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Subject: X-Mas Repost TG: The TV Summer Camp by Chrissie LaFemme (01/10)
From: nostrumo@nienor.IN-Berlin.DE (Nostrumo)
Date: 22 Dec 1996 22:17:55 GMT
Message-ID: <59kc2j$1uu@nienor.in-berlin.de>
Hi.
When I remember correctly Celeste wanted some stories for X-Mas. I'm
not sure if she like those stories, but I muse that there are some
people out there who might like them as a kind of x-mas present(s).
I know the title sounds confusing, but one part of this story do
deal with christmas.
As ever I DIDN'T write this story and haven't any claim on it. If
you have some usefull hints or some good coments, your mail is then
welcome. Flames, you know, they will be piped to /dev/null.
If you are an author and wish to remain anonymouns or just try to
avoid the replies to your work. I offer you the chance of posting your
stories and collecting the response for you. This offer only stands for
story postings and for nothing else.
Enjoy the story.
Ciao
Nostrumo
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> cut here with a sharp knife
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
The TV Summer Camp
by Chrissie LaFemme
The story of Alan Slocum
01:25 hours Christmas Day
Hannah Slocum was lying in bed; she was restless. Her husband was
asleep beside her; she could hear his deep breathing even with the
heavy rain beating against the window.
Her mind turned to that fateful day, September 15 to be exact, when the
specialist had told her the results of her tests. I'm sorry, Mrs.
Slocum, he had started. What he had to say had confirmed her worst
fears: she would not be able to have any more children. Her yearning
for a daughter (in her dreams the baby was always a girl) was cruelly
shattered.
The news had devastated her. She had sought solace and comfort from
her husband but he was too pre-occupied with his new job. His
unfeeling attitude and lack of sympathy had rankled. Deeply.
Then in October came the second and equally devastating blow: the
arrival of an anonymously posted pinked-hued envelope containing
crystal clear photographs of her husband's affair with his secretary.
Today would see her getting her revenge.
07:55 hours
They were roused by the noise of their only son, Alan, holding a
Christmas stocking.
"Look what Santa left at the end of my bed!" the boy exclaimed
excitedly.
"Happy Christmas, darling," his mother said, giving him a warm hug.
"Happy Christmas, son," Marty Slocum said, patting his head
affectionately.
"Let's see what Santa has left under the tree!" Hannah Slocum suggested
to her son. Throwing on her dressing-gown, she took the boy by the
hand and went down to the large living-room.
The boy was delighted with the presents he received from Santa. His
mother told him that she had a special present for him which she would
give him later; in the meanwhile he would have to promise to be very
good.
The six year old's excitement subsided as he remembered why she was
asking for this special favour: "Aw, Mom, do I really have to go
through with this?" he pleaded.
Hannah Slocum nodded her head firmly and added: "We'll have breakfast
now. Then we'll give you a shower and fix your hair," she said
crisply. "Cassie is coming to collect you after nine."
10:00 hours
The church was full of happy, chattering children and smiling parents.
Traditionally the children of the parish performed a Nativity play at
this Mass and there was a buzz of excitement among the congregation.
Hannah Slocum was straining to catch a glimpse of her son.
"What part is Alan playing?" her husband whispered.
"Sssshhh," she returned. "They're going to start now."
As they watched the start of the play, Hannah Slocum idly speculated if
her husband would even recognise their son's appearance.
The boy and girl playing Joseph and Mary appeared and were soon
followed by the Shepherds and by the Three Wise Men.
They were followed by six angels. They were identically dressed in
white full-length dresses (which the women watching in the audience
knew were First Communion dresses), white panty-hose and white ballet
slippers. Each angel wore gold tinsel in a halo around their heads; in
the case of five of the six angels the tinsel was attached to a hair
band. In the case of the sixth the tinsel had been pinned directly
onto the child's hair.
As with the Shepherds and Three Wise Men before them the angels sang a
carol and then took their place at the back.
Hannah Slocum could feel her husband tugging at her elbow.
"That can't be Alan!" he whispered hoarsely. "What's he doing as an
angel?"
She did not reply but smiled inwardly.
"What's my boy doing as an angel?" her husband demanded furiously.
"I'm going to be a laughing stock in the office: wait till some one
from the company hears that my son was wearing a dress! I'll be
ruined!"
"You were the one that wanted him to take part in the first place," she
reminded him sweetly. "And all the other parts were taken so there was
only this angel part left."
Her husband fell silent momentarily.
"Whose dress is it any way?" he muttered.
"It's Helen's," Hannah replied. She smiled to herself: could lying be
this easy? It had never belonged to her niece, Helen, who was two
years older than Alan. She knew that Marty would never find out.
"As soon as we get home it's coming off!" Marty Slocum said fiercely.
10:50 hours
After the Mass Hannah Slocum gave her son a loving hug. Inwardly, she
experienced a delicious thrill as her fingers felt the silky material
of his dress. If he had longer hair, she thought to herself, he could
easily pass for a girl.
"You're a real angel now," she said happily, giving him a kiss on the
cheeks.
"Aw, Mom," he replied, his cheeks reddening in embarrassment. "Can we
go now?"
"Of course, we can, Angel," she replied. "Let's go and find your
father."
Just then Cassie sidled up.
"Alan was just super," she gushed.
"You did a super job organising the play," Hannah Slocum congratulated
her.
Cassie glowed with pleasure.
"It was nothing. I was so lucky the children were so cooperative," she
said modestly. "Alan made an adorable angel and he didn't even
complain once."
Hannah Slocum nodded her understanding of the hidden meaning of
Cassie's remarks.
"I was admiring his dress -- I mean his outfit; where did you get it?
The smocking detail is very pretty," Cassie asked.
Hannah Slocum quickly looked around and seeing her husband talking to a
neighbor in the distance she replied: "Florentyns."
"You bought it!" Cassie noted in surprise. "I thought you might have
borrowed it from one of your nieces."
"Yes, I asked my sisters but they had nothing that fitted Alan so I
figured the best thing was to buy him one," Hannah Slocum replied.
Then, she added in a whisper: "Cassie, I see Alan's friends, Bruce and
Charlie, over there and I know he wants to meet them. Will you excuse
us? Happy Christmas!"
Hannah took Alan by the wrist and pretended to lead him in the
direction of where Marty was talking to a neighbor, Mrs. Matteo.
"Wait a minute, Angel, I've forgotten your purse!" she exclaimed,
stopping suddenly.
"Purse? Mom, I don't need a purse!" her son protested.
"You need a purse with that outfit!" she said firmly, taking a white
silk purse from her bag she tied it by its silk drawstrings to his
wrist.
"Aw, Mom, must I?" her son groaned. "Why?"
"Because I promised Mrs. Matteo to see you in your full outfit,"
Hannah declared. Then, she added with a smile. "If you're good Mrs.
Matteo might put something in it."
"Uh, OK, Mom," her son replied. "There's something in it already --
what's in it?"
"You'll see in a minute, darling," she replied.
"Hey, Mom, why are we going this way? Dad and Mrs. Matteo are over
there!" Alan protested as Hannah taking hold of his wrist pulled him in
a direction to where two of his friends were chatting. As they
approached the boys Alan tried to escape her grip but she held tight.
"Happy Christmas, boys!" she said cheerfully. "Alan wants to wish you
a Happy Christmas, don't you darling?"
Alan squirmed with embarrassment and humiliation; the two boys said
nothing but gazed at him solemnly.
"Come on, Alan, say Happy Christmas!" Hannah prompted. Then she said
with a laugh to the boys: "My angel is very shy today, boys, but
hopefully not too shy to give you your presents!"
Alan looked at her in dumbfounded amazement.
"The presents are in your purse, darling," Hannah prompted in a honeyed
voice. "Go on ... give them to Bruce and Charlie!"
Alan made no move to comply with her request; he stood rooted to the
spot unable to look at his two friends.
"Don't be difficult, Angel!" she scolded him, her voice suddenly taking
on a harder edge. "If you don't give Bruce and Charlie their presents
your Christmas will end right now!"
Fumbling at the silk draw-cords her crest-fallen son opened the purse
and pulled out what looked like a miniature purse.
"Angel, don't be silly! That's not it -- don't you recognize your own
make-up kit?!?" Hannah admonished him. She gave the two waiting boys a
resigned, exasperated smile. "Angel is still learning, boys ... he
forgets every now and then where he puts his lipstick and blusher!
Angel darling, you don't want to give your favorite cosmetics to Bruce
and Charlie -- they certainly don't need it -- but you do! You know as
well as I do that your make-up won't last all day!"
His face contorted in shame her son dug his hand into the purse again.
He sullenly produced two identically wrapped gifts which he handed to
his still-silent friends. They looked at each other and ran off.
Hannah smiled inwardly. Within hours Bruce and Charlie would be
circulating the story to all their friends how they had met Alan
wearing a girl's dress and how he had carried a purse! He even had a
special purse for his make- up! They would then relate how he had
given them sissy presents of scented soap! Alan would be ostracized at
school and his grades would plummet. Then she would persuade Marty to
let her hire a governess until they found an alternative school.
Hannah had already located -- with great difficulty -- a suitable
teacher. She knew Ms. Imeldez was an illegal immigrant but also that
she was highly educated and desperate for work. Ms. Imeldez had
readily agreed to the idea of Alan wearing uniform and when Hannah had
hinted that the uniform would be similar to what the local high- school
girls wore (a white blouse worn teamed with a black and red check
skirt) she had just shrugged her shoulders. 'No problem,' she had
said. 'You are his mother, you know best.'
Hannah took the purse from her son and despite his protests retied it
to his wrist. Then she led him to join her husband and Mrs. Matteo.
"Did you see me, Dad? Was I good?" Alan inquired excitedly, relieved
to see his father again.
"Yes, son, I saw you; you were fine," his father said coolly. Hannah
Slocum was glad that her husband was not outwardly hostile to their
son.
"Alan! You look real cute in that outfit!" Mrs. Matteo smiled. "I
wish I had my camera with me! Maybe you'll come over and model it for
me when you come back from your holidays?"
"He'd love to!" Hannah broke in quickly before Alan and Marty could say
no. Marty glared at her.
"That's settled! I could invite my niece and they could play
together!" Mrs. Matteo enthused. She added with a laugh: "You'll
have to play quietly, Alan: you won't be able to climb my trees in
that lovely dress!"
Hannah laughed heartily and though her husband smiled at their elderly
neighbor's witticism she saw that there was no mirth in his eyes.
As if on cue, Mrs. Matteo took a small gift-wrapped package out of her
pocket and slipped it into the boy's purse.
"Promise me you won't open this until you get to your grandma's house"
she said.
The boy promised and Mrs. Matteo took her leave.
"You'll have to carry him out to the car," Hannah smugly told her
husband, "His slippers will get soaked."
Marty Slocum glanced down at the delicate white ballet shoes on his
son's feet. He picked up his son and carried him out to the car. His
distaste of his son's feminine costume was evident in his eyes.
11.15 hours
"He's not to wear that ridiculous dress a minute longer!" Marty Slocum
hissed to his wife when they were alone in their bedroom.
"I promised Mother to let her see Alan in his costume. Then he can
change," his wife replied soothingly. Then, changing the subject she
issued a stream of instructions: "Marty, you'll have the collect
Elaine now for the Delaney's party. Then you'll come back here and
collect me and pack the car -- don't forget the blue case. All the
presents for my family are under the tree. I'll kill you if you forget
the large parcel with the silver wrapping -- that's for mother. You'll
have to check the doors and windows before setting the alarm."
Her husband nodded his understanding of what she had said. Hannah
Slocum knew, however, that with his limited attention span he was
certain to forget something.
She would repeat the instructions to him again but would omit reference
to the blue case.
11:25 hours
"Where's Marty?" Hannah's sister Katie asked on her arrival.
"He's collecting his slut of a secretary, Elaine, so we can all go to
his boss's party together," Hannah replied with a sneer. "I bet
they're in bed right now. I tell you, Katie, she's welcome to him!
And when I'm finished with him in court with all the evidence I have
he's going to lose everything -- including custody of Alan!"
"And where's Alan?" Katie asked.
"Angel? He's up playing in the guest room: I had to keep him as far
away from Marty as I could; Marty was threatening to blow a fuse!"
Hannah laughed. "Come on up and see him for yourself!"
The two women made their way up the stairs.
"Have you finished decorating his bedroom, Hannah?" Katie asked.
"Nearly -- I'll give you a peek!" Hannah answered. She produced a key
from her pocket: "I've been keeping it locked because naturally I
don't want Marty nosing around. Alan is sleeping in the guest room
these days. He's dying to move back but he's going to be in for a
surprise!"
"What do you mean?" Katie replied.
"Have a look!" Hannah exclaimed, swinging the door open. The room
smelled of fresh paint and all the furniture had been draped with old
sheets.
Katie stepped into the room and looked around.
"I don't see that much change, Hannah. The color of the walls is
different though ..." she said.
"It's white with a hint of pink!" Hannah giggled. "But I'll gradually
change that ... to pink with a hint of white!!"
Katie laughed and at her sister's prompting lifted off the sheet
covering the bed.
"Woweeee, I see he has a new quilt cover and matching pillow-cases!"
she gasped in surprize. "I hope Alan won't miss his Batman cover too
much!"
Hannah smiled.
"When I'm through with him he's just going to adore the pretty rosebud
pattern of his quilt and --" she started to reply.
"And the pretty frills?" Katie interrupted with raised eye- brows.
"And the pretty frills," Hannah confirmed in a determined voice.
Kate sighed and changed the subject.
"I didn't think Alan was still into teddies, Hannah," she observed,
pointing to a small teddy beside the pillow.
"It's a very special teddy, Kate. Take a closer look at it," Hannah
invited her.
Her sister lifted the teddy up.
"It's not much of a teddy: just a head, arms and a soft, lumpy body.
It's got no legs," she pointed out.
"Maybe teddy is hiding something inside!" Hannah hinted.
Kate turned the teddy over and opened a small zip at back. She put her
hand in and pulled out a neatly folded garment.
"Hannah! This is unreal!" she cried in amazement. "Marty won't allow
this ..."
"Marty won't know anything about it!" Hannah replied quickly. "Alan
will only wear it when Marty's away and for the rest of the time it'll
be a secret between Alan and myself -- and teddy."
"What about Alan? How are you going to make him wear this?" Kate
asked.
"When you'll see shortly what I've managed to persuade him to wear,
getting him into a night-gown will be a snap!" Hannah declared.
Kate looked dubious; Hannah went over to the closet and threw open the
doors.
"Come over here, Kate," she urged, adding with a touch of irony:
"You're simply going to love what's inside!"
Kate replaced the teddy beside the pillow and joined her sister in
front of the opened closet.
"Alan's got a new wardrobe?" she whispered.
Hannah nodded excitedly.
"I know what you're thinking, Kate: you're thinking that this is all
going to happen too fast for Alan to take, right?"
"Yes, kind of--" Kate started to reply.
"I've been planing this for weeks so I'm not going to do anything
hasty, I promise you!" Hannah assured her. "I'm going to bring Alan
gently along with it."
"But how, Hannah?"
"Well, you know I've arranged a governess to start teaching him here in
a few weeks? Let me show you the uniform I've put together for him --"
"But, Hannah, I recognize those colors: that's what the girls in
Newville High wear!" Kate cut in sharply. "You can't take him out of
school as a boy one day and the next day put him into a girl's uniform
simply because he's going to be taught at home -- that's crazy!"
"It's not going to start that way!" Hannah insisted.
Kate said nothing.
"I said it's going to be gradual -- I've worked it all out. Yes, these
are the Newville High colors, but I'm not going to overwhelm him with a
skirt from day one," Hannah continued. "Let me start with the top.
First, it's going to be a shirt. Then, the buttons get moved over and
then it becomes a blouse. The material becomes softer and looser and
gets more details. The trousers start with the black and red check.
Then, the zip moves to the side and it becomes a pair of slacks. Then
the legs become wider and shorter. Pretty soon it becomes culottes.
The legs continue to widen and eventually they merge. Then, hey
presto, we have a skirt! It's that simple, Kate!"
Kate took a deep breath.
"Hannah, are you sure you know what you're doing?"
"Yes," Hannah replied firmly. "Let's go to Alan now. I'll wager his
outfit will blow you away!"
11:30 hours
"Alan!" Katie exclaimed in delight. "What a pretty dress! Did you
wear that for the Nativity play?"
"Yes, Aunt Katie," the boy murmured bashfully.
"Do a twirl for Aunt Katie, Angel, so she can see your dress properly,"
his mother urged him. As the boy did a clumsy circle for them she
mouthed the word 'Angel' to her sister.
"You make a very pretty angel," his aunt told him. "I love your
matching panty-hose and ballet shoes, Angel."
"And Angel is wearing some very pretty things under his dress, aren't
you, Angel?" his mother prompted mischievously.
"But, Mom, you said that was our secret ..." the boy gulped in dismay.
"No, Angel, when I said secret I meant that you don't talk about or
show your underthings to BOYS but when you're with Aunt Katie and I
it's perfectly permissible!" his mother replied sweetly. Then, she
added with a smile: "After all, we already know what it's like to wear
pretty underthings!"
The boy looked set to cry with humiliation so Hannah said it was time
to go.
Downstairs Hannah and Katie put a soft white angora wool cardigan on
the boy who tried to protest. Then before he could say or do anything,
the women quickly fastened a white velvet cape on him.
Then without a word they quickly bundled him into Katie's car and
hoisted him into a child's car seat in the back. The boy protested at
the indignity of the seat and even more vehemently as he was strapped
in. He saw that they were using a different harness to the ones he was
used to when he was younger. The two women quickly worked the buckles
shut and the boy found himself a in a harness from which he could not
escape.
"Let me go!" he cried, tears filling his eyes.
"When you get to Grandma's house Auntie Katie will let you out," his
mother assured him. "Her car is smaller than ours and we don't want
you falling out!"
"I don't want to go to Grandma's!" the boy wailed.
"Go as fast as you can," Hannah said to her sister under her breath.
Then she bent down to give her son a kiss. Her sister saw her give her
son several sprays from a small atomiser.
She closed the car door quickly before the neighbors could hear her
son's cries.
"What were you doing Hannah?" Katie asked.
"I just spritzed him with my perfume," her sister replied
matter-of-factly.
Katie looked at her with a puzzled expression on her face.
"I want him to smell like a girl for a few hours -- just enough for him
to want avoid meeting any boys," her sister explained with a grin.
12:45 hours
Hannah hated office parties -- nearly as much as she detested being in
the same room as her husband's mistress.
A woman whom Hannah did not recognize came up to introduce herself.
She said she was Alice Black, a manager in the Human Resources
Department.
"I thought I saw you at church this morning," she said.
"Oh, I see. Yes, we were there this morning," Hannah replied, hoping
that the woman would not pursue the subject further.
As if she could read Hannah's mind the woman changed the subject.
Later the conversation changed to children.
"You have a boy, don't you?" Alice asked.
"Yes, that's right: Alan. He's six," Hannah replied proudly.
"Marty's always talking about him and shows his photograph to everyone
who comes into his office," Alice commented.
Hannah smiled.
"Marty told me a few weeks ago that he was going to be in the Nativity
play this morning," Alice continued. "I don't recall seeing him
though. He wasn't sick or anything like that?"
Hannah felt her stomach muscles tighten. Marty would hit the roof if
word got out around the company about Alan's part in the play.
"Alan? Oh, he just had a small part in the play," she replied
evasively.
"What as?" Alice queried quickly before Hannah could change the
subject.
"He was ... ah ... one of the angels," she replied.
Alice's face brightened up with the memory.
"So it WAS him!" she cried happily. "He looked great."
"Thank you," Hannah said, dreading what was going to come next.
"I just adored his dress. You're so lucky with him; I teach drama and
I know how hard it is to get boys to wear some costumes!" Alice
laughed.
"He certainly took some persuading!" Hannah replied, relaxing a little.
"I know -- they all do! But he looked so pretty! I hope you don't
mind me telling you this: I could hardy tell him apart from the
girls!" Alice smiled.
"I tried my best to get him looking the part," Hannah replied and then
added in a low voice: "My husband would be furious if he heard us
talking like this!"
"Oh, he's only a man!" Alice said dismissively. "Men are so afraid of
being anything less than macho! They should be encouraged to do and
wear whatever they feel like. After all, women wear trousers!"
"I agree with you that they're conservative -- especially when it comes
to clothes. They seem to balk at anything that's not traditional,"
Hannah said, glad to talk to a kindred spirit.
"I agree. That's why I was so surprized -- and delighted -- to see
Alan as an angel. I think you're so brave not to push him into
traditional male role!" Alice declared.
Hannah glowed with pleasure.
"You mentioned that you teach drama," she remarked.
"Yes, and dance too. Mostly I teach children under ten," Alice
replied. "Maybe you'd like to send Alan? It's on Saturday morning.
I'd love to have him: we've no boys in the class at the moment."
"I'd love too," Hannah responded quickly. "Have you any productions
coming up?"
Alice laughed.
"We're putting on a show on February. It's a musical based in a girls'
orphanage so I hope you don't mind if Alan ..."
"Has to dress as a girl," Hannah finished with a smile. "I'm sure I
can persuade him."
"I can give him a small role so he ..." Alice started.
"Don't worry, he'll be able to handle any part!" Hannah quickly cut
across her. "By the end of this evening Alan is going to be starring
in an all-girl line-up!"
"Tell me more!" Alice invited. "This sounds real interesting ..."
13:00 hours
Katie drove her car into the garage underneath the house. Alan was
still a sleep in the back -- he had slept for most of the journey. She
saw the door leading from the kitchen open and her mother hurry over to
her.
"Happy Christmas, darling," her mother said, kissing her on both
cheeks.
"You too, Mom," replied Katie, happily. "Happy Christmas! You look
great in that dress!"
"You like it? I got it three weeks ago and I've been dying to wear
it!" said her mother, pleased. "I was just admiring your outfit --
it's sensational!"
"There's someone in the back whose outfit you'll admire even more!"
grinned Katie, unable to contain herself.
"Alan? Hannah said I was to expect an angel!" her mother smiled. She
peered through the side windows. Her mouth fell open in surprize.
"Oh my! He looks so pretty! He really is an angel!" she whispered
excitedly to Katie.
"That's only his cape! You should see his dress, Mom! It's a
knock-out! It's full length in a beautiful white silk with gorgeous
smocking detail!" Katie enthused. "Look, he's waking up!"
She opened the car door and unbuckled the straps securing the boy in
the chair.
"We've arrived, Angel, and here's Grandma to give you a kiss!" she said
softly.
Still dazed with sleep the boy allowed his grandmother to half smother
him in her embrace. Then the women took him by the hand and led him
into a secluded room off the kitchen where they took off his white cape
and cardigan. The boy burst into tears as he realized his continued
feminine state.
When they had stilled his tears with cookies and candies, Katie and her
mother promised him that he wouldn't have to stay a minute longer in
his dress when his FATHER arrived with his clothes (Hannah had stressed
to them the importance of clearly identifying Marty with the
responsibility for bringing his clothes).
"Will Dad be coming soon with my clothes?" the cross- dressed boy asked
anxiously.
"As soon as his office party is over and not a minute longer," Katie
assured him, winking at her mother.
This appeared to mollify the boy a little and he allowed them to bring
him upstairs to join the rest of his cousins in a bedroom that had been
converted into a playroom.
They were greeted by Alan's eldest cousin, Barbara, who was sixteen.
She was supervising her younger sister, Helen (aged eight) and her twin
cousins, Sharon and Becky (aged seven). The three younger girls were
playing a board game.
Though all the girls were dressed in their Christmas finery, Katie was
pleased to note that none of them wore a dress remotely as pretty as
Alan's. The girls crowded around the bashful new arrival to admire his
outfit.
At her grandmother's signal Barbara made her sister and cousins restart
their board game with Alan as a new player. The two women quietly
slipped out of the room.
"Are Bryan and Ted coming?" Katie asked her mother. She was thinking
of her only brother's sons who were noted for their wild behavior.
"No, thank heavens. I didn't encourage Jim to come this year," her
mother replied. "Anyway, it would be much more awkward for Alan to
cope with the boys making fun of his appearance!" she added with a
chuckle.
"He seems to be settling in well with the girls," Katie said, nodding
in the direction of the playroom.
"Yes, Barbara's been marvellous. She's been coaching them all morning
not to appear too surprized," her mother commented. "She's going to
give them their dinner in there and then get them practising for the
little Christmas show they're going to give the guests this evening!"
"To everyone, Mom?" asked Katie in surprize.
"No, just the ladies. I'm going to get the men to go into the library
for a drink after dinner -- they won't be interested anyway!" her
mother replied with a smile. "We better go down and get ready for the
guests."
15:30 hours
Hannah was glad to arrive at her mother's house. She had driven as
Marty had taken too much drink at the party.
Her mother and sisters rushed out to greet them. They hugged and
kissed as Marty unloaded the luggage.
Hannah's mother took Marty by the arm and told him she had an important
guest to meet. Marty was mystified but followed his mother-in-law
inside.
"Marty, I'd like you to meet Mr. van Zandt, who is a friend of mine
and a very prominent businessman," she said. "Mr. van Zandt is a
director of --"
"Mondial Industries Inc.," Marty finished for her, a large smile
creasing his face. "Mr. van Zandt, I'm Marty Slocum and I'm the
Communications Manager at the plant at Newville."
"Delighted to meet you, Marty," the elderly man replied. "I've heard a
lot about you from your mother-in-law."
"Marty, why don't you fix Mr. van Zandt with a drink before dinner?"
his mother-in-law prompted.
Marty took the hint and led Mr. van Zandt into the sitting room.
Hannah gave her mother an affectionate hug.
"Mom! You're wonderful! How did you organize that? Marty will be so
pre-occupied talking to a director of Mondial that he won't have time
to think about Alan," she said delightedly.
Her mother beamed happily.
"Alan looks so gorgeous in his angel's outfit, Hannah!" she said. "I
just peeped into the room upstairs and I heard Becky tell him that he
was so pretty that he deserved to be in a dress!"
Hannah and her sisters burst into laughter.
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