by J. R. Bonham
“I don’t think so! My father’s not even in a fit state to come to the phone!”
Mike took the phone off Jan as he thought she wasn’t getting anywhere.
“Hello, Mike here. Your mother is quite safe. I only have her best interests at heart.”
“Well, bully for her! You’re a fucking bastard for taking her from us! Luring her away with your fat wallet.” Louise had absolutely no idea if this man was wealthy or not. But she had the thought that if she planted a seed in his mind that her mother was only after him for his money, she just might succeed.
“Actually, that’s got nothing to do with it and by the way, I didn’t take her. She came of her own accord,” Mike tried to explain. “We have a lot of feelings for each other and we want to give it a go.”
“Well, that’s alright for some,” Louise complained. “What about us? Our mother has left us high and dry and our father is distraught. Did she think about us in all of this? Of course not!”
“I’m sure she did – and like she said, she is very sorry to have sprung it on you like this.”
“Well, as long as SHE’S alright!” Louise was starting to raise her voice again. “My father’s twice the man you’ll ever be!” she shouted. The venom was flowing which made her feel a tiny bit better.
“I’d better let you calm down now,” he said to her. “I expect your Mum will phone you again soon.” Jan nodded to him. “Bye for now,” he said calmly.
“Oh God, that was awful,” said Jan. “I’m not looking forward to phoning them again, but I suppose I’ll have to. I ought to speak to Geoff. After all, it’s him I left, not the kids. They just happened to be still living at home. It’s lucky they are there really, in case Geoff does something silly. I must try and speak to him next time to apologise.”
“I’m sure he’ll be fine, once he gets used to the idea,” Mike tried to reassure her.
“You don’t know him like I do. He’ll probably threaten to kill himself or something stupid like that.”
“Empty threats in that case. Don’t take any notice of that.”
They walked back to their love nest arm in arm, both wondering how all this was going to pan out for the best. They had upset enough people for the time being.
On Monday, Mike went off to work and at lunchtime, he went back to his house to see if he could find his passport. He searched each room systematically, in every nook and cranny and every drawer. It was nowhere to be found. He felt sure Rosemary must have taken it to work with her, knowing he would go there and try to look for it.
Jan filled her time with little jobs that she found and went out for a walk around the vicinity. She went to the shops and asked for small coins in her change. She had a lot of calls to make. She arrived at the phone kiosk. ‘I’ll try and see if I can speak to Geoff instead of Louise. Hopefully, he will be at home by now.’
She steeled herself and went into the phone box and dialled her home number. It rang for quite some time, but just before she hung up she heard a breathless voice.
“Hello?” It was Steven.
“Hello Steven, it’s Mum. How are you?”
“Oh, hello,” he couldn’t think of anything else to say. “D’you want to speak to Dad?”
“If he’s there, yes. How is he?”
“How d’you think he is? Devastated would be the word I’d use. He’s not been able to go to work, he’s so depressed. I’ll see if he can come to the phone.”
“Hello,” Geoff said quietly. “Is that you? Are you coming back?” he tried hopefully.
“No, I’m sorry. I had to ring to see how you are and tell you how sorry I am in the way I left. I meant everything I said in the letters. I just couldn’t find a better way in which to go.”
“Please come back,” he begged. “We can try again and I’ll be a better husband, I promise. I’m so sorry the way I treated you all these years.”
“I’m sorry, but it’s not going to happen. I just wanted to let you know that I’m going to be out of the country from Friday for about two weeks.”
“With that man?”
“Yes.”
“Well, don’t expect me to be here when you come back. I shall go up to the garage with a strong hose and attach it to the exhaust. Life isn’t worth living without you.”
“Don’t be so silly and don’t do anything rash, that’s just desperation talking.”
“I am desperate! I can’t sleep, I can’t work, I can’t function. What’s the point?”
“For the kids, I should think. In a few weeks, you’ll be back to normal.”
“What is normal, I’d like to know?”
“I must go now. I’ll ring again when I get back. We haven’t got a telephone installed yet. I’ll let you know the number when it is, probably after we get back. Bye for now.” She didn’t wait for him to say anything else. While she was in the phone box, she thought she had better try her parents. She dialled their number and Ken answered.
“Hello Dad, it’s Jan,” she started. “I just wanted to let you know I’ve left Geoff.”
“Yes, we know all about that! We’ve had him on the phone to us bleating away that you had left. Where are you?”
“I’m in a cottage in Surbiton. I met another man on holiday and we’re going to try and make a go of it.”
“What is it about men you meet on holiday! Geoff was a holiday romance, wasn’t he? I’ve heard it all before – the grass is always greener and all that. But it rarely is, believe me. We’ve had friends who’ve gone off with other people, but they’ve always come back with their tail between their legs.”
“That’s a bit negative. Anyway, I just thought I’d tell you where I am. We’re going away on Friday so nobody can get hold of me for two weeks. We haven’t got a telephone installed yet because it’s a brand new cottage. I’ll let you know the number when we get it after we get back.”
“I’ll tell your mother. She’s been worried about you.”
Jan came out of the phone box mentally exhausted. She had intended to ring Clare and John, but that would have to wait until the next day. She felt drained.
Mike came home and told Jan about not being able to find his passport and she told him about her calls. They curled up on the settee and comforted each other with a cuddle.
On Tuesday he went back to his house again, thinking that Rosemary might not take the passport to work with her the second day. He put his key in the front door but it wouldn’t turn. She had changed the locks! ‘Oh no, now what?’ he thought to himself. He returned to the cottage and told Jan.
“I would have changed the locks too if I was her! You’ll just have to go there when you know she’s there and ask her for it. Time is going on. You only have a few more days before we go! You must get it.” He nodded his agreement.
On Wednesday he went to his house in the evening when he knew Rosemary was going to be there. On the way he mulled over in his head what he was going to say. He rang the bell and she came to the door. She was just about to close it when she saw him, but he pushed the door open and nearly knocked her backwards.
“What d’you want?” she spat nastily.
“For a start, I want my passport,” he announced.
“You can’t have it! I’ve hidden it and you’ll never find it.” She was feeling very pleased with herself, rather smug in fact.
“Oh, come on, that’s just being childish,” he intoned. “Anyway, I need it for my next trip abroad with work.” He did a lot of travelling with his job and she knew it.
“I suppose you’re going to take your floosie away on holiday, are you?”
“I’m sorry but that’s none of your business anymore. Please give me my passport or you’ll have my company after you. They’ve booked me to go to Japan and I can’t go without my passport. Imagine if I told them my wife’s hidden it!”
“It�
�s in the garage. That’s the only clue I shall give you.” She was rather enjoying the cat and mouse aspect. She wasn’t going to give in easily.
Mike went straight to the garage and searched amongst all the stuff they had there. He opened bin bags and boxes from the last time they moved house. He was there a good two hours sorting through things he hadn’t seen in years before he looked in the fridge as a last resort. Underneath cans of beer he spotted something dark red which looked out of place.
“Aha! There you are!” He reached in and retrieved his passport.
Rosemary had been just the other side of the garage door listening. She heard him say “Aha” and she went rushing into the garage and tried to snatch it from him. He was wise to this and he put it straight into his pocket and kept his hand over it. She tried another tack.
“You can’t go! I love you! Don’t leave me like this. You always used to say you loved me. Now you’ve got some other woman. Won’t you ever settle down properly?”
“Of course I will – but I’m sorry, not with you.”
“I was just a stop gap then, was I?”
“Not exactly. We’ve had five years, some of them good years but it’s just not enough for me. You’re not the one for me. I’d like a divorce at some stage, but I shall have to leave that to you to divorce me. I shall see that you’re OK financially.”
“So I can keep the house?” she tried hopefully.
“My first wife was a good housekeeper, so I was quite expecting you to be too!”
He left her then. He had left Jan on her own all day and nearly all evening. He worried that she would start to wonder where he was.
He walked into the cottage waving his passport in the air.
“We shall go to the ball! Or even to Thailand. Before the fireworks really kick off. Rosemary is not a happy bunny.”
“Did you expect her to be? It was lucky you found her in after she changed the locks. Did she just cave in and give it to you?”
“Did she hell! No, I had to search for it. I told her I needed it for work and she said it was in the garage. I had to hunt through loads of boxes and rubbish, stuff I hadn’t seen in years. It really needs a good clear out. Never mind about that now. She’d hidden it in the fridge of all places! At least we can concentrate on our holiday now.”
“Thailand, here we come.”
Chapter 36
The phone rang in the Thai hotel bedroom. Mike went to pick it up.
“Hello, this is Marian here. Is that Mike?”
“Ah, we meet at last. Well, we speak at last. I’ve heard so much about you. I can’t wait to meet you and to thank you for all your help in getting us together.”
“Not that I did very much from here, apart from giving Jan some support. Can I speak to her?”
“Of course you can.” He passed the phone to Jan.
“Hello,” Jan spoke into the mouthpiece.
“Hi, you’re here at last! How has it all been? Fairly traumatic I should say.”
“You can say that again! That’s a bit of an understatement. At least we’re together now and can help each other through the difficult times back home. We just want to unwind now and have a good relaxing time. When will we see you? Will you come over here?”
“No, I’m going to send my chauffeur to pick you up in one week’s time. That’ll be on Saturday, next week. Instead of staying here, we’re going up to our place in the hills north of Bangkok – on our farm. It’s lovely, and Kai will be there too. He does great barbecues and he’s going to buy the best steaks, he says. We’ll have a great time. Meanwhile, enjoy all there is to do in Bangkok. I recommend the snake farm, and you can visit the floating market in the klongs, which are like canals. Or a boat ride down the main river called the Chao Phraya, which is the river outside your hotel. You would go past the Grand Palace which has been the home of the Thai kings for the last 150 years. It’s the royal court and administrative seat of government and it’s very grand, hence the name. You can’t miss it, it’s right on the river. You’ll be shown temple after temple, but once you’ve seen one you’ve pretty much seen them all! Also, you could get a longtail boat up the river to visit the war cemetery and museum, and from there you can walk on the bridge over the famous river Kwai. The Jeath cemetery is very moving, a ‘must see.’ You could also take a train ride along the track that was built in the war where so many people lost their lives.”
“Wow, that’s given us some food for thought, thanks,” Jan enthused. “I can see there’s plenty to do. Mike’s been here before but it’s all new to me.”
“Yes, I know! I’ve asked you to come all those years and now you’re finally here. I must go, I’ll see you next week. My chauffeur will come straight to the hotel on Saturday morning and ask for you. Just wait in reception.”
“That’s lovely. Thank you so much for everything and we’re so looking forward to seeing you.”
Jan hung up the phone, really excited. She put her arms around Mike.
“Now I know how much I’ve been missing. Marian has told me what we can do and I’m so happy to share it all with you. I know you’ve been here before so now you can show me around.”
“It’ll be my pleasure,” he confirmed. They were ecstatic just to be in other’s company. “But just for now, today, I want us to rest up, have a lovely meal in the hotel and chill out.”
“Oh, what a lovely idea. The last few weeks have been so very stressful, I feel worn out. The hotel restaurant is beautifully decorated in the Thai style. I’ve never had Thai food, only Chinese, I wonder if it’s similar?”
“I think it is. You might feel worn out because you’re jet lagged. Have you ever had that before?”
“No, never. That’s because I’ve never been very far before. At least I can rest now and face the fireworks in two weeks’ time when we get home. We must enjoy every day.”
“I agree. For now though, we’ll get dressed up and have a drink in the bar beforehand. Have our meal and then there’s an area outside where we can have a leisurely coffee and watch the boats go by on the river.”
“Super. I do love you, you know,” Jan confirmed her feelings for him.
“Love you too.” He had a lovely warm feeling inside and he instinctively knew he had done the right thing by getting together with this person he loved more than anything. “I’m going to take you on a tuk tuk ride tomorrow and we’ll find some authentic Thai food at the street markets. Then we’ll go for a Thai massage. I have missed the massages here.”
Every day was very different and they visited every single site that Marian had mentioned. The snake farm was interesting and the trip ended with a visit to a gemstone outlet.
“I’d like to buy you something from here. Not necessarily an engagement ring but something nice. What would you like?”
They looked at everything on sale and it all looked rather pretentious to Jan. She liked small, understated jewellery – but then she noticed in the ruby section: a heart-shaped ring, quite small. She tried it on.
“It’s perfect,” she mused, as she looked at it on her finger.
“Well, then you must have it,” Mike insisted.
“I love it! Thank you so much,” said Jan. “It’s beautiful. It’s also your birthstone, so I can think of you when I wear it.” She was also glad that it wasn’t too expensive because she didn’t want to give Mike the impression that she was greedy. He insisted that she wore it before they left the shop. She went out of the door staring at her new acquisition, smiling.
“I shall keep in on, forever.”
Saturday came all too quickly and the chauffeur was already at reception when they went to check out. Mike shook him by the hand and he took their suitcases. Outside was a fabulous white Mercedes with white leather upholstery.
“This is very plush and ostentatious. I hope we’re not going to be out of our depth, staying with
them.” Jan was starting to get worried. “They’re undoubtedly out of our league in the wealth stakes.”
“It’ll be fine. I can hold my own as I expect you can too. How well d’you know Marian, and have you ever met her husband?” Mike asked her.
“I’ve met Kai a couple of times. I was only at school with Marian and we also went on holiday to Ireland twice in our teens. Her mother owned a hotel there and we used to do jobs for pocket money. Marian would spend the whole of the summer holidays there, but I was only there about two weeks the first year and three weeks the second year. It was great. Her mother let us work in the bar, even though we were underage. I learnt how to make a Snowball and how to pour Guinness the correct way. The Irish were very particular in how their brew was served. It was a hanging offence if there was too much head! Or if there wasn’t enough. It had to be just right, each and every time. Or else! I soon learnt.”
“I’ve never been to Ireland. I hear it’s quite behind the times, like back in the fifties. Old fashioned.”
“Well, I suppose it is in many ways. Anyway, after school we attended secretarial college together but then we went our separate ways after she met Kai and I got married. But we always kept in touch by letter once she went abroad to live. First of all in America and then Thailand.”
The chauffeur drew up to gates which seemed to open by magic. They drew up to a house with lovely wide steps up to a beautiful shiny black front door. Jan and Mike got out and the chauffeur showed with his hand the way up the steps. He hadn’t said anything on the way over, so they assumed he didn’t speak much English.
“Hi,” said Marian as she opened the door. “That wasn’t too long, the traffic was probably OK was it?” Jan wouldn’t have known. She hadn’t taken any notice as she had been talking to Mike all the way. Marian said a few words to the chauffeur in Thai and then closed the front door.
“How lovely to meet you at last,” she said to Mike while extending her hand.
“Likewise,” he said to her as he shook her hand. “I’ve heard so much about you. Jan was telling me about the times you had in Ireland when you were teenagers. It sounded fun.”