Three Times! A Lady?

"I'm afraid that John Hewlett intervened before I had a chance to challenge her."

"Oh I see, and John Hewlett's intervention escalated the situation somewhat, did it?"

"No, not exactly sir, it changed the encounter's direction. I'm a great believer in fate Mr Montague. I'd say that your daughter's action only brought forward by a few months something that would have happened very soon anyway. John Hewlett took all the credit for the Thomas account, didn't he? I worked my bloody arse off on that one, and him coming-on all righteous on me on Saturday evening... Well that was the last straw.

"Daniel Thomas is a personal friend of mine, Toby; we play golf together almost every week. John Hewlett might have tried to take the credit for the account. But Daniel told me about all the work you did to smooth troubled waters. Why the hell did you think you were getting that damned great bonus anyway?"

As Montague was speaking, a thought suddenly struck home in my mind.

"Just a moment sir. Did you just say, that my sister told you about the incident at the airport?"

"Yes. I told you, I've had people trying to find you all day. Your PA turned up your sister's telephone number, and I had a little chat with her this morning. Oh, you'd better give her a call by the way; she was most perturbed that we couldn't locate you this morning. She mentioned something about a yacht."

"Probably, she thinks I might have sailed off into the sunset again. My sister's never been very nautical, even when we were children and she came sailing with my father and I. She insists I let her know exactly where and when I'm out on the boat."

"I'd say she loves you very much, and she is concerned about your health and safety."

"Following that little incident with your daughter at Heathrow airport. I'm afraid that my sister doesn't think as highly of me as she used to do sir. She's is convinced that I had to have done something to precipitate your daughter's behaviour that day."

"My apologies. Wendy can be difficult and a real trial on occasions; but I've never known her become violent with anyone before. No matter what else results from our meeting today, Toby; I think we need to get you and Wendy together so you can thrash this out between you.

"I try to make a point of not meddling in my daughter's social life anymore. I'm sure that when she was younger, Wendy took-up with the most unsavoury of characters just to spite me. But I feel this has got to be an exception; she can't go around striking you every time you encounter each other. God man, you've every right to have her arrested. Are you free for dinner this evening?"

"Er, well, yes sir; I suppose I am." I replied.

I had no idea why I was still calling the old fart sir, or why I'd so readily accepted his offer of dinner. I had quit the company, after all.

But then again, reputedly a complete bastard in the business world; Montague appeared to me to be a very nice guy. So I sat there and listened as he (after producing a mobile phone from somewhere) called his wife, and explained to her that they had a guest for dinner that evening. He also asked her to ensure that their daughter Wendy was present for the meal.

"There, that was simple; you and Wendy can sort out whatever gripe she's got with you over dinner. You seem like a personable young man to me Toby, and from what Daniel Thomas told me, you can talk the hind legs off a donkey when you choose too. If you two sit down and discuss whatever Wendy's is with her; then maybe we'll be able to bring an end to that little misunderstanding.

"Right, now, we'd better move on to the matter of your employment."

"But..."

"No buts young man. I'm used to dealing with the likes of John Hewlett. There's a lot of dead wood around in every company. Now I suggest that we forget all about your resignation the other night. It wasn't in writing anyway, and that is how you should have submitted it; as stipulated in your contract of employment."

Montague smiled, as if he'd just laid the winning hand on the table in a game of cards.

"But I don't think you can remain working with a man who you obviously dislike so much in the mean time. Even if it is for the short period he remains with us. So, for the time being at least, I'm thinking upon the lines of moving you up here to the seventh floor."

I have no idea what kind of an expression that statement my face.

"Oh, don't look so surprised, Toby. You sweet-talked one of the toughest businessmen I know around, and made a mighty big impression on him."

"But I've never met with Mr Thomas."

"Yes you did, a rather overweight gentleman; he sits in on discussions and doesn't appear to say very much. Actually, he watches everyone very closely and instructs his mouthpiece with a collection of subtle hand signals. Look, Toby if I don't keep you, Daniel Thomas will be after adding you to his payroll; he's all-but told me as much.

"I haven't got anything specific in mind for you up here at the moment; so my personal assistant will have to do for the time being. With a salary befitting that station of course. What do you say to that, young man?"

"Um, well I..."

"Good, that's what I wanted to hear. I know as well as you do that the offer is far too good for you to refuse. You might be headstrong on occasions, but you are also a realist, not a fool.

"Now you take the rest of this week off, as a reward for all the hard work you put on the Thomas account, and we'll see you at the house this evening at seven-thirty for eight, shall we say? Oh, and you can leave that little box of tricks of yours with Suzy; she'll see that it's waiting in your office for you on Monday morning."

I kinda gathered that I'd been dismissed; so I picked up my little cardboard box and left Mr Montague's office.

"Gets to you, doesn't he?" Suzy said as I stood outside the door in a daze.

"Yeah, I'm not quite sure what happened in there really. I went in expecting a fight and I think I got sweet-talked back onto the firm."

"You never left, your resignation wasn't in writing. Mr Montague's a stickler for formality in those kinds of things. Now, when you come in next Monday that will be your office over there, Toby."

"Christ, did he have it all planned before I even got in there?"

"Well, in a way yes. He'd worked out what he wanted, it was how you reacted to his job offer that mattered."

"But how do you know that I accepted it?"

"You'd be a fool not to accept it, that was obvious to everyone. And of course, I do have the advantage of wearing this." She lifted her long hair to reveal that she was wearing an earphone in her left ear. "Every word that is said in that office is recorded, and I have to take notes as well."

"Charming!"

"No, just Mr Montague being suitably careful."

"Thanks for the nod, Suzy. Is my office going to be bugged by the way?"

"Only if you want it to be. I'll show where the relevant switches are on Monday. Now run along and enjoy your week's vacation, Mr Montague will probably run you ragged next week.

==========================

It wasn't really a very big house, on the outside. Not a bloody great mansion like you'd expect to see out in the country. But spread over four floors and with a large basement below, it was a surprisingly spacious building.

Mr Montague himself let me in, and immediately insisted that I called him Monty. Then he led the way into a very large lounge and introduced me to his charming and remarkably beautiful wife, Silvia. I could see where Wendy had got her good looks.

We were still stood in the lounge drinking dry Martinis' when Wendy made her appearance in the room. She took one look at me and stopped dead in her tracks.

"Father how could you invite that animal into this house?" She demanded. "I cannot tolerate being in the same room as him?"

Then she turned, as if to leave the room again.

"Just a moment young lady? You owe Toby here an apology!" Her father said with a commanding tone to his voice.

Somewhat surprisingly, Wendy did check her step and turned back to glower at me.

"Oh Toby is it now? It was Gerard the last time I encountered the bastard!"

"Wendy, there's no need for that sort of language. Toby is a guest in this house." Silvia Montague admonished her daughter.

"Well he shouldn't be. He's nothing but a damned philanderer. That man toyed with my emotions mother. He seduced and assaulted me, then deserted me after promising to marry me."

Well that explained the animosity Wendy felt towards me, even to me. The problem was she'd obviously mistaken me for someone else.

"Miss Montague, I can assure you that I'd never laid eyes on you until our encounter in town that evening in April."

"Oh Jerry, do you believe dropping your fake American accent is going to convince me that you aren't who you really are?"

"Wendy it's obvious you've made a mistake. Toby here has never been to Martinique in his life." Monty said in my defence.

He said it with such conviction, that -- knowing Monty as I did by then -- I figured he'd have checked that fact out very thoroughly during the day.

"Oh yeah, well I know otherwise and what's more I can prove it. If he isn't Gerard then your guest will not object to taking his shirt off, will he?" Wendy threw back at her father.

"And that will achieve?" Monty asked.

"Gerard is a flamboyant and vain creature father!" She spat back at him. He has numerous distasteful tattoos all over his arms and torso."

Monty didn't say anything to Wendy; he just looked at me.

"I know because, nothing like that is mentioned in your personal file, Toby. But would you mind removing your jacket and shirt? For Wendy's mother's reassurance, if nothing else."

Putting my glass on the mantelpiece, I removed my jacket and handed it to Monty. Then I did the same with my tie. Very slowly I began undoing the buttons on my dress shirt, turning to face the glowering Wendy as I did so.

God, I had to admit that she really was a good-looking young woman, even when angry.

"Oh god no!" Wendy screamed, as the shirt slipped from my shoulders.

Then after hiding her face behind her hands for and instant, she fled the room.

"Well I think that solves that little misunderstanding, don't you mother? Now all we've got to do is get her back in here to apologise to Toby."

As you might have guessed, I have no tattoos. I abhor the things and cannot understand anyone wanting to disfigure his or her body in such a way

"I'll go!" Silvia Montague said, and followed her daughter from the room.

"It is apparent to me that you have got a doppelganger out there somewhere, Toby. I didn't think Wendy had gone completely mad. You will accept her apology, wont you?"

"Under the circumstances sir, I can do nothing else. It is obvious that she was convinced in her own mind that I was this Gerard guy."

The dinner gong had rung, and Monty and I were well into a couple of whiskies before Silvia returned. Dragging a very sheepish looking Wendy behind her. Wendy went to apologise for slapping me, but I raised my hand to stop her speaking.

"No apology is necessary Wendy, providing that the next time we meet in public, you say hello verbally, and not physically."

"Good man Toby. Now you two can talk after dinner; we'd better go in, I should imagine that cook will be getting fractious by now." Monty said and then led the way into their dining room.

The meal was accompanied with polite conversation about nothing much in particular. Wendy spent most of the time blushing after Sylvia Montague enquired exactly how many times she had clocked me one in public. Only Mrs Montague didn't exactly use those words. Sylvia raised her eyebrows and smiled at me when Wendy admitted it had been three times. It was obvious that Mrs Montague had not even been aware of the fracas at the hotel that previous Saturday evening.

After the meal the two ladies disappeared, whilst Monty and I were served Brandy. "I could get used to this kind of life." I thought as the maid or whatever she was left the room. Then Monty invited me out onto a patio whilst he smoked a cigar.

"Sylvia gets a little intense if I smoke in the house nowadays!" he explained. "Here you better have these, Wendy hasn't seen it yet and it would the perfect opportunity for you two to bury the hatchet. We can't have the pair of you at each other throats around the office."

"Is Wendy going to work for the company?" I enquired.

"Oh yes, I just need to find the right person to show her the ropes and keep her... well, keep her mouth in check, actually. I told you, she could be pretty headstrong when she wants to be. Tonight she's on her best behaviour, possibly because she's embarrassed herself."

I peeked into the envelope Monty had given me and saw that it contained theatre tickets, and realised that I was, all-but being, instructed to invite Wendy out on a date. Still, who was I to complain, Wendy was an extremely tasty bit of real estate, and rich to boot.

Monty finished his cigar then suggested that we joined the ladies in the lounge.

By the way, Sylvia referred to it as the drawing room and so did Wendy. Or to give it its correct description, the withdrawing room. The room the ladies withdraw to after the meal, whilst the gentlemen (me a gentleman that's a bloody joke) smoke cigars, drink Brandy and chew the cud.

The conversation was somewhat stilted for a while, and to be honest I really would have liked to have taken my leave. But Monty had given me those bloody theatre tickets, and I had to find some way of inviting Wendy to come to the theatre with me.

After a while Monty refilled our glasses -- me trying to point out to him that I had to drive home, but Monty insisting that his driver would do the honours, later -- then he promptly did a disappearing act.

Shortly after he'd gone, Sylvia Montague said something about talking to the cook and she also left the room. Wendy and I sat there in silence for a long time until she eventually gushed.

"Toby I'm so embarrassed about everything. God its bad enough that I struck you, but to tell you about..."

"Wendy, please stop apologising." I said, in as commanding a tone as I could muster. "You made an honest mistake and I can accept that. You embarrassed me in front of my peers yes. But I'll get over it! In fact I already have; so can we say no more about it?"

"But what must you think of me I told you that I'd... slept with Gerard."

"Jesus Christ girl, this is the twenty first century, not the bloody Middle Ages, and if you don't mind me saying, you are well over the age of consent."

"I'm twenty five." She said for some unknown reason.

"And I'm twenty eight. We are both old enough to sleep with whomever we wish, whenever we wish, aren't we?"

"Yes but to come out with it like that, I've never told my parents that I'd slept with anyone before. It was so embarrassing. And I still don't know how I can make it up to you for slapping you like that."

"Warn me it's coming next time next time gal, and maybe have dinner with me on Friday evening. I appear to have a couple of tickets for The Mousetrap on Friday evening as well, perhaps we could go on there together?"

Wendy sat and stared at me without speaking for a very long time, and then I remembered what the context of our previous conversation had been.

"Oh bugger, now I've embarrassed myself haven't I?" I blurted out. "Look Wendy, there's no... er... strings or anything attached to my invitation. I was just thinking... Well, look I'm inviting you to dinner and the play then I'd be bringing you directly back here."

Wendy burst out laughing and then -- once she'd regained her composure -- told me that she would be honoured to accept my invitation.

"Perhaps we can be friends?" She suggested.

I told her that I liked the sound of that suggestion, then we very formally shook hands on the deal.

Shortly after we'd shaken hands Monty and Sylvia returned to the room and Monty informed me that the car would be ready in about twenty minutes. There followed, some more small talk after Monty had refilled our glasses yet again.

It was a good idea of Monty's for his chauffeur to drive me home that evening. And probably a better one that I was on holiday and didn't have to get up early the following morning

==========================

I spent most of the rest of the week with my sister and explained to her about Wendy's misidentification. Margaret thought that I had to be insane to take her out for dinner and to the theatre. But accepted that, what with my new job offer, I didn't really have much choice. Considering who Wendy's father was, and all.

Actually the Friday evening was great fun. Wendy looked absolutely gorgeous when I picked her up from the Montague House. She also didn't take any liberties when I came to ordering her meal. I'd picked an up-market restaurant and she could have fleeced me if she'd chosen too.

She daintily held my arm as we walked to the theatre and made interesting conversation. Well, looking back maybe she is a chip off the old block. Thinking about it now, she subtly kept me talking about myself. Before the evening was over she must have pretty-well had my life story out of me, even down to the details of my two failed engagements.

I didn't realise at the time, but I've pulled the same trick myself on occasions. She kept me talking about myself; in consequence, I learnt very little about the real Wendy.

I tell you what though; I was like a two-year-old when she politely kissed me goodnight on her doorstep when we got home that evening. I really would have liked to have invited Wendy to go on to a nightclub or something with me. But I had specifically told her that I'd take her directly home after the play.

==========================

Suzy greeted me at the lift when I arrived on the seventh floor on the Monday morning, and led me directly to my nice new office. It was rather larger than I expected and did have the odour of fresh paint about it. Also, much to my surprise, there were two desks.

"Monty's had the decorators in all last week, you two should be quite cosy in here." She said with a wink.

"Oops, sorry I spoke; forget I said that!" Suzy added when she saw the look of confusion on my face. Then she went quickly on. "This switch turns the recorders on and off, and this one turns my earpiece on if you want a witness anything that's being discussed."

Suzy winked again, confusing me more.

"Of course, turn them both off and I can't hear a word, and neither can anyone else. This room is completely sound proof by the way!"

Suzy openly giggled, that time.

"And this switch here, locks all of the doors. Oh, that door leads directly into Monty's office. The other is to your private facilities."

"Private facilities?"

"Yes, toilet, private changing room and shower. You can have meals sent up from the staff dining room if you wish as well. That's the main reason the little conference table is over there."

"Who am I sharing this office with Suzy?"

"Um. Well, I think it better if Monty tells you that himself; don't you? It'll be a nice surprise for you."

"I'm not much into surprises from the Montague family, Suzy. I'm sure you know all about my problems with Monty's daughter."

"Oh yes, it's been the talk of the sixth floor."

"And all the other bloody floors as well I should imagine, after that 'do' at the hotel last week."

"I don't get down get down any lower than the sixth floor, Toby, but you are probably right. Still, after word gets around about you and Wendy going to the theatre on Friday evening..."

"You know about that?"

"Who do you think ordered the tickets, Monty?"

"Oh yeah, stands to reason when I think about it."

"Okay I'll leave you to settle in, Monty won't be in for another hour or so; he's got a meeting."