Chapter 16

The previous Sunday's visit by Arthur and Dorothy to the Crown had not been an exceptional event. Since the visit to Arthur's parents they had gone out together several times whether Larry was there for the weekend or not. Larry clearly liked Dorothy and she was growing fonder and fonder of him. He was a cheerful, guileless boy who clearly loved his father. That he also loved his mother was not in doubt either although he told his father frankly of things that put him off. One of those was smothering him with love which he clearly found embarrassing.

Dorothy had been attracted to Arthur from the outset. He was a quiet, unassuming man but, as she discovered, had firm views which he was quite prepared to argue strongly and cogently. He was warm and friendly with a quick sense of humour but she never heard him say anything snide about someone. She was becoming very fond of him indeed.

That fondness was reciprocated by him. She was a gentle, sympathetic woman but full of fun and laughter. He enjoyed her quick wit and her ability to talk easily and knowledgeably about a wide range of subjects.

After his divorce Arthur had naturally become wary of women. The last thing he wanted was to be drawn into another unpleasant relationship. His mother had been a rock but then one rather expected that and she was different from other women. He had been deeply touched by Isobel's gentle concern for him in addition to her first class professional service. He felt that Dorothy was made of the same stuff.

This weekend was a Larry weekend. Arthur was taking him to the cinema on Saturday afternoon and swimming on Sunday morning. He diffidently asked Dorothy if she would like to join them for either or both. She was not that keen on a children's film but agreed to come swimming.

Arthur was captivated. All along he had appreciated Dorothy's pettiteness. Now she was revealed to him in a swimming costume, albeit a one-piece, and he thought she was lovely: slim but not skinny, small but not flimsy, her legs seemed long because they were so perfectly in proportion and her skin was flawless except for a small mole on her right shoulder. That actually made her more attractive; human rather than a goddess.

"Rubbish!" he laughed at himself but he was now very attracted physically as well as mentally.

"What are you doing after you've taken Larry back this evening?" Dorothy asked him.

"Bread and cheese and an early night."

"Crossword?"

"Probably."

"Come and have supper with me. Bring your crossword and we'll do it in parallel."

"Are you sure?"

"Very."

"You're on. I'd love to."

That evening was the turning point. They ended up in bed together. Both had to be up and away early the next morning so they were unable to explore their attraction to each other anymore.

Arthur rang Dorothy the following evening though.

"You're an evil schemer," he said to her. "A spider that enticed me into her parlour and then her bed."

"Guilty as charged."

"Thank you. You must be as taken with me as I am with you."

"I am very taken with you."

"Would you like to come here tomorrow evening and discuss it a little further?"

"Very much. When do you want me?

"Any time after seven."

"It shall be."

They chatted happily for another half hour and then rung off.

Arthur had not said anything stronger than 'taken with' purposely. He did not want to place Dorothy in an awkward position. A divorcé could be considered untrustworthy although he was pretty certain that she did not consider him to be that. From what she had seen of his ex and heard in court should have convinced her that he was not the party to blame for that divorce. He did come with baggage though. She clearly liked Larry and Larry would have no trouble with her but if his ex started to mess about again and he was forced to call in the court officials that could well lead to primary custody for him and therefore Dorothy. What if she wanted children of her own? How would Larry fit in then? He was getting ahead of himself.

When Dorothy arrived on Tuesday evening Arthur greeted her with a kiss. It was not a lover's kiss but a friend's one albeit on the lips. He led her to the sitting room where they sat in separate chairs.

"A drink, Dorothy, what can I get you?"

Dorothy might in the normal way have asked for a non-alcoholic one but she was as wound up as Arthur was. "G and T?"

"Easy."

Arthur produced it and a whisky and soda for himself. He had also put some crisps in a bowl and brought them all in. He did not use a tray so Dorothy had to help him put everything down which helped to reduce the tension.

"Busy day?" he asked.

"Normal but I took all the measurements and a mould of a patient's teeth for a bridge. That's something I really enjoy: making a bridge for people from the original teeth. If you do it properly you'd never know the difference. It's something constructive as opposed to drilling and filling cavities."

"But surely one tooth is a gonner."

"Not always. It could be just the root that's gone wrong and the tooth itself is undamaged."

"It must be very intricate."

"It is but when you get it absolutely right it's very rewarding."

"And I bet you strive for perfection every time."

Dorothy nodded. "That's my duty."

Arthur grabbed a possible opening. "Sunday night wasn't a duty though was it, even though it was perfection?"

Dorothy smiled guardedly but nevertheless warmly. "No. It was selfishness. I wanted you and I knew you wanted me so I set it up."

"Set it up?"

Dorothy could see the hurt in his eyes. "Don't get me wrong, Arthur. It wasn't a callous scheming bitch set up, I promise you. I knew that if I didn't push you we'd go on dancing around each other for ages."

Arthur still said nothing but the hurt receded from his eyes leaving a slight look of reproach.

Dorothy took a slug of her gin. "Arthur, at the risk of hurting you, I'll be honest. As you discovered the night before last, I'm not a virgin and I don't think that surprised you. I found sex at nineteen with my tutor at university. I had a naïve infatuation for him but he was very good in bed and I decided I really enjoyed sex. Subsequently I took other lovers. Some were good. Others considerably less so and I dropped them fairly quickly. I did not ever just leap into bed on a one night stand. I had to like the man.

"Arthur, I like you. In fact I like you very much. I liked your parents and I admire your mother immensely for her painting. I also like Larry: a lot. I think he's a sweet boy. I also find you physically attractive. OK, you're no film star glamour boy but you're not bad looking and you're genuine.

"The trouble is I'm selfish. I love my job and don't want to give that up to become a wife and full time mother. Yes, I'd like to have children but not yet. I've got to wait until dentistry palls or my maternal instincts get the better of me.

"Arthur, I'm probably sounding awfully selfish but it's true."

She spread her hands and looked at him.

Arthur returned her gaze and then smiled gently if slightly sadly. "Thank you, Dorothy, for being absolutely straight with me. It increases my respect for you as well as my affection. It's my turn now to say what I feel.

"I liked you from the start. Once you'd got over your initial shyness at the court I found you interesting, amusing and attractive. The more I've got to know the more I've become taken by you." He grinned. "Particularly in a swimsuit."