Chapter 26: Reception Chickie and Plumber Boy Out On a Date

Friday Night

Pauline put on her favourite dress, the orange sleeveless one, and the beige cardigan with the maroon and brown floral pattern, and finally the new pair of chestnut brown satin kitten heel court shoes she had saved up to buy. She added some amber earrings and a necklace, and a bit of makeup, and admired herself in the mirror. Mum was away at the masked ball, so there was no one to say the dress made her bum look big, or the colour was all wrong for her, or the shoes would give her bunions. Pauline knew she looked good and that made her happy.

She was even happier when Al arrived and she saw he had actually put on a nice shirt and tie for their date, and she didn't even mind that he picked her up in the Large & Son plumber's van.

They drove to Wadebridge, where they had an early dinner at an Italian restaurant. Pauline very much enjoyed the pasta and marina that clearly did not come from a jar. Then they went to the movies for a later showing of "The Soviet House." When Jago Powell, as a cynical British bookseller recruited to be a spy, kissed the actress playing the idealistic Russian publisher, Pauline felt Al put his arm around her shoulder and gently pull her in to rest her head against him. She felt warm and safe with him.

Afterward, they headed back to Portwenn and stopped at the Wilson Hotel above the village for a few drinks. The wind was picking up outside. In the bar they were seated by the picture window overlooking the ocean. Gusts of wind were whipping up the waves coming into the harbour but their crashing rhythm was distant enough to be just a pleasant background sound. There was soft candlelight at their table, a pianist was playing romantic music. They practically had the place to themselves, since most people in the village were at the ball. She had a glass of chardonnay while he had a pint of stout. They could see tiny silent strikes of lightning out to sea, too far away to hear the distant rolling thunder that followed.

Pauline felt it was the perfect end to a perfect date. She couldn't even get annoyed when the proprietor Carrie Wilson came over to their table playing at being the gracious hostess checking up that all the patrons were happy and then shamelessly flirting with Al.

Al scoffed at Mrs. Wilson's attention. "Don't be jealous. I hear her husband's been keepin' company with a woman in Camelford. They're headed for divorce and she's just lookin' to boost her ego, flirtin' with a younger man."

"I don't care about her." Pauline smiled.

"If anything, I should be jealous of Jago Powell," Al said. "All the women seem to be in love with him."

"Well, he's a dreamboat all right, but he's got nothing on you Al Large. I can't wait to see you up on the silver screen, bigger than life, when your movie debut comes out. You'll look just as dreamy as him."

She giggled at the thought and he smiled. By now they were holding hands over the table and she had slipped off one chestnut brown satin kitten heel and was caressing his leg under the table.

"So, here I am, out on a real date, with a real movie star. You know, we've been going out for a few months now. It's been awkward, what with me living with my mum and you with your dad. I was just thinking, since we're here at the hotel, maybe it's time we… what do you think about…"

"What do I think about, maybe, gettin' a room upstairs?"

"You read my mind," she said. She smiled again, thinking of the condoms she had bought that morning and discreetly stashed in her purse, along with a toothbrush, all concealed from her mother's prying eyes.

They leaned over the table for a lingering kiss. The piano player hit one final chord and then he was done for the night.

"It's pretty late," Al said "I hope they have something nice left. Let me go see if Mrs. Wilson can accommodate us, if I can keep her hands off me." Pauline laughed, an easy relaxed laugh.

Al stood up to find the hostess and something caught his eye. Pauline turned to look too. Among the few other patrons in the lounge, there was Mr. Wenn seated at another table with his new younger wife whom Pauline recognized from the surgery. Al went over to them.

"Hey, don't I know you?" he said.

To be continued…