"Anyone betting on the next race?" Jimmy asked as he noticed the trainers starting to make their way to the traps with their dogs.

"I'm sticking to trap 4 for the rest of the night" Billy said as he fished a fiver out, so far he was up on the night

"Oh do you know something then Newman?" Dempsey pounced

"Harry said she got info from the Foreign Office"

"Huh, Danby has been monitoring dog racing!"

"Deskwork Dempsey – the more you do the more information you discover"

"So what other gems of inside knowledge did you discover Sergeant"

"That I'd share with you Dempsey?"

"Partners" he pointed out

"None"

"No other information?" Dempsey was disbelieving

"No, I have other information – it's for my own personal use"

"Well I don't need to cheat"

"It's not cheating Dempsey; it's called using one's brain"

"So choose the next winner"

"Too late betting's closed" Harry was relieved; none of Stan Linzell's dogs were running and trap 4 had not been that successful.

"You still want the hat back?"

"I still think I won it last time"

"Well here's a second chance"

"I don't need one"

"Double or quits?"

"There's nothing to double Dempsey – there is only one hat"

"Come on Makepeace just name the dog"

Harry remembered Dempsey's inclination "Trap 3" she declared

He looked hard at her and contemplated his response. She grinned and he scowled before nominating Trap 4.

It was another long race and everyone was craning their necks to see the pursuit of the dogs. Harry used her hand on Dempsey's shoulder to pull herself up on tiptoe in an attempt to follow the race. "Hey 'you watching your dog lose?" Dempsey asked as he continued to watch three dogs battle for the lead.

"More like watching you lose your hat Lieutenant"

"I think my dog's doing good"

"It's not winning"

"There's still a fair distance to go"

Both had turned to glance at the other at the exact same moment and their eyes locked briefly. Each were acutely aware of the intimacy; Dempsey revelled in it, Makepeace blushed and turned back to the race.

They had missed the end!

"Who won?" they both asked

"Dempsey" Jimmy declared

Dempsey took the hat off his head, used it to affect his bow to Harry and replaced it on his own head.

Harry noticed Billy screw up his tote receipt "I thought you were sticking with trap 4 all night" she questioned

"Sure" he answered "but it didn't win this time"

"What? Jimmy just said…"

The payouts flashed up on the screen confirming Billy's statement

"JIMMY BARTHOLMEW" Harry called across the group "You just said Dempsey had won"

"He bet trap 3 didn't he?"

Harry grinned "No I did"

"Well go and collect your winnings – that was a good payout"

"I've just won something money can't buy" Makepeace laughed and crossed to where Dempsey was talking.

"Seems this is mine" she whispered in his ear as she lifted the hat

Dempsey grabbed upwards to retain the hat but he was too late; he spun to look at Makepeace who eyeballed the results screen.

"Seems I was right about trap 3" Dempsey countered

"Oh no! Don't you even think about trying that one Dempsey"

"But I told you"

"And you lost that race – the dog came 4th – remember"

"Well tell me why you stole my best bet Sergeant"

"You invited me to chose a winning dog Lieutenant"

"And you chose number 3 deliberately Harry – I watched your eyes"

"There's no law…"

"Oh for god's sake you two could you not just quit for the night"

"Yeh, it is getting kind of boring to be honest"

"What?" they turned to the gang behind them and asked together

"You two and all the fighting"

"The last race is coming up – let's go for the big ones" suggested Jimmy cutting across everyone

"Who's racing?" asked Makepeace

"I'm just going for the outside odds"

"Well I'll try that trap 4 again"

"So come on Harry what other secret info did Danby give you?" Dempsey caught her hand and pulled her close to himself

"It wasn't Danby"

"I don't really care; let's just sweep the board clean"

"What?"

"You and me, we'll play the perfect tricast, show them how it's done"

"I've done that already, I thought Billy told you"

Dempsey was on the edge of being rattled when Harry who had just read the names of the dogs running continued "Pilgrims Silver – that's Linzell's dog" Harry twisted round slightly to allow them to bend their heads together conspiratorially. Suddenly they were united.

"Ok partner so we have Pilgrims whatever in trap 2, then your tip trap 4 and my tip trap…" he paused a moment before plumping for trap 6.

"Who we gonna put first?"

"Let's go Linzell"

"Ok, but if you're wrong…"

"If I'm wrong you get the hat" she sighed

"I say trap 6 second and trap 3 third"

"And if you're wrong?" Harry asked

"I won't be"

Harry groaned.

Makepeace let Dempsey guide her with his hand on her back towards the tote. They both pulled out £50 each"

The cashier asked if this was one bet or two which necessitated a joint decision. The grins that lit their faces and the light that danced in their eyes set both of their hearts fluttering.

"One" "One" the synchronisation of their reply was not perfect but it was unified.

They returned to the crowd to watch the race.

"So what did you bet?" asked Jimmy

Harry recited the tricast; "And you Dempsey?" he asked

"It's a joint bet" he revealed; nobody apart from Jimmy read anything into it.

"What do get if you win?" asked Billy

"Depends how much you put down" Fry quite correctly pointed out

Billy felt his question had been killed dead without any chance of a reply "A fair bit" Dempsey added

The dogs were in their traps, the tension mounted and even the tannoy announcement mentioned good luck to the tricast of a oner.

Makepeace stood next to Dempsey; he looked down at her, but he couldn't see her face for the hat which she was now wearing and her attention was forward. It was the sight of her in his hat that still did something to his knees and instinctively he raised the hat to get her attention. It worked, she turned sharply but he didn't allow her to speak. Brazenly he touched her lips with his finger to indicate her silence and leaned into her "If you lose Harry you can keep the hat – I kinda like to see you wear it" She prickled slightly not sure how to react; he adjusted it as was his wont and as he did so it just spurted out: "So long as you let me be your escort to the ball"

The hare shot past and the dogs were out; the jostling was each man for his own only Harry had no idea what she wanted to happen. She wanted to win the bet, she wanted them to win the bet very much because they had done it together; but also she would love Dempsey to take her to the ball. It was a decision that she would question herself endlessly, without resolution, about over the next few weeks but right now the heat of the moment, the stakes riding on the bet – both financial and emotional were high.

Unresolved as to what she wanted the outcome to be Harry realised that she had no idea how the race was progressing or any view to ascertain it.

"Dempsey I can't see" she shouted as she jostled behind him

He put his hands back, but she didn't know why. He could feel her there and as the dogs rounded the first corner he turned "Jump up" he instructed.

There she was piggybacking Dempsey, they were edging on their joint bet; having teased and stung each other all night there was now a deep sense of unity.

"Come on – yes yes" Harry yelled as Pilgrims Silver moved from third to second

"NOooooooooooooooooo" As the black dog wearing the coat with 4 on it slipped from third to fourth

"That's my dog" Dempsey yelled as Pilgrim Silver slipped ahead of dog 2 for the lead. Once he'd lost the lead dog 2 seemed to fade as he finally faded into fourth place Harry was wrapping her arms tightly around Dempsey and yelling "YES, YES, YES"

The fight for third place remained tight "COME ON, FASTER, HOLD ON, YES YES – now go for it my boy!"

Dempsey let go of his support and Harry slid down to the ground. Makepeace waited for the announcement – the final positions were not clear. "Do you think we did it?"

"I think I'm gonna dream about that tonight" Dempsey looked straight at Harry and cut across her confusion "You Makepeace shouting yes, yes, yes in my ear – anytime you want - I can help you do that" he said by way of explanation with the added offer accompanied by one of his usual leers. Harry looked at him and rolled her eyes "and don't worry I've got plenty of stamina" he winked

She grinned "and a bloody big ego and a one track mind"

"Well now how did you know that?" Dempsey teased but suddenly everyone was clapping their backs – "well done."

"Hey I think we won the bet partner" Dempsey grinned. He held Harry's hand as he led her back to collect their winnings.

***

"So where' we going to now?"

Once again there was a mass of SI10 personnel standing in the red light cast from the huge lit stadium name.

"Back to Dempsey's with the champagne for a game poker!"

Billy was minded that he had decided to avoid cards with Dempsey and someone else announced that champagne was poncy.

Dempsey wasn't bothered; he opened the first of the two magnums he had bought and took a swig. Suddenly the lads decided it was cool – a bit more like F1 than half filled glasses and granny's toast to health and happiness.

He passed the other bottle back to Dave who let the cork fly out into the crowd and wrapped an arm around Harry and settled to share the one bottle with her whilst the other was now being splashed around a dozen SI10 guys

They filed out with the crowds

"You joining the boys for a game of poker back at mine?" he asked Harry as they passed the bottle back and forth between themselves until the protests that the other bottle was empty wore them down.

All the bubbly went as they waited in the taxi queue and decided who was doing what. Fry and Billy declined the poker offer together; Chas and Brian were taking their women home; Tom, Jimmy, Dave and a couple of others were all up for it.

Harry wasn't sure, she wasn't at all sure why Dempsey had suddenly thrown the escorting her to the ball into the melting pot. The likelihood of him picking her up for such an occasion was high and once there it would be like tonight – an office party (with Spikings watching she reminded herself); so, she mused, was there anything else, any other implication?

As she stood, engrossed in her thoughts Dempsey tipped the hat "Still looking cute" he whispered

"I'm calling it a night" she smiled

"Hey I've had a ball partner"

"Me too" Harry felt something strangely mellow and warm within as she found herself looking back into Dempsey's soft brown eyes

"So what about the hugging and a kissin in the back row" he asked with his hands still resting on the hat

"That's what was worrying me" she grinned and kissed his cheek "We've had good fun partner – don't go losing all those winnings to the boys"

"I keep telling you Harry - I'm the best!"

"Uhmmm" she grinned then shouted across to Billy that she would share a taxi home.