Chapter 1

It had been a case of extraordinary timing and luck when Ray applied for a television studio job after leaving the Air Base. His application had caught the eye of a certain female-executive who had once been his wife. She was now Mrs Rita Rowlandson. Make no mistake; they had been divorced from that brief marriage long ago; with virtually no contact since.

Janet; her daughter had been raised as Janet Rowlandson.

Randolph Rowlandson had been a wonderful father too; until the old fool went and died. He'd been nearly old enough for Rita to call Father when she'd married him. Non-the less Rita did have Randolph to thank for her success in Television. And now Rita had got a big break; a powerful position in the Network.

Rita would be on the move in her network role and she had to shed some of the responsibility of being a parent to Janet.

Janet was coming up sixteen, although she looked younger. Yet her intellect was advanced. She wasn't the brash Barbie Doll teenager type but more what people call a bookish or thoughtful kind of kid. So delegating some of her parenting role to a responsible person held no problems for Rita. And that's why Ray was the perfect candidate. Ray was still unattached and she new his background well. Once upon a time they'd been a pair of high school lovers; revelling in youth's blind faith of invincibility. Life was sweet until Rita fell pregnant at seventeen.