Chapter 10

The next few weeks passed slowly; far, far too slowly. My birthday came and went, spent alone as I had no wish for company of any sort at the time. My house, previously typically that of a single male, was now immaculate. I'd read every book I had and was on my second batch from the library, I'd even completed half a dozen jigsaws. I was bored.

I'd been on a few dates, all set up by well meaning friends; read Tamsin and Michelle; but always seemed to feel distant from them, as if I was just going through some predefined motions which I probably was. I tried reconnecting with some of the friends, mainly from school, that I'd been neglecting, but apart from one, Maureen Linnighan, the reasons for drifting apart were soon apparent.

Maureen was a redheaded pixie, with all the fire associated with that image. She had just about reached five feet in height and weighed no more than a bag of potatoes. I had always fancied Maureen, both physically and as a person. However, as long as you didn't care about the hundreds of freckles that adorned her face, and hmmm, I assumed other places, then she was easily the most beautiful girl I'd grown up around. For me, though perhaps only me, even Natasha, paled in comparison. Most of our peers saw things different. To the boys, Maureen's lack of height and her small bra size meant that she wasn't perceived the same. For the girls, it was a lack of sophistication and her refusal to do girly things. Of course, her infamous temper kept both sexes at a distance.

Throughout school, I'd stayed on the periphery of Maureen and her small group of friends. I was drawn to her, but I was always between a foot and a foot and a half taller than her and at the time was intimidated by all girls, pretty ones especially but Maureen, and for that matter Natasha, specifically. All my success with girls started towards the end of my school years and was always with girls that were between plain and pretty. The beautiful people, I steered clear of as I felt out of my depth with them. I still did, although I was getting better.

'I believe this little get together was your idea.' She stated, sitting in the pub with around ten of our former school friends.

'Yes. I've been recently working close with Natasha Kopolova and Petra English. I felt that I needed to remind myself that all those at my school were not like that.'

'I can see where you're coming from there, alright.' Laughed Alan Potter, 'I remember when I went out with them both. They were hard work, though worth it at the end of the night, if you know what I mean.'

To listen to Alan, he'd bedded every girl at school, including the teachers, as well as every female under about thirty on the large housing estate where he still lived with his parents. Needless to say, nobody did actually listen.

'The Ice Princess and her maid, ' added Maureen, 'Have they changed any?'

'Not that I noticed, though to be fair she reins most of it in at work.'

'Except around you it seems.' Maureen said. I'd already told them about the general reasons behind my unemployment.

'Well you know me and girls, oil and water, ' I joked.

Like any group we weren't really just one group, but small groups sitting around the same table with just an occasional interchange of personnel. Maureen and I were, fortunately for me, sitting next to each other and without intention were soon talking just to each other. At first we spoke in general about what we'd been up to in the few years since we'd last seen each other. Then following one interesting comment or another, one of us would delve a little deeper.

By the time we'd exhausted the generalities we were the only two remaining. I was sure that at least some would have bid us farewell but I had no recollection.

'So why did you never ask me out?' Maureen asked.

'How on earth do I answer that?' I joked back.

'Truthfully! I know you liked me back then.'

'Truthfully? I suppose the simple answer would be fear.'

The tiny woman laughed. 'You were scared of little me. I know I have a bit of a temper but I couldn't hurt a great bear like you however hard I'd tried.'

'A bit of a temper?' I grinned. 'No, not really fear of you, though it was a concern. I mean I was scared of rejection, scared of ridicule and most of all, scared stiff of girls, especially beautiful ones. It wasn't until the last year at school and later at college that that changed.'

'In hindsight that probably sums up all the boys at school, or at least all the nice ones. I wish you'd asked though, I'd have said yes.'

'What if I asked a little belatedly?'

It took a few seconds but she caught on. 'I'd love to, or at least I would if I didn't already have a boyfriend.' She said with a touch of what looked like sadness.

'Oh sorry! You never mentioned a boyfriend.'

The conversation stalled at that point so after a while of silence, we decided to call it a night.

The following morning the letter, outlining my severance arrived. I had consulted CAB (Citizens Advice Bureau) about what I could expect to get if I took the case to court. I had no real intention of doing so but wanted to know what was deemed fair compensation. They had given me a wide range but that actually offered was more than double CAB's highest forecast. There was only one proviso, which was that I promised to take the case no further. This was an understandable condition as was the legal wording.

I immediately signed the letter of agreement and sent it off. It was now time to start looking for further employment.

Getting another job wasn't quite as easy as my cocky self originally thought. The area wasn't a hotbed for any technology, especially computing. I was beginning to think that I might need to move away from my home town or maybe look more to the business side of things.

The monotony was broken three times in one day; two were phone calls and one was a chance encounter.

The latter was whilst I was doing the mundane thing of food shopping, I was at my local supermarket checking prices on coffee when I heard a shrill 'David!'

I turned to face the call and was hit in a rather embarrassing place by a flying child. Whether it was the pain or not but it took more than just a few seconds for me to answer. 'Sarah?'

The joy on her little face was to die for. I picked her up and held her to me before I remembered what had happened the last time I'd seen her mother. I looked around for Lyn but instead saw Lyn's mother approaching.

By the time Betty had arrived Sarah had lost her happy look. 'Why haven't you been to see me again. I thought you liked me.' She demanded.

'I do sweetheart, but your mummy doesn't like me.'

'Why not? She did.' Demanded the seven year old.

'Good question, ' added the child's grandmother.

'Let's just say that I said the wrong thing at the wrong time.'

'That's silly. Mummy and Nana are always telling me I do that, and they still love me.' Sarah said with the simplistic logic of her age.

'Sarah dear, will you go and get our trolley please?'

I put the youngster down and she ran off. I quickly gave Betty a précis of the ill conceived comment I'd made.

'So you're saying that you wanted and expected her to refuse? Why ask in the first place then?'

'I didn't. I idiotically tried to tell her what my usual behaviour was, that with her I didn't need to find out.'

'So why bring it up?'

By then Sarah had rejoined us and was holding her hands out to be picked up. I happily obliged.

'As I just said, I was an idiot, it's just that I felt so comfortable with her that I just spoke without thinking and before you say it, I know, it was a big mistake.'

'Would you like to see her again?'

'I don't know, ' I admitted after thinking about it. 'That was the second time Lyn jumped down my throat without giving me chance to explain. In hindsight, I accept that I shouldn't have mentioned it but she still should have let me finish.'

It was with a hint of sadness that I put Sarah down and continued with my shopping. Lyn was heavy in my thoughts for that next hour. I had really enjoyed her company but those two incidents played on my mind. I didn't want a relationship where I had to carefully consider every word I uttered. I also wondered if my attraction to Lyn was partly due to her daughter. I had really bonded with Sarah but that was no basis for a relationship with her mother, there needed to be more.

By the time I got home I decided the point was hypothetical as I couldn't see Lyn wanting to continue, even if I did. The phone started ringing before I'd had chance to put everything away. It was a brief conversation but one that made me forget about Lyn, at least for the time being.

'Are you free for lunch?' The ultra feminine voice asked.

'Today?'

''Yes.'

'Sure.'

'Okay, meet me at ten past one at the Etruscan.' I was told before the polite, 'Do you know it?'