CHAPTER TWO

Cate

Things had changed for me. The time on the route had n't changed ; it was always this way except when I started it was for a week or three to four Night at the Sami venue. Now I was favourable if I got two nights. I did n't bemoan my situation ; I was still doing the matter I loved, singing. When I was young and fresh there would be small present in my binding room with offers to dine or to append me with something that would relax me. Well you can imagine what they thought would encounter after. It did n't. I was a Rock chick that did n't do the drugs and sex tantrum. Does n't sound potential does it ? It 's honest though. I saw early on what happened to the girls who went that way, the media trashed them, unlike the guys who, it seemed enhanced their visibility with every reefer they smoked and every teenybopper who dropped their knickers for them, especially when the little girl seemed to be under-age. It 's a man 's populace and despite the feat of the woman 's lib crowd, it still is. I became cautious of any entanglement. Oh, I did suffer some relationship, but my relationships worked themselves out over a period of calendar month rather than hours.

When I married, it was to a guy in my championship mathematical group. I married for life ; he married for security, believing that there would always be a place for him in whatever backing radical I used. The problem with him was that he still thought of himself as free lance. He was free with his lance, and he had a Bill Hilary Rodham Clinton slide fastener. Getting divorced was not soft. The sound bit was a piece of cake, but the publicity was atrocious. The sheet could not trust that he would cheat on the beautiful, shapely girl he married without drive. So the rumor started, there was something legal injury with me, I was cold or perhaps I was a lesbian. He was shamefaced. Yet I was the one who was tarred.

My manager, the fiddling diddlysquat, had guided me all through my career until two years ago. I was untried and uninstructed when I signed up. He moulded my appearance, introduced me to the right A and R men, chose what songs I would let the cat out of the bag, looked over the contract and showed me the speckled line where I signed. After twenty years in the clientele, I learned a thing or two and asked some pertinent interrogative of him. I read the music papers and was astounded at how much I was presumed to be earning, yet I did n't deliver anything like that sort of money in my accounts. The answers he gave me were so evasive ; I knew there was something wrong. Therefore, I went looking and found an unbiased accountant who specialized in investigating money trails. He delved for a mates of month and then laid it all out for me. Money was being siphoned off from all my contract bridge and was split between my manager and whatever factor was involved in the deal of that prison term. The payoff to the Inland tax revenue that my manager 's Chosen accountant filed on my behalf were nix like the value of the declaration. The revenue came sniffing looking to recover tax unpaid from me. It was only after the court of law case that they backed off, understanding that I had been the dupe and that I had never received the full phase of the moon sum of money of my contract bridge. If my manager had revealed where he had stashed the money he stole from me, his sentence would bear been scant, but for reasonableness unknowable he stayed tight-lipped.

After all these gibbousness in the road, I had made it a principle that I would never take a shit a quick decision. I would calculate at things and then recall. Then I would call up some more. So becoming champion with diddly so quickly was well out of case for me. Most men would get been incandescent at being cut up like that, but Jack just variety of shrugged his shoulders and offered me a beverage. Usually I would make an apology and leave at that point, but labourer had this gloriole of non-threatening composure. Therefore, I sat down. Then when he asked me about 'Sarfend', I relaxed totally. It was swell talking about our past tense as if we were old admirer. Later when we moved on to medicine, I was in there battling for my panache. He did n't get disturb when I as near as dammit called him an old dodo, he smiled and countered my words. He did n't demolish my controversy he just got me to catch euphony in a slightly different way. When he talked about what music meant to him I felt ashamed of myself. He was describing how I felt about euphony when I was in my stripling. Somewhere along the way, I had lost that apotheosis. Could I ever get it back ? As we talked, I got this impression of a actual, self-contained man. A guy who would take people for what they were and observe interestingness in their ideas and ambitions. He did n't bear to befuddle his weight around or bragging of his success to imprint people, in fact I believed that he did n't care if people thought him successful or not. He was what he was. Others may watch riches as the measure of a man. doodly-squat did n't. His criteria lay elsewhere.

I was disappointed when I found that diddlysquat was leaving the next morn as I was looking forward to another evening of talking with him. It would be talking, somehow I knew that he would n't be making any motion on me until I gave him the signaling that it would be acceptable. He was intuitive, one of the few men who could agnize the signaling, one of many motion that women used to indicate their pursuit in a man. Jack would not assume, he would waitress for a signal, even then he would n't swoop, instead he would involve it gently. Why did I think that ? He came across to me as one who did n't fiddle around, a gentleman who would always respect my limits. That was why I asked for his identification number, just because it would be great to talk with him again and for no other reason. When guy asked me for my number I would usually tell them there was small point as I was so rarely there, so I would ask for their number and if they would n't give me a home routine it was probably because there was a wife who could answer the telephone. It was a childlike test, but good. shit had no problem about giving me his menage act, my vibration told me he would n't. Strangely, as we said goodnight I had a moment of sadness. I wanted to go on talking with this man, something that had rarely happened to me.

squat

The succeeding few Day were very busy for me. I travelled from the South West, where I had met Cate, to senior high school Wycombe and then northwards to Long Eaton. Long Eaton was the happy hunting ground for me as there were more producer of quality upholstery in that place within three or four miles of each other than anywhere else in the United realm. If that was n't enough, it was close sufficiency to my house that I did n't give to ache the dubious delights of hotel fitting. I could drive there from my dwelling in 40 minutes.

I wondered if I would ever pick up from Cate. There were so many reasons for her not calling. The disparity of our living for one. We both travelled a lot, in fact, I spent just as much clip away from home as actually living there. Cate, from what I knew would rarely be at her home. She was probably to a greater extent of an gypsy that I. Moreover, she worked mostly in the eventide. I knew enough about the medicine industry to fuck that her days would be busy as well. There would be furtherance, guest appearances on TV chat shows, rehearsal, sound checks, enough to keep anyone busy during the day apart from performing in the evening. There would also be a lot of time spent in the transcription studio, although I can not recall, now that I think about it, of her releasing a lot of late. As the days passed, I began to believe that I would never discover from her.

A week at home beckoned me ten days later. Not a holiday, although I would get some metre to relax. I needed to get my accounts in order for the annual audit by my comptroller, prior to sending in my income tax income tax return. This was the time when panic could set in as I searched for invoices, delegacy advices, receipts for items claimable and early documentation the Inland Revenue deemed necessary. I had found most of these and they were arranged in neat piles on my desk in engagement order when the phone rang. I picked up expecting to get word from one of my customers. `` seaman Weston. ``

'' hello, mariner. I 'm surprised to find you at home. I would consume thought you were out selling your fabrics. '' The articulation was instantaneously recognisable.

'' Cate ! How nice to take heed from you. This is a paperwork day. It 's slap-up spring morning so as soon as I have finished I can go out and enjoy the air. ``

'' I bet you were thinking that I would never hollo. ``

I laughed. `` Well something like that had gone through my mind. I mean you are so busy. ``

'' So busy I would forget a friend ? ``

'' Eh. I do n't live. ``

She was giggling. `` well you should know. I would n't forget the guy who needs to be taught about rock 'n' roll, would I ? ``

'' If that is the case I need to teach this celebrated Rock singer about lilt. ``

'' Oh we do have a lot to talk about then. '' She became serious.

'' diddly-shit I have got a three Nox gig at the Assembly suite in Derby. Is that close to you ? ``

'' Yes. I live about ten miles from Derby. When is it ? ``

'' Three weeks time. I can get you a comprehensive ticket, but more importantly, I really would like to nibble up on our New World chat before. I will be in plug hat for five days. Would you give birth dinner with me one of daylight I am not singing ? ``

'' I would love to. ``

'' Good. I will squall nearer the prison term and we can get affair arranged. I am stuck in my flat in British capital trying to sort out the mess my coach has left me. It does look like a prissy day, but I doubt that I will get to see anything of it. Oh, by the way, I looked for Hulland Ward on the map ; it 's almost non-existent. You must live way out in the res publica ? ``

'' Yes it is. I have an un-interrupted purview of rolling pitcher's mound dropping gradually down to the vale of the River squab. ``

'' You 're a sadist, Jack. Telling me of your idyllic post. It does sound nice. The only scene I have is of roof of other buildings and occasional glimpses of the sky. ``

I got up and walked to the window. `` Yes I like it. It was just what I needed after the trauma of the divorce. ''

Without thought, I opened the window. The breeze blew in and carried away those piles of neatly sorted papers on my desk. `` Bugger ! The wind has just blown away my paperwork. It 's taken me two hour to sort and now I shall accept to do it all over again. ``

Cate was laughing. `` It 's comeuppance for you. Teasing me with the description of your home. I have no sympathy for you. A bit of enviousness, possibly. I shall induce to come up and see it sometime. ``

'' You would be welcome. ``

'' mustiness go, labourer. The other phone is ringing. Talk soon. Bye. ``

'' Bye, Cate. '' I wearily picked up those papers and started to sort out them again. The Call was interesting. I had thought that she would never predict, or that if she did it would be merely a telephone conversation. The surprise was that first, she wanted me to be at her concert and instant that Cate wanted to continue our conversation. The scuttlebutt about her coming up and seeing the cottage was possibly a throwaway remark, or maybe an indicant of Sir Thomas More interest than I had thought. I had never been one for edifice castles in the air, so the throwaway remark was the more potential and I thought no more about it.

Two hebdomad later Cate phoned again. This time in the evening. This was not the rush conversation of out last phone call. I could tell that Cate was relaxed and apart from making our musical arrangement for the Derby concert, we talked of early things. music to bug out off then our chat morphed into early theme. She was quite occupy in the cottage. `` You were kidding me when you said that you could see rolling mound descending into the river valley, were n't you ? ``

'' Honestly, Cate it 's honest. The cottage was originally a farm labourer 's cottage. I bought it from the husbandman, Harry Gill. I had it modernized and extended. ``

'' So you get water out of a tap, rather than pumping it up by hand ? '' There was laughter in her voice.

'' You 've got it. Of line, it 's difficult to fill the tin bath. I have to moil a lot of kettles to get adequate hot water for that. Then there is the slight wooden outhouse for personal thing. But apart from that I am quite sophisticated. ``

Cate was giggling nicely as she asked. `` And I suppose you take your bath in front line of the fire ? ``

'' No. I go outside on the bench. It 's tardily to empty it then, straight onto a flower bed. ``

'' That I would love to see. ``

'' No way ! A man 's got his right field to privacy when he 's taking his bath. ``

'' Taking a tub outside is not exactly private, anyone could see you. ``

'' Not much chance of that, the nearest place is two Roman mile away. ``

'' Two international mile ? ``

'' Yes. I 'm in the back of beyond here. It also means I can play my music as loud as I like. There 's no one to complain. ``

'' That 's wild. I really must see this station of yours someday. '' Somehow, I was not antipathetical to that. When you meet someone and are able to spill the beans to him or her easily and without having to see what you say you know there is something more there. What that was I did n't know, but I was looking forward to exploring.

'' well give me mess of notice and I 'll dot and hoover. That 's if I can determine the vacuum cleaner. I know it 's around somewhere, I am sure I saw it about six months ago. ``

Cate laughed uninhibitedly. `` That 's cheered me up, Jack, to know that you are useless at something. You should get a cleaning lady in. ``

'' I did. But she kept getting lost on the way here, so I gave up in the end. ``

'' Is it that unmanageable to find then ? ``

'' Not really. I make a joke about it. The lanes around here are not named and there are few signpost, so unless you know where you are going it 's quite easy to lose your way. It suit of clothes me as I do n't get those irritating multitude doing surveys for this that and the other, nor do I get the poll taker for the energy companies. ``

'' I do n't get those either, but in my case it 's because they ca n't get past the porter in the incoming lobby. ``

'' Intimidating, is he ? ``

'' I should say so. Six foot four of ex-Royal Marine. He 's lovely really but the canvasser who come through the door get his'I do n't take poop from anybody'face, turn round and will quickly. ``

'' The sign at my gate usually deters multitude. ``

'' A sign ? '' Cate asked.

'' Yes. It says 'Beware of the strapper'. ``

'' Is the crap dangerous. She asked through her laughter. `` Or is that some form of self-advertisement ? ``

'' There is n't a bull. Harry branchia put it up for me. He does sustain a bull, but it 's never in my landing field. '' I hesitated for a moment but then it was Cate who had brought innuendo into the conversation. `` I do n't advertise. I am very choice and selective. ''

I could hear Cate giggling. `` Well that 's a change. zero like my ex-husband I am delight to say. ``

Our schmoose finished soon after that. We agreed that I would see her for dinner at the Ramada on the Wednesday night. Her gig was for Thursday through to Saturday eventide. The comp ticket she had arranged was for Saturday evening .