He’d enjoyed being able to have a really fantastic gastronomic experience without worrying about the cost. And he’d felt no pangs of conscience that Melanie was paying for everything. In fact with his new found wealth, it was probably the first time in his life he could actually have afforded to pay a bill of such magnitude. She didn’t let him see the total but he knew it was more than a thousand pounds as the champagne alone was five hundred pounds a bottle though it was by no means the most expensive bottle on the wine list. He had been handed the list, which was many pages long, by the waiter, and was perusing it very unsure what to order when Melanie suggested champagne. He liked a bottle of bubbly, especially when he was celebrating as he was tonight so was quick to agree and turned to look at the list of champagnes. It was again a long list and he was pleased when she asked if he would be happy with Cristal, as it was her favourite. He’d never tried it but knew it was very popular with celebrities and concurred it was a good choice. Of course, he would have agreed that anything Melanie Adams suggested was a good idea.
It had been an eye opening experience to accompany Melanie to dinner. More a case of how the other point one per cent live rather than the other half! From the moment they had arrived at the restaurant they had been treated like royalty. Melanie took it as the everyday occurrence it undoubtedly was for her. To Tom it seemed there was extra warmth in the greeting “it’s good to see you,” which was extended to her by all and sundry. When she informed the Maître D’ that Tom was as she put it, “the knight in shining armour who came to my rescue,” he also was quickly elevated to superstar proportions.
Tom had been pleased to see she enjoyed her food. He hated picky eaters and had half wondered if she would be on some trendy Californian diet or perhaps a vegetarian but she matched him course for course. He had a theory that women who ate heartily were best in bed. It didn’t mean he particularly fancied large women. In fact quite the opposite. It wasn’t so much the quantity of food they ate but not being fussy that made them in his experience a great lover. A good appetite was a good appetite whether it was food or sex. He wondered what Melanie Adams would actually be like in bed? Well he was never going to find out so decided it best not to dwell on the thought too long. He already knew from her films what she looked like naked. Some of the images that flashed in his mind were slightly disconcerting.
Tom had visited great restaurants from time to time including with Colin but The Fig Leaf with its three Michelin stars was probably the best place he’d ever eaten. The combination of the surroundings, service and food was unsurpassed in his experience. Of course, having Melanie Adams as his dining companion had also made the evening very special.
Before leaving the hotel for the restaurant they had mutually agreed to ban any further discussion of the events that had brought them together. A cloud would naturally enough hang over the evening. Melanie had lost her good friend and it would be at the forefront of her mind for a long time to come but they had set out to enjoy a dinner that was a celebration of life, in a way that perhaps only people who have recently escaped death can do. So they wouldn’t dwell on those innocents who had been killed. They were not being callous or disrespectful to their memory. Tom had thought of the saying, life goes on. A somewhat tired cliché that he wasn’t going to repeat out loud but ever since losing his parents, he had understood that to be the case.
He had asked a few questions about the films Melanie had appeared in and was surprised how down to earth she was. She didn’t take her film roles very seriously, pointing out that they were never likely to win her an Oscar, although she lived in hope. They did however earn her millions and she was quite happy with that trade off. Tom had imagined a superstar actress to be somewhat different. When asked, he identified his favourite movie as The Cincinnati Kid and laughed at her rebuke that he hadn’t chosen any of her films. She hadn’t seen or even heard of the film but he explained it was the story of a poker player, a passion he shared. It starred Steve McQueen who she did know and having been released in 1965, she pointed out she wasn’t even born then. Her choice was Gone with the Wind. She admitted to being a romantic at heart and wished she could have played a lead role in such an epic. Tom told her he thought she would make a great Scarlett O’Hara. He was pleased he had seen a few of her films and could say he had genuinely enjoyed them. Conversation flowed freely with the champagne and Melanie made him laugh hysterically with her impression of a cockney but he wasn’t entirely surprised she didn’t get the part in the remake of My Fair Lady.
They had talked a little about their childhoods and parents. Melanie had been unequivocal about how great her parents had been and how much she missed them. They had worked hard to give her everything possible when she was growing up and she had nothing but positive memories. Dad had been an accountant and mum worked in a library. Her Dad may have taught her how to use guns but it was her mum who introduced her to literature and drove her twice a week to the drama classes that would
