Chapter One
As I got into my car and drove off for a short break, I couldn’t help but consider how lucky I was to have my twin companions and lovers, Jane and Phyllis. I had never been happier in my life before to have such a unique relationship. The twins knew that wherever I went, and whatever I did, I belonged to them, and I would come back. They also knew that I placed no boundaries. We all had at least one disastrous break up, and none of us felt we wanted to commit to a full relationship. What we had, suited all of us just fine. Maybe, something might happen in the future, but none us were looking that far ahead. That would be another chapter in our lives.
Driving now through the mountains, I had the window down, and the smell of the fresh country air was invigorating. The twins had been right. I had needed this break, and with several of my books published, since I’d had my last brief respite, and the movie from an earlier book was still getting good reviews, this short breather was well overdue.
I wasn’t planning a long vacation. I didn’t envisage more than a week. I couldn’t imagine being away from the twins for too long. I only wanted to do two things, and I could do them both at the same time. One was to have a break. The other was to catch up with someone from my past, Jenny, whom I hadn’t seen since my book launch I did at Barrickton.
I hadn’t told Jenny I was coming, and even if she had found herself another steady, I’m sure she would still be glad to see me, as I would be to see her.
I had planned to stop at Barrickton, so when I reached there, I drove straight to the library and parked out front.
When I entered the building, I walked over to the receptionist’s desk. Katey was there engrossed in something on a computer. I hadn’t seen her, or contacted her, since I did the launch here.
“I’ll be with you in a minute,” she said, not looking up.
Katey typed something on the keyboard, looked at it, then looked at me. “Roland!” she exclaimed. She then ran around the counter, came up to me, wrapped her arms around my neck, and kissed me on the cheek. “How nice to see you, and why didn’t you tell me you were coming? I could have had your fan club here to meet you.”
“It’s okay. I’m in no rush, and I plan to stay here overnight. I can come back tomorrow if you want.”
“That’s great. I can phone around and let everyone know.”
“If that is too short a notice, I can come back in a few days on my way home.”
“No, that’ll be fine. I’m sure your fans’ll want to see you tomorrow.”
“Okay, tomorrow it is then.”
“But of course, you can still drop by on your way home as well,” Katey said with an ever so slightly suggestive tone.
“I could do that. There’s an excellent motel here that I stayed in last time, and I’ll be staying there tonight.”
“Yes, I know where you stayed last time. There’s a nice little pub within walking distance from there.”
“That’s another reason I like to stay there. I don’t have to drive to a pub.”
“Yes, and that’s what I like about it, too. I live on the other side of the pub, about the same distance away from it as the motel.”
“I’ll be there tonight. One thing I hate is sitting and drinking alone in a motel.”
“That’s a coincidence, I sometimes go down there on a Monday night, when there’s nothing on telly.”
“I wonder if one of these, sometime coincidental Monday nights, could be tonight, because my second most dislike is drinking alone in a pub.”
“You never know. It could be possible, if there is nothing more exciting on telly,” Katey said, and this time I got a cheeky smile.
“I’ll be there about six. I usually like to have a couple of drinks before I eat.”
“I’ll remember that, in case I get hungry.”
“Do,” I replied.
“Well, I better get and make those phone calls, or your fans will kill me if they find out you’ve been here, and they’ve
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