‘Boo!’ Jessie hunches her shoulders and giggles as Sandra straightens and swings round ‘Glad it WAS you’ she chuckles ‘I hoped I’d recognised the bum!’
Sandra laughs. ‘Mmm…good job it was me then. I’d’ve loved to see your face if it hadn’t been’ She eyes Jessie’s rolled umbrella. ‘I’m sure that’s an offensive weapon’
‘Oh, I would’ve got away with it. I’d’ve played the old lady card. Works every time!’ she titters. ‘What’s so interesting in that basket then?’ Jessie prods the contents with her umbrella and fishes out a T of lace and elastic and waves it from the point. ‘Good God! Do they call them drawers?’
‘Jessie!’ Sandra snatches the thong and drops it back into the basket.
‘No wonder all you youngsters are forever sniffling with colds if that’s all you’ve got on your possible’
‘My what?’
‘Your possible….you know…when you have a strip wash. You wash down as far as possible….then up as far as possible…then you wash possible’
Sandra gives a snort ‘I shan’t think of it as anything else now!’
‘Is possible having a party?’ Jessie fishes out a slightly larger triangle of red satin and twirls it on the end of her umbrella as she starts to hum ‘The Stripper’’
‘No!’ Sandra blushes, glancing round as she grabs it from her. ‘Behave!’
‘So Tim might be then?’ Jessie purses her lips in a silent whistle, her eyes innocently wide.
‘I just want something to go under a dress that’s a bit clingy. I don’t like it when your knickers show. We’ve got a ‘do’ on’
‘You’re going to a ‘do’?’ Jessie asks, surprised. ‘That’s wonderful. I didn’t think it was your sort of thing’
‘It hasn’t been in the past…but….I’m sort of making more of an effort…since…you know’
‘Daren’t let him out of your sight?’ Jessie muses with an impish grin.
‘More like the other way round, if you really want to know. Oh Jessie!’ she breathes, her cheeks prettily tinged with colour ‘It’s like…we’ve just discovered each other’ she sighs
‘Well, you have!’ Jessie giggles. ‘Nothing like a bit of a bonk to get them dancing attendance on you’
‘Shhush!’ Sandra sinks her teeth into her bottom lip and snuffles with embarrassed laughter. ‘It’s like he wants to show me off…like somebody’s flicked a switch…’
‘I’m saying nothing’ Jessie presses her lips together and smirks. ‘So…this… ‘do’?’
‘Probably a bit boring for Tim but he insisted we go. I think the overnight stay in a five star swung it for him’ she smiles ‘just a dinner dance type of thing…publishers, authors and hangers on like me’
‘Hangers on?’ Jessie huffs. ‘World renowned illustrator, if you don’t mind!’
‘My work…is becoming… more well known’ Sandra offers shyly. ‘Not sure I’m ready for the big time though …or even that I want it. It’s not me, really, is it?’
‘You go and have a good time. Just think of it as a night out with Tim. Everything else will take care of itself…and..’ she adds, leaning forward to whisper ‘If you want my advice….’ she says, glancing down at the box ‘You won’t bother with those at all!’
Sandra looks at her with a patient frown ‘But I need something that…’
‘Noooo!’ Jessie taps the side of her nose and winks ‘Nothing like telling ‘em you aren’t wearing any for getting the old juices going!’
Woodbury Shopping Centre
Chapter Eight
Rose Cottage, Albans Lane
‘Have you come round here just to sit and look miserable? Cos it’s really getting on my pip!’
Nathan sighs and sits back on the sofa. ‘Sorry, Jess’ He pushes the corners of his mouth upwards with his fingers ‘Better?’
‘Silly sod!’ Jessie rolls her eyes and slaps his arm. ‘What’s the matter with you, anyway? We usually have a bit of a laugh when you come round. Fancy a game of Scrabble?’ she suggests with a hopeful rise of the eyebrows.
‘No, ta…don’t really feel like it, sorry’
‘Not even if I promise not to make up my own words and swear they’re real ones?’ Jessie wheedles.
‘Not even then’ Nathan smiles thinly.
‘I was relying on you to cheer me up’ she says, digging him in the ribs with her elbow ‘ Seems like it’s got to be the other way round. Heard any good jokes?’
‘Not ones I could tell you’ he says with a morose shake of the head.
‘You think I’m going to get corrilupted at my age? Crikey! Bet I’ve forgotten more naughty rude things than you’ll ever know’
‘Somehow, I don’t doubt that at all’ Nathan emits a low chuckle and leans forward to scan the newspaper laid out on the coffee table to the television pages.
‘That’s better! Something you want to get off your chest? It’s not like you to be so down. You think you went back to work too quickly? That can sometimes be a bit of a mistake’
‘Noo’ Nathan says looking back at her over his shoulder. ‘I’d’ve gone stir crazy if I’d had to stop at home any longer. I’m taking it easy, promise’
‘Women problems then, is it?’
‘Gawd, I hope not!’ he sniggers.
‘Not that you daft begger!’ Jessie slaps him again. ‘Some girl giving you grief is she?’
‘No girl giving me any sort of grief at all’ he sighs.
‘Ah! I see’ Jessie says thoughtfully. ‘She wasn’t for you, Nathan’ she decides quietly, rubbing a consolatory hand on his knee. ‘Sorry, but she wasn’t. Nice enough…but not for you’ she says, bringing the rubbing movement to an end with a pat. ‘I thought that from the start…and I was right wasn’t I?’
‘Mmm…yeah’ Nathan heaves a deeper sigh as he sits back, the television remote control in his hand. ‘You didn’t say’ he says accusingly.
‘Not for me to say anything, you were happy enough. Why spoil it for you by sticking my nose in? You’d have realised in the end’ Jessie sniffs and shrugs at the same time.
‘Hey! Don’t you come that one with me’ Jessie wags a finger at him, unsure if he is serious. ‘A few days in the sun and all that unbridled sex? Cheap at half the price’
‘Jessie!’ Nathan snorts.
‘Saved you going off looking for some’ Jessie ignores his implied reprimand and busies herself rustling amongst the empty papers of a box of after dinner mints. She pulls out two squares of dark chocolate and pushes one into Nathan’s mouth.
Nathan grabs the edge of the chocolate before it disappears completely and bites off half its length. ‘I’m lonely’ he says after a few seconds.
‘Oh, do give over!’ Jessie scoffs, the last corner of her square held between finger and thumb and poised to follow the rest.
‘I am. I don’t think I’ll ever meet anyone I’d want to settle down with’
‘Just a minute…’ Jessie hunts round, lifting cushions and looking under the box of sweets. ‘I know I’ve got a violin somewhere…now, where did I put it? For goodness sake, Nathan, what’s brought all this on?’ she asks, turning towards him ‘Ah…this because Kester’s gone all serious about someone at long last, isn’t it? …And what with young Andrew getting married and all…’
‘It’s not that’ Nathan denies, pushing back his hair and feigning intense interest in the television programme.
‘As hell as like! Andy always was a more serious sort of lad when it came to the girls while you two went charging round willy-nilly…if you’ll pardon the expression…one girl after another…and now you’ve got it into your head that you’re going to be left on the shelf or something!’
‘Only women get left on the shelf’ Nathan replies vaguely.
‘Where do men get left, then?’
‘I dunno…’ He shrugs, laying the remote control on the arm of the sofa.
‘In the shed?’ Jessie ponders ‘Hmm…you never know…I could be right…’ She flicks his arm with the back of her hand and giggles. ‘Must check mine…see if there’s any out there’
‘Even you’ve got George’
‘Even me? Well, thanks very much, I’m sure!’
‘You know what I mean. Everybody seems to have somebody, ‘cept me’
‘Gawd! You are a misery guts. It’s only been five minutes since the last one. You want me to fix you up with someone?’ She offers, tilting her head to one side. ‘And….for the record, me and George are just friends, have been for years’
‘Okay’
‘You do? All righty! ‘ Jessie claps her hands together causing Nathan to look at her oddly. ‘There’s Mrs. Doodah’s daughter…you know the one…rides through the village with a string of kiddies on ponies…’
‘Been there…done that…and got me face slapped….And I meant ok about you and George, not finding me a woman’ he groans.
‘Oh…that’s a shame. I like a challenge’ Jessie sighs with disappointment.
‘Thanks’ Nathan huffs.
‘Get on with you! I was pulling your leg. You’ll find someone, don’t you worry about that! You’re a nice looking boy, got your own house…your own business…’
‘But I don’t attract the right sort of women do I?’ Nathan’s head rolls on the back of the sofa, all pretence of watching television forgotten.
‘Right sort of women?’
‘Someone ….nice’ He faces her.
‘Ah…like Helen, you mean? Nathan…don’t tell me….no…you wouldn’t…’ Jessie narrows her eyes with disapproval, speaking cautiously.
‘No, I wouldn’t, if you’re thinking what I think you’re thinking…but…’
‘A bit of a crush?’
‘Wouldn’t go that far…but she’s so different…’ Nathan inhales and his cheeks puff as the breath escapes in yet another sigh. ‘Not that someone like that would ever look at someone like me even if they weren’t going out with my mate…’
‘Why on earth wouldn’t they?’
‘I’m just a roughty-tufty working man’ He laughs derisively.
‘So’s Kester! He’s a plumber for goodness sake’
‘But everything else ticks the right boxes doesn’t it? The voice, the manners…the know-how…I don’t do cut-glass’
‘What a load of codswallop you do talk!’ Jessie retorts crossly. ‘You think that matters? Look at me and Tom. He didn’t care one way or another if I talked like a bumpkin and didn’t know which fork to use. When love hits...it hits…and that’s it. Bugger all you can do about it. I learned how not to show him up too much…not that he’d’ve minded if I hadn’t. When you meet someone…and the chemistry’s there…nothing else matters, honestly it doesn’t’
‘If you say so’
‘You are a very good prospect for any woman…cut glass or not. No doubt Helen comes from a good family…but I bet even she hasn’t got Kester’s pedigree…so it doesn’t really matter, does it?’
‘She’s nearer him than I am her…whatever way you look at it’ Nathan insists gloomily.
‘But you and Kester have been friends for years….so where does this class thing come in?’
‘I’ve never wanted to go out with him’ he quips half-heartedly.
Jessie groans at his hangdog expression. ‘Time for the big guns, I reckon’
‘You what?’
‘Drop of dandelion wine’ She slaps his leg as she gets up to go to the sideboard. ‘Might not change anything but you won’t give a damn one way or the other after a couple of glasses’ She glances at his feet as she lifts the bottle and pulls the cork stopper. ‘Better get your shoes on now, cos you sure as hell won’t be able to do ‘em up later’
