It was early in the evening on this January night that my friend Joyce had come over for a drink. After finishing her first drink, she went to the kitchen for a refill and she tought that she'd heard a noise at the door.
"I shouldn't worry dear, its probably a cat“ I said. “ When my Arthur first started the night job I was jumpy, and I’d listen for all sorts of noises. Now, the animals don't bother me; I have a few drinks, watch the TV, and then go to bed.”
But my friend was quite concerned about me. She thought that I drunk too much and it wasn't so safe for a woman to be alone in her house at night. “You should go easy on the drink Kath. Many a woman started by having a “few” and ended up with many.”
I tried to reassure her but she didn't seem to listen. “You know me better than that Joyce. It’s really pleasant to sit here with a glass of wine seeing a good film. I fell asleep on the couch the other night, and my Arthur woke me up when he came early in the morning."
"Well, you can't be too careful these days. If I were you, I’d ask the police to keep an eye, in case of prowlers.”
“That would only draw attention to myself. It’s like raising a flag telling everybody I’m alone. This is a pretty quiet cul de sac and the neighbours house is pretty close. Their night light illuminates the back of my house. I don’t know why it’s off at the moment.” Then I winked. “I should be so lucky to receive a visitor at night, maybe a handsome man could come by.”
“I shouldn’t joke dear, one hears so many things. If I were you I’d even consider getting a lodger, or maybe a dog. A girl would be ideal.”
"No thanks, young women can be a big nuisance. I’d have no privacy in my own home, and as for a dog, they take a lot of looking after. Enough said; let’s talk about something different."
Having cut off the conversation about my nightly safety she decided that it was time to leave. "I’d better be going. My hubby should be home by now, and he’ll be wondering what happened to me. I’ll see you tomorrow Kath, we can have lunch in town.”
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'Ooph! I thought she’d never go, busybody worrying about my welfare. There's a good film on in 15 minutes I thought. Just enough time to go change into something more comfortable, and pour myself a drink. It'll be a long night. No one else will be coming now.' So I went to the bedroom and put on my gown over my negligee. Sitting in the armchair with a drink in hand, the thought of a lodger fleeted across my mind but not the type Margaret had suggested.
The film was not very good, and my mind drifted on to other things. I looked at the clock on the mantel piece. 'If only he'd come' I sighed. The second glass tasted even better. I was feeling really good now. The alcohol was beginning to take effect. I got up, looked at myself in the mirror. ‘Not bad for 40 ,' I turned my head from side to side and admired my hairdo. 'Andre did a good job with my hair,’ I thought.
Just as I was deep in my thoughts, something clicked in the kitchen. 'I’d better check that back door again,' I thought. With the lights off, I peered out through the kitchen glass door and saw the outline of a man. I looked closer and recognised him. I took the chain off the latch and opened the door. "For goodness sake dear, why didn’t you knock? You gave me a fright."
" I came earlier but I heard you talking to someone."
" If my friend had had her way, we would have called the police. Come in quickly. You know how nosey people are around here. We’ll have to be more careful from now on sweetheart if we want to spend a few hours together.
