Chapter 33

Thanks to the unfailing unreliability of the British railway system, whether "publicly" or privately owned, there was a hitch! The knight in shining armour and would-be rescuer of his beloved from the clutches of Satan and his loathsome acolytes - was a little late arriving. Veronica had been strapped down on the cold marble slab for fully ninety five minutes before the proceedings could begin and she was not in a good mood. This was no way to spend a weekend, no matter how rich the rewards! And then the male lead arrived and her heart turned to melted wax!

Surely to Goodness! Men like this only appeared on the pages of glossy magazines, their images cunningly embellished by a combination of the photographer's art and skilful re-touching to resemble nothing that ever truly walked upon two legs, every flaw and imperfection erased and sanitised in order to present the quivering female breast with a vision of perfect masculinity in all its glory. Yet here was a man with the body of a Greek God and the head of a Viking hero, obviously flesh and blood, walking towards her with his hand extended and murmuring his apologies for his late arrival.

"Golly, Veronica! How can I ever apologise enough for all the bother I've caused you? When I saw your last film and was told I could play opposite you in this, I was so excited! I only left drama school a few months ago and this could be the launching pad of my career! How can I ever make it up to you?"

Veronica, the memory of her darling Douglass fading ever more into the distance, could think of any number of ways that he could make it up to her! She was a blond herself and the sight of this tall, athletically muscular dream, with that heart-stoppingly splendid golden mass of Nordic hair flowing gloriously down a broad and Herculean back, together with a fashionably unshaven face made her wonder what the offspring of a union between the two of them would be like. An Aryan's dream - she quickly decided.

She gazed up from her slab in to the depths of those clear blue eyes and almost swooned. From far off, she heard her voice, faint and tremulous, assuring him that he was not to reproach himself. These things happen, after all!

It seemed as if only seconds had passed when Veronica found herself letting herself back into her flat. What a day it had been!

The rescue scene had been shot and re-shot a hundred and one fold and she ought by rights to have lost count of the times she had been clasped in those brawny arms and been given a loving kiss by her rescuer. But she had not lost count! She remembered every single one of those embraces and all the ways each heavenly clinch had differed from the other!

He had said goodbye to her at the end of the day and his closing words at one and the same time buoyed her up and cast her down.

"It's been great working with you, Veronica" he had said. "You have such incredible talent. I can't believe you're not a trained actress. I wouldn't have missed today for anything. And now, I must rush to get the train. My wife's due to give birth any day now and I must get back to her. I know it's all very wimpish and all that, but I really want to be there when she gives birth."

"I hope you get your wish" she had replied. "Although I can't imagine anything more gruesome myself! After seeing your child come out of you-know-what, you'll most likely never be able to face putting your dick back into it as long as you live!"