In Dreams Ch. 03

In fact my self-discharge from hospital had interrupted Parson's plans. He had intended to put Quiet Times back in the water, on that mornings tide. But on hearing that I was out and about, he thought I might want to take a good look at her bottom, while she was high and dry.

All of our party climbed aboard her, then Tara showed her mother, Sylvia, Kate, and John around.

It didn't strike me as odd at the time that Tara knew where everything was, because I recalled John saying he'd talked to Kate outside the boatyard. I kind of assumed that old man Parsons or one of his boys, had given Tara a tour while she'd been there. However my mind began to change when I heard Tara saying.

"... admiralty in 1956. She's made out of Larch, on oak frames. She's forty-one feet long, eleven-and-a-half feet wide, and she draws around four feet of water; whatever that means!"

"I'd have said, more like five!" John interrupted Tara, "She's a big-un you know. I wouldn't risk taking her in anything less than seven or eight feet of calm water."

Then the lad looked at me, for confirmation I suppose.

"It's four-and-a-half feet, John." I corrected the lad, then I asked, "But how do you know all that, Tara?"

She grinned back at me.

"I can't be sure dad, I just do! Maybe I dreamt it sometime. In here for instance," Tara lifted one of the bench seats to expose the locker beneath. "I know you keep all the life jackets. And in that one over there, there's couple of mops and buckets for washing the decks down. Maybe it's female intuition?"

"Or it could be that you had a good look around the other day." I suggested/

"The paint was still wet father; they wouldn't let me come up here!" Tara grinned back at me.

I looked across at Ottilie, who'd listened to the exchange in silence. Ottilie shrugged, smiled and then mouthed "Uncle Percy!" back to me.

"I'm beginning to get worried about exactly what the old bugger's been up too." I grinned back at her. But then I let the subject drop, because Mr Parsons, Sylvia, John and young Kate were... Well, they'd obviously lost the plot somewhere along the line, and were looking at me as if I'd gone loopy.

We left the boatyard after arranging to witness Quiet Times going back into the water the following morning. But as we left the yard, I remembered something I'd needed to discuss with old man Parsons, so at my insistence the rest of the party walked on, while I doubled back into his office.

"Are you sure lad?" Parsons had asked when I explained what I wanted him to do.

"Oh yeah I'm sure; that little scene on the boat just now convinced me." I smiled back at him

"You're the boss lad, I'll do my best to have it all ready in the morning for you. But don't you go forgetting to do all the paperwork, will you. You know what officialdoms like; those buggers will be all over you if all the paperwork isn't right!" The old boy reminded me as I left.

So instead of heading for the house to join the others, I headed for the Boat Charter company office from where I knew I could make the necessary phone calls with a modicum of privacy. Well, privacy in as far as I required it anyway; certain people needed to know what I was planning.

I'm sure young John must have nipped home at sometime during the day. But he was back sniffing around Kate -- who appeared to enjoy his company -- by the time I made it back to the house.

Whatever, as I walked into the yard I was greeted with an immediate summons to attend my doctors surgery. It appeared that my physician was quite perturbed that I'd discharged myself from hospital and chewed me out over the fact. But then he went on to say that under the circumstances he understood my actions.

From that I gathered that he knew all about Ottilie and Tara and their arrival on the scene. It also became apparent that he was aware that Quiet Times was going back in the water the following morning. And he somehow invited himself, his wife and two children along on what would be a kind of inaugural cruise. He had it sussed that I'd want to take the girls out for a spin on her.

By the time I returned from the doc's, -- after he'd given me the full once over -- Maud, Ottilie and Sylvia were... well, they sounded very busy in the kitchen preparing our evening meal. I kind-a stuck my head in there to say hello and I then retreated as quickly as possible. Albeit having been given the task of chilling the wine they'd selected from my meagre collection.

All right, I was told "Get lost!", my input would not be necessary until it was time to open said bottles of plonk. Not in so many words maybe; but that was about the gist of it.

I retreated, first to the lounge and then further outside, out of earshot; to hunt down the youngsters.

Yeah well, as I said Maud's voice carries, and I could hear her... Well, I suspect that while I'd been unconscious, Maud had been diplomatic in her exchanges with Ottilie. It appeared that now that I was up and about, Ottie was getting a rather fuller description of some of the more humorous interludes from my life that Maud had been witness to. Unfortunately, far too often, those reflections featured some of my more notorious encounters with females.

I can't say that I was upset about it, because I wasn't! If Ottilie didn't hear about my peccadilloes from Maud; then eventually, she'd surely hear about them -- probably related with a lot less diplomacy and humour -- from someone else in the town.

The youngsters I found, giving the rib a good scrub down. I'd known the boys had removed it from Quiet Times' mooring (most likely for security reasons). But I'd had no idea that they had put her on her trailer and dragged her up under her winter cover. I pitched in with the clean-up and then we returned the Rib to the water. We were going to need her the following day and John was quite excited that I charged him with running it down to Parsons' boatyard.

I didn't sleep alone again that night, as you might guess, but at least Tara hadn't joined us when Ottilie decided to wake me that following morning. At the rate Ottie was going, I began to wonder how long I was going to last. She certainly appeared to be making up for lost time; if you get my drift?

John (and another youngster) arrived very early -- as planned -- and the two lads roared off in the Rib, much to Kate's surprise. I think she (and maybe Tara) had assumed that they'd go with him. Ottilie and... well all the girls', remarked that John had left rather prematurely. But I told them that the boys probably wanted to dash around like a pair of idiots in the rib for a while, as youngsters tend to do.

"That Rib can go quite fast if you give some wellie!" I told them, "The youngsters probably want to have a little fun, while I'm not watching."

Both Ottilie and Tara were curious that Quiet Times bows were sheathed in canvas although she was hanging from the boat crane above the water. Parsons had carefully positioned a mobile platform from where he knew (by experience) that Ottilie would be able to reach her bow.

Once we'd all scrambled up there. Mr Parson handed Ottilie a bottle of cheap Champagne and a printed sheet of paper to read from. Then he pointed out the place on the boats bow that would best serve to smash said container.

Ottilie read the words on the paper to herself and looked across at me. I urged her to get on with it. I had one eye on the tide (as always) and I must admit that I was also just a little curious as to why several boats that shouldn't have been, were milling around each other out on the water.

Ottilie got the timing wrong, smashing the bottle a little too early so all anyone heard her say was, "I name this ship..." (Actually the paper had said craft, but we'll forget about that.)

Anyway as the bottle smashed, the air was filled with a cacophony of noise. The craft off the boatyard, (and numerous cars in the locality) all sounded their horns at once. The noise continued as craft, both up and down river, joined in until a coaster moored at the China Clay quay drowned them out with her foghorn. Then a visiting Cruise Ship decided to join in, and probably deafened everyone in the town.

I have no idea whether everyone blasting their horns was planned, or whether hearing everyone else doing so, caused them to decide to join in. Whatever it was very impressive to hear.

As the noise had gone on the boatyard boys had pulled the canvas away to show the world that "Quiet Times" was once again named "Ottilie". (I'll explain that comment shortly.) Then Ottilie watched quietly as her namesake was lowered gently into the water.

As we climbed down from the platform, (at a signal from me) young John informed Tara that it was her turn and handed her a bottle of the same Champagne. Then the lad led Tara over to where the rib had been beached. Where she performed a similar ceremony on the semi-inflatable craft. Tara actually smashed her bottle on Ribs anchor held just clear of her bow (broken glass and rubber boats don't mix well). Then Tara, dragged me out of her mother's arms so that she could hug and kiss me herself.

Our party boarded Ottilie and I backed her out of the boatyard, before handing the helm over to John and instructing him to head her out of the harbour. Well, I kind-a figured I'd be able to watch what the lad was like, while he thought I was busy with all the guests aboard.

Lets just say John passed muster, but he needed a little more experience with something of that size.

We'd cleared the harbour and I'd just told John to head for a couple of other craft just visible on the horizon, when Ottilie got around to asking. "Why does it say re-name this craft Ottilie on this piece of paper Taylor!"

"Because she was called Ottilie when I bought her; that's how I found her to be precise. For some reason I can't recall now, I typed Ottilie into Google one day and one of the hits was... well, you're standing on her. She was for sale and I was kind-a thinking on coming back to the UK, but I had no idea whereabouts I was coming too, if you get my drift. Home weren't home because the folks are out in Spain, and besides..."

"Besides what?"

"Never mind Ottie. Well, I suddenly got the idea into my head that I'd buy a boat and sail around the coast looking for somewhere to settle. In consequence I finished up buying this one."

"But why did you rename her, Quiet Times!"

"Ah now, Ottie; I'd have thought that would have been obvious. Ottilie is not a common name and far too many folks kept asking me where it came from. Not that she was named after you specifically in the first place. But I soon found that it was bringing back the wrong kind of memories, if you understand me; so I renamed her Quiet Times."

"Should I enquire why you were Googling the name Ottilie, in the first place?"

"I'd rather you didn't. Surely you're a big enough girl to be able to work that one out without asking."

"See, I told you mum?" Tara's voice butted in.

"You told your mother what?" I enquired because the two women were by then... you know, doing that thing, where they hold a conversation with each-other without actually using words.

Mina and Totto used to do that to me all the time, like they knew something that I didn't. I've always wondered how the female of the species appears to be born with that gift, whereas us males, kind-a missed out on it.

Whatever, I got no reply from either Ottilie or Tara.

We didn't actually see any basking sharks that day, but that wasn't really the reason for the exercise. Basically it was to introduce Ottilie and Tara, to what was going to be the fourth member of our family, and even let them play at taking the helm for a while.

Yeah, honestly; it was a "Love me, then love my boat!" situation. God knows what I would have done, if either of them had shown a tendency towards seasickness.

Sylvia, the doc and his wife, seemed to find a lot to talk about, and very often when she wasn't with me, Ottilie would be chatting with them as well. Then later I saw Tara and her mother having a quiet word, and purposely out of my earshot by the look of it.

Whatever Ottilie was saying to her, Tara didn't look best pleased at first, but then suddenly a big smile came over her face and whatever the disagreement had been... well there was no mistaking the fact that it had been resolved.

We didn't stay out on the boat too long, returning her to her mooring about four o'clock. My doctor and his family stuck around for a while, but left before we sat down to eat the dinner Maud had prepared for us.

----

It was that night as we got into bed that Ottilie decided that it was time to pin me down.

"Okay Taylor, we need to talk about the future!" she said as she snuggled into my arms.

"Talk sweetheart, I'm listening." I replied.

Well, when a female says something like Ottilie had just said to me. I knew that what she really meant was "that she'd been thinking" and that she was about to... persuade me, that she'd got everything all worked out.

"Well, what about us?" Ottilie asked.

"Is your divorce final?"

"Years ago!"

"Right, we get hitched. A bit sharpish, like!"

"Okay then, but where will we live?"

"Ah now, that's a problem. I find that I suddenly have three loves in my life. You, our daughter and the newly christened 'Ottilie', out there. I don't think I could bear to be parted from any of you.

"Re-christened Taylor. But I'm afraid you're going to have to be apart from one of us for a while at least."

"I don't think I like the sound of that. Which one were you thinking of Ottie?" I asked defensively.

"Tara, she's got her GCSE's next spring and she's already been working on them at her school up there. It wouldn't be fair on the child for her to have to change schools now."

"But if Tara goes to school up there..."

Oh don't panic, I'm not going... Well, I'm going back up there with her; but I'll not be staying long. What, and risk leaving you down here with all these predatory female holiday makers, you'll be bloody lucky!

"No, I figure that we can get hitched as soon as you're ready, and Tara can stay with her grandfather until after her exams. She's got Kate and Sylvia living just around the corner; she'll be fine.

"Mind you, she'll be coming down here every other weekend or so... Sylvia and I managed to talk her out of coming down every weekend. And for all the school holidays."

"And what does our daughter have to say about that idea?"

"Tara's all for it, really; not changing schools that is. She's a little bit more reluctant about the idea of not being down here with us. But she agrees that her exams must come first and she say's it'll give us the opportunity of getting over the silly stage in our relationship."

"The silly stage?"

"Er yes, as our daughter put it; 'The newly married all googly-eyed bit!' Where we... er can't keep our hands off each-other.

"Tara seems to think that we'll be... to put it briefly, she thinks that there's lots of places we'll feel the need to christen over the next few months. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"That she thinks that we'll be bonking like a couple of demented rabbits, you mean?" I suggested.

"Close enough, Taylor; close enough!"

"She could be right about that. How long will you be going up there for?"

"Just long enough to pack the house up, and put it on the market. My father will take care of things after that; that's the bloody least he can do. Besides he's said as much already."

"What, that he'll look after Tara?"

Oh yeah, and get the house sold for me. Daddy's a little... well, he admits he screwed-up and he's apologised to me many times."

"Well, just tell him not to waste his breath on me?"

"Taylor, did you have a good time in Canada?"

"Yeah brilliant!"

"And, your boat, 'Ottilie'; you love that boat don't you?"

"Almost as much as I love you and Tara."

"Well, here's something that you might like to think about. If, my father hadn't been such a complete... arsehole, all those years ago. Then we wouldn't be lying here together now, would we?"

"No, but we'd be snuggled up together in a different bed, somewhere. We'd have been together for all those years... And you would not have been knocked about by Bill Morris."

"Yeah there are two ways of looking at it, I'll give you that. But I prefer to try to forget all the bad stuff and just see the good that has come out of it."

"You're too forgiving Ottilie."

"Possibly I am a little. But we... you and me, Taylor. And Tara of course! We need to look to the future. Christ we're thirty-one years old and we've still got our whole lives in front of us. Plenty of time to... well, Tara suggested that a little brother or sister, or maybe two, sounded like a good idea to her."

"Hey kiddo, one child out of wedlock is enough for me, we'd better get a wedding sorted then. Besides we're thirty-two... I'm nearly thirty-three."

You don't look it and a woman is allowed to be a little conservative when she quotes her age Taylor. The older she gets the more conservative she's allowed to get. Anyway, may I suggest we sort out the marriage side of things a bit sharpish then, my sweet! After-all, the clock is ticking and as you discovered yesterday morning I'm not using any protection. And we have been going at it quite a bit."

"You think we should use..."

"No, you can't! I ditched them all the other night when I was looking for your PJ's. Somewhere safe where you'll never find them."

"Ottilie, that sounds like an attempt at entrapment to me!"

It sure was; well, a sort of attempt at it! Christ Taylor, luck must start to go my way sometime in my life. Only this time I do it, knowing exactly what I am doing. With Tara, it was bad luck and the ignorance of youth. This time I'm going to make sure that you don't slip through my fingers. And besides, without your little supply tucked away in that drawer, you can't... Well, while I'm away... you can't, can you?"

"I wouldn't want to Ottilie. Tell you what, I'll give the Reverend whatever-her-name-is, a call first thing."

"I don't think you'll even need to do that, Taylor. Maud kind-a hinted that she'll be dropping by around breakfast time tomorrow. To officially welcome a new member to her Parish, according to Maud. You're not a regular churchgoer nowadays, are you?"

"Nope, but Maud and her best mate the Curate, have hopes of saving my soul. I only know her as Jean. They have managed to get me to church a few times though. Lots of things are based around the church or chapel around here; so one has little choice if you're not going to be an outsider, and want to be part of village life."

"Village life? I thought it was a town."

"Ah, but the town don't start until you get to the bottom of the hill, Ottie; by Parsons' boatyard. Out here in the sticks, we're considered to be part of the little village over the hill. It's either that, or you are branded an outsider. One of the many second-home set; who've pushed house prices out of the reach of most of the local youngsters."

"Aren't you an outsider?"

"No, I'm an incomer... and so will you be. We relocate to the county to live and work. We're accepted because we actually live here all the year round. Well I do, and you will be very shortly as well. As will Tara and any other member who happens to join our family."

"Let's get to enlarging the family then, shall we?" Ottilie said switching off the light.

-----

Ottilie's... interview (because that's what it was) with our local curate went fairly smoothly. Jean very diplomatically asked certain pertinent questions of both of us. But as she had known me personally for some years by then, it was mostly Ottilie who got the grilling.

Jean had always taken after Maud a little, (where I was concerned anyway) and often tried to play pseudo mother to me when she got the chance.