Willie but then they’d not been married as long as some.
Ford came back with the drinks and passed them round. Then he sat down at the table, took a long swig and decided to put forward an idea he had for the Turnham Malpas lunch club.
‘I’ve been thinking, this lunch club you have, once a month, do you ever go somewhere different from the village hall?’
They all shook their heads. ‘Why?’ asked Sylvia, who was involved in the organizing of it.
‘Just thought it might be fun to go somewhere else.’
Sylvia said, ‘Trouble is, most people can’t afford the price of the lunch and a trip out. But if you’re in a charitable frame of mind, Ford, it’s the youngsters round here who need money spending on them, not the old folks.’
There was a great deal of chuntering then along the lines of ‘Why not the old folks?’ All of them conveniently forgot that they were old folk themselves.
Ford asked, ‘In what way, Sylvia?’
‘Well, we have the youth club run by Kate Fitch and Venetia Mayer. They do have fundraising efforts but they never quite raise enough, and what they need is to be able to go somewhere exciting. They’re all worthwhile young people, not tearaways, and they deserve something going on in this village, and out of it. You’d be doing them a real service if you could come up with some funds. They deserve it more than the old people, believe me. They need it more. Country life for young people nowadays isn’t, well, isn’t exciting enough.’ Sylvia glared round the table, eyeball to eyeball, daring anyone to disagree.
Mercedes lit up at the prospect. ‘I see what you mean. Bless ’em.’ There sounded to be real feeling in her voice when she said that, and they all wondered why it was so heartfelt.
Ford said nothing.
He got a nudge from Mercedes but still he said nothing.
To fill the silence someone mentioned the date of the end-of-season cricket team dinner, and were they . . .
Ford burst into life. ‘Where do I find these people? This Kate and Venice whatever she’s called?’
Sylvia began singing inside. ‘Up at the Big House - Turnham House. It’s a training college for Mr Fitch’s staff, for his business. Venetia’s the sports person and Kate, of course, lives in the flat.’
‘Will they be in?’
‘Worth a try,’ said Sylvia, staggered by Ford’s decisiveness.
‘Right! I’m going up there. Coming, Merc?’
Chapter 4
They found Venetia supervising the swimming pool. She was languidly resting on a white plastic lounger, idly admiring the young men showing off their prowess.
She sprang to life when she spotted Mercedes and Ford stepping along the edge of the pool towards her.
‘Good evening. How may I help?’
‘Venetia Mayer? I’m Ford Barclay. This is my wife, Mercedes. We’ve come specially to see about the club for the young people you run on Friday nights.’
Venetia had really gone off obese men since she’d got her Jeremy down to an acceptable size and didn’t find Ford at all appealing, so she didn’t bother to fluff up her blacker-than-black hair, or to get up from the lounger. Behind his innocent question he’d only be wanting to join the leisure club and it wasn’t for the public.
‘I see. I run the youth club along with Kate Fitch and a committee of the young people in the village - well, villages, because we include Penny Fawcett and Little Derehams, too. Do you have children of an age to join, then?’
‘No, no. Someone called Sylvia in the pub just now suggested the club might be in need of funds.’
‘Always in need of funds.’ Venetia glanced at her watch and took her mobile from the pocket of her pink linen shorts. ‘It’s nine, so Kate will have finished their evening meal. I’ll give her a ring, see if it’s convenient for us to go up to their flat. She’s Kate Fitch , you see.’
She was in and yes, anyone
Ford came back with the drinks and passed them round. Then he sat down at the table, took a long swig and decided to put forward an idea he had for the Turnham Malpas lunch club.
‘I’ve been thinking, this lunch club you have, once a month, do you ever go somewhere different from the village hall?’
They all shook their heads. ‘Why?’ asked Sylvia, who was involved in the organizing of it.
‘Just thought it might be fun to go somewhere else.’
Sylvia said, ‘Trouble is, most people can’t afford the price of the lunch and a trip out. But if you’re in a charitable frame of mind, Ford, it’s the youngsters round here who need money spending on them, not the old folks.’
There was a great deal of chuntering then along the lines of ‘Why not the old folks?’ All of them conveniently forgot that they were old folk themselves.
Ford asked, ‘In what way, Sylvia?’
‘Well, we have the youth club run by Kate Fitch and Venetia Mayer. They do have fundraising efforts but they never quite raise enough, and what they need is to be able to go somewhere exciting. They’re all worthwhile young people, not tearaways, and they deserve something going on in this village, and out of it. You’d be doing them a real service if you could come up with some funds. They deserve it more than the old people, believe me. They need it more. Country life for young people nowadays isn’t, well, isn’t exciting enough.’ Sylvia glared round the table, eyeball to eyeball, daring anyone to disagree.
Mercedes lit up at the prospect. ‘I see what you mean. Bless ’em.’ There sounded to be real feeling in her voice when she said that, and they all wondered why it was so heartfelt.
Ford said nothing.
He got a nudge from Mercedes but still he said nothing.
To fill the silence someone mentioned the date of the end-of-season cricket team dinner, and were they . . .
Ford burst into life. ‘Where do I find these people? This Kate and Venice whatever she’s called?’
Sylvia began singing inside. ‘Up at the Big House - Turnham House. It’s a training college for Mr Fitch’s staff, for his business. Venetia’s the sports person and Kate, of course, lives in the flat.’
‘Will they be in?’
‘Worth a try,’ said Sylvia, staggered by Ford’s decisiveness.
‘Right! I’m going up there. Coming, Merc?’
Chapter 4
They found Venetia supervising the swimming pool. She was languidly resting on a white plastic lounger, idly admiring the young men showing off their prowess.
She sprang to life when she spotted Mercedes and Ford stepping along the edge of the pool towards her.
‘Good evening. How may I help?’
‘Venetia Mayer? I’m Ford Barclay. This is my wife, Mercedes. We’ve come specially to see about the club for the young people you run on Friday nights.’
Venetia had really gone off obese men since she’d got her Jeremy down to an acceptable size and didn’t find Ford at all appealing, so she didn’t bother to fluff up her blacker-than-black hair, or to get up from the lounger. Behind his innocent question he’d only be wanting to join the leisure club and it wasn’t for the public.
‘I see. I run the youth club along with Kate Fitch and a committee of the young people in the village - well, villages, because we include Penny Fawcett and Little Derehams, too. Do you have children of an age to join, then?’
‘No, no. Someone called Sylvia in the pub just now suggested the club might be in need of funds.’
‘Always in need of funds.’ Venetia glanced at her watch and took her mobile from the pocket of her pink linen shorts. ‘It’s nine, so Kate will have finished their evening meal. I’ll give her a ring, see if it’s convenient for us to go up to their flat. She’s Kate Fitch , you see.’
She was in and yes, anyone
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