadow, she thought it was quite appropriate that was where the next kissing lesson should take place on a picnic blanket she had packed in the car for just that occasion.

 

What Kevin hadn’t realised was that she had set her cap very firmly at him and it was her that made sure he was invited to the party in the first place so that she could get close to him.

It hadn’t been her intention to get him in the cupboard and snog him that was improvisation on her part because he hadn’t taken the hint and asked her out.

 

They made many more visits to the meadow that summer until he went off to Abbotsford University.

There were a lot of tears before he left amidst the promises that it was not the end of them and each of them doubted the resolve of the other.

But it was not the end, it proved to be instead a test of their mettle which they passed with flying colours.

She would spend one weekend per month visiting him in Abbottsford and he would visit Shallowfield once a month as well and at the end of his third year they were married and remained so for 40 years until her death.

LOVE WASHED OVER ME

 

Love washed over me

Liken to the lapping waves

On a lonely beach