For The Rest Of Her Life

                                                                                     

Susan sat in the lobby leafing through a magazine. As she glanced up Sam behind the reception desk, smiled. She smiled back. Not bad looking. Kind and dependable, mother would have approved. She had gone out with him twice for a meal and had a pleasant time.

But she did not want dependable, she had enough of that with Denis. They had been married for ten years and he had destroyed her world by running off with a girl from the office. If that was not bad enough, he did not even have the guts to face her and the first she had known of it was when he sent her a text.

Hurting inside, she had wondered what she had done wrong. Woul it have been  better if there had been children? These questions and a hundred more swirled in her head. She needed answers, but there was no one to ask. She rang work and friends, no one knew his whereabouts, or if they did, were not telling. It was no surprise; Saint Denis could do no wrong.

Finally after weeks of indecision and self-recrimination she pulled herself together. Misery turned to anger and she contacted a solicitor, Denis would have to sell the house and give her half of the proceeds.

Having no close friends or family – Her Mum and Dad had died in an accident years ago and she was an only child – there was nothing other than painful memories to keep her living in the city.

What she needed now was to find a new life and by Monday she had packed her bags and taken the train to Whitby – the small Yorkshire fishing port that was full of happy memories of family holidays in years gone by. It was out of season so she had no problem finding accommodation in a boarding house. She signed on at the job center, scoured the job ads and in between interviews, walked the town.

She loved the smell of the place, salt air and seaweed, and enthralled by the old town with its winding streets steeped in history. Her favorite walk took her though those narrow streets, up the hundred and ninety-nine steps. There she would sit on a bench near the ruined abbey and let the view of the harbour and the green expanse of the North Sea sooth the pain.

She found employment in the accounts department of the Cliff Hotel, and a few months later when the money arrived from the house, she bought a small flat. Brilliant white paint turned the dingy rooms bright and left enough in the bank to furnish the house sparsely.

At last she had begun to rebuild her life. She was, as they say, foot loose and fancy free, and despite her experience with Denis, she was the kind of woman that needed someone in her life. She had gone out with Sam, because he had asked, and she was lonely. Then Charlie had arrived, sent by headquarters to organize the publicity office and he had asked her out.

***

'Sorry, have you been waiting long?' Charlie said with a smile.

She looked up startled and thought, God, he is handsome, a real Latin lover. She giggled inside, stop it Sue, you sound like a Mills and Boon romance. 'No, I've just arrived,' she lied.

'Lets go then,' he said.

As they passed the desk he made a gun with his fingers, pointed at Charley, 'Phow!' then he smiled. 'Don't wait up, we'll be late.'

Susan winced and avoided Sam's eyes.

It was chilly out, but with the heater on, the Jag was cosy inside. They chatted easily, mainly about work, as neither knew much of the other. But once they reached the A64, Charlie slipped on a Sinatra track and they relaxed as the car sped towards York.

Parking outside the city walls, they walked through the arch to Momo Joe's. The atmosphere and the sound of salsa were seductive and as they shared a seafood platter she felt light headed. Or maybe the feeling came from the two glasses of Chilean white she'd had to Charlie's one.

'Hey, you wouldn't be trying to get me drunk?' she laughed.

'I'd love to say I was, but the truth is, I don't drink much, I get my kicks elsewhere.'

'Where's that then?' she asked.

'Finish up and I'll show you,' he said.

'Come on then, where are we going?' she asked as they headed across town.   

 'Don't worry you'll love it,' he grinned.

She had never been to a casino before and imagined, fast cars, handsome men and elegant women. But this was no Casino Royal. The subdued lighting hid the jaded decor. The exception was the gaming tables that beckoned like sunlit islands in a darkened sea. There was a buzz in the air and infected by it, Susan was persuaded to try her hand.

Charlie led her to the roulette table and showed her how to place a bet, then slid away. The first chip was on evens and she watched it double, and double again. As her confidence grew she placed more bets on the table. A small crowd gathered and she preened, later the crowd like the chips melted away.

She found Charlie at the blackjack table, and from the pile of chips, he was doing well.

Susan slip in beside him and whispered in his ear, 'Sorry to spoil your fun, I've got work in the morning,'

'Just a mo, won't be long,' he said. The mo lasted two hours.

It was three thirty when he dropped her off, they kissed and that was all.

They went out a few more times, but the night would always end at the casino. At first she had thought it exciting, but on her subsequent visits the buzz seemed more like greed and desperation.

She did not ask him to change, she just told him how she felt about the gambling and that was the end of it.

After ten years with one man, she had in the space of a few months dated and discarded two. What she needed now were friends and she had an idea where to find them. She had seen an advert for line dancing at the community hall, in the evening news; she would be sure to meet someone there.

She was in a hurry, the line dancing was at seven, but the way was blocked by a van. It filled the pavement and blocked part of the road. She cut along the quayside, looked down at her watch and 'Umph!' barged into the driver sending him reeling,

' Stupid woman! Why don't you look where you're going?' he shouted.

'Me! Stupid, you're the one blocking the path with your van.' She retorted,

            He opened his mouth to say something more but she brushed past him and hurried on. She was seething, the arrogance of the man, there had been no need to call her stupid, she would have apologized, after all she did bump into him, but as soon as he started to shout, she had seen red and shouted back.

At one minute to seven she pushed through the doors of center and bumped into a woman standing just inside. ‘Oh no, not again, sorry,’ she said.

 ‘Why? Have you bumped into me before?’ The gray haired woman asked with a smile and a twinkle in her eye.

‘No, it’s just that I ran into a man on the way here and got a real mouthful.’

‘Never mind dear, let’s find a seat and you can tell me all about it.’

Normally it took a while for Susan to make friends with strangers, but there was something about this small sprightly lady, a comfortable warmth that made her feel completely at home in her company.

‘Sit here er...?’

‘Susan, Susan Barker.’

‘Good, Susan, my name’s Molly Caruthers, now tell me all about it.’

So Susan did and after telling her about the rude man with the white van, carried on and told her all about Denis and the other woman.

‘My, my, you have been through the mill,’ said Molly, ‘I thought there was more to it than a silly argument with the white van man.’ 

‘It was silly, wasn’t it? Getting so upset over nothing at all.’

‘I wouldn’t say that, but what say we forget all about it for now and join in the next dance?’

‘Yes, I’d like that.’ Susan said with a smile.

‘See, you can smile,’ said Molly and they laughed together as they joined the end of the line.

They had a great night, each comfortable in the others company, Susan looked on Molly as a mother figure she could confide in, and Molly, a widow, treated Susan as the daughter she never had. It might not have been a match made in heaven, but it was a one that suited them both well.

They met again the next week at the line dancing and Molly invited Susan to lunch the following Sunday. This, plus the occasional shopping trip into Scarborough became their normal routine. Then two months into the friendship something happened that change things forever. That something was the unexpected arrival of Molly’s son who had been working away on a job for his firm.

It was a Sunday and Molly and Susan had only just sat down at the kitchen table, when the back door partly opened, a cheerful voice said, ‘the wanderer returns,’ and a dark haired smiling face appeared in the opening.

‘I’ll give you wanderer, you nearly gave me a heart attack, bursting in like that,’ said Molly, ‘have you never heard of telephone?’

‘Aw, Ma that’s a fine way to greet you only son.’ He laughed.

‘Come here, you great lummox and give your mum a kiss.’

After extracting herself from the arms of her son Molly turned to introduce him to Susan, she only got as far as saying, ‘This is George…’ when she was stopped in her tracks by the look on her face.

‘What’s the matter girl you look as if you’ve seen a ghost?’

‘It’s him,’ Susan said.

George looked puzzled, then it dawned on him, ‘It’s you.’ He exclaimed.

‘It looks like you two have met before,’ said Molly. ‘Will someone please explain?’

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