Chapter 2

What is ‘White Tie?’

Well, that saying ‘Once in a Blue Moon’ was more likely to happen that what the courier handed me at 4 pm. It was a note, written on parchment from Pen no less. It read: ‘Pete, old buddy, old pal!(Sure! But I was not old) I will need your help and perhaps a bit of forgiveness, maybe both. Angela is being ‘presented’ and I find myself without ‘escort’ but need to attend. Would it presume too much to think ‘we’ might meet again and might I rely on you to ‘rescue me’ should this ‘Old Lady’ require assistance? Oh! I just had to do a few things for the gathering after so housing and transportation have been arranged for you from New York and one or two other small things I ‘had’ to do. My friend ‘Liz’ said you could stay at her place too. I shall have your invitation along with some other things delivered next week. Thank you for your help. Signed Pen.

Yep! I almost sent her back a note saying ‘Yes Dear’ a phrase I resisted having to be required to say for some years now. With Melody now gone, apparently to ‘greener pastures’(No I was not thinking of her as a cow ... no, no really ... well maybe I was. Hell, I’m only human) Her note(Pen’s that is) brightened me up.

The rest of the week consisted of sleeping, eating more and getting things ready for upcoming trips. I confirmed that Pen would have me for an escort but kidded her that she ‘must’ save all her dances for me lest her partner drop her.

Fate! Now I had better be a believer or ... About a week later two things happened. Answering my ad was Holly Jameson, a med student at NYU who wanted to eat other than noddles while paying more than $100,000 a year for fees, housing and tuition. I had found my caretaker. For those not familiar with rents in New York City, they far surpassed the school’s $27,000 a year estimate. Holly had been estimating closer to $5,500 a month for living costs so free room, use of my car and board even meant a lot more than that to her a year. I liked her from day 1. Got her to promise me a discount when she became a doctor. What is an OB-GYN anyway?

As I said I liked Holly. She seemed level-headed and the type of person that would not cause me some harm, certainly less than Melody had. I looked on the bright side and washed my hands of re-decorating the place. Holly had a new task to do while I was away.

Her “Huh!’ Comment was cute. “Just fix this place up before you move in. No purple walls or black lamps but you can do what you want to your room.”

“What ... but ... but ... what abou... ?”

“Yes, but the best advice I can give you is to make it like your parents house, you know, old, dingy and a dark, drab colour theme. I want a king bed, a comfy chair and, mmmmm, a set of thick towels in my bathroom.”

“You are crazy, do you have any idea what this will cost if I do it that way. Mom and Dad live in the Hampton’s.

“Perfect! Here is a check for all this.”

“Can I have my friend over to help. She is a design student here.”

“She may have to eat noddles if you overspend your budget ... unless she is as cute as you.”

Saved by the bell, the doorbell. Holly raised her shoulders, threw back her head swishing her hair to the side and peeked out the eye hole in the door.