Chapter 5

The Same Evening - Sunday July 15 - [David]

The house was large, daunting, towering above the road. It was one of a pair, rather isolated, with good views over the ground away from the town. I'd only seen it at night before, when I'd brought Catherine back here. I was feeling very low. A long way from my home - which was nothing like this - and after last night's disaster, I didn't know where I stood with Catherine. She'd sounded better on the phone. At least she hadn't been thrown out. I could guess what my mother's reaction would be if either of my sisters came home with a story like she had. Catherine's mother had sounded a tough cookie on the phone. A doctor. Catherine had been rather vague about her family life. We'd been pre-occupied with other things - work, college, sex.

Well. Here was the nameplate. 'Dr Carter'.

Big and bold and brassy. Tweeds and heavy glasses? Don't be daft lad.

She'd been good on the phone, and maybe, just maybe, it would be Catherine waiting for me, not her mother.

I marched down the side of the house - better not to look like a man sneaking into the VD clinic.

Two steps up to the door. Ring the bell? No.

It looked big enough to wake the dead. The great big knob in the middle of the door wouldn't turn. I pushed and the door opened and I almost fell into the room. There was a window on my left streaming setting sunlight into my eyes. I blinked and realised that the other door was open. Catherine was standing there, panting as though she'd been running. Her hair was done differently.

Nicer? Hanging like a bell round her face.

She looked gorgeous. She stepped into the room and was in my arms. I bent to kiss her.

Nice perfume. New?

Her breasts were pressed against me, and I felt my penis stir.

Down boy.

She seemed a bit hesitant, but her arms went round my neck and she was kissing me back. I slid one hand down to her bottom to pull her against me. She resisted momentarily and then moulded herself against me. My penis was pressing stiffly into her as I broke the kiss to lay my face against hers.

"Oh! Catherine." She pulled back before I could say any more.

Crinkles round the eyes? Has she had a nose job? Red hair? Whoa boy.

The arms slid from round my neck and my hand was being shaken politely.

"Mr Jeffes. None of my patients ever paid me a nicer compliment." The effect was slightly spoiled by her being out of breath, but pretty good. "I promise not to tell if you won't."

Brain blank - over to you auto-pilot - get us out of this one.

I shook her hand, and she gave it a little squeeze.

"David. I'm Catherine's mother, Elizabeth. I was going to get her to meet you in here, but she's still in bed."

Oh shit! I have to see her. Tonight. Oh please.

"I told her I'd keep you down here for ten minutes while she tidies herself up." She looked at her watch.

Blessed Elizabeth, mother of Catherine, do you need a slave?

"Give her another five minutes, then I'll sneak you up. I'm afraid some of the other children might give you a hard time. Catherine needs a bit of comforting, so you'll do better on your own." We sat down.

"Thank you. You're very understanding. I'm sorry - about last night I mean... I..."

Well I have to say something but why set off down that stony path?

"I'm glad you're not sorry for anything else."

Oh God, she's going to hold everything against me.

She smiled, like the sun coming out.

"I'm sorry. I get into the habit of teasing. I won't hold anything against you."

She looked away as the door opened and a child came in. He struggled up into her lap and she hugged him. He stared at me.

"This is Benjamin, my youngest."

"I never flirt, David. Never. I'm frigid - well, I used to be. I had terrible problems until I met Andrew. So when you kissed me, I wanted to know what would happen."

Frigid? This gorgeous woman with how many children? And telling me. But I don't think she's going to tell me what happened for her. She knows what happened for me! Perhaps best not to know if she's going to be my mother-in-law.

"Don't be embarrassed, I'm interested in sex psychiatry. It fits with gynaecology. Some of the problems my patients have are psychological. And with my own history, I've always been interested. So you were an experiment. We won't repeat it if you don't mind." She smiled at me. God she was beautiful.

"Bet you thought 'Frigid? This gorgeous woman'"

Help, she can mind read too.

I nodded. She sighed.

"Beautiful women get typed - they have to be sexy. And if they have low libidos or other problems, then their failures just reinforce the problem."

She studied me for a while and then said, "Right! Time's up. Come on." She poked her head out of the door, picked the child up and led the way upstairs. There was a babble of voices from another room.

"Catherine told me the gory details about last night" She grinned back at me down the stairs. "I'm glad you could laugh at it. Both of you. Are you serious?"

I nodded. "I think so. I hope so"

"I think she's serious too. Bit young to settle down, but you can't always pick and choose." We were outside a door. She stopped.

"I think you'd better tell Catherine about the mistake in the consulting room. I sometimes think she can read minds. I won't tell, but it's better to keep things open. And I was the one to blame."

Thank you. Now dig a hole for me to step into.

She opened the door.

How could I have mistaken mother for daughter? They weren't that alike, except maybe in size, and those breasts that had pressed against me downstairs were half as big again as Catherine's. She was propped up on mounded pillows wearing a nightdress that left her throat and chest bare. Her hair was pinned up, ready for a bridegroom to unpin. I'd expected a pale, wan and poorly Catherine, but this was a radiant vision. I'd never realised how lovely she was - we'd been friends and then lovers - well, sort of. But now I looked at the woman she was and I was dismayed. I thought 'how can I compete for this - she can take her pick'.

"I thought you'd never come," she said. "I couldn't keep that up any longer." Elizabeth pushed me into the room and closed the door and I fell on my knees by the bed to try and gather Catherine up. I was too low down and she laughed at me, putting one arm out.

"Come on the bed, silly." I lay beside her kissing her, holding her, laughing, crying, giggling. At some point, I kicked off my shoes, and slid under the duvet with her. Eventually she lay at peace against me and we talked and talked about nothing.

After a while we'd said all there was to say that was trivial. Last night's disaster hung menacingly between us. I didn't know how to find out what she felt. Then she moved her hand down from my chest and trailed it lightly across the front of my trousers.

"David?" She pushed away from me and sat up with the front of her nightdress sagging alarmingly. "What's wrong? I thought I was pretty alluring. I normally have more of an effect on you. I haven't offended your sensibilities have I? I know I've been putting you off for weeks, but after last night there doesn't seem to be much future in that."

I stared back at her sighing with relief. I reached out and kissed her gently on the lips. She responded vigorously with her tongue and then pressed her breasts against me. She undid a couple of my shirt buttons and touched my chest. She pushed at my jacket frustratedly.

"Come on, you're wearing far too many clothes. What is wrong with you?"

"Well your mother just brought me up here. She didn't explain. Why are you in bed?"

"Do I look ill? I'm in bed for you, of course."

"You look as beautiful as ever. But I can't believe that your mother would lead me to you with the intention of me going to bed with you. "

"Take your clothes off and I'll explain."

I got out of bed and glanced nervously at the door. "Catherine, we can't. Someone might come in. And besides..."

She had pushed the duvet aside and was pulling her nightdress over her head. I stared as her nakedness emerged. She stared back with the garment held over her head, tangled with her hair. Her breasts were perfectly round, hanging a little apart with the nipples taut and pointing straight at me. Her knees were raised and parted to keep her balance so that I could see very clearly the invitation between her thighs. I was spellbound and suddenly trembling.

"And besides... what?" She threw the nightdress aside and shook her hair down catching the pins as she did. "I shall begin to think that you don't want me any more. The offer might expire soon."

I was nervous and off balance and even a little irritated by the pace she was setting. I'd never seen her so intimately naked before and her beauty was intimidating. Last night we had been in near darkness but now the light was full on her and she was flawless. She looked at me impatiently and then her face softened and there was affection there. She softly spoke my name and looked at me. I knew then why I was unsure. A whole new commitment was in front of me and I hadn't considered the implications.

"Catherine," I hesitated, "just slow down. I need to tell you some things." I picked up her nightdress and threw it to her. "Put that back on. You're far too distracting without it. And please explain why you're in bed."

She stared at me with her mouth slightly open holding the nightdress in her lap. She slid away from me to lean against the bed head. The blood had drained from her face and I realised that she had misunderstood me.

"I love you," I gabbled. I knelt on the bed to follow her and take her hand. The nightdress fell aside and I was mesmerised by her nakedness for a moment. I gabbled on "You're only eighteen but I don't want this to be a passing affair. I want it to be permanent. So I don't want to upset your parents by being caught making love to you. I know I haven't thought this through and it's the wrong time but I have to know what you feel and you might be pregnant from last night but if you're not then I'm not going to double the risk. I didn't get anything because that seemed just too cold-blooded. I knew how you felt about not making love and last night was a mess. And there's another thing I need to confess to."