This is the ninth part of a fiction serial, in 1,000 words.

Eduardo had not let her down. The meal had been a dream, as he constantly complimented her, told her how much he loved her, and held her hand across the table. Lucy had chosen to ignore the sideways glances of the waiters as they served the food and wine, and just revelled in the attention, the great food, and the wonderful views over the tranquil lake. Back in the room after liqueurs in the bar, her young lover made her feel attractive and desirable, as he slowly undressed her, before embarking on a selfless session of love-making that seemed to last for hours. She hadn’t even remembered falling asleep.

After a late breakfast, they drove into town. Lucy bought him a suit, a shirt and tie, and some smart shiny shoes. When he toyed with an expensive after-shave at the counter, she bought that too. It hadn’t been budgeted for of course, so she had to reluctantly pay using her credit card. Later, they took a trip across the lake on the pleasure-steamer, before retiring to the room for more love-making until they were due down for dinner. That evening, Eduardo looked so handsome in his suit, and told her she was a picture in her burgundy velvet gown. She was still captivated by him, but something was niggling in her mind. So she decided against saying she loved him, at least for now.

After he finished gardening and changed his clothes, Alex threw his clubs into the boot of the Jaguar, and drove down for an afternoon round at the Golf Club. He hadn’t played for a long time, but kept his membership up, as it was all about networking, and contacts. He had arranged to meet Tony Kemp, the well-heeled property developer, and a prominent citizen in town. They would play nine holes, and stay for dinner and drinks later.
He let Tony win by a couple of strokes, and also feigned interest in the new housing development planned for the northern suburbs. Alex knew Tony hoped he might influence the Planning Officer, but he had no intention of doing anything of the kind. Still, Tony paid for dinner and drinks, so it didn’t hurt to let him hope. He was home by eleven, and went to bed soon after.

Tom Henderson stared blankly at the TV. It was one of the shows Karen liked, and though he thought it was stupid, he pretended to enjoy watching it, for her sake. He had been on call since Friday evening, and was lucky that nothing had happened so far. Just Sunday to go, and his responsibility would be over for this month. Karen chuckled at something one of the characters was doing, and he smiled too. He liked to see her happy. Those moments were all too rare.

Lucy had to admit she was feeling quite tired. The reality of the ardour of her young lover had exceeded her imagination of how it would be. It seemed to her that he made love like he had something to prove, going through his repertoire as if following an instruction book on how to please a woman. But please her he had, at least as far as sex was concerned. And he appeared to enjoy her sexual ministrations too, declaring his love for her constantly, and complimenting everything from the size of her large breasts, to the shape of her small feet.

Unfortunately, once you took away the sex, there was little substance. Long silences over dinner, as he ran out of conversation. Repetitive compliments and sweet-talk, no different to all she had heard many times before, after their liaisons in the office at work. When he did become conversationally animated, all that seemed to concern him was how soon she could leave Alex, and how quickly they could be married after that. She had smiled and nodded. The idea of a new life with this younger man had certainly appealed. But after even this short time together, she was already wondering what they would ever talk about, and what they would do when not having sex. Yes, they could talk about work, and the animals they adored, but when you both worked at the same place all day, there might well be little to add to what you already knew. She was thinking about all that, as she dropped off to sleep in his arms

Eduardo couldn’t sleep. The heavy woman was snoring next to him, sounding something like the outboard motor of one of the small boats they had seen on the lake. He had done his best, he really had. Managing to make love to her so many times, and maintaining the pretence of finding her overwhelmingly attractive too. He had tried to talk about their future over dinner, but she had kept changing the subject, telling him it was too soon to make any definite plans. If she didn’t shape up soon, he would move on, and perhaps find a nice wealthy widow in the town, or the nearby city. He might be young, but he wasn’t about to waste any time. The new suit would help. He could try one of those over-fifties dating sites he had read about. Plenty of lonely women on those.

Alex tossed and turned. He had gone off to sleep quickly, but his mind was racing, and his thoughts, or perhaps a dream, had roused him. He went downstairs and poured himself a large cognac. Sitting by the light of the small reading-lamp, he went back over everything in his head. All the planning, the time spent next door, and the clearing up of any evidence that might possibly implicate him. He enjoyed the silence of the early hours, the darkness before dawn, and the peace that allowed him to think clearly.

Sometime tomorrow, there would be a discovery, and he had to have it all together by then.

To be continued…