Chapter 53

I took Vee her morning cuppa just after eight, reminded her that we were eating breakfast out at nine, and returned to our room with Julie's mug and mine.

My girlfriend sat up in bed and slowly sipped at her tea as she woke up.

"I really enjoyed last night; I've never been at a sing-song like that. Fred plays very well."

"Yeah, he's a good lad. I hadn't realised that Vee has such a great voice either."

"They sounded good together. It was nice to see her having such a fun time and joining in; I don't like her being the odd one out."

She paused to think for a minute before speaking again.

"I invited Fred to breakfast on the spur of the moment, to thank him for entertaining us so well, 'cos you told me that he was really broken up after splitting up with his girlfriend. I just wonder ... do you think he might suit Vee? He's free for the summer, they seemed to get on pretty well for a first meeting, and it's worth a try to find her a man."

I laughed, a little nervously. We were very quickly running out of time to make our decision on whether or not to invite Vee to come and work with us for the summer.

I'd been wrestling for weeks with the dilemma - would including Vee risk the break-up of one of our relationships if Vee's need for physical love caused a problem? Julie wouldn't mind if I fucked Vee a couple of times a week to keep her happy (in fact she'd probably join us!), but Malcolm might not be able to accept me being quite that promiscuous with my favours. And what if the others wanted to join in?

Malcolm and I worked together in the Chemistry labs really well; we were both expected to get First Class degrees, but if we had a bust up over moral issues, it would be much harder for both of us. I hadn't dared let him find out that I had shagged Sian before he had come along, nor that I was helping Vee out with her needs. It had been bad enough explaining that although Julie was still my girlfriend, we'd be sleeping with the twins for the summer. (Luckily, as Sian was their cousin, she had carefully explained to him how unfair it would be to have them miss out, and he had happily conceded the point. Not that he knew that they slept together most of the time... )

Oh god, what a mess!

Fred offered me a way out of my dilemma.

If he and Vee were to become an item, then we'd have five couples and a better chance of keeping things as we wanted them to be. I was very fond of Vee, and she deserved far better than just having me fuck her when she needed it - I wanted her to have a decent man of her own. From what I had seen of Fred the previous night, he fitted the bill.

Julie was waiting for my answer.

"I have to say that I like him, and that I think he'd be good for her. The sixty-four million dollar question is - can you get them together in time, though, my darling?"

She smiled at me, a mysterious yet mischievous expression on her lovely face.

"I've never done any of this matchmaking lark before, but I'll do my best."

"You have, you know - Jen and Hamish?"

"We all had a go at that! Anyway, why don't you suggest we all go for a walk around Roath Park after breakfast - we'll lose them in the Rose Garden and see how they get on together. They seemed to hit it off last night, so let's give them a chance to get better acquainted."

That sounded to me like a very good idea. There was no more time to discuss it; we had less than forty minutes before we were due to meet Fred at the cafe. I dashed into the bathroom for a quick wash and a shave before giving way to Julie.

The three of us left the flat just before nine, there being no sign of movement yet on the floor below as we passed their landing.

Vee had obviously dressed with care, an indication that she wanted to look her best. Her auburn hair had clearly been especially well brushed, and it shone in the early morning sunshine as we walked along the pavement.

Julie gave me a discreet dig in the ribs, and a sly grin. I correctly read her message as telling me that Vee was trying to impress Fred.

Fred was waiting on the pavement outside the cafe. He wasn't in his usual scruffy everyday jeans either; he'd put on smart trousers and lace-up shoes, and was freshly shaved. His long dark brown hair appeared to have been combed more thoroughly than usual.

Julie's grin got even broader. Fred was clearly trying to impress Vee!

Despite it being Saturday morning, we easily found a table - most students had spent all their money or were hoarding the remaining few pounds for the last week of term, so, like the curry house the previous evening, the place was unusually empty - so we ordered, and sat down with our first mug of tea.

(That's the mark of a really good cafe, by the way - you get the hot drink immediately. There are too many places these days where you have to wait for some time after you've ordered. Whenever I've been to the United States, I've noticed that the waitress brings you a cup and the coffee jug before she hands you the menu - now that's really great service, in my opinion! It's just too bad that so many places these days don't understand it... )

Fred and Vee started off a little stilted and nervous, but were soon dominating the conversation as they told each other about themselves. It turned out that Fred was just finishing the third year of a four-year sandwich course in electrical engineering, having spent the second year out in industry learning the practical realities of the job. I asked him if he was going back to work for the same firm over the summer.

"No, I had been thinking about it, but we had the chance of Camp America. As I told them that I definitely wouldn't be available and they've planned on not having me, I don't really want to admit that I've got it wrong. The old man is very strict on not changing your mind once you're committed, and I don't want them to think I'm unreliable. I'll try to find something else, or go on the dole and save my Giros."

I could see his point - if your potential employer felt that you were messing them about, you might not get another chance. Whilst it was also possible that he might earn extra brownie points with the firm for coming clean, and be offered a holiday job, it suited my purposes not to mention this option immediately. If Fred and Vee got on well, then they could both work at the vegetable factory with the rest of us.

Vee told Fred more about herself, while Julie and I kept quiet, and let them get to know each other.

The cafe cooked breakfast was as welcome as ever. We didn't have enough cooking space in the flats kitchen to do a full fried for everyone, so it was normally either bacon and eggs, or eggs on toast. To have grilled bacon, sausages, and tomato as well as both toast and fried bread was a real treat.