I didn't have to work anymore. I had a very decent investment income and a bit of capital. I had a nice house and I was on my own and liked it that way.
The one fly in my ointment was housework. I hated it, I messed about with my machines, went fishing, I bowl to a fairly good standard and I have my cars and bikes.
The best bit of my life is, I get to play in my cellar whenever I want to, for as long as I want to. I can indulge all my pervy fantasies and spend as much time and money on them as I want.
Except of course, when the house or part of the house needed cleaning. I had to be strict with myself about that. I woke up one morning and realised I was the star in my very own episode of "A Life of Grime".
My house always seemed to need cleaning though. It was much too big for me, with 14 rooms, a 6 car garage, a barn and a very big cellar. I used the garage, the barn and the caller. I cooked in the kitchen slept in one room and lived in a study lined with books. A family of extremely dirty invisible people were using the rest, it was always dirty.
I needed to get someone in to clean and do it for me but who. What I didn't want was a tittle-tattle. I didn't want to know the progress of the 45 soap operas on telly at the moment or any of the local village gossip.
Then one day she came to me. I opened my garage door and there she was. She spoke heavily accented English and was dressed in rags. What Daily Mail readers call an economic migrant! She didn't have anyone or anything, she was going through my bin looking for something to eat.
She was scared out of her wits when I found her, "please no police: please no police. I will work to pay." I nearly cried. She was offering to work to pay for the contents of my bin. Economic migrant my arse! She was fighting to survive.
I told her, "be calm, no police are coming."
"I'm Kevin, what's your name?"
"Gilla"
"Can I call you Gillian?" I think it's the same as Gilla but in English"
She nodded, and said "yes," but sounded very unsure.
"Are you hungry Gillian?"
"No"
I laughed at her. "You look hungry, you're eating the contents of my bin, you are dressed in rags, and to be honest girl, you don't smell too good. I'll ask again are you hungry"
"Yes sir"
I'm not Sir Gillian, I'm Kevin."
"Yes Kevin"
"Come on in, it's lunchtime." I like cooking but being alone I cook in batches. There is always a selection of meals in my freezer. Usually curries, chillies spag-boll or some such thing. I even batch-cook brown rice and keep it frozen in single portions in plastic bags. I put three plastic bags in one of my two microwaves and three takeaway containers filled with chicken dopasie in the other.
Then I set my kitchen pride and joy into action I have an industrial-sized coffee machine. Gillian was still standing watching me. "Sit down girl" do you want coffee? She looked at me with nothing short of awe in her eyes.
"Do you have real coffee?"
"Yes. How do you like it." she didn't answer so I repeated, "how do you like it?" Then using my best comic gay voice, "I like mine like my men, strong and black!" She looked a little shocked. "It's a joke, Gillian." Then when the penny dropped she laughed. Her smile was beautiful. It lit the room.
"Yes please, just the same."
The microwaves were still churning away so we sat across my kitchen table sipping coffee. "Where are you from Gillian, I asked.
"Please my name is Gilla."
"Ohh I'm sorry, Gilla it is in this house then."
"I come from Yugoslavia."
"Is your family from there" I was desperately trying to do something I'm useless at? Keeping a conversation going.
"My family is all dead" she replied.
Nice one wanker, I thought to myself, just at that moment the first microwave pinged and saved me from the inevitable crash and burn when I attempt normal. I got the rice out and plated it up and right on cue the second one did the same I plated the curry up.
We ate in silence. Mostly because the poor girl seemed to be starving. She couldn't shovel it in quickly enough. She still looked hungry I picked my plate up and did what I've always done when I enjoyed the food. I licked my plate. It took a second but she followed suit. We both laughed, it's easier to laugh when you have something in your belly.
Gilla still looked hungry. In the back of my cupboard, I had some tinned rice pudding. I showed her a tin. Do you want some of this? She gave me a very blank look. "Rice pudding" I offered. Still the blank look. I opened a tin and offered her a spoonful. That smile again told me everything I needed to know. "Most people eat it hot but I like mine cold."
Cold for me, please. Seconds later the food was gone and Gilla was at the sink washing everything up including the tins.
"Gilla, do you want a job."
"I can't do a job I have no papers."
"I want a housekeeper, you don't need papers to work for me."
"What do you want me to do."
"Keep the house clean, cook a bit"
"Is that all."
"Yes, that's all"
"How much?"
In the U.K. we have something called minimum wage. I'll pay you that, plus all you can eat. I have a little house at the top of the drive. You can stay in that for free. It needs a good cleaning and a bit of work but the roof is good and I think the heating and hot water work. Or you can have a room here.
Gilla got a bit defensive "If you mean it I'll take the job but I only clean and cook, I'm not a wife."
"I don't want a wife Gilla, I want a housekeeper. Do you want to look at the Gatehouse?"
I've seen it hope you are not angry but I've been sleeping in the shed behind it when it's wet."
"I'm not a bit angry I wouldn't mind if you had slept in the house. We can go up in a bit and look if you want."
I put my best conciliatory voice on and repeated that she stank. I took her to the bathroom and pointed out the bath, the shower, soap and towels and the lock on the door.
"I've got some jeans, you will need a belt cos these will be much too big, some tee shirts, and a jumper or two you can have as well. I've some men's underpants if you want but I can't do anything about a bra." She laughed again.
"There's a dressing gown on the door look. I'll be honest Gilla. I think we ought to burn what you are wearing now. I'll sub you some money. We can drive to Leominster and buy you some nice clothes."
"What is a sub".
"Some of your wages in advance."
"Wait for a second or two I'll get a bin bag for your old clothes."
"My old rags, she said quietly."
I had a look around and found a pair of passable jeans. A Rolling Stones" tee shirt that never fitted me and a couple of jumpers I had never worn. A pair of trainers that had been in the house when I bought it and a bloody awful pair of one-size stretchy socks.
I waited for her in the kitchen with another coffee. I was playing some Stones stuff on a Bluetooth speaker from my iPad. She looked like a different woman when she walked in and I couldn't help thinking if she has no bra they are a lovely pair of hooters.
The stones were into an old R and B number called down the road apiece and Gilla came in dancing some 6-step jive. What could I do? I pushed her around a few moves for the last 30 seconds of the song and she laughed. A proper loud belly laugh.
There is a jive club that operates around Herefordshire. I told her we were going and I wasn't taking no for an answer.
We walked up to the gatehouse. It's a tiny two up two down. Kitchen/Dinner, sitting room down and two bedrooms up. There is a sort of a downstairs lean too that has a toilet bath and basin in it.
The toilet was smashed and the bath was a horrible pressed steel job that had its enamel chipped and rusted through. "It's no good Gilla. You can't stay here it's not fit for a pig to live." Her face fell a mile. "Come back to the house with me. Upstairs at the back of the house is a guest bedroom. It has a nice en-suite it also has a bloody great lock on the door and the bathroom is nice." I showed her that when we got back.
"I'll get Bob the builder to convert the small bedroom in the gatehouse into a bathroom, decorate the place and get his mate in to service the heating properly. That's going to take weeks though. Meanwhile, you sleep here".
Gilla looked very worried. "What about you she said."
"I'm on the other side of the house. Unless you have a wild party I won't know you're here."
Gilla looked genuinely scared. "No, I don't mean that"