Mastering The Virgin 2

James

“Will you visit us for Christmas, Charlotte?”

“Yes, Master, of course I will, but it might not be for long.”

“Of course. You will want to see your friends and family during the holiday…”

She's silent, but nods, biting her lip.

*****

Michael

“She’s called,” says James, “She’s coming next week, but only for the Friday evening.”

I bite back my disappointment. “So, she’s only here for a single night?”

“’Fraid so. That doesn’t mean we can’t make it a memorable night.”

“I suppose not. I’d have liked it to be longer though. We’ll barely have her off the train than we’ll be putting her back on it again.”

“So, we ensure that the evening we have with her is a good one….”

“No sharing her, though…. No passing her around? Not for a single night….”

He shakes his head. “No, not for one night…. I’ve booked the Lodge again. I thought if we get it decked up for Christmas, she’d like that.” He cocks an eye at me. “I thought you’d like that too.”

Christmas tree…. Log fire…. Candles…. That big fur rug….

Yeah….

“Great idea…. Um, have you checked the weather forecast?”

“I have, yes. It’s talking about the possibility of snow over the next few days.”

“Is that in the City or up in the mountains?”

*****

At the station, she’s there ahead of us, waiting by the entrance. The day is bright and cold, the sunshine clear and the sky that shade of unsullied blue you only get with the tang of winter in the air; a bite that snaps at the ankles and pinks up the cheeks….

“What on earth is she wearing?” chuckles James.

“She’s dressed up for the season, that’s for sure…. She looks fantastic….”

“Doesn’t she always,” he grins, “but I was expecting jeans and a tee-shirt….”

Charlotte is dressed in brilliant green trimmed with fur, her foxy hair in sharp contrast to the colour, along with jewellery and shoes in a similar contrasting shade. She could have stepped from the set of a nineteen-fifties Hollywood musical and looks like some sort of Christmas Elf, if Santa had the kind of helpers that gave him gritted teeth and a raging hard.

She smiles widely as I step out of the car, gathering her into my arms, my mouth open over hers, before I remember myself and step back to allow James a bit closer.

He, as ever in public, is more restrained, lifting her hand to his lips to kiss her fingers.

“Charlotte, it’s lovely to see you. Michael has talked about nothing else since your phone call last week.”

Then, holding her hands, he stands back to take a better look at her. “You look marvellous, Charlotte,” then, winking, “Good enough to eat.”

For such a beautiful woman, she still has the charm of a small child, looking as though she has seen the pile of presents under the Christmas tree for the first time.

“So where are we going?” she asks, her eyes sparkling, teeth white and bright. “What are we going to do?”

James flashes eyebrows at her. “Oh, don’t worry. We’re going to enjoy our evening together.”

“Where? What?” She’s all eagerness and Surprise Me….

His smile is wicked….

No wonder she’s fallen for him….

“I’ve booked the Lodge up in the mountains again,” he says, “But this time I’ve arranged that it will be decked up for Christmas when we get there.”

Her smile grows even broader, her green eyes brilliant in the sunshine. “Christmas tree?” she asks.

“Yup.” he grins, looking smug.

“Log fire? Candles?”

“Yup.”

“Mince pies and crackers?”

“Yes, and yes, and Michael has packed up a few treats into the back of the wagon here.”

…. Just a few…. Lol!

As we turn to the car; a heavy-duty four-wheeled drive number, quite capable of travelling off-road, she looks it over.

“That’s not your usual car, is it?” she says to James, “I don’t remember you driving a station wagon.”

“No, not usually, but the weather forecast isn’t all that good. I thought if we’re going up the mountains, we’d go in something with four-wheel drive and a decent engine, just in case the snow comes down.”

She looks up, scanning the azure sky and the sparkling sunshine, then seems to dismiss it, shrugs and turns to me instead.

“So, what are these ‘treats’ you have packed up.” She’s still grinning like she’s been told that Rudolph has been seen parked on the roof.

“Wait and see.” I’m feeling smug myself. Even with Charlotte’s Olympic appetite, the three of us are not going to be hungry for our one-night of….

….. togetherness….

But she doesn’t know that as well as ‘treats’ I have also packed hot drinks, blankets, snow chains, sandbags, shovels, a water supply, kindling….

…. I don’t trust the mountain weather.

James slaps his arms around himself. “Come on. Snow or not, it’s a bit brisk just standing here. Let’s get going.”

As we leave the City, our red-haired elf sandwiched between us, it feels easy, relaxed. She’s looking out, her lips curving just a little, her arm tucked into mine while James drives.

Does she know she’s doing that?

Then her head leans to rest against my shoulder….

…. yeah, she knows….

James, glances sideways at her, his mouth quirking, and looks away again saying nothing.

Doesn’t he get jealous when he sees that? This isn’t the Club….

We leave the City behind, turning off the main highway, and the winter countryside is a sparkling mosaic of frosted grass and sunlit trees, nude of leaves, but still statuesque and lovely in the clear daylight. In direct sunshine, all is green and bright, but away from the sun, the shaded earth lies white and crystalline.

Ahead of us lie the mountains, and beyond them, piling up, deep grey clouds tower, looming and growing. As we climb, gaining altitude, even in the sunlight the frost lies hard, not having thawed in the daylight. We leave oak and ash behind and instead, hoarfrost coats pine-trees, thick and white. And in places, snow stacks up against walls and tree-trunks, swept there by bitter winds, and now set crisp and hard.

The clouds move in, blotting out the sun and the day turns gloomy, snowflakes drifting down. It’s already cold enough for them to ‘stick’, and quickly the ground and the road ahead of us turns white. As the snow deepens, the car begins to slide. James drops off the gas then shifts into four-wheel-drive before accelerating again. The wheels have traction once more, but now the snow is coming hard and fast, in an ever-thickening fall that reduces visibility to almost zero.

“Nearly there now,” he says, “It’s only about another five miles.”

Full on, the headlights do nothing but reflect back from the blanket of falling flakes. The wipers can no longer cope with the load, and ahead of us is nothing but a swirling white-out.

Charlotte does not look afraid….

…. and I don’t want her to be….

What do I say? Does she know how dangerous this is….?

“James….”