I know it’s difficult to trust again
When deceit is all
you’ve known
And lies are all you
got to hear
Don’t let it turn your
heart to stone
My love for you is
boundless
Though the intensity
may alter
There will be
constancy
My love for you will
never falter
Please give me a
chance
Put an end to your
distress
Take a gamble one last
time
The jackpot is your
happiness
If you looked closely
at Isabella Cross you couldn’t help but see why she was one of the most popular
girls at school.
Her Elphin face had a
shape and symmetry that was very easy on the eye and both genders thought she
had a figure to die for.
Although there were
girls in Christian Myers circle who were more classically beautiful than she
was, they didn’t have any of the character of Isabella’s.
Her silky red hair
shone and shimmered as she moved her head and her brown eyes bore into your
soul when you met their gaze and as if her unique beauty was not enough to set
her on a pedestal she was also athletic, artistic, intelligent and downright
sexy.
Everyone, but
everyone, boy or girl that ever met Isabella Cross fell instantly in love with her, but Christian had been in love with
her since the time before she blossomed.
However despite all
the attention she received from the moment of her blossoming Isabella managed
to keep everyone of the persistent suitors at bay which inevitably led to the
rumour that she played for the other side.
These rumour’s led to
reports originating from the “other side” that she didn’t play for them so
therefore the conclusion was that she must be frigid.
Not that Christian
ever believed such rumours for a moment and he had known her longer than
anyone, because Isabella Cross was literally the girl next door.
And she had lived
there since she was three and they had been best friends since the very
beginning.
So when she was
approaching her seventeenth birthday, even though Christian was everything that
she was not, he would have been extremely surprised not to get an invitation to
her birthday party as Isabella, Christian and the other guests had after all
been friends since nursery school.
So having well and
truly established that Isabella was one of the popular group, Christian on the
other hand was in no uncertain terms not.
He was not athletic,
artistic, or sexy but without being immodest he did have intelligence in common
with her even though his intelligence was considered nerdy because his forte
was science, and in particular Physics.
So under normal
circumstances, friendship and intelligence aside, it would be inconceivable if
one of the popular girls was to invite a Science geek to her 17th birthday
party.
Anyone not close to
her could be forgiven for thinking she had a rush of blood to the head such
would have been their surprised but he was not at all surprised.
There may well have
been peer pressure to only invite the “in crowd” but she was not of that ilk
and was not easily led or cajoled.
The popular crowd
would probably have been further surprised when it turned out he was one of
only six guests at the party, one of those being Isabella herself.
Though for him it
certainly wasn’t a surprise knowing her as he did she was never a flashy
person.
She didn’t want a big
flashy party with glitz and glamour and lots of superficial friends.
There was just
Isabella, Christian and four other guests at the party who were also old
friends chosen for the longevity of their friendship rather than for their
social standing.
Kelly Reed was also
one of the popular girls at school but she started with them in nursery as well
and she had no affectation about her either.
Then there was her
cousin Roy Pollard who was 18, Mark Clench and Susanna Perioli.
The party was at a
Chinese restaurant called the The Scented Garden in Abbottsford which
was Isabella’s favourite.
As you would expect
from such a great restaurant it was a really excellent meal and as Roy was 18
he ordered wine with the meal which they all drank as they reminisced about
their shared history and by the end they all laughed until they cried.
As they left The Scented Garden and got down to street level they had the usual
round of hugs and kisses on the pavement and then Kelly went accross the road
to where her Dads car was parked and as Mark, Susie and Roy all lived in the
same neck of the woods they went off to get the bus and Isabella and Christian
headed to the station to catch the train.
As they walked up
station approach he said
“I had a really great
time”
“Yeh me too” she
replied
“Wasnt it great to get
the six of us together again?”
“We should do it more
often” he suggested
““We” should get
together more often” Isabella said
“What just the two of
us?” he asked
“Yeh” she said coyly
“Just you and the
Science geek?” He asked with surprise
“You’re not a geek”
she said defensively
“I’m going to study
Astro Physics at Cambridge” he pointed out
“That proves nothing,
and anyway if you were a geek that wouldn’t stop me fancying you,” she said.
“You fancy me?” he asked pointing at himself
“Yes” she replied “Didn't you know?”
“Not for a second” Christian said and shook his head
“What about you?” she asked shyly
“Do you fancy me?
“Well I don’t know
about fancying you” he said and she was clearly crestfallen for a second and
the smile left her eyes
“But I’ve been in love
with you since we were 7 years old if that counts”
“You total pig” she
said and laughed before she kissed him softy on the lips which led to the most
wonderful spine tingling embrace that seemed to last forever.
When it ended she
looked at him with her soulful brown eyes and smiled the most loving smile.
He returned her smile
and wanted to say something fitting for the moment, something that would truly
mark the moment forever, something poignant and pithy, but alas he was lost for
words.
“Wow” she said beating
him to the punch
“Why didn’t I think of
that?” he said to himself
“Wow” she said again
and giggled then she ran off up the road and shouted over her shoulder
“You’ll have to marry
me now”
He caught up with her
at the station and she was still giggling until he kissed her
“Okay then” he said
and headed toward the platform and it was Isabella’s turn to run after him.
Beautiful eyes
So clear and blue
Big eyes,
“All the better to see
you”
Eyes, the windows to
the soul
What do you see
through?
Beautiful eyes
Imperfection free
Big eyes,
“All the better to see
me”
What do you see?
When you look through
them at me
Beautiful eyes
So honest, so sincere
Big eyes,
“All the better to see
clear”
Do they see me with
love?
Yes they see with
love, my dear?
As the coach pulled
into the Sharpinghead Campsite on a cloudy August morning, Martin Carnell was
half out of his seat and craning his neck to look for her among the many faces
in the crowd, he hadn’t seen her for four long weeks and he had missed her
terribly and he had been looking forward to seeing her again so much.
Martin had only been
going out with Helen Childs for less than three months before she had to leave
for her summer job.
The two of them were students
and had just finished their respective first years when they met at Nettlefield
Junction railway station.
Helen was only tiny, a
smidge over five foot in her stocking feet, providing of course they were thick
socks.
She was on platform 9
and needed to use the bridge to get to platform 6 and as a result she was
struggling to get up the stairs with a suitcase that was almost bigger than she
was.
Martin just happened
to be behind her at the time and came to her assistance and as they both had to
wait for a connecting train they had coffee together and that was how it all
began, simple really.
Had he got the later
train as he planned to do or had she not decided to go home a day early they
would never have met.
Over the months that
followed the two of them saw more and more of each other and grew closer and
closer.
They both lived in
Abbottsford and both had jobs in the town and were able to see each other every
day.
While Martin was a
college student he began working weekends at Hanratty’s Department Store in
Abbottsford.
He was a hard worker
and very reliable so before he went off to University his manager Gary said to
him that if he ever wanted work during the holidays all he had to do was give
him a call.
So he did and whenever
he was home he was always able to pick up shifts at the store and that was what
Martin had sorted out work wise for the summer holidays.
However his new
girlfriend Helen Childs who had a similar arrangement with Crazy Chocolatiers,
which was next door to Hanratty’s in the Phoenix Centre, had that particular summer arranged 8 weeks work helping
at an outward bound camp at Maxlin’s Holiday Camp for children with special
needs.
Crazy Chocolatiers paid more per
hour but working at Maxlin’s worked out better financially as she worked twice
as many hours and she even managed to get a bit of a holiday into the bargain.
What she hadn’t
bargained for though, was meeting Martin and falling in love with him, when she
signed up for the summer there was no romantic interest in her life or anything
that came anywhere close to it.
But after Nettlefield
Junction she did, which wouldn’t have been such an issue had it not been for
the fact that the resort she had signed up to work at was at the other end of
the Finchbottom Vale in Sharpinghead.
Martin could have
changed his plans and joined her at Maxlin’s but he didn’t want to let Gary down
and jeopardize any future work at Hanratty’s.
So that was why on a
tearful day in July they stood at the coach park in Abbottsford and kissed
goodbye and he waved her off as she left for the summer.
Martin was to follow
her after a month and spend two weeks with her in Sharpinghead and then he
would have to leave her again and she would be there for another two weeks.
The outward bound camp
was in a place called Sharpinghead at the Eastern end of the Finchbottom Vale
that was once a working railway station before it fell afoul of Dr Beeching and
his draconian cuts.
The campsite was
attached to Maxlin’s Holiday Camp and although the outward bound events were
nothing to do with Maxlin’s, all those attending did have day passes to use
some of the amenities.
Helen was staying in a
converted signal box which for someone of her diminutive stature was very
comfortable despite the limited floor space but it had bunk beds which she
thought were cool.
She kept herself
really busy from the moment she arrived, volunteering for every activity she
could fit in thus filling the time she might otherwise have been pining for
Martin and praying for the day to come when he would step off the coach.
When the day finally
arrived she was so nervous, her insides were alive with butterflies, she
couldn’t eat nor could she think straight.
She just kept running
the moment when she would see him again through her head over and over.
She wouldn’t look up
as the coach pulled up into the car park, she had volunteered to work the
breakfast shift in the marquee, as it was right next to where the coaches
stopped, so she would be able to watch when the coach arrived on the camping
ground.
She had missed him so
much while she had been there alone, and she couldn’t wait to see him again.
But she didn’t want
him to know just how much she had missed him,
Helen was worried it
might scare him off if he knew or worse it might make him conceited or
complacent.
The other reason she
didn’t look up was that she thought she might cry when she saw him and she
didn’t want him to see that either.
Martin caught sight of
her and his heart soared, he had no idea she would be in the marquee, but why
didn’t she look up?
He had been chewing
his fingernails as the coach navigated its way across the Vale he had missed
her so much, it actually hurt, and after more than an hour on that bloody
coach, stopping at every village and hamlet on the way, so desperate to see her
again and she wouldn’t even look up.
“Helen must have heard
the coach arrive” he said to himself “everyone else is looking”
He kept looking at her
hoping she would look up and smile or wave and then she picked up a tray and
went inside the marquee.
“Where is she going
now?” he asked himself
He quickly
disembarked, at least as quickly as possible considering the coach was packed
with day visitors to Maxlin’s, and walked down the steps and went in search of
his bag.
Helen almost weakened
and looked up but she kept her head down and carried the tray she was holding
inside the tent.
She really wanted to
see him, she was desperate to see him, she had been looking forward to that day
for a month, she wanted to see him so much, she was desperate for just a
glimpse, and she hadn’t slept a wink the night before because she was looking
forward to that moment so much.
Once inside she dumped
the tray on the nearest table and positioned herself by the flaps of the
opening so she could see out without him being able to see her.
“Is that him?” she
said to herself, “That might be him, no it’s the driver”
“What about the one
looking out the window?” she asked herself as she searched among the faces in
the crowd.
“He isn’t there, why
isn’t he there? Where the hell is he?”
She stood on tiptoe
and looked again, not that that helped much it just elevated her from five foot
nothing to five foot two.
Her eyes scanned the
group milling around the pile of back packs and cases.
“He isn’t there, why
isn’t he there?” then the crowd slowly dispersed and there was no sign of
Martin.
“Where is that bloody
man?” she said aloud
“I’m behind you”
Martin said and Helen turned around and launched herself at him and showed him
exactly how much she’d missed him and she cried her eyes out too.
For loves adventure to begin
With life’s journey to
share in
Requires only that our
souls should meet
And the circle then to
be complete
Then with that first
sweet embrace
There is nothing ahead
we cannot face
For love itself is not
the prerequisite
The prize is to keep
and treasure it
Tallulah St George was
among other things the property manager for the Mornington Estate, a role that
was only going to get busier with the reacquisition of the Old RAF Base,
Mornington Field.
Her elder brother
Gabriel was the Lord of the Manor but she and her three sisters Elspeth,
Cordelia and Corliss all played a part in the Estates running along with
Philomena Cruickshank better known as Aunty Phil.
Philomena and her dog
biscuit returned from their early morning walk at 7 am to find Tallulah was in
the Mornington Manor kitchen boiling eggs and burning toast, cooking not being her
forte and even boiled egg and soldiers was a little ambitious for her
rudimentary skills.
“Hi Auntie Phil” she
said brightly “Did you have a good walk?”
“Yes we did” she
replied “It’s such a beautiful morning”
Having quickly
assessed the situation in the kitchen and Aunty Phil said
“I’ll do that Honey, you
go and get yourself ready, we’re leaving in an hour”
Tallulah and Aunty
Phil were very close, perhaps because she was the eldest daughter or maybe
because they were cut from the same cloth.
Shortly after the
death of her father, Valentine, and Gabriel had taken over the running of the
estate, her mother Persephone was taken seriously ill.
It was a bitter blow
for the family and hit everyone very hard, it felt to them like they had been
knocked to floor by their father’s death and were then being kicked while he was
on the ground.
So Persephone’s
younger sister Philomena moved into the Manor to help nurse her and organize
the family at the same time.
In the turbulent two
year period of Persie’s decline Aunty Phil became invaluable to the St George
family, she was the glue that held the fracturing family together, with her
stoical strength and practicality and she needed every ounce of her not
inconsiderable strength of character to achieve it because even she couldn’t
prevent the inevitable.
And during that time a
strong bond was formed between Philomena and the St George Children but the
strongest bond of all was that between Aunty Phil and Tally.
They were off to
Highfinch for a week, Tally to play Golf and Philomena to spend a restful week
away from wedding planning.
They were going to stay
with Cousin Michael who had a rather grand house that backed onto the Golf
Course.
Tally had played the
Lily Green Hollows course many times and it was her favourite, more often than
not when she got to play Golf it was at Forest Ridge, which was a great course
but it was still a poor second to Lily Green.
Philomena was to marry the Vicar of St Winifred’s Peter Cockcroft the following year but the Church
calendar was so crowded they had to plan early.
Philomena had become
friends with Peter and his wife Carole almost the moment she arrived in
Mornington.
Sadly while Carole was
attending to the flowers in the church, she suffered a sudden agonizing
headache, so sudden and intense it felt like she had been struck violently on the
head, which was in reality the result of a ruptured brain aneurysm.
Carole’s death was so
sudden and unexpected that it took a little while for those close to her to
come to terms with it and in the end it was the Mornington Summer Fête which
brought Peter and Phil together.
But Tallulah took the credit for sealing the deal, when pride and
guilt threatened to keep them apart.
Tallulah took the credit for sealing the deal between Aunty Phil and
the Reverend Cockcroft, when pride and guilt threatened to keep them apart.
It was a damp drizzly
morning as July was coming to a close and Philomena and Biscuit had been out
for their usual walk but neither of them were disappointed when the walk was
over.
When they arrived at
the boot room door she opened it and the dog beat her through it and then she
toweled Biscuit dry before kicking off her boots and hanging up her coat.
And afterwards she
went in search of the kettle, when she reached the kitchen Tallulah was sitting
at the table pouring a cup of tea from a large tea pot.
“Is there another one
in there Tally?” she asked
“Yes Aunty, get
yourself a mug”
After Tallulah had
done the honour’s Philomena took a tentative sip.
“Oooh that’s nice” she
said
“Did you enjoy your
walk Aunty Phil?”
“No not much it’s a
bit miserable out there today” she replied
“Have you been out
walking with the Vicar lately?” Tallulah asked
“No, why?” she asked
sufficiently.
“It’s just that I
thought you two had become inseparable” Tally remarked
“That was only because
of the Fête”
“Oh that’s a shame”
Tally said
“Why?”
“Well you’ve had a bit
of a spring in your step for the past few weeks” she replied
“And you didn’t let a
bit of rain dampen your enthusiasm, you’d have been out there for hours on a
day like this”
“Oh I don’t know about
that” Aunty Phil protested
“And you looked good
together” Tally added
“Now you’re just being
silly”
“And I’ll tell you
something else Aunty, I think Carole would have been pleased”
“Would she?” Philomena
asked with surprise
“Yes she was very fond
of you Aunty”
Philomena was
thoughtful for a few moments as she finished her tea, then she stood up and
walked around and kissed the top of Tallulah’s head
“You have wisdom
beyond your year’s honey”
“It’s a gift” she replied
“Come on then dog, it’s
time to get wet again” Aunty Phil said
Those words of
encouragement did the trick and spurred Philomena on to grasp the nettle and as
a result at the age of 46 she was engaged to be married and why the bond
between her and Tallulah was even stronger.
Tallulah, Philomena
and Biscuit set off from Mornington just after 8 o’clock, 24 hours later than planned.
The day before there
had been a hastily convened meeting of the St George clan to discuss the
rumoured redevelopment of the Seaview Hotel in Sharpington which the Mornington
Estate had an interest in saving.
The meeting ended with
a unanimous decision.
It was a lovely
morning as they left Mornington and headed out into the country towards Highfinch
and Tally was hopeful to be on the course by ten o’clock.
The countryside of the
Vale was beautiful enough but as they got closer to the Pepperstock Hills it
got even more so.
The village of Highfinch sat just on the edge of the Pepperstock Hills
and Lily Green Hollows Golf Club separated the village from the Hamlet of Lily
Green.
It was a very
exclusive Golf Club with a large number of grand House’s in both village and
hamlet backing on to it.
It was not widely known
but the Golf Club and all the plush dwelling attached to the course belonged to
the Mornington Estate.
It came into their
ownership in the late 1980’s when a developer tried to buy it to create a
luxury housing estate, Gabriel’s father Valentine, who was the then Baron,
stepped in and saved it.
Because it was so
exclusive the membership fees were exorbitant but they had to be because the
Golf Club and all the properties that surrounded it had to pay their own way.
Gabriel hated the fact
that the club was strictly for the rich but it was a necessary evil to preserve
it and protect it from the developers.
Michael St George
lived in a grand Georgian House on the Highfinch side of the course and his rather
impressive dwelling backed onto the 3rd green.
Michael was standing
on the drive as they pulled up, he was tall and blonde and quite striking like
all the St George men but striking good looks were not restricted to the male
side of the clan, Tally St George was as strikingly attractive as her Cousin
was and Aunt Philomena was merely an older version of her.
“Hi you two” Michael
said already in his Golf togs and in the ensuing melee cheeks were kissed and
embraces were exchanged.
“Did you get us a tee
off time?” Tally asked encouraged by his appearance.
“Of course” he replied
“you’ve got half an hour”
“Great” she replied as
Michael helped them take their bags inside.
From his conservatory
it was possible to look out through the open French windows and across the
expanse of lawn to a stand of ancient woodland that separated his garden from
the Golf course, there was no fence to separate garden and wood the two just
merged, one into the other.
“I’ve got a local guy
to make up a four ball” Michael said as they walked from his back garden
through the trees.
“What a neighbour?”
Philomena asked
“Yes and no” he
replied enigmatically
“Well either he is or
he isn’t” Tally pointed out
“He’s my neighbour at
the moment but he’s soon to be yours” he explained
“That’s still no
clearer” she said
“He has a cottage in Lily
Green” but he’s going to be living in Mornington in the New Year”
“What’s his name?”
Tally asked
“George Vineyard” he
replied
“Ah the clock man” Tally
said although to call him a clock man was akin to calling Rolls Royce mechanic
a grease monkey.
He was a restorer of
antique timepieces, a craftsman, one of a dying breed.
His home was in the
hamlet of Lily Green, which would remain so for weekends, but Monday to Friday
he would live with his sister in law Rebecca and her family who had moved into
one of the old Military Houses in Mornington when he moved his business, Time
and Time Again, up to Mornington Field.
Although she
recognized the name, Tallulah hadn’t met him, Victoria Johnson Higham had dealt
with him.
Victoria was from
Lyndon-Sanders Properties, who were tasked with finding tenants for the
commercial properties as well as some of the accommodation and she worked
closely with Tally who was the property manager for the Estate, which would formally
take over the administration from January 1st.
So she was quite
interested to see what he looked like, she imagined that a clock maker or
restorer would look much like Pinocchio’s father Geppetto and would have
questioned his ability to lift a club let alone swing it, and they would spend
the whole round waiting for him to catch them up, which kind of took the edge
off her appetite for the game.
They skirted the 3rd
green and crossed the 2nd fairway and followed the well-worn path that led
towards the clubhouse and standing by the 1st tee was their fourth and to
Tally’s amazement he looked nothing like Geppetto.
He was a couple of years older than Tally, 6ft 4, straight backed,
square jawed with brown hair and a dimpled chin, and suddenly her appetite
returned, in fact she thought he looked rather scrumptious.
“Sorry to keep you
waiting George” Michael said
“You’re right on time”
he replied
“This is Aunty
Philomena” he said “and Cousin Tallulah”
“Pleased to meet you
both” George said and shook their hands.
“And you” Philomena
retorted “And I answer to Phil”
“And I’m Tally”
It was a very pleasant
morning, warmer than it had been the previous few days, with the mainly blue expanse
of sky broken only by the occasional passing cloud.
The wind that had been
affecting everyone’s scorecards over the previous week had finally died away so
everyone was expecting a pleasant round.
And with the introductions
over there was a five minute discourse as to the order of play etcetera.
They decided on match
play pairs, four-ball format, with the lowest score from each pair counting.
As to teams it was to
be the St George’s against the Phil and George.
On the front nine
Philomena and George were on fire and after seven holes they were up by five.
Tallulah had a bit of
a disaster on the par 5, 8th despite hitting a crisp drive off the elevated tee
which, in the immortal words of the Bing Crosby song absolutely flew “straight
down the middle”, and it landed just short of the dog leg, kicked to the right
and rolled perfectly round the turn.
“Great shot Tal”
Michael shouted
So far so good and after such a shot she felt ten feet tall as she strode down
the fairway.
When she reached her ball it was about 50 yards ahead of George who had the
next longest drive and she found the ball sitting up invitingly.
Michael played his
shot first and put it just short of the green just a chip and a putt away, then
Michael and Philomena played their shots and were also well placed.
So with an unhindered
path to the green Tally had a real eagle chance.
However slightly ahead of her and to the right was a rather large Rabbit
enjoying the summer sunshine blissfully unaware of what was to come.
She selected her club and addressed the ball
“Just hit it straight” she told herself
Tallulah swung the club towards the ball in a perfect ark but she must have
lifted her head because there was an ugly contact and the ball sliced away in
the direction of the Rabbit.
Now had the Rabbit just stayed still he would have lived but alas the sound of
the sliced contact startled the Rabbit and caused it to leap vertically in the
air straight into the path of the ball and it died instantly.
She had no excuse, she
couldn’t even have claimed that the Rabbit put her off, but if the ball had followed
its path she would have been deep in the woods and possibly even out of bounds,
so it appeared that the Rabbit sacrificed himself to save her par.
Luckily for her
Michael chipped and putted to make birdie while the others only managed par.
Despite being 4 down
at the turn with the combination of Michael’s extra yardage on the long holes
and Tallulah putting out of her skin they were all square after the 14th.
Philomena then chipped
in from the bunker to win the 15th
Tallulah sank a 40ft
putt to take 16, the 17th was halved and it was all to play for on the final
hole.
Which was another half
when they putted out and the honours were even and then they walked to the 19th
for some lunch.
After having spent the
morning playing a foursome they were all quite peckish.
After making their
order the sat down and chatted
“I understand we are to
become neighbours in the near future” Tally said
“Indeed” George replied
“the whole family are on the move”
“I’m sure you’ll be
very happy in the village” Philomena “It’s been very good for me”
“I’m sure it’ll be
fine but it’s a big step” George added
“The Vineyards have
been in Purplemere almost as long as the St Georges have been at Mornington
Manor”
“And the business?”
Michael asked
“We’ve been in the
same premises for over one hundred years so it will be a wrench that’s for
sure” George replied
“But it’s the right thing
to do”
“It’s sad though”
Tally added
“The problem when you
work with antiques for a living you are constantly looking backwards” he
replied “But now we have to look forward”
“I’m thinking of
moving to Mornington Field myself” Michael said
“We’ll you’re going to
have to hurry up and decide” Tallulah said with her business head on “time is
short”
“Alright nag bag”
Michael said and laughed
Before Tallulah had a
chance to respond the food arrived.
“George says that
you’re keeping your cottage on in Lily Green” Tallulah asked “Does that mean
you’re not fully committed to Mornington?”
“Leave the poor man
alone” Philomena said “Stop behaving like a landlord, you’re on holiday”
“It’s ok” George
replied “I don’t mind, I’m committed to living in and working in Mornington,
Monday to Friday, but for the weekends I will come back here”
“Mornington is very
nice at weekends as well you know” Tallulah retorted
“She’s like a dog with
a bone” George remarked
“Look Monday to Friday
I will be living with my sister in law Rebecca and her family in Military Row,
but I will returned here at the weekend for two reasons, firstly to give
Rebecca family time without a lodger under her feet and secondly in order to
indulge my passion for Golf, and the one thing Mornington doesn’t have is a
Golf course, and I know that Forest Ridge isn’t far away and it’s ok but it’s
not Lily Green Hollows”
“Here, here” Michael
said
“Well I have to say I
can find no fault with your argument” Tallulah said and they all laughed
“So how long are you here?”
George asked over coffee, his question was directed at both Philomena and Tally
but he was only really interested in the latter.
“About a week” she
replied
“Well I’m on holiday”
he said “so if you need a partner I’m around”
“I’m always looking
for a partner” Tally replied “if you have the stamina”
“You managed to make
yourself sound both desperate and wanton in the one sentence” Philomena said
and laughed which made Tallulah blush.
“Thanks Aunty”
Tallulah said and laughed herself and asked
“So how long is your
holiday?”
“A couple of weeks” he
said “it’s the last one I’m likely to get until after the move to Mornington,
there’s a lot to do at the old premises”
“Then we should definitely
get to play around” she said
Philomena gave a
knowing smile and the other two grinned.
“What have I said
now?” Tallulah asked
Tallulah played golf
every day, sometimes twice a day.
But Philomena and
Michael couldn’t play with her all the time.
Aunty Phil had other
things she wanted to do and people she wanted to catch up with and Michael had
to go off to Antique Fairs and auctions.
She knew quite a few
of the members at the club so getting a game wasn’t an issue but she found
herself attracted to George Vineyard despite the fact he was a bit lippy so she
took him up on his offer several times during the course of the week and also
had lunch with him a couple of times.
They played their
third round together on Friday morning as a two ball and considering the
clement weather the course was very quiet.
So they tee-ed off at
10.30 with no one waiting behind them and the twosome in front of them were
probably two holes ahead.
George thought
Tallulah was looking as lovely as the weather, wearing a large peaked white cap
with her blonde hair scraped into a pony tail sticking out the back.
The rest of her outfit
was all matching, predominately white with yellow trim, Polo shirt, short
flared skirt and ankle socks.
Her ensemble was then
finished off with white Golf shoes and a yellow glove and it was as she retrieved
her ball from the cup on the first green that he noticed that even her knickers
were white with yellow piping.
George was attracted
to Tallulah from the first moment he laid eyes on her but he was reluctant to
act on his attraction she was after all a Lady, not that she ever used the
title but she was a Lady nonetheless.
She was also graceful,
cultured, refined, you name it she ticked the box, but he had none of that.
He wasn’t a poor man
and he also had an expensive education but socially they were worlds apart, he
only knew about two things Golf and Clocks.
Having said all that
she had never made him feel like he didn’t belong in her company.
Tallulah had studied
George’s physical form while they played and had not found it wanting, she also
liked the sense of family that he clearly possessed.
But one of the key
things about him that she was attracted to was one of his physical attributes,
his height.
Tallulah was a tall
girl, which didn’t detract from her elegance or grace but when she was with men
she was more often than not taller than they were and it made her feel
self-conscious but because of his stature George made her feel feminine, and
that was important to her.
Tallulah was undoubtedly
a very attractive woman but there was more to her than that, although he was
distracted by her finer points, like the way her hips moved when she struck the
ball, and the way her breasts kept moving after the ball had gone, the way she
wiggled as she walked down the fairway and the way her buttocks clenched when
she was preparing to putt, but despite all of the obvious he could sense there
was more to her than merely the aesthetic.
Well despite the fact they were both preoccupied with the physical attributed
of their opponent they both managed to card a pretty fair score.
Tallulah was having a
better round and by the time they reached the 17th tee Tally was 2 shots ahead
of George.
Which didn’t bother
him on any level, he wasn’t a macho man who couldn’t bear to lose to a woman
and quite frankly he had never been a competitor.
It never mattered to
him who won as long as it was enjoyable and playing with Tallulah had been fun.
Tallulah was possessed
of a similar mindset, being raised with the mantra of “it’s only a game”.
To some of course it was more than that and winning was all that mattered.
George always avoided
playing with people like that if he could help it and there were plenty of that
ilk.
Tally he was pleased to note was not one of them.
The 17th was a blind hole, and although it was a par three it was a very tricky
hole.
You had to hit off an
elevated tee over some 90 yards of nasty rough culminating in a hundred foot
drop down a sandstone cliff to the green below which had bunkers on three
sides.
As they followed the
path from the 16th green it passed close to the cliff edge and afforded them a
clear view of the 17th green below.
If the green was in
use players would make their way to the tee and wait for the bell to ring
before they played on.
As Tally and George
looked down from the path the green was empty so they knew they were safe to
play.
George went first as he had won the previous hole and he hit a very decent shot
right down the middle.
Then Tally hit hers
and although she cleared the rough she uncharacteristically sliced it off to
the right.
"Oh shit,” she exclaimed also uncharacteristically
"Never mind Tal" He said, “you might be safe there”
They collected their trolleys and followed the long winding path down to the
green.
When they got down there George’s ball was on the edge of the green “You’re
well place at least” she said
“I might even make
par” he agreed
Tally’s ball though
was nowhere to be seen, so they left their trolleys at the front of the green
and went in search of her errant drive, Tally in front with a short iron in
hand in case she had to hack the ball out.
Once passed the apron they entered the woods, after the long walk down from the
tee it was nice to get out of the sun for a minute and enjoy the cool dappled
shade.
After an initial clearing the woods got very thick very quickly.
There was an old
fallen tree halting their progress with gaps beneath it clearly visible.
"It must have rolled under here" she said as she stood on tiptoe and
lent over the trunk amongst the tangle of branches
the result of which was an unrestricted view of her pristine white pants.
She was thrashing
about at the undergrowth the other side of the tree with her club in an effort
to find her ball.
As much as he was
enjoying the view of her bent over the fallen tree he decided to be a gentleman
and offered to find her ball for her.
“Do you want me to
have a look?” he asked “I’ve got a longer reach”
“It must be in here” she
said having one more thrash before conceding defeat and allowing George to take
her place and then it was her turn to ogle.
“Here it is?” he said
and gave it a whack and it dribbled out from under the trunk.
Tally however was still
preoccupied with his rear aspect to notice.
“Have you got it?” he
asked as he pushed himself up off the log.
“Erm no” she said and
looked around quickly and as she crouched down to retrieve it George did the
same and they found themselves face to face and in that moment they almost
kissed, both of them wanted to, but both of them bottled out.
“I’ll have to take a
drop” she said
“Yes” he agreed and
they both left the clearing.
George managed to get
par and Tallulah double bogied but on the par 5, 18th Tallulah was so cross
with herself for losing her nerve that her game completely deserted her and she
dropped six shots.
George channeled all
his anger into his game and ended the round with another par.
When they got to the
clubhouse they found Michael and his Cousin William on the terrace having a
drink, they were sitting quietly reflecting on the day’s events, and they
invited Tallulah and George to join them.
“So you two, have you
had a good round?” Michael asked picking up their scorecards.
“Bless me Tally what
happened on the 18th you really went to pieces”
“Yes my mind was
obviously elsewhere” she replied
“That’s a shame
because you were creaming him up till 17”
“It was in the woods”
George said quietly
“What was that?” asked
Michael
“Nothing” She said and
then excused herself
“And what about you?”
Michael said perusing George’s card
“You got a par on 17?”
he said in astonishment
“Yes” he said as he
watched Tally walk away,
“It was almost
perfect”
After the near miss in
the woods on Friday the best thing to have done for both of them would have
been to get back on the horse, however they were unable to get back in the
saddle as the weather turned and violent storms hit the Vale.
Torrential rain began
to fall on Friday and made the course unplayable they did however almost run
into each other at the crowded clubhouse at lunchtime.
As George crossed the
lobby he caught sight of Tallulah sitting alone at one of the tables so he strode
purposely in her direction and then as luck would have it, or so he thought, he
caught her eye and George gave her a wave, but instead of waving back she
gathered up her things and hurried away which he thought very odd behavior.
On Sunday, although
the course was playable again, there was a big family get-together at Cousin William’s
house.
Instead of enjoying a
splendid Sunday roast with the family
Tallulah spent much of
day fretting over her ridiculous behaviour of the day before when she inexplicably
ran away from George.
As if failing to seize
the moment in the woods when his lips were only inches away from hers wasn’t
bad enough she then ran away and hid in the toilets to avoid him when that was
the last thing she wanted to do.
George meanwhile spent
the day in his cottage also regretting his missed opportunity and puzzling as
to why Tallulah avoided him so blatantly.
He resolved to put her
out of his mind but had determined not to let another opportunity slip by, and
he pledged to himself that the next time he saw her he would seize the moment.
And then he began
looking forward to the game he had arranged for Monday morning with Michael.
As she walked over to
the clubhouse with Michael for what would be her last round before she returned
to Mornington, she was quite nonchalant, blasé even, about her missed
opportunity, she was determined not to let it ruin her last game, after all
that wasn’t what she’d come to Highfinch for anyway, romance was very much not
on her itinerary.
But the moment she
reached the 1st tee and saw George standing with Cousin William all her nonchalance
evaporated.
Neither George nor
Tallulah was aware that the other one would be there so they were both
pleasantly surprised but also a little bit embarrassed.
“Oh Hello” Tally
exclaimed “I didn’t know you were playing this morning”
“Erm nnno… nor did I”
he stammered “I mean I wasn’t expecting to see you either”
If there had been any doubts in their minds that they had been set up
by Michael and William they were dispelled when Michael announced the pairs and
Tallulah was partnering George.
Although there was some embarrassment evidenced by Tallulah’s red face
and Georges stammering they were actually rather pleased.
Tallulah’s only concern involved being able to concentrate on the game
and George just hoped he could live up to his pledge to seize the moment.
Tallulah had had
fancies over the years, an attractive women doesn’t reach her late twenties
without showing or receiving interest but George was different when she looked
at him she felt something deeper than mere attraction or lust and that morning
was no exception.
Georges interest also
ran deeper if not he might have cast a casual eye over the lovely Tallulah and
then got on with the Golf.
But George wasn’t just
attracted to Tallulah because she was a very attractive woman, nor was it
because she was articulate, intelligent, exceedingly good company and a very
competent golfer, she was the “one” he knew that without a doubt.
It was a very pleasant
morning, warmer than it had been the previous couple of days, but as those few
days were actually very cool indeed that wasn’t really saying much.
There was a distinct
autumnal feel in the air, but the skies were predominantly blue, for the time
being, with only broken cloud but the forecast had mentioned the possibility of
thunder later in the day.
The wind had a slight
chill to it but was fairly light and so wasn’t expected to affect anyone’s
scorecards too much and they were both expecting another pleasant round.
“I’ll just get our
scorecards” Michael said and then he was gone, “I’ll come with you” William said
a moment later hurried after him.
“I enjoyed our game on
Friday Tally” George said when they were alone although he wanted to say “I
wish I’d kissed you”
“Me too” she agreed
but asked inside her head “Why didn’t you kiss me?”
“You played very well”
he said awkwardly
“So did you” she
remarked equally so
Fortunately they were
spared any more agony when the other two returned.
Considering the
morning’s bright weather the course was very quiet.
They were teeing off
at 8.30 with no one waiting behind them and a couple of twosomes were at least
a three or four of holes ahead.
It was possible that
the majority of “fair weather golfers” had been put off by the mention of
thunder.
George mused that
Tallulah herself was looking as lovely as the weather,
“When did she not” he
thought to himself.
In deference to the
Autumnal feel she wasn’t wearing her trade mark large peaked cap, but had gone
for a grey flat cap with her blonde hair hidden from view but for a few strands
visible sticking out the back.
The rest of her outfit
was as ever all matching and perfectly coordinated.
Due to the coolness
the short flared skirt and ankle socks had been replaced by a more autumnal
outfit, a white cotton shirt, beneath a pale blue argyle cardigan, a knee
length pleated skirt in the same grey fabric as her cap and long argyle socks,
her ensemble was then finished off with black brogue Golf shoes and a pale blue
glove.
“Damn she looks good”
George thought to himself.
Tallulah was the last
one to tee off, the other three had all taken decent shots and were safely on
the short grass.
She took a couple of
practice swings and then addressed the ball before hitting a crisp clean drive
which sailed straight down the middle of the fairway.
George didn’t follow
the flight of the ball he was watching her and appreciating the finer points of
her swing.
Not the swing of the
club but the swing of her hips as she struck the ball.
George hung back and
followed the other as they set off in search of their respective balls he did
so because he like the way she wiggled as she walked down the fairway.
As they played their
way around the course George found, mainly due to the distraction that was the
beautiful Tallulah St George, he had managed to card a barely average score.
Tallulah on the other
hand was having a great round spurred on by her mission because she had
decided, as she watched him drive off on the first tee, what she was going to
do.
She had decided that
at the end of the round she would ask him out to dinner that night.
It was her last chance
as she was going home to Mornington the next day.
She was playing so
well because she was in a hurry to get to the end.
Every time she caught site
of the scrumptious 6ft 4, straight backed, square jawed, and dimple chinned
clock mender her legs went wobbly,
especially when he smiled at her.
So after every smile
she hit a 250 plus yard drive and by the time they reached the 15th tee Tally
was 9 shots ahead of him which was when the weather began to turn.
The early sun and blue
skies were quickly swallowed up by a blanket of grey cloud, that cloud then
progressively darkened and was then distinctly inky, and distant rumbles of
thunder could be heard.
“I’m not liking the
look of that sky” Michael said
“Nor me” agreed
William
“Ok then” George said
“Using the maxim that discretion is the better part of valour, I think we
should concede the round to Tally”
“I couldn’t agree
more” Michael said and William concurred
So with the three men
having agreed to concede unreservedly they decided to call it a day.
But they were still in
the middle of nowhere and a long way from the sanctuary of the clubhouse.
Fortunately the 14th
green lay between the 15th and 18th Tees so George made another suggestion.
“We might as well play
18, it’s the shortest route back to the 19th”
They all agreed and
decided to play the 18th back to the clubhouse.
This was a relief to
Tallulah because she wasn’t sure how many more long drives she had left in her
and it was a relief to everyone else as it meant they should easily make it
back to the clubhouse before the storm broke.
The 18th was a par
five dogleg, slightly downhill to the turn and then flat all the way to the
green, easily reachable with two decent long iron shots.
With a firm straight
drive from the tee it was possible to make the turn and give yourself an
unhindered second stroke.
Tallulah went first as she had won the previous hole and she hit a very decent
shot right down the middle of the fairway that kicked on nicely and scampered off
down the hill, which was pretty well perfect.
Then George, Michael
and William hit theirs respectively and although they didn’t out drive Tally
they ended up only about 30 yards behind her and also perfectly positioned.
After all hitting
decent drives from the tee George played his second shot first as he was
furthest from the pin and caught it perfectly and sent it sailing off and
landing plum in the middle of the fairway.
“Great shot George”
William shouted
William and Michael
both hit wayward shots and ended up in the trees to the left of the short
grass.
Tally however caught
her second shot rather well and landed only feet away from George’s ball but it
kicked up on impact and ended up in the light rough just on the edge of some
very thick woodland.
"That was bad luck”
said George “I think you’re safe there though”
They collected their trolleys and headed off up the fairway just as the first
drops of rain began to fall.
“We should just finish
the hole in time” she said optimistically
“I’m not so sure”
George replied doubtfully
When they reached their
respective balls, George’s was sitting up quite nicely so he quickly selected a
5 iron and spanked it crisply to the edge of the green.
He put his club away and prepared to watch Tallulah play her ball, well what he
was really watching was the wiggle of her buttocks the swirl of her pleats and
that was when the heavens opened.
George took a few
steps backwards beneath the dense foliage canopy.
“Come on Tal” he
shouted “make a dash for it”
She grabbed her
trolley with one hand and with her club in the other she ran towards him.
“Come on” he urged
“you can keep dry under here”
And George withdrew
deeper into the trees as she bowled under the leafy cover.
“God that’s savage”
she said
For a few moments they
stood watching the rain fall like stair rods hammering into the ground as
thunder rumbled nearby.
“Are you ok?” he asked
“Yes” she said with a
chuckle “a bit damp but fine”
The rain began to fall
even harder so they walked a few more yards into the wood and sheltered beneath
an old oak tree.
It was at that moment
that he became aware of just how damp she was, the front of her shirt was so
when he could see her underwear through the wet fabric.
Tallulah noticed what
was drawing his attention and covered it promptly with her cardigan.
“Sorry” he said and
laughed
“Honestly!” She
snapped “is that all you men think about?”
But she was laughing
as she said it and she slapped him playfully.
He wanted to say that
it wouldn’t happen again but that would have been a lie.
He had after all been
unable to keep his eyes off her all morning and had no desire to stop.
The two of them stood
beneath the oak both desperate to speak but equally unable to think of something
to say and just at the moment they were beginning to feel awkward thunder
clapped loudly overhead and made Tallulah jump, so as she looked to the sky
George took his opportunity and kissed her, a long languid kiss that they had
both craved.
After a minute or two
she broke away from his embrace and smiled before slipping her arms around his
neck and kissing him in return.
They continued to kiss beneath the oak tree as the storm raged
overhead for several minutes and when they stopped Tallulah rested her forehead resting against his and asked.
“What made you kiss me
today and not on Friday?”
“That’s easy” he said “It was the Argyle Socks”
They stayed another half an hour in the wood until Tallulah said quite business like,
“We had better make a
move, the storm has passed”
“I was enjoying the
kissing” he said
“They’ll be plenty of
time for kissing” she replied
“Is that a promise?”
he asked but she didn’t answer, she just walked out to where her ball was
laying and hit it with some venom and it landed two feet from the pin.
After they had both
holed out on 18, Tallulah with a birdie and George with a par, they walked
towards the clubhouse where Michael and William had been ensconce for half an
hour and then shared something of an awkward moment until George broke the
silence.
“Do you want to have
lunch?”
“I’d rather have
dinner” she replied
When I walk with you
Through the woods and
hills
Just you and I
together
The real world
disappears
Melts away like a
dream
In the cold light of
day
That you just can’t
quite remember
We avoid the other
walkers
Such is our greed for
each other
That we jealously
guard our company
We are in love
Though we speak of it
reluctantly
Lest we break the
spell
So we embrace together
In our special world
Cocooned from the real
world
By our close proximity
Just you and I
And that is all the
world we need
