Chapter 9

It was fifty miles to the Millsum’s house and Holly allowed two hours for a bathroom break, getting lost and generally driving slowly in her new car. She found it a joy to be able to leave when she wanted and move at her own pace while getting reacquainted with the road users and her own skill level which she would admit had diminished a little since she had been at university. When her phone indicated that she was about five miles away she had thirty minutes to spare, but the roads were becoming smaller and rather than running straight from one village to the next they were twisting and turning through countryside and fields, with tall hedgerows on either side. It was difficult to see oncoming cars and so she had to slow to a crawl as she navigated around blind bends. Even so, she was at the address with five minutes to spare and drove past, turned and parked on a verge so that she could arrive on time. She could see the house from where she sat and was more than impressed. It seemed to be another of those mansions that commanded pole position on Foley Road, tasteful, splendid and surrounded by a garden, tennis court, garages and then fields.

She pulled out and made the short hop to the front gate, then over the cattle grid that was set into the road. The car lurched and she shifted into second gear, wondering if she had lost traction as she had bumped over the smooth poles of the grid. The driveway curved elegantly between some small trees then opened up into an expanse of gravel with a circular fountain in the middle. She pulled up a discrete distance from the front steps, switched off and after grabbing her notebook, walked up to the front door and pressed the large, round bell button. A woman opened the door and smiled at her, extending her hand.

“Holly?”

“Yes!” she said, shaking the lady’s hand as she entered the marble foyer.

“Penny Millsum, how are you?”

“I’m fine thanks, what a wonderful house!”

“It is rather grand, isn’t it? Come this way, John’s in the kitchen. We might even catch him doing some cleaning!” Penny laughed and Holly did too, understanding too well than her husband wasn’t likely to be doing anything of the sort.

“John, Holly’s here”

He put his coffee down and walked over to her, shaking her hand and smiling at her with warmth. He was almost a foot taller than her and dominated both women in the room. His hand was warm, firm without hurting, sincere as was the continued smile on his face.

“Holly, thank you so much for coming. Did you find us all right?”

“Oh yes, wonderful countryside too, so nice to get out of the city and see a bit more of the area,” she replied. He had blonde hair with streaks of silver grey, short and perfectly groomed. He would not have been out of place in a men’s shirt catalogue.

“I told her that you were probably in here cleaning,” said Penny as she placed a coffee container in the machine.

“The last time I did that was when you dropped the Sunday roast dear!” he said, clearly joking. She grinned at him and all was suddenly quiet as the machine gurgled away. He turned to Holly. “Coffee?”

“Oh that would be nice.” She looked at the array of coffee pods, and pointed to the dark roast. “How about that one?”

They made coffee, John re-heated his in the microwave then ushered her out of the kitchen and into his study. He guided her to one of three padded armchairs and he sat on the edge of his desk, facing her. He had what looked like a copy of her resume in his hand.

“So, Holly, what can you tell me about Millsum?” he asked. The question threw her, making her realise that this wasn’t going to be a fireside chat. She knew a lot and decided that he did too and would have heard most of the comments, both positive and negative before.

“Millsum has a capitalized value of 3.2 billion dollars and is traded on four exchanges. Earnings have been static in constant currency terms over the past four quarters although this is viewed as a positive given the economic climate. Questions have been raised about your cash burn and how you’re going to develop value for shareholders organically but that point seems to always get raised by one brokerage on your earnings calls and not others. Your staff turnover is low, especially overseas. Millsum is ranked eighty-seven on the most popular places to work out of five thousand global firms. The Executive Committee get high marks on the online anonymous reference sites although the staff re-grading last year seems to have upset quite a few. In summary, your issues are common across most firms of your size and I personally didn’t see any red flags.”

He stood and walked to the window. “I see,” he said.

“Oh, and Sam said he had a wonderful internship” she added. He had broad shoulders and his khaki trousers had an inviting bump in the zip area. He would have made the grade for a men’s trouser catalogue too.

“He did very well with us last summer. You’ve had to work very hard at Witney I think?”

“Yeah, especially in the first and second years, long hours and tough exams.”

“Let’s say you have an event coming up five hundred miles away in two months. You have been given the responsibility for producing it. Who would your first few phone calls go to?”

“My client, whoever is paying for the event, the person I’m working for.”

“Then?”

“The venue coordinator or manager, the person on the ground who would be my local contact.”

“Then?”

“My manager or team, to get their input.”

“Then?”

Holly had the answer but would struggle for anything after that. He had turned to her and she averted her eyes, scanning the room. She loved the feeling of being tested, put on the spot and asked to respond immediately. The man exuded power, authority and controlled her destiny.

“An internal accounting person. I would want to present my budget to that person and ensure that we would be able to fund it to whatever extent we normally would. There should be no payments or expenses incurred before internal sign-off.”

“Do you have a passport?” he asked without changing tone or pace.

She was thoughtful for a moment. “Yes” she replied.

“But you’re unsure if it has expired or not.” She laughed delightedly and nodded. He smiled back at her then glanced at her resume again. “The orphanage must take a lot of your time?”

“It can do, I have to let them know when I can help and when I have to focus on school, they’re understanding.”

“They’re world-class. Being accepted as a volunteer is no mean feat.”

“Thank you. It’s been rewarding to follow some of the kids through the years.”

“Any questions for me?”

“Yes, what problems does Millsum have that you would expect me to help resolve, if I was successful?”

“We get tripped up on details, Holly. Clients tell their Producer that they want Room A for the keynote but it gets set up in Room B. They tell us that they are expanding the breakout sessions to three tracks but that doesn’t get implemented. We send out registration emails saying hotel parking will be paid for but we don’t work that out with the hotel and our attendees get stuck with exorbitant parking fees.”

She nodded. She hadn’t experienced any of those issues herself but could imagine how it could happen. They chatted for another thirty minutes, touched on Jane Tanner’s rescue, her preference for travel and whenever he responded she became more familiar with his clothes, their cut, the probable shape of his limbs and what it might be like to be tied to the armchair.

He put her resume down on the desk and smiled. “So, what do you think will happen next?”

Without pause she smiled and said “You’ll hire me and I’ll impress you as I develop into one of your key resources based on feedback from clients.”

He laughed, looked at her and nodded at her. “Well said, young lady. Well said.” He went behind his desk, sat and tapped a few keys. Her heart pounded, knowing she had overplayed her hand. She should have said that she looked forward to hearing from Millsum or something equally benign. It was going to be a miserable journey home and she guessed her hour was up and that he was checking email and his calendar. The laser printer hummed into life and shot out a few pages. She dug a nail into her palm, trying desperately to think of something to say which might restart the conversation. He crossed to the printer, picked up the pages and folded them before placing them in an envelope. He crossed the room to her and she stood, waiting for the handshake.

“Holly, you’re young, you have some limited experience in events planning through the Foundation but have done well at Witney. I like students from there, my son went there and thrived. I’d like to chat more today but I have a conference call at five and need to prepare.” He handed her the envelope and she frowned, thinking that maybe he was going to pay her travel expenses. His after-shave or deodorant wafted across to her with the breeze from the envelope and she allowed her eyes to travel up to his.

“Oh, thanks,” she said with little conviction.

“In there is an offer of employment. It has no start date but I would like you to join us within the next six weeks. The salary is appropriate to how I view your skills and value to us today. Please read it through and call the HR number if you have any questions. If you wish to move forward with the offer, and I really hope you do, then simply sign it and scan it back to HR. They will do the rest.”

She wanted to hug him so badly but simply gulped and sank back down. “Oh wow, thank you so much Mr. Millsum.”

“John. It’s John while you’re in my house, Mr. Millsum when you join us.”

“John. I won’t disappoint you!”

“Holly, let me tell you that in all my years, I have never heard such a thorough and balanced summary of Millsum. You captured all the salient points without an ‘um’ or an ‘ah’. You are eloquent, energetic, and intelligent and those are the qualities that we need.”

“Thank you,” she said humbly, standing again as he walked to the door. His clock said ten minutes to five.

“I’ll see you on your way.”

They shook hands at the front door and Holly got into her car, dropped the envelope on the passenger seat, put her seat belt on and turned the key. There was silence. She smiled up at John as he waved but several turns of the key just made metallic clicking noises from the steering column and nothing roared into life. She could see him frowning as he took a step nearer. She slumped back into the seat, wondering how such a wonderful moment could be destroyed by a breakdown in her brand-new, mechanic-inspected car. He was at her window and she pressed the button to roll it down.

“Doesn’t sound like you have any battery, the starter’s not turning. Burglar alarm, anti-theft device?”

“No, not that I know of.”

“OK, look, I’ll call Richard and he can help you get sorted out, I really have to get on that call, sorry Holly,” he said, pulling out his phone. From the conversation she assumed that Richard was his son and that he was in the house somewhere. He rang off and bent down to her window. “He’ll be right out, gotta dash.”

“Ok thanks very much and sorry for all this,” she said, waving her hand at the dashboard. As John got to the front door a younger, leaner version of the man appeared. They exchanged a few comments, both nodded, the young man looked at his watch and then walked towards her. He really was a younger version of his father. Almost six feet she guessed, with thick blonde hair, clean shaven and stylish clothing that she realised hadn’t been put on just for her. He grinned as he approached and she got out of the car, shaking his hand.

“New car, eh?” he asked, regarding her kindly with a wonderful smile.

“Hmm, this is my first long journey in it,” she said. The guy was cute, nice clothes, well-fitting jeans. Lustrous, thick blonde hair.

“Can I use the keys?” he asked. She handed them to him and watched as he sat in her seat, turned the ignition and got the same result. “Oh dear, not good.”

“Had it three days. Bust already” she said, dismayed and angry with the dealer.

“My Dad suggested I run you home if it won’t start. I’ll get my car if you wait here,” he said, handing her back the keys.

“Oh no, no don’t do that, I don’t want to be any trouble!”

“It’s fine. I have to be back in the city tomorrow so I’ll run you home then stay at my apartment, come back later tomorrow. It’s fine, really Holly.”

She wasn’t sure, even if that did mean she would share a car journey with him. “I still need the garage to fix it.”

“The mechanics will take a look at it in the morning. They look after our tractors, farm machinery, generators and such like.”

She smiled, impressed. “Well OK, then.”

“Stay here, back in two mins.”

As he pulled to a halt on the gravel she left the keys on the driver’s seat, grabbed her things and slid into his passenger seat. The car purred quietly compared to her own and after they rumbled over the cattle grid she settled back into the leather upholstery. He drove with supreme confidence and courtesy through the narrow lanes and as the miles flew by so their conversation developed. He was open, candid and amusing, relating some of his experiences at Witney which were similar to her own. She responded in kind, surprising herself with the confidences she shared with him and his understanding, his questions and suggestions but never judgment. They laughed at some of the embarrassing things that had happened to them over the past four years and after they had gone thirty miles Holly felt at home, secure and understood that Richard could turn out to be a good friend even if she didn’t take the offer from his father, which seemed inconceivable. She mentioned the envelope and Richard told her about Sam’s internship and the bond that seemed to develop between his father and Sam. She could absolutely understand why John Millsum would value Sam’s friendship and trust his recommendations. She was just counting all the things that she had to be grateful for when he pointed to a sign in the road.

“You ever been up there?” he asked, slowing.

“I’ve never been this far north of the city, what is it?”

“Beech Outpost, it’s an old lookout post. We’re going to climb up it!” he said as he pulled into the deserted car park.

“We are?” asked Holly. He jogged round to her side of the car and opened the door for her. She had wondered what he was doing but the courtesy was refreshing, even if it was a little over the top. He helped her out and she liked the feel of her hand in his. He locked the car and they started up the old flag stone steps.

“It’s only a couple of hundred feet, you’ll survive!” he said, walking alongside her.

“Hey I work out you know!”

“I thought you did. You go to the campus gym?”

“Yeah, or run outside when I feel like it.”

The rounded a bend and she could see the end of the climb up ahead. There seemed to be some sort of circular stone structure and as they approached it was clear that the lookout post had been protected by huge blocks of stone arranged strategically to defeat attack.

“Hey, in a few minutes it’ll be sunset,” he said, climbing up onto the uppermost steps.

Holly looked out from a lower level and was amazed at the view. The outpost had a commanding view of the countryside and river which stretched from left to right below them. She grabbed her phone and took a couple of pictures, then joined him up on the higher level.

“It wonderful up here, such clean fresh air and what a view. Look, I can see cows down there in that field.” They stared in silence for several minutes, Holly acutely aware that they were alone in the late afternoon sunshine. She glanced across at him, noting his profile as she looked further round at the river then back at him. She wondered how it would feel to run her fingers through that thick blonde hair, or grab his buttocks and squeeze.

They gazed in silence as the sun set casting brilliant reds and oranges on the few clouds that they could see. She took many pictures with her phone, as did Richard, and when the colours had lost their vivid brilliance he left the upper row of stones and stood below her so that her feet were level with his belt.

He opened his arms and shouted “Jump!” He grinned at her as she stared down, very uncertain. “I’ll catch you!”

“No, I’ll squash you!” she said, honestly thinking she would bowl him over and they would both get hurt.

“I promise, I’ll catch you. Come on!”

She threw her purse containing her phone down to him which he caught and placed on the ground. She pursed her lips, shook her head and half jumped, half fell off the stone. He caught her waist with ease, swinging her round half a turn until her feet touched the ground. They laughed with glee and she looked up at him, wondering if this was the moment of their first kiss. He smiled, let go of her and they set off back down the path leaving Holly with just her purse to hold and wondering if she had misjudged the level of friendship which, after all, had been less than an hour.

He drove only about half a mile before stopping again in a smaller car park. Guiding her across the lush green grass they stopped at the edge of the river. It rippled with little white waves towards the middle.

“I see this place every time I drive to my parent’s place but have never stopped. Look at these little stones, they’re all different colours!” He crouched down and selected a couple from the water, placing them in Holly’s hand. One had a pale pink hue to it, while another was shiny grey, and a third a shiny red. “Seem to be all sorts of different rock types, right?” he said.

She looked at the little pebbles and felt their surfaces, worn smooth by water and time. “Yeah, so smooth, and light. I’m going to gather a few of the really small ones as souvenirs.” He glanced away and she was sure it was because he wanted her to know he wasn’t trying to look up between her legs as she swiveled back and forth in her tight skirt and stockings. But he was there when she started to stand, offering his hand to help her up. She had no need of assistance but the thought once again touched her. She could do without the car door help but the gentle hand for support was, in her mind, the mark of a gentlemen. Rob would simply have told her to hurry up so they could get back to her place and get upstairs.

Five miles further south her stomach rumbled loud enough to be embarrassing. She glanced at him and saw he was smiling. She laughed as he said “Four minutes and I’ll have you at my favorite restaurant.”

“Oh you don’t have to stop just for me,” said Holly, pleased that they would have a chance to eat something together.

“It’s fine. I’d like to take you there.”

They parked and entered the ‘Ristorante Italiano’ at about six-thirty. Richard was recognised immediately by the greeter. She hugged him and led them both to a table by the window. Small lights twinkled in the garden beyond and it looked like the followed a small path away from the main building. They were just reading the menu when someone boomed out Richard’s name. He looked up, stood and hugged the bearded man who had shouted out at him.

“Ricky, you’re back! You come to work, right?” asked the man, glancing down at Holly with a broad smile and a wink.

“Alberto! Nope, I’m here to eat. No work for me today!”

“Ah Ricky, we don’t see you any more, it’s a shame!”

“Alberto, this is Holly. And Holly, Alberto here owns this restaurant, I used to work here as a waiter.”

“My best waiter ever is Ricky, guests love him, and he always get big tips!”

“It was a great time Alberto. All good workers.”

“Chrissy was on the lunch shift. She will be so sad she missed you!” said Alberto, seriously.

Holly’s heart thumped in her chest, dissecting the name, the tone and the inference. She stared down at the menu as though trying to decide what to eat.

“Give her my best Alberto, please!” said Richard. He sat down again and asked Holly if she was ready to order. She nodded and Richard asked if Sharron was working that night. Alberto said he would assign her to his table, and left. Before Sharron arrived two other wait staff came up and greeted him, giving him a hug and smiling happily at Holly. They were all young, maybe a couple of years younger than her but genuinely pleased to see him. An older woman approached who looked like she was in her early thirties. She beamed at him but tiredness showed around her eyes as she took out her order pad.

“Ricky, usual?” she asked.

“Holly, what would you like?” he asked, ignoring her suggestion.

“I’d like the lasagna please,” said Holly, nodding at them both.

“Great, and I will have my usual Sharron, please.”

The woman brought water and after another glance at the wine list Holly ordered a glass of house red while Richard ordered a small beer. They clinked glasses and drank, looking around the room and occasionally at each other in an ancient ritual of trying to work out the level of friendship. Before their food arrived, two of the wait staff came over and joined them. Jess, a vivacious dark-haired girl sat next to Holly and a young boy joined Richard. They swapped stories but integrated Holly with ease, making her feel part of the team as they laughed and joked together. Holly was thoroughly enjoying herself in the company of more than one person, thriving from the energy of the conversation, friendship and shared catastrophes that they ran through. Even when the food came they stayed, then slipped away, returning now and again for more stories. Other staff also sat with them to the point where Holly felt that she had met everyone who might have ever worked for Alberto. She had another glass of wine and with her food, the company, conversation and sheer novelty of the evening she was simply delighted with the whole day. Her glances at Richard became longer looks and she found herself looking up at him while talking, seeking encouragement, smiling at him and reacting in concert with him rather than being just another person at the table. It was a subtle shift but she felt they both detected it and embraced it fully.

At one point they were listening to a story and Holly began to interrupt. He rested his hand on hers to ask her to wait and left it there for five, ten, fifteen seconds as the story unfolded. She looked down as the room seemed to go quiet but it was simply her mind, focused on that gentle, affectionate touch which turned down the volume.

“You know Chrissy was on at lunch-time, right?” she asked Richard.

“Yeah, Alberto said.”

Jess turned to Holly and nodded. “This guy’s a life-saver, you know.”

“OK, Jess, that’s enough!” said Richard with slight irritation. Holly looked at her inquiringly.

“He saved her life. Rushed her to the hospital!”

“You did?” asked Holly.

“Jeeze!” said Richard at Jess’s comments. “Chrissy didn’t know she was allergic to peanuts and became ill very quickly one evening while working here. I thought I knew what was happening and took her down to the city hospital. She was fine.”

“Don’t be dumb, Ricky. Everyone else would have called an ambulance and we know now that she would have probably died if we’d sat around waiting for it. She could hardly breathe when you threw her in your car. If you hadn’t driven at a million miles an hour she wouldn’t be here today.”

It was nine forty-five by the time they left. The meal had been charged at staff price and Richard had settled the bill at the front desk. He opened the restaurant door for her and as they walked to his car she took his arm in her hands and rested her head briefly on his shoulder.

“Thanks so much! That was really a great time Richard! Or is it Ricky?” she asked, giggling.

“Only my Mum and Dad call me Richard,” he said as he rested his head on hers. They reached the car and he unlocked her door, shutting it behind her.

“Ricky, why did you ask to have Sharron as our waitress?” asked Holly, mystified as many of the other wait staff were closer to his age and appeared friendlier.

“She’s a single Mum. She needs tips far more than any of the others.”

“Oh,” said Holly, realising that Ricky seemed to have most things worked out.

“Where do you live?” he asked as they got underway.

“The bottom of Foley Road. Not the expensive end.”

“Oh, that’s convenient for campus then?”

“Yeah, it’s worked out well,” replied Holly, hoping that major road works might delay them and stretch the journey out another hour or so. It was so easy talking to him and while she wouldn’t tell him everything at that moment she had a feeling that their trust could develop to the point where that just might happen. They turned onto Forge Drive and Holly spotted her dealership. “Oh that’s where I got my car!” she said, pointing.

“They’re still in business then?” he quipped. She slapped his arm lightly, then left her hand on it for seven or eight rapid heartbeats.

“It’s right here then right again” she said, her mind playing through the possible sequences of the next minute. “Here, this one on the right, number forty-five.” He pulled into a parking space and switched off the engine.

“Holly, I had a great evening, and I’m so glad I could drive you home.”

“Me too, seriously. Those people at the restaurant were great.” She heard him breathe in and assumed he wouldn’t make the first move. “Ricky, can I make you coffee?”

“No thanks Holly,” he said. “But I’d love a cup of tea!”

“That was it!” she thought. “He’s in the house, on the sofa, next to me and we’re all alone.” Her little heart sang as he walked round to her door and opened it for her. His hand found hers and guided her towards the garden gate, letting go as she walked up the path and he clicked the remote car lock.

Holly made tea while Ricky used the bathroom, and she did the same after placing the mugs on the coffee table in the lounge. She slid the door closed and locked it silently, then peed. Hitching her skirt up she used a flannel on her pussy and anus, washing with a little soap, then wiped with the flannel and repeated quickly one more time. Nothing smelled on her fingers so she dried herself on a hand towel, pulled her panties up, brushed her skirt down and smiled at the mirror over the sink. She looked good and felt even better.

She sat down with Ricky on her right, close but not too close and turned on the television. They found a channel which was showing an adventure film and settled down to watch it. Holly looped her legs underneath herself so that her feet touched his thigh. She was intensely aware of where he was, his hand movements, his posture and his position relative to her. Twenty minutes into the film she felt that it was inhibiting conversation so she mentioned that it felt good to sit on the sofa and rest her feet. He snorted at the comment good naturedly.

“What, after climbing up to the lookout? All one hundred feet of it?”

“No! I went running a few days ago and if I don’t go regularly my feet complain.”

He reached down and massaged her foot lightly. “Here?” he asked.

“Oh yeah, keep doing that!” she said. That was it, she had done it. It was all plain sailing from here, not exactly familiar ground to her but in her heart she knew he would stay and for the first time in her life she might even wake up in the morning with a man next to her. She thought about the envelope in her purse and decided that any break in the evening would bring it to an end. The envelope would either be a second celebration or a consolation in the morning. Holly covered his hand with hers and sighed contentedly as he gently rubbed her feet. Two minutes later she let go, turned and leaned back against him, snuggling a little closer as his arm went round her shoulders. She took the hand that dangled over her chest and pulled him closer, happy with the warmth and the simple cuddle. A gangster in the adventure film was now driving crazily along a street, dodging unseen bullets.

“Is that how you drove, with that girl from the restaurant?” asked Holly. She knew the girl’s name but didn’t want to show a level of familiarity that didn’t exist.

“Not quite so much gunfire, same speed though.”

“That’s was a very good deed.”

“You did something equally important though.”

“You heard about it?” asked Holly.

“Sure, seems like you’re quite the hero around here!”

“Hmm.”

“Didn’t you ever think that those guys who attacked her might come back and beat you up too?”

She turned and lay across his legs, looking up at him, forgetting the film. She laced her fingers into his and thought about his question, an idea that had never entered her head. “No, I was more worried about her. The roots of the rose bushes must have been pruned at some time, so there were big thick stalks with thorns on that poked up around her face. If she really had been just thrown in there then an inch or two one way or the other would have taken her eye out.”

“Jeeze, that’s so sick. I don’t think they caught them but how did you get her out?”

“I’m not sure, I just looked at all the brambles and moved what I could with my hands and feet then shifted her slowly. Maybe if she had been sober she would have panicked and slashed her face, I don’t know. It really cut my fingers though, getting her out of there.”