As our meal progressed the waiters pampered us, replenished our glasses whenever they were half empty, asked more than once during each course whether everything was to our liking, and twice swept the table linen with a little silver device for collecting crumbs. They walked straight-backed, bending forwards to put dishes down on our table with a flourish as though making a presentation of them. The whole performance was annoyingly pretentious. Tom was right to be uncomfortable in such places.
'You'll be away forever if you're going to visit all those countries.'
'Who knows? A couple of weeks away may turn out to be enough for me and I'll cut the whole thing short. Nothing's booked except the flight out and a night's hotel accommodation in Wellington. Everything else will have to be arranged as I go. My airline ticket gives me freedom to roam.'
After a dessert of pancakes and ice cream flavoured with chocolate and coconut our two waiters brought us coffee and cognacs with a sliver of bitter chocolate each. When they had gone Andrew stared at me, his eyes sharp, his face very flushed. He coughed to clear his throat, straightened himself up in his chair and grasped the edge of the table with both hands.
'It's no use putting this off for any longer. It is the most difficult thing I have ever had to say to anyone. There's something I simply have to tell you. It's about Tom. I don't know how to start, this is bound to come as a shock. We should have told you ages ago. There was never any intention on my part or his to deceive you, but there seemed to be no easy way, and as time went by you and he seemed to be getting on so well - why should something from the past be allowed to ruin it all?'
One of the waiters approached, probably intending to ask if we were enjoying our coffee; with a sudden shake of my head I sent him away.
'I'd better come right out with it. The main reason he went to Portsmouth was because he saw someone he recognised at the hotel.' He stopped and looked at me, waiting for a reaction. What could he possibly have to tell me that I did not already know about Tom? Had some previous lover turned up threatening to make trouble? I swallowed my cognac, paused, and took a sip of coffee. 'Tell me.'
'Did you ever think it odd that Tom should work for me when people in his line are usually self-employed? The fact is I took him on because he had been in prison. He needed a bit of help to get started when he came out.'