Hugo From Pode Hole

They all laughed.

Red-faced Carla said, "What I was meaning was Arnold and I have started putting money aside to develop a nursery and to establish an education fund and..."

"I have plenty of money," Hugo soothed. "I'll pay the airfares for the four of us, economy class."

"What me too?" Charlotte asked.

Hugo looked surprised. "Yes I always intended taking you but was waiting to settle on dates before talking to you about it to suggest you to arrange vacation leave."

Arnold said, "Look pal, that's very generous of you. Give me the dates as soon as you can and well look for cheap flights. If you fly at unpopular times the fares are cheaper as is booking on-line. They often have specials that are posted and last only 24-hours."

"Well that's settled then," Hugo said. "We are going to England."

"Well let's talk more before we decide whether to commit," Carla said.

As Charlotte and Hugo were walking home Charlotte said he should have told her he thought he'd have to return to England soon and that he intended taking her.

"Okay you are right. I ought to have done that. If I decide to stay permanently here you will be the main reason for doing that. You must understand I had an unsettling childhood and I learned not to bank on anything I was told we might be doing until we actually started off doing it."

"Oh god, of course. How mean of me to be thinking of me and ignoring your position."

"God Charlotte you have really changed. When I first knew you I believe you would have been incapable of making an apologetic confession like you just did."

"Oh dear that's me growing soft. How will I cope?" she laughed.

Hugo lost his smile. "Then is one other thing I should have told you and do so now. Please curb your anger/dismay/despair or attempted throttling."

"Oh god you're having an affair."

"What? Are you mad? After the state you leave me in I have to say thinking about another woman is the farthest thing from my mind."

"Then what is it? You are making me nervous."

"Well I mentioned tonight I was swinging about whether to live permanently. Well I've twice had meetings with Philip Rhodes."

"What our CEO?"

"Yes, the first time I asked if there would be any interest in your publishing house adding me to its team of authors and that would involve them buying out my contract with my English publisher that has twenty months to run. To my surprise he knew of me, having read my latest book and that meant my submissions turned it into a soft sell. He said he'd be in touch and I had lunch with him and your executive editor and your director of promotions two days ago. The outcome was they are more than interested and I was told he contacted his counterpart in London and was invited to put a proposal in writing. Philip has proposed some money changing hands and my London publisher be the joint publisher of my books, assuming I am to write more after the current one, and the London publisher will also supply all of Europe. They are likely to want to do some sort of deal so within company months I could become one of your writers."

Charlotte said intelligently, "You were asked to tell no one of those negotiations because of commercial sensitivity, weren't you?"

"Yes."

"Well you can reply on me to keep my mouth shut. I'm very excited about this. It's all coming together for us, or at least appears so, isn't it?"

"Yes. I read an email from my London editor just before coming out tonight. I had sent her the final drafts of my first fifteen chapters and she gave one of the copies of her printouts for the EIC (editor-in-chief) to read and he instructed my editor to pass on his reaction and that was "I predict a big-seller."

"Wow darling, that's awesome."

"Yeah as you said it's all coming together for us. I'm feeling randy."

"So am I Hugo. Walk a little faster please."

THE END