Goodbye to the Past Part 01 - Personal Assistant Required
A repressed young girl's sexual awakening begins at the hands of an older woman.
Say goodbye to the guilt
Leave the past behind
Leave the pain with the past
Lighten up the cross
It's a long journey ahead
Annette Peacock/Bill Bruford, Adios a al Pasada (Goodbye to the Past) 1978
Prologue
Caitlin Price was twenty four years old and had left University with a middling degree. She had taken some time to get a job and had then drifted in and out of a few mundane positions for a while.
She longed to be able to afford to live up in London, but renting in a decent area was out of her salary grade and she didn't need her economics degree to tell her that buying was not an option. Maybe not ever the way prices were going.
The train fares were hardly cheap either and made the miserable, crowded forty-three minute journey from Guildford to London Waterloo even worse. Not that it ever took forty-three minutes, of course.
It meant that she was still living at home with all that entailed.
Oppressive. Repressive.
There were two words that described it nicely. A two up, two down on the outskirts of town. Dingy and dowdy; just like her, she thought. She was always aware of the looks of disgust she got in the office or on the train at the lingering smell of stale smoke that despite her best efforts clung to her clothes courtesy of her parents.
It was on a complete whim that she applied for the job. She saw it in the Metro she was reading on the train. 'Personal assistant required.' There was nothing in the short description of the work that drew her to it, but the words, 'Central London accommodation provided' flashed at her like neon signs on a Las Vegas hotel.
She was always in the office early, so she was able to send her details to the agency with no-one being any the wiser. By lunchtime, she had an interview.
She knew immediately that she could do the work in her sleep. An American business couple had owned a small office in London for many years and were in the process of upsizing and expanding into Europe. They were full on with the office work and having just moved to a new apartment, needed someone to organise their travel, look after the everyday running of their personal lives and generally take the strain to let them take care of the business side of things.
Although naturally shy, Caitlin hoped she could persuade them that she was the right person, and once she had seen what the 'accommodation provided' entailed, she knew she had to pull out all the stops to get the job. Even then, she thought - Caitlin Price never got that lucky in life.
The wait had been one of the longest she could remember. After days of expecting the worst, her mobile finally flashed into action. She saw the agency number come up and her heart seemed to stop for a second. She had it on silent as personal calls in the office other than emergencies were forbidden. She ran out into the corridor, heart in her mouth and barely heard the words following, "Congratulations, Caitlin..."
For the first time in her life, she didn't mind the commute home knowing it would soon be over. Her mother was as supportive as ever. "How the hell will ye cope with living in London, girl? What's got into yer? Ye'll be back, tail between yer legs in a month, I'm tellin' ye."
'No ma,' she thought. 'I won't be back. Not ever. This time, for once in my life, I'm telling you.'
The first four months had gone by in a whirl. She hadn't taken immediately to Bonnie Rodriguez, thinking her abrasive, brash New Jersey exterior made her too similar to her ma. But she soon came to realise that it was all a front, and only a scratch at the surface of Bonnie's faΓ§ade revealed a fun- loving, warm and generous woman.
Her husband Frank was a different proposition. Older than Bonnie, he was in his fifties but still physically imposing. In the main he was quiet and taciturn with a hawk-like gaze that discomfited Caitlin, especially in the first few weeks when he seemed to be scrutinising her closely each time they met. He could be intimidating when she got things wrong, and whilst she wouldn't say she was scared of him, 'wary' was a better description. As a result, she kept a distant, professional air with him whilst becoming more open and friendly with Bonnie.
For the first time in ages she was happy. No more smelly clothes; she could see her old Uni friends in London more regularly, and no more old-fashioned Irish mother denting her confidence with every insidious, sniping remark.
The salary was good - only a year's contract at the moment, but the chance to renew if both parties were happy. She knew it would not last forever as they eventually planned to lessen their involvement as the business settled and would be spending more time back in Miami as time went on.
But it would do for now and she loved her little apartment. She finally had somewhere to call her own, and not many girls of her age could boast a seventh floor apartment in the exclusive Chelsea Harbour area of West London. She only had couple of smallish rooms - a bedroom with an en-suite shower and toilet and a nice little living room with a small kitchen area attached. But she treasured it and it was hers. It was an annex to the main penthouse apartment and the main house was something to behold.
It had cost her her boyfriend, but that didn't matter to Caitlin. There were more boys out there - when she felt she was ready. A few months ago, she barely thought about sex. It was something she could take or leave - sometimes it was nice, sometimes she endured it. Always vanilla - no real excitement. Never stellar or earthmoving. Just something to end the night and hopefully not get too messy. And once or twice it had been truly horrible, but she tried not to think of those times.
When she and Steven had split up it didn't bother her overly - she could never see it lasting anyway. When she had got her new job he seemed to think she had gone above her station and appeared jealous of her new live-in apartment in this luxurious area. She'd thought he'd be happy for her, but if that was the way he wanted to be, she was better off without him.