Shades of Blue

Back in our seats, Lisa, cuddled up tightly to Simon and asked, "What happened after she gave you 'The Bums Rush' after the party? You both seem to have managed to survive an awkward start."

I took one of Joanne's hands in mine and squeezed it gently. "Yes, it does seem to be working out, doesn't it?" I winked at them, "Ask me again in the morning! .... So! After being thrown out into the cold, well at least it wasn't raining, I walked home. It wasn't far, didn't take me more than a couple of hours ...."

Joanne smacked me on the leg, "Oh, he is a liar! Yes it was a little cold, but he had his coat on, and I didn't throw him out, I just suggested it might be better if he went home, that's all. The walk home might have taken him 15, 20 minutes at most. I have to admit though, I didn't exactly struggle when he kissed me, and it

was

me who dropped the cup. I had expected him to kiss me at some point, it was just a bit of a surprise at that moment. The biggest surprise though, was my reaction when he did. When he kissed me at the party it was nice, it had been coming for a while. I'm sure you know the feeling, Lisa, when you know someone wants to kiss you and hasn't built up enough courage to do it." She stared straight at Simon, "Present Company is

not

excepted! - You know it's coming, and you just wish he would get on with it. The one in my kitchen, though, took me by surprise a bit, and something happened inside me, something I was not expecting at all. Something a bit like what just happened to you on that dance floor I think, although perhaps not quite as emphatically."

"If I may be allowed to continue," I said. "When I got home, mum had gone to bed, but she was still awake. I got the usual set of questions, you know, the sort of thing. Did I have a nice time? Did Joanne enjoy herself? Was I going to see her again? The usual stuff, you know how it goes I am sure. I didn't dare tell mum I had kissed her and she had thrown me out, so I pleaded that I was 'tired' and went to bed. I didn't sleep much that night, and in the morning I was up early and off into town before mum surfaced. I bought Joanne a new tea service and went round to apologise. I wanted to get in quick, before the inevitable 'phone call' from mum, and Joanne telling her she had thrown me out because I had made a pass at her."

"I think she was a bit surprised to see me, but she invited me in and made me a coffee. I stayed out of the kitchen this time. We chatted, and I realised we had never really just talked before. I had made polite conversation, but we had never 'talked', if you know what I mean. One coffee became two, then three. Then she offered to make lunch, and I accepted. We talked over lunch, and then I did the washing up, and no, I didn't break anything, before you ask. The afternoon just flew by and it was getting late, so I asked her if she would like to go out for a meal. We had a nice meal at a local pub/restaurant, and then we dropped in to see mum on our way back."

"I was already beginning to wonder how I could tell my mother that I had been with Joanne all day, and I was going to ask her if I could see her again. Turned out, I didn't have to. When we walked in, mum looked first at me, and then at Joanne. Tactful as ever, she jumped in with both feet and said "So! When are you two going to make the announcement then?"

"I have always thought that my mother was a great loss to the diplomatic service. Put her in the 'Foreign Office' and she could have had half of the countries in the world, at war with the other half, within months."

"I was dumbfounded but she laughed at me. She said "Paul, you have been going all soft and silly whenever Joanne walks into the room, for about 3 years. Why do you think I ducked out of a free meal and drinks and told you to ask her to go with you? I know she likes you, because she let it slip months ago, that if you weren't my son ......"

"Hey! Just hold on a minute there. She never finished that sentence come to think about it, what

did

you say?"

Joanne was laughing, "Oh No! That was strictly 'girl talk' definitely

not

for the ears of you men." She winked at Lisa, who was laughing too.

I shook my head and finished the second bottle by topping up all of our glasses again. Simon was about to protest, but I pushed the room key towards him. "Stop worrying, you don't have to drive home. Relax my friend, you have a room, a beautiful girl in your arms, and who knows, if you play your cards right, you might even get more than a goodnight kiss." Joanne looked at me as if I had gone mad. "And that, my darling wife" I said, "is 'Man Talk', and definitely NOT for the delicate ears of you ladies." I winked at Simon who was laughing so much I thought he would choke.

The band was playing another slow tune, so I took Joanne's hand and led her out onto the floor. As we started to dance I asked, "What do you think, did I pull it off?"

Quick as a flash she replied, "I certainly hope not, I have plans for that particular part of your anatomy. But if you are asking about the story of how we got together, yes, I think you might have done. So! You think I scrub up quite well do you?"

"Yeah!" I replied, "Not bad at all. Has that 'skinny little thing' filled out well enough for you?"

"You'll do, until I find something better" she said smiling. "Oh Paul! I think that for the first time since my first wedding day I am really happy. That time it didn't last long. He managed to spoil that within a few weeks. I do so want this to last, not just longer than that, but forever."

I kissed her, "Shhhhh! My love," I said, looking into her eyes. "I told you, I am only getting married once, and that was today. In our own private church, with Father Ted officiating, I promised you I would love and cherish you. I am going to make you happy for the rest of our lives together, and if you remember, the words used were until death do us part! Would I tell a lie to Father Ted? Joanne Elizabeth James, I love you. I will always love you. Nothing and nobody is ever going to separate us. I can't promise 'forever', only for the rest of my life, but for that long, I promise, I am yours and yours alone."

As the dance ended it found us, much as it had with Simon and Lisa such a short time ago, our lips locked together in a kiss and like them we were completely oblivious to the fact that the music had stopped. As we ended our kiss, other guests gathered around us, wishing us well, I had my hand shaken by quite a few men. Joanne was kissed by several ladies, and I got a couple of kisses as well, but luckily not from any of the men.

Back at the table, I said to Simon, "I think it is time we turned in. All things considered this has been quite a day. Thank you once again for everything you have done. I am dreading the bill in the morning, but whatever it is, it will have been worth it. Will you be staying here for a few more minutes, Simon? Only I have something for you in our room."

Simon nodded. "Lisa is going up now, too, but I will wait down here for a bit." He said. He looked at the room number on the key-card and said, "We are going to be in the next suite to yours. Because you're in the Bridal Suite, they have put us in 'The Windsor Suite' next door."

I took Lisa's hands in mine. "And as for you!" I said, "Thank you again for seeing what I was trying to hide and taking the trouble to put right what was, after all, not the fault of the Hotel. I think you are a very special lady, and Simon is a very lucky man. If in some small way we have helped bring you two good people together, we are proud to have helped." I leaned forward and gently kissed her on the lips. I grinned at her, "That's all I am allowed or one or the other of those two 'green eyed monsters' behind me will beat me up. Be happy, you deserve to be."

Joanne took my hand and said, "Come on you. Don't tell me I have gone and married a smooth talking Romeo. I can see I am going to have to watch you."

"That will be YOU! Watching ME! Watching YOU! .... errr .. Watching ME - Watching YOU! ........ Umm! ... I think? Tell you what. Why don't we just invest in a pair of handcuffs? Handcuff ourselves together. Then we can both get some rest.

Simon and Lisa were both laughing. Joanne said, "Oh God! Don't you just hate a smart ass?"

I kissed her gently, "Never mind my ass, I think you might find that the rest of me has 'filled out quite well' too. Come on, you naughty lady, I have been having distinctly immoral thoughts about you all evening, and I need to ... 'talk?' to you. Anyway," I winked at Simon, "I think these two might have some ... umm, 'talking?' to do themselves."

Lisa was blushing again. I leaned into her and whispered, "You are going to be in the arms of someone who loves you more than words can say. Trust him; he has been hurt in the past, so he knows what that is like and he will be extra careful not to hurt you. All I can say is don't think, let your heart decide what feels right and go with it. You don't have to do anything. Simon loves you and you love him. That's all that matters and tonight, that is all there is, just you and him, together at last."

Taking Joanne's hand in one of mine I took Lisa's in the other. "I will see them both safely to the rooms Simon, and I will see you in the bar in a few minutes."

Going up in the lift Lisa was shaking. I put her hand into Joanne's and said, "I think it might be time for a little 'Girl Talk' here, You go with Lisa and if we open our door, you can hold onto our key and stay with her. I will pop in, get what I need and close the door behind me when I come out. Ring down to the bar when it's all right for us to come up."

Inside the room I opened my case and took out the pack of condoms I had bought that morning. Taking six from the dozen in the pack I slipped them into my pocket, before leaving the suite and closing the door. As I passed the Windsor Suite I thought I heard someone crying. I hesitated, but decided that whatever it was, it was better leaving it to Joanne, she would be better at sorting it out than I would. I made up my mind to get Simon to wait for the 'All Clear' before he went up.

Finding him in the bar, I asked what he would like to drink. We both ordered a small glass of lemonade, neither of us wanting another strong drink. I pointed out a seat in a quiet area, where we could talk, then turning to the barman I said, I am expecting a call from upstairs, Paul James, give me a shout when it comes, would you?

"Of course Mr James" he said.

Following Simon to the table I sat down next to him. Slipping the packs of condoms from my pocket, I discretely handed them to him under the table. "Just in case you need them" I said. I then told him how Lisa had seemed very nervous going up in the lift and that Joanne had gone with her for a little 'Girl Talk'. I also told him I thought I had heard crying from the suite as I passed it on my way back down. Simon was about to jump up, but I put my hand on his arm and restrained him.

"Joanne is with her and she is going to phone down when it is ok to go up, but if there is a problem, she is the best one to deal with it. When she phones we will know more about what the problem is, but until then we are going to have to be patient. It might just be a case of first time nerves; she did say she has never been with anyone. Whatever it is, you are going to have to be gentle. I told her that you love her and after being hurt so much, yourself, you would never do anything to hurt her. If it's just nerves, as everything has happened so fast, you might be best advised to just be extra careful. It might even be better if tonight you just kiss and hold her. Sharing a bed with you might be as much as she can cope with tonight. Obviously I will have to leave that decision to you and her, but Simon, remember; less than an hour ago she was in love with you but had no real prospect, except in her dreams, of being with you. Now, you have both declared your love for each other and you have been given the key to a hotel room where you are going to spend the night together. That's a very big step at such short notice for anyone, and if, as she said, she is still a virgin, that is mind-blowing in its scale for her. You are the one who has to slow this down to a speed she can cope with. You have waited what, two years for this night? A few days are nothing, to make sure she is ready to surrender what she has been saving for you all of her life."

Simon looked at me, "Thank you" he said. "You are right of course. It will do no good for me to go barging in, but this is your wedding night and your wife is spending it helping Lisa. That isn't fair on you."

I laughed, "Fair be dammed!" I said. "That woman has designs on my virtue. From the look in her eyes when we went up, I will be lucky to survive the night!" Simon's face broke into a smile, he understood I was making light of whatever was going on upstairs to put him at ease. "Simon, we have our whole lives before us, as do you and Lisa. A few minutes, hours, days even, don't matter. Let Joanne sort out what is upsetting Lisa, and then you will know how to deal with it. Once that is sorted out, it will be time enough then for me to lock myself in the bathroom and scream that I need to be protected from her." Simon was now laughing, so I knew I was getting through to him. "It's probably nothing, but let's wait till we know. Until we do Joanne is the best one to leave in charge. She can sort Lisa out if anyone can."

I heard the bar phone ring and picking it up, the barman spoke, then he looked over to us and held up the handset, before putting it down on the bar. "OK!" I said to Simon, "I will see what it is all about and come back to you." I walked across to the bar and picked up the phone.

"Paul?" Said Joanne, "Is everything all right? How is Simon?"

"Simon is fine, we have had a little chat and I told him I heard Lisa crying when I passed on my way down. I had to stop him rushing off upstairs, but I convinced him you were the best person to deal with it. How are things at your end?"

"That depends to a great extent on how much Simon loves her and on what he expects the rest of tonight to go like. Am I right in thinking that what you needed from our room were some condoms?"

"Yes!" I said. "I gave some to Simon as I didn't think he would have any on him and he might just need some before the night is over."

"Well!" said Joanne, "I am sorry to tell you that he isn't going to need them. That was why Lisa was so upset. All of her dreams came true here tonight, except one! She started her period this morning. How is that for Mother Nature playing a rotten trick on her?"

"Ooooh! That really is rotten luck" I said, "But I don't think there will be a problem. I must admit I didn't think of that one, but I did warn Simon that if, as she said, she is still a virgin, all this has happened so fast, she might not be ready to take that last big step yet, and he would be better to just ease off, lie beside her and just hold her tonight. I thought it was possibly just first night nerves when I said that. You know, like the ones

you

had before we went to dinner, when you ravished me."

"Shut up you fool, this is serious." She said.

"I know" I said. "You look after Lisa, and tell her not to worry, try to calm her down. Simon is only concerned about her, that she is all right. Leave him to me, I will mark his card for him, and he is going to be consideration personified by the time we come up. We will come to you so stay with Lisa until we get there."

Hanging up the phone I went back to Simon, who was waiting nervously to find out what was happening.

He looked at me, concern all over his face. I sat down and said, "Relax, I told you Joanne would look after everything. She has done what she can, but there is one thing she couldn't fix. The reason Lisa was so upset and the tears I heard as I passed, is a simple matter of unfortunate timing. Tonight, all her dreams seemed to come true, except for one thing. She started her monthly period this morning. What I said about just holding her and cuddling tonight, looks like it will be all that is on offer, but it does give you the opportunity to prove to her it's not just her body you are after. She is upset because she wanted to offer you the gift she can only make once. The gift she has been saving for that one special person, which in case you have any doubt, is you. Mother Nature has gone and put a spoke in her wheel. That's what all the tears were about."

"The silly girl" he said, "She doesn't need to worry, I will wait until she is ready for me, of course I will."

"A word to the wise here," I said. "Whatever you do, don't tell her she is being silly. Women get very touchy around their 'time of the month'. I know, believe me. Joanne can be sweet as pie the day before it strikes and an avenging demon when it does. My advice is to hold her, tell her you understand and it is not what either of you wanted to happen, but it doesn't matter. I suggest the 'rest of our lives together, a few days is nothing' approach. Reassure her that you love her, that sort of thing. So! Shall we finish our drinks and go up? Don't be surprised if she is a bit tearful, but treating her right now will make a world of difference in the future."

"Listen to me, the old married man of what? Less than twelve hours. Just be gentle with her. It's your future as well as hers. I don't need to tell you she is a special person, so remember that, treat her as if she is the most wonderful person in the world. Tell her that your whole world revolves around her. No! Don't tell

me

it does,

tell her

. That is what she needs to hear right now. It looks like you won't need my little present, but save them, have your first couple of times on us. I won't ask you to think of us as you use them, you had better be thinking only of her, then."

We finished our drinks and, returning our glasses to the bar, headed to the lift. Standing in front of the door to 'The Windsor Suite', I looked at Simon. "Are you OK?" I asked. He just nodded. I tapped gently on the door. Joanne opened it, and I could see Lisa sitting on a chair, looking like she thought her world was about to collapse. Simon stepped into the room and hugged Joanne, "Thank you" he said. Then he walked across to where Lisa was sitting. He knelt down in front of her and took her hands in his.

Lisa looked as if she was about to start crying again. "Oh Simon" she said, "I am so sorry. I couldn't help ....... "

"Shhhhhh!" said Simon, cutting off her apology, "You have nothing to apologise for. The timing might be ... inconvenient, but it doesn't matter, nobody chooses these things. Yes I want you, because I love you, but because I love you I can wait. What does matter is that we both know how we feel about each other at last. I have been in love with you for so long and it took two strangers to get me to tell you how I feel. Tonight we have both had our eyes opened by Joanne and Paul. Little did I think when I authorised that upgrade, it would lead to this being the happiest day of my life. Because of them I have found out that you love me too. Lisa Collins, will you make my happiness of tonight, last for the rest of my life? Will you marry me?"

Lisa looked at him, not believing what he was saying. "But ...... It's too soon, you can't be sure this quickly."

"I am sure. For two years I have dreamed of this, rehearsed what I was going to say, imagined your answer, but been afraid to ask in case you said no. I am serious; this is not a sudden decision. If you are not ready yet to say yes, I will just keep on asking until, either you tell me you don't love me, or you do say yes. I love you Lisa. I want you to be my wife."

Lisa looked towards Joanne and me standing by the door. I know I was grinning all over my face. Joanne went to her, put her arm around her shoulders and quietly said. "What have you just been saying to me? This isn't a 'set-up'. You heard what I said to Paul on the phone, I never mentioned to him anything you had said to me, did I? This is Simon telling you how

he

feels about

you

and asking you to marry him. I have only met him this evening, but honestly, I think he means every word. You must do what you think is right, go where your heart tells you to go. It's the one question no-one can answer for you. Only you know your heart.