Adam parked the big car a block away from Jillian's little cottage. This corner of the city was a mix of older mews and terraces, interspersed with newer apartments and warehouse conversions. Most of the street parking was permit only, one car space per dwelling.
He walked on the sunny side of the street, feeling the last warmth of the day on his skin. It was one of those perfect days where the evening descended slowly, where nothing was hurried. He turned the corner into Jillian's street and spotted Maddy's little car parked half way down the road. She was there already, ahead of him.
A small dog yapped from behind a fence.
"Oh, Mitsy, leave him alone, don't be annoying." The dog's owner was sitting in a large wicker chair on the veranda of her small cottage, a clear drink in her hand. She was old, wise beyond decades probably, and Adam was taken immediately by the ancient spirit in her eyes.
"A thing that small, it can hardly startle anyone," he said, reaching down over the fence to give the dog his fingers to sniff. The dog, not so brave once confronted, scurried to her mistress on the porch. "You see, all bluff, no bravado."
The woman laughed, scratching the animal's head with her gnarled fingers. "You don't seem terrifying, young man. She's just a silly thing."
Adam laughed at her words. "I've not been called that in many years," he said. "A young man."
She smiled up at him in appreciation. "At my age, I can hardly remember young men."
"At your age, I suspect they're all you remember. I'd wager many young men wished they were older and knew what they were doing, chasing after you."
He watched as the old woman's eyes brightened, and guessed he was probably right.
"Hush with your flattery," she said, waving an imperious hand. "You have a lovely evening, now. I won't keep you."
Adam gave her an affectionate smile. "I will. Make sure you go in before it gets cold," he said. "Don't catch a chill."
"Thank you, young man. A few minutes more, and I'll go in."
Adam thought she'd probably watch him go down the street, checking where he was off to. He'd ask Jillian if she knew the old woman, the street's night-watcher.
"Old Mrs Evans?" said Jillian, a few minutes later. "She's a magnificent, fierce old thing. I adore her. Did she see you turn in to my gate?"
"I expect so," replied Adam. "Why, will the gossip be endless? She struck me as keeping a close eye on things."
"I'll give her a full report," said Jilly. "She'll shock me with something far more exciting. She's made me blush once or twice, I can tell you."
"But Jillian, of course. You're quite the innocent. You know that."
Jilly looked up at him from behind her perfect curls. "Mister Cain," she said, eyes sparkling with delight at the game they were playing, "are you here to lead me astray?"
He looked at her. "I would say," he said, slowly, "quite the contrary. Madeleine said you went off shopping together, but I don't think I expected this."
Jillian was wearing an exquisite brocade corset, deep blue and shot through with embroidered silver, which restrained her usually voluptuous breasts and accentuated her narrow waist. Adam could see it was vintage, as was the flared, knee-length skirt, probably Dior, most likely from the late nineteen-fifties when figures like Jillian's were de rigueur. Wearing heels, she still had to tilt her head up to taste Adam's lips.
"You are very, very lovely, Jillian. Was it Bonnard who dressed you? The man's a genius, quite brilliant."
"Yes. He's adorable, isn't he? Mind you," she said, spinning on one foot to show off the flare of the skirt, "when you have perfection to start with..."
"Oh Jilly, hush. Listen to you, carrying on." Madeleine came into the room, and if Jilly was femininity personified, Maddy had chosen a more androgynous look. Her hair was slicked back, cut shorter, Adam thought; her taut, athletic body showcased in black dress trousers and a crisp white shirt.
"Madeleine." And the way he said it suggested no words were enough,
"Do you like?" she asked, eager for him to find more words.
"She's beautiful, isn't she, Adam?" Jilly rescued him - his reaction being much the same as hers when Maddy had knocked on the door, thirty minutes earlier.
"She is. Very beautiful. Handsome, even." He moved to her and kissed her on the lips, then took a step back. "We should find someone to paint you, Madeleine. It can be my gift, for when you get married."
"Married? What on earth are you on about, Adam? I'm not getting married."
"Not yet, anyway," he replied, catching Jillian's eye.
Jilly didn't say a word, but then, she didn't need to. She looked up at Adam and pictured him walking her down the aisle of a church, or between twelve trees in some open-air venue. She'd be wearing a touch off-white, of course, with flowers in her hair and a figure-hugging gown, with page-boy Mikey, all small and adorable, walking behind them. She knew already the exact shade of red for her lips, which she'd echo on her lips down below. She'd hug Adam's arm tight and gaze down the aisle, and she'd be the happiest woman in the world.
"Penny for them, Jills. You're miles away." Maddy knew all about day-dreams, how time got lost in them; like those days when she had a quick snooze and woke up wet and lazy, sliding two fingers inside her panties and making herself gasp.
"Good god," said Jilly. "That was strange." She stood next to Adam and slid her arm inside his. She looked up at him again, and the look in his eyes was inscrutable. She suspected she'd given herself away completely.
"Umm, Mads, how are we going to do this?" Jilly recovered herself, and was thinking of Maddy's slightly curious plan.
"To be honest," Maddy replied, "I thought we'd leave it to Adam. After all, he's the one who's written all those delicious seduction scenes."
"Circle around you slowly, is that what you mean?" He took them both by the hand, and walked through to Jilly's kitchen.
"Not too slowly," replied Jilly, her gaze, now, very, very direct, looking straight at Adam. She didn't know if her part in Maddy's fantasy-reality scene was as gift, offering, or sacrifice; but what she did know, without a shadow of doubt, was that she was going to take this man as Jillian Jones, her very own self. Everything else was a bonus, even Maddy's voyeuristic desire.
