When Love Knocks Twice (A Contemporary Love Story) (5 page)

“ Are
you sure?” checked Tom.

“ I'm
sure,” nodded Gail.

He
returned, shaved, five minutes later.

“ Better,”
said Gail.

“ Indeed,”
agreed Tom.

As
Tom went around checking that he hadn't left anything lying around,
Gail posed a question.

“ When
did you say you were going back home?”

“ I
didn't,” he replied. “And I'm not.”

“ Sorry?”
quizzed Gail, somewhat confused.

“ I'm
sorry, I shouldn't tease. I'm not going home from here. I've got a
cottage on Skye booked for a week, in order to do some hill-walking.
I leave tomorrow.”

There
was a moment's silence while Gail took in the information.

“ Skye.
I love Skye. It's beautiful this time of year.” There was a
sort of pleading in her voice that she neither disguised nor
apologised for.

Tom
didn't respond straight away. It was as if both their brains had gone
into slow time. He looked her in the eye.

“ I
would love to be able to ask you to join me but the cottage only has
one bedroom.”

Their
eyes met and a silent conversation took place between them that no
one else would have been able to interpret.

Gail
was aware that her pulse had quickened, and that warm feeling was
back. She thought of the last night. She broke the silence in a very
considered tone.

“ I
think ... I could handle that.” A pause. “If you could?”

Tom
considered for a moment, and recalled waking up that morning beside
her. “I think I could handle it too.”

“ Wow,”
sighed Gail, heaving a big breath.

“ What
would your kids say?”

Gail
laughed. “I suppose I'll find out, won't I?”

She
stood on the doorstep and watched Tom climb into his car. Now she
knew that madness had finally overcome her. Having chastised herself
for last night's actions she had just compounded it by making it even
worse. Worse, or better? The rebel that had always been there as part
of her personality, seemed to come to the fore. Dammit, she thought,
if I want to go on holiday with a friend then why shouldn't I? Or was
she trying to justify what any sane person would condemn as reckless?

And
then Tom had gone and agreed! Tom, who could always be relied upon to
do the sensible thing, whom she would have expected to point out all
the reasons why they couldn't or shouldn't do it, he had agreed.

So
what was she going to do now? She was bloody well going to enjoy
herself she decided, that's what she was going to do, and she
proceeded to laugh out loud at odd intervals for the remainder of the
day.

Tom
drove off, needing to get some shopping done before the trip north.
Gail tried to decide what to pack, and how to break the news to her
daughter.

Tom
tried to concentrate on the shopping in hand but found his mind
wandering in circles around the phrase 'Have I done the right thing,
or have I done something stupid' but getting no answers. All he knew
was that he was happier than he had been the day before, and decided
to follow the maxim 'live for today, let tomorrow take care of
itself'. It still didn't let him concentrate on the job in hand, but
at least he cheered up those around him with a silly grin on his
face.

If
he had only known it, Gail was fighting the same sort of battle, with
the added complication of 'how do I tell my kids', and tell them she
must if she was going to disappear for a week. She still couldn't
believe she had had the gall to do it, but deep down she didn't
regret it. Not yet anyway.

Emily
sat down hurriedly with her mouth open, speechless for the moment,
but not for long.

“ You're
doing what?” she uttered. “I don't believe it. You're
going off with this man you've only just met, who could be an
axe-murderer for all you know.”

“ You
told me I needed to have some fun.”

“ But...but,
but this goes against everything you ever told me as a teenager.”

“ I
know,” started Gail. “But when you get to my age you
can't afford to turn down the opportunity for some adventure.”

Emily
shook her head in despair. “I don't believe this. You're
determined to do this aren't you?”

“ Yes
I am.”

“ You're
going to do it whatever I say, aren't you?”

“ Yes
I am.”

“ Well
I hope you know what you're doing. But if you must, then have some
fun as well. Although I warn you, I may phone you regularly.”

She
stood and gave her mother a hug, leaving Gail feeling rather guilty,
but also somewhat thankful, that she hadn't told Em that she was also
going to share this man's bed.

“ For
what it's worth,” confessed Emily. “I rather liked him.”

Saturday

Tom
had hardly pulled his Mercedes to a stop outside Gail's front door
before the door opened and Gail trundled her suitcase across the
gravel. Tom came round to the back of the car, opening the boot with
the remote.

“ Good
morning,” he greeted, with a peck on the cheek.

“ Good
morning,” Gail replied.

They
both stood there momentarily, neither making a move.

“ Last
chance to change your mind,” offered Tom.

“ Too
late. My reputation is already shot with my family, because I even
considered doing it,” replied Gail, with a grin. “Let's
do this before I think any more.”

She
paused. “Unless.... Have I forced myself on you? Please tell me
if you're not happy about this.”

“ What's
not to be happy about. Going off into the sunset with an attractive
woman,” joked Tom, putting her suitcase in the boot alongside
his.

“ Except
it's not sunset, it's ten o'clock in the morning.”

Tom
shut the boot. “I warn you, if you're going to split hairs the
whole week, I may leave you at the roadside.” Gail stuck her
tongue out in an extremely un-adult fashion.

They
climbed into the car and settled themselves in. Tom started the
engine but didn't make a move.

“ Go,
for goodness sake, go!” cried Gail.

So
he did.

The
first hour of the journey passed in relative silence, although had
thinking been audible they would have needed ear-defenders. They were
fifty miles out when Tom broke the silence.

“ Do
you like having music on in the car?”

“ That
depends,” replied Gail.

“ On
what?”

“ If
I'm in the car on my own I'll put the radio on,” she explained.
“If I'm in the car with someone I'm not particularly familiar
with I'll put the radio on to cover the awkward silence. If I'm with
someone I'm comfortable with, then I'm happy to have companionable
silence.”

“ So
do you want the radio on?”

“ No.”

As
they lapsed into silence, Gail found herself wondering why she found
the company of this man so comfortable, having only just met after
forty years, and yet it seemed that they had picked up where they
left off, as if the intervening years had not happened. And yet they
had happened, and they each had personal histories that would
undoubtedly remain personal. It was like she was entering a new
season, disconnected from the previous one and yet somehow linked to
her past. Self analysis could get very confusing she decided, and
vowed to become more mindful of the present, pushing past and future
to the back of the shelf.

And
so the journey continued, generally in companionable silence
interspersed with occasional conversation, some trivial, some
interesting, some contentious.

“ Do
you remember when we won the mixed doubles junior tournament at the
Tennis club?” asked Tom.

“ No,”
replied Gail.

“ Yes,
we did. It was one of those random draw tournaments where your
partners were drawn out of a hat. We swept the board, embarrassingly
so.”

“ I
don't remember that at all.”
“Don't you?”

“ Are
you sure it was me and not some other female?”

“ No,”
insisted Tom, “I remember it distinctly.”

“ Well
your memory must be better than mine. I just remember beating you
regularly when we played against each other.”

“ No,”
replied Tom indignantly. “I don't remember that at
all.”
“Absolutely. I was a far better player than you
were, most of the time.”

“ Was
not.”

“ Was
too.”

They
continued until it got silly.

Gail
brought it to a halt. “Is this our first tiff, or what?”

They
both burst out laughing and then lapsed into silence, which lasted
until they stopped for coffee at a roadside restaurant.

As
they were letting their coffees cool, Tom met Gail's gaze.

“ You
know, I feel like I don't really know you.”

“ In
what way?”

“ What
makes you tick? What to you love, what do you hate?”

“ Oh.
That's an interesting one,” considered Gail. “What do I
love? I love long views and big horizons, fish & chips out of the
wrapper, frosty mornings, long cold drinks in hot weather, the first
cup of tea of the day, the sound of waves on the shore, and the smell
of coffee.”

“ And
hate?”

“ What
do I hate? I hate all-day drizzle, dark mornings, shoes that leak,
cold hands, jugs that won't pour, bad drivers, and Soap operas. So.
Your turn. Reveal all. What floats your boat?”

“ I
love the sight of an open fire, the smell of wood smoke, a
comfortable bed at the end of a long day, the feeling of sunshine on
your face and the smell of fresh bread, but I hate toilet seats that
won't stay up, people who don't clear up after their dogs, computers
that won't do what they're told, blunt knives, overflowing rubbish
bins, loud motorcycles late at night, dripping taps and ticking
clocks.” offered Tom.

“ Good
to know,” concluded Gail.

They
drank their coffee and continued on their way, conscious of the
passing of time, and how far they still had to go.

They
didn't get much further however, as passing Alexandria, at the
southern end of Loch Lomond, the Mercedes engine died to a whisper,
and they coasted to a silent stop at the side of the road.

“ That's
interesting,” remarked Tom.

“ You're
going to tell me we've run out of petrol, aren't you.” accused
Gail.

“ No.
I filled up this morning and there is enough in the tank to get us
all the way there.”

He
tried to start the engine again, which cranked but didn't catch. He
repeated the attempt another three times without any result.

“ We're
doomed,” mocked Gail. “We're doomed.”

Tom
tried to stop laughing as he pulled out his mobile and rang the AA
emergency number, receiving a promise of a response within twenty
minutes.

“ That
means we could be here for days, weeks, years even,” declared
Gail. “They'll find our skeletons here years from now.”

“ Have
you quite finished?” prompted Tom, with a grin.

In
the end the AA took half an hour, and towed them first to the nearest
garage, who promised to look at the car as soon as they could, and
then to a hotel by the Loch-side.

Gail
went in to see if there were rooms available whilst Tom completed the
AA paperwork. By the time he arrived in the reception area with their
cases Gail had already checked them in.

“ Oh,
thank you for bringing in my suitcase, dear,” she greeted them,
with a heavy emphasis on the 'dear'.

Tom
momentarily frowned but replied, “That's all right, dear.”
He repeated the emphasis whilst looking at the register where he
noted that Gail had checked them in as 'Mrs and Mrs Drysdale'.

Having
gained the room-key they trundled their suitcases to the lift and
only just managed to let the doors close before collapsing in
hysterical laughter.

Gail
wiped her eyes once she had managed to calm down a little. “I
haven't had so much fun since the last time I played truant.”

“ You
never played truant,” retorted Tom. “You were always the
good,compliant one.”

“ Times
change you, you know,” replied Gail, before breaking into
laughter all over again.

“ So
what is it with the 'Mr and Mrs Drysdale'?”

“ You
know I just couldn't bear to explain to them why I wanted one
bedroom, so it seemed easier to play married.”

“ And
did you want just one bedroom?”

“ Start
as you mean to go on, I say.”

They
continued to giggle quietly all the way through their evening meal in
the restaurant, like two schoolchildren sharing a private joke on a
school outing. Fortunately there were no schoolteachers around to
recognise the signs.

After
their meal they took a stroll by the Loch in the dying sun before
returning to their room.

“ I
don't know about you but all this enjoyment has tired me out,”
proclaimed Gail. “I'm going to turn in.”

“ And
I'll join you,” agreed Tom. “We still have a long drive
tomorrow.”

They
dug around in their suitcases for night things and ended up, both
standing by the bed, toothbrush in hand, looking almost expectantly
at each other.

“ Okay,”
started Gail. “Look. I know I got us into this but I'm not
going to spend the whole week sneaking into the bathroom to get
dressed and undressed, like some spinster in a convent. I'm going to
get undressed and if you happen to see me naked, then you just have
to promise not to laugh out loud. Deal?”