I am blessed, if that is the right word, with two daughters. They are the light of my life and I love them dearly but daughters, as many of you will know from your own experiences, are not the easiest of creatures to deal with. Of course, when they were young, they were adorable - cute as buttons - and even when they began to grow up I still thought they were the best things on this earth. Of course, as a mere male, I cannot fathom the female mind which seems to work in ways possibly not even understood by the Almighty so my role in their up-bringing was primarily to do the unpleasant jobs like giving rows or sorting out messes. How many times have I heard the words, "You'd better talk to your daughter, Gerry, she's…"? Still, as long as they said, "Yes, Daddy," at the appropriate times and give me lots of hugs and kisses and smiles, I was content.
I say I was content - in the past tense. Gemma, my older daughter is now sixteen, nearly seventeen. Now I know the teenage years are difficult for both teenagers and parents and I know that one of the main purposes of being a teenager is to push the boundaries but it seemed to me that Gemma was pushing things a bit too far. Curfews were regularly broken, she was not always where she was supposed to be, and I know I've smelled alcohol on her breath on more than one occasion. I also had a strong suspicion she was no longer a virgin. But what could I do? She and her mother were very close and Marion seemed very laid back about it all - far too laid back, I thought. If I made in issue of it she would say it was just a phase and Gemma would grow out of it in a year or two.
Perhaps she was right and it was just a phase, but Gemma had got to survive long enough to grow out of it and I was having grave doubts about whether that would happen. I didn't know much about her circle of friends. I'd seen a few of them once or twice and hadn't taken to them. I'm not really fond of body piercings, shaved heads, dark purple lipstick and the like but that doesn't mean I won't like the person. I liked to think I was reasonably tolerant and I remembered what I'd looked like when I was younger. It wasn't so much their looks I didn't take to, it was something about their manner, their attitude that made me feel uneasy. There was something about them that said, "trouble" in a loud voice.
I was saying something of the kind to Jack over a pint or two.
"Tell me, Jack," I sighed. "How do you do it? Your Hazel seems to be a such a well-behaved girl." Hazel was in the same class as Gemma although they weren't particularly friendly. In contrast to Gemma, Hazel seemed almost a model teenager.
Jack smiled enigmatically. "You just have to know how to handle them right," was all he said.
I would have pursued the matter but somebody asked about Albion's chances of winning the League and the inevitable heated debate developed. However, a few weeks later, after Gemma had, yet again, returned home an hour and a half after curfew, most definitely tiddly, and given me a mouthful of abuse, I was moaning again.
"I'm at my wits end, Jack. I really don't know what to do. And Marion's no help. She just thinks it's a phase and she'll grow out of it. But I'm seriously worried. It's not a phase. I don't know what sort of crowd she's running with but there's alcohol involved - possibly drugs, too, and, I suspect, sex. I really don't want her to end up in trouble, you know, with the police, or pregnant or something. And Connie's just as bad. She's fourteen and sees her big sister getting away with all this shit and thinks she can, too."
Jack was silent for a while, then said. "Look, are you free next Saturday evening?"
"I think so. Why?"
"I'd like to take you somewhere."
"Oh? Sounds mysterious. Do I know it?"
Although Jack and I were drinking buddies, we never really socialised outside the pub.
"I can't say any more right now. Come round to my place about half six."
I was intrigued. "Half six next Saturday. It's a date."
I mentioned to Marion that I was going out with Jack. She was as surprised as I.
"He was acting a bit mysterious," I said. "Wouldn't tell me anything about it at all."
"He's probably just going to get you pissed. You worry too much," she laughed.
I can't say I thought much about Jack's invitation through the week. The trials and tribulations of everyday life of pushed it to the back of my mind. However, I did start to speculate again on Saturday but it was idle speculation. I would find out soon enough.
I drove over to Jack's house and met him coming out with Hazel. "Perfect timing, Gerry. Park your car down the street and we'll be off."
"Is Hazel coming with us?" I asked, as we drove off.
Hazel giggled and Jack laughed. "Of course," he said.
"Is Mr Entworth going to join, too?" Hazel asked her dad. "That'd be way cool."
"I don't know, sweetheart. We'll just have to wait and see. Gerry doesn't know anything about where we're going, yet, so I'd rather you didn't ask any more questions."
"Cool," she said and settled back in her seat.
I was astounded. Neither Gemma nor Connie would have accepted such a mild request not to be nosy. They'd have pestered me, or anybody else, with questions and gone into the sulks if no answers were forthcoming. And why was Hazel here anyway? Where on earth were we going?
Where we were going was a nondescript building in a part of town that seemed to consist mainly of small factories and terraced houses. Jack drove up to a large door which opened into a large garage, nearly half full. There was a quite a mixture of cars from brand-new BMWs to old Fords. A small door in the garage wall proved to be a lift. It had one button which Hazel pressed. She seemed to be in a high state of excitement although she had not uttered a word since Jack had asked her to be quiet.
The lift doors opened onto a small hallway with several unmarked doors leading off. The door at the far end had a simple sign: "Slipper Club. Members only." Without pausing, Jack opened the door. Hazel darted past him with a "See you later."
"Gone to get changed," Jack said by way of explanation. "I'll need to sign you in."
We were in a sort of bar. It was a large, low-ceilinged room with L-shaped and semi-circular settees. They couldn't quite be called booths but they gave that impression. Quite a number were occupied. I quick look round suggested the majority of the occupants were men and teenage girls with half as many women and teenage boys. I was stuck by the fact that, despite the large number of kids, the noise level was low. They weren't racketing around or congregating in noisy groups. They seemed content to sit and chat, either with each other or with the adults.
"What is this place," I whispered to Jack.
"Patience, Gerry, patience."
He led me to the bar. It was a bar in name only for there were no beer pumps on the counter and no optics lining the back wall.
"Evening, Felix," he said to the bar tender.
"Good evening, Jack."
"This is Gerry Entworth. I think he might be a potential member."
"Welcome, Gerry," Felix said, leaning over to shake my hand. "Always glad to welcome new faces."
For a bartender Felix was a remarkably distinguished man - he had to be in his early fifties but was square shouldered, well muscled and unstooped. His handshake was firm to the point of being painful. His iron-grey hair was impeccably groomed, his white shirt definitely did not come from a chain-store and his bow-tie was real. He would not have looked out of place in a company boardroom.
"No alcohol," he responded to my unspoken question while Jack filled in the visitor's book. "No licence. Don't need one. Too many youngsters anyway. However I can do you fourteen varieties of fruit juice and twelve of fizzy pop. What can I get you?" I asked for an orange juice. "Where's Hazel," he asked Jack.
"Primping for her boyfriend, probably," Jack laughed.
"Well, he's mighty smitten."
"I have hopes," Jack said with a leer.
Felix laughed. "I never thought you were a social climber."
"I can dream."
"You're probably wondering what all this is about," Jack said as we settled in a quieter corner.
"Too bloody right," I exploded. "What the hell's going on here, Jack?"
"Please mind your language, Gerry. There are young people here."
"Sorry. But I feel like a goldfish that's been dropped in the sea. Just what is this place?"
He settled back. "Before I tell you, I'm going to tell you a personal story. In return I want your absolute promise that you'll keep what I say in strict confidence and you'll shut up and listen until I've finished? I'd be most upset if any of what I'm about to tell you got about. And I mean really upset."
His manner suggested he was totally serious. "Okay, Jack. You have my word. Strict confidence it is."
"Good." He smiled. "About two years ago Hazel got into serious trouble."
I opened my mouth to speak but he held up his hand. "I meant it. Not a word. By serious trouble I mean just that. She was going out with a lad of eighteen. Turns out he was a pusher. There was a raid and Hazel got busted. Fortunately she hadn't taken anything - I think the relationship was fairly recent - and with her family background, doing well at school, first offence, etc, etc, she got off with a warning."
"Jack, I'm sorry but I have to ask a question. How did this not become public?"
"Oh, it did. I was desperate. I had to do a lot of serious persuading and called up quite a number of favours to make sure that her name was kept out of it as much as possible. I was lucky because some political scandal blew up just after and Hazel got forgotten about." He drew a deep breath. "But I was worried, I can tell you. It had happened once and it could happen again. And next time it might be worse - Hazel might really be in trouble.
"Then I got a very strange phone call from someone who said that they'd heard about Hazel and would I be interested in meeting some people who were in a similar predicament." He grinned. "Of course, you can imagine what I thought. However, the guy was very persuasive so I agreed to meet him. It was Felix, of course. We spent a long time beating about the bush and he asked me all sorts of weird questions. Course they don't seem weird now but at the time they did. Well, the result was that Hazel and I joined the club and we haven't looked back since."
I was about to butt in again and ask just what the hell this club was when Hazel bounced up. My jaw hit the floor. She had changed into a pastiche of a school uniform: a short, black jersey skirt that barely covered her crotch and was so tight the cheeks of her bum were clearly outlined, a white, short-sleeved blouse tied across her front to reveal her midriff, white over-the-knee socks and black pumps. Her dark hair was tied in bunches with red ribbons.
She noticed the expression on my face and giggled. "Like it, Mr Entworth?"
She gave a pirouette. From the way her breasts moved, she didn't have on a bra.
"Very nice, dear," said Jack, patting her bottom. "I think you've impressed Gerry. Is Henry here?"
"You bet."
"You'll knock him dead."
She giggled again. "That's the idea. Though why he should find a silly school uniform so exciting, I don't know."
"You'll have to ask Henry that."
"I did. He just got all embarrassed and inarticulate."
Jack laughed. "He would. Have a good time."
"Oh, I will. Are you taking part, Dad?"
"Not tonight, dear. Gerry and I are just going to watch."
"Okay. Bye Dad. Bye Mr Entworth. See you later."
And she dashed away, her young breasts bouncing.
"You can close your mouth, now, Gerry," he said with a grin. "And keep the questions."
"But… Hazel… Did you…?" I spluttered.
He laughed at my discomfiture and patted my knee. "I said to keep the questions. Now where was I…? Oh yes. Hazel and I joined the club. But first, what do you think of Hazel? A nice girl? Perfect daughter?" I nodded. "Would you have believed she'd been in trouble?" I shook my head. "It was this place that did it. What do you think of the name, by the way?"
"The name?" I was caught unawares by the change of topic.
"Yes, the 'Slipper Club'. What sort of image does it conjure up in your mind?"
"I don't know. Cinderella? Bedroom slippers? Sipping champagne from a lady's slipper?"
"Bedroom slippers is closest. Think carpet slippers."
"Carpet slippers? You mean the sort of things my dad used to wear?"
"Exactly."
"Funny sort of thing to name a club after."
He laughed. "What else were they used for?"
"I dunno. There's old jokes about dogs chewing them but that hardly seem right."
"Think way back. What would have happened to your dad if he'd been a naughty boy?"
"Well, he'd have been spanked…" a light began to glimmer though I could hardly believe it. "He'd have been spanked with…"
"You've got it," Jack laughed. "He'd have been put over his dad's knee and thrashed with a carpet slipper."
I shook my head in bewilderment. "I'm sorry, Jack. You're going have to spell it out for me. I can't get my head round this."
"You already have. This is a club where parents bring their wayward sons and daughters and give them the sound thrashing they deserve - in peace and without any fear of comeback. At least that's how it started out."
I looked at him in astonishment. "You mean you and Hazel…?"
He nodded. "Once Felix had persuaded me that it was all legit, I brought Hazel along. Course I didn't tell her what was going to happen. That first night, I put her across my knee and gave her a right good spanking with a good old-fashioned carpet slipper. She wasn't too happy about it, I can tell you. Woo-hoo. You should have seen the tantrums and the tears. But I was firm and made it clear that, every fortnight, we would come down here and she'd get spanked and that it would go on until I was absolutely certain that she'd mended her ways."
"Good God."
"I practically had to drag her out of the house the next couple of times. She kicked up such a stink. I had to threaten her with even worse, like being caned, before she would come.
"But what about Donna?"
"Ah, yes. Well I concocted a story that I was taking her for lessons in self-discipline."
"She bought that?"
"Well I did lay it on a bit thick. And, anyway Donna was as worried as I was, really. So anything that improved the situation was all right by her."
"But didn't Hazel tell her what was going on?"
He paused. "That's the funny thing - she didn't. It never occurred to me before."
"So? What happened next?"
"Hmm? Oh, well it was very strange. After about the fourth or fifth visit, she stopped complaining. It almost seemed as she looked forward to coming. I couldn't fathom it at all. So in the end I just asked her outright. She went all red and flustered and didn't want to talk about it but in the end she said that, although the spanking was very sore, afterwards she got these funny feelings. She really got embarrassed at this point so I didn't push it.
"I did a bit of research into corporal punishment. I was flabbergasted to find out that some people found being spanked a turn-on. Couldn't understand it myself. The idea of a sore bottom making you randy seemed a bit, well, kinky, if you know what I mean?" I nodded. It did seem a bit odd. "Anyway I spoke to Felix who confirmed what I'd found out - that some people really get very turned on by it. He told me about Public Schools and how some men can't even get it up unless they've been caned."
I shuddered and my sphincter clenched in sympathy. "And Hazel?"
"To cut a long story short, the spanking turned her on."
"Good God. You mean she gets her jollies from having her bottom wellied?"
"Gerry." Jack's look was pained. "That's not a very delicate way of putting it. And, no, that's not what I meant at all. I meant that Hazel gets aroused by being spanked. Once I realised this I had to have another long talk with Felix and one with Bea, his wife, who spoke to Hazel. And here's where it gets interesting."
He stopped and took a long swig from his glass.
"Jack," I said threateningly. "You're not going to leave me hanging, are you?"
He grinned. "Got you hooked now, eh?" I waved my fist in mock threat. "Okay, okay. Now remember this is a couple of years ago and the club wasn't like this, then. We'd only got a handful of members and we really were trying to curb our wayward sons and daughters. However Hazel wasn't the only one feeling the heat, so to speak. Turns out there were quite a few like her. What's more some of the parents wanted a go, too?"
"You mean they wanted to be spanked?"
He nodded. "Or do the spanking. Well, Felix called a big meeting. Some meeting, I can tell you. Nobody wanted to come out and say it so we spent a long time going round and round in circles. Not surprising, I suppose, considering. In the end we got it all sorted out. I have to say with quite a lot of pushing from Felix and Bea. The result was that, from the first club, there sort of grew a second club where the people weren't being punished for bad behaviour but were there because they enjoyed it. And if sex was to follow, so be it. Now there are as many here for that reason as for the other."
"And you let Hazel do this?" My voice was incredulous.
He grinned sheepishly. "Er, yes. Actually, after she'd spoken to Bea, I doubt I could have stopped her. It's quite safe. We laid down a whole bunch of rules like it must be consensual and mutual and no incest and stuff like that."
"Christ, Jack, she was only, what, thirteen?"
"Just turned fourteen. I did have to think about it quite hard. In the end I reckoned that she was sexually active anyway - she said so herself - and it was far better that she had sex here with people we both knew and trusted than with some junkie dope peddler."
There was something about his manner that didn't ring true. "I don't think you're being quite honest with me, Jack."
He blushed, quite a sight on Jack. "Er, well, yes. The truth is that I started out only with the intention of bringing Hazel's behaviour into line. But after a while, especially after she admitted it turned her on, I found, well, I found that it turned me on as well."
"You mean you wanted to screw your own daughter?"
"No, well, not really, I mean, not specifically. It was the whole thing. It really turned me on. The first few times I went home and practically raped Donna. She wasn't too amused. Not that she's against sex, as such, but she's a bit, well, conventional, if you know what I mean. Having it away on the kitchen table isn't her thing."
I laughed. "I see what you mean. So you get your rocks off here, instead." I sobered. "If I wasn't sitting here, I'd say you were giving me the biggest load of bullshit ever. I still can't get my head round all this."
It was his turn to laugh as he looked up. "Here's Henry."
"Evening, Henry," he said standing to shake hands with tall, tanned gentleman with a mane of well-groomed white hair. He was immaculately dressed in a navy double-breasted blazer with gold buttons and a crest on the breast pocket and light grey duck slacks. His starched white shirt was adorned with a demure striped tie and his Oxford shoes were polished to a high shine. Everything about his appearance said, 'rich, old duffer'.
"Good evening, Jack," he said in a rich baritone that only just stopped short of being plummy.
"Good evening Henry. I'd like you to meet a friend of mine, Gerry Entworth."
I scrambled to my feet to shake the proffered hand. "Delighted to make your acquaintance," Henry said. "You have a problem child?"
"Daughter," I said.
He shook his head sympathetically. "It's a terrible thing when they start to go astray. Especially daughters. Talking of which, have you seen your charming daughter recently, Jack?"
"She was here a short while ago. I think you're in for a treat tonight, Henry."
"Any time spent with Hazel is a treat, Jack. If you'll excuse me I shall go and find her. Nice to meet you, Gerry."
"And you, Henry," I said, remembering my manners.
Jack laughed at the expression on my face. "That's Henry? That's Hazel's 'boyfriend'?" I spluttered.
"Yes. He really is a charming old rogue. Hazel's quite besotted with him - and he with her. Oh, don't worry, they both know exactly what they're doing."
I shook my head in bewilderment. "This is all too much, Jack. Henry must be, what, sixty?"
"Not quite. Late fifties. He's got a son about eighteen. I'm sort of hoping that Henry'll introduce them. He's something very important in the City, you know."
"But, what…?"
"Hazel teases him unmercifully and Henry loves it. Then he gives her a good spanking which gets them both going then he makes love to her."
"But that's quite… obscene."
"No it's not. Henry is a very charming and courteous man and, I'm told, a very considerate lover. Hazel has learnt a lot from him, and not just about sex. Her manners, for example, have improved no end since she met him." He laughed. "For her birthday, he took her out to dinner at this posh restaurant. She dressed as a school-girl and called him 'Uncle Henry', then took off her shoe and put her foot in his crotch all evening. Henry was sporting such a boner that he could hardly stand. He had to take her to a hotel for the night."
"He told you this?"
"They both did. They had a thoroughly good time. It was a hoot."
"It just doesn't seem right to me."
He was instantly sober. He caught my arm and looked me directly in the eye. "Look, Gerry, would you rather have Gemma seeing an older but courteous and considerate gentleman, and I use the word in its true sense, who you knew and trusted or be running around with you don't know who. Now, I've got something to tell you which isn't very pleasant. After we spoke the last time, you remember, in the pub? You told me Gemma's been out late and had been drinking? Well, I asked Felix to do some checking. I'm afraid Gemma's in with a bad crowd. Most of them, girls as well as boys, are known to the police. They're noted for underage drinking, theft, violence, vandalism, that sort of thing. And there's a suspicion that they do drugs as well - and not just pot. Now tell me this - do you really want Gemma to be mixing with people like that? Or would a few Henry's not be better? Think on it."
He let me go and I slumped back in the seat, my mind awhirl. It was one thing having suspicions but quite another having those suspicions confirmed. Jack was right. I really didn't want Gemma mixing with petty criminals and junkies. She was a bright girl and had a future. How could I let her throw that away? Yet the alternative…
"Just one more thing," said Jack, breaking into my reverie. "Remember the sex is not mandatory. I think everyone's gathering. Now you'll see what I mean."
In a daze I followed him into another room which was fitted out like a small theatre with a shallow bank of seats rising up from an open area. The open area was bare except for a straight-backed chair. The seats were filling rapidly and there was a hum of anticipation in the air. I saw Henry with Hazel on the other side. They waved at us and we waved back. I watched them for a moment. They were deep in animated conversation. With a shock I realised they looked like lovers. The little touches, the secret smiles, the constant eye-contact. It was even more of a shock to realise it was mutual. Jack was right - they were besotted with each other.
Felix walked out to the front and cleared his throat. The audience became silent.
"You know the procedure," he began. "Tonight we're welcoming a new member to the club. David's daughter, Kiri, has been very bad. He is at his wit's end and has turned to us at the Slipper Club as his last resort."
He stepped away. There was no applause. From a side door a harassed-looking, bespectacled man dragged a teenage girl. She looked about sixteen or seventeen. Under other circumstances she could have been called attractive, even beautiful. But her blonde hair was dishevelled and she was crying. In between the sobs she was cursing him using the foulest language I'd ever heard. A sigh of sympathy went up from the audience. He dragged her over to the chair and stopped.
"Hi, I'm David," he said, raising his voice to be heard above his daughter's curses. "I'm at the end of my tether. My daughter, here, is a tramp. As far as I can make out she's slept with at least twenty men in the last three months. And that's only the last three months. I've no idea how many she's slept with in total. As if that wasn't enough, most of it was unprotected sex with complete strangers. My wife and I have tried everything we can think of but it hasn't worked." He turned to his daughter. "Tonight, with these people as witnesses, I'm going to do what I should have done a long time ago. I'm going to thrash you within in inch of your life. And I'm going to continue until I'm sure you've mended your ways. Do you understand me?"
"Go to hell, you old pervert."
Felix appeared silently and handed David, yes, a carpet slipper. He stepped back and I noticed two women had quietly lined up at the side of the room.
David sat down and pulled Kiri onto his knee. He had some difficulty as the girl struggled like a wild thing. He acquired some scratches and, I suspected, more than a few bruises, along the way but he finally had her trapped across his knee with one hand pinned up her back. He pulled her skirt up to her waist, revealing, not panties, but a thong.
He took a deep breath then raised the slipper high and brought it down on his daughter's backside with a resounding crack. A lot of emotion went into that blow. Kiri arched up and wailed like a banshee. The cursing redoubled and she struggled frantically to escape his grasp. In between fighting her, David spanked her. Whenever there was an opportunity the slipper rose and fell on the girl's tender bottom. The cursing and struggling went on for some time but, as her bottom got redder, the cursing and struggling got less until she was lying almost quietly although she was still sobbing. David's arm rose and fell again and again. The sharp crack of leather on skin rang out across the room. The audience was completely silent. I could almost feel them willing David on. The sobs turned to pleading.
"I'm sorry, Daddy. Please don't hit me any more. I'll be good, I promise. Please don't hit me. It's so sore."
David carried on as if he couldn't hear her. I turned to Jack with an enquiring look.
"This is the critical bit," he whispered very quietly in my ear. "She's got to believe he really won't stop."
The entreaties and pleadings became more plaintive. My heart went out to the girl suffering so badly. In the end they, too, faded out and she lay quiescent over her father's lap as her bottom turned a deeper and deeper pink and then a bright scarlet. Felix stepped up and touched David on the shoulder. The man looked up as if coming out of a daze. Felix nodded and David stopped, his arm dropping limply to his side. It was clear that the spanking session had drained him emotionally as well as physically. Felix patted his shoulder encouragingly. Gathering himself, David stood, letting his daughter slip to the floor where she lay, sobbing quietly.
"Get up," he said in a cold voice. The girl didn't move. "Get up. On your feet or I'll give you some more." He prodded her with his toe.
Slowly, reluctantly, the girl dragged herself to her knees, then to her feet. Her father made no move to help her. She stood on shaky legs, her head bowed, her face hidden by her hair.
"Kiri. I love you very much. I love you so much it hurts. But I will be obeyed and you will stop behaving like a tramp. In two weeks time we will return and you will be spanked again. And we will return two weeks after that. We will continue to return until I am certain, absolutely certain, that you have mended your ways. Do you understand?" The girl muttered something unintelligible. "Speak up so everybody can hear you."
"Yes, Daddy, I understand."
"In that case, let's go home."
He took her arm and led her away, stumbling but unprotesting. One of the women who had been standing at the wall rushed forward, a look of concern on her face, but David waved her away. I assumed this must be Kiri's mother.
When the door closed behind them, the audience released its collective breath. There was little conversation as we filtered back into the bar.
"I don't know about you, but I could do with a stiff drink," Jack said.
I looked at him with glazed eyes and nodded, unable to speak. Henry and Hazel approached, arm in arm. Both looked very sober.
"I am heartily sorry for that poor family," Henry said. "What they must be going through."
Jack nodded, "It's a terrible thing when it gets as bad as that."
"Indeed," Henry agreed. "It's such a pity we have to let things go so far that such drastic action is required." He noticed my look and turned to me. "Let me assure you, Gerry, that such scenes as we have just witnessed are not commonplace. I believe, from Felix, that the poor girl had strayed very far indeed. I understand her parents do not know the full story. Kiri had turned to prostitution, I gather."
"Prostitution?" I gasped. "They didn't look poor."
"Oh, it was not for the money. She had a more than adequate allowance." He shrugged. "As to why… excitement? Revenge? Emotional problems? I confess I am no psychiatrist."
Jack turned to his daughter. "I think Gerry needs to go home. His introduction to the club has been a bit severe."
"That's okay, Dad," said Hazel, laying a hand on his arm. "I understand. Do you mind if I stay with Henry? That is if he'll have me."
"Any time and any where," Henry said with a gallant flourish causing Hazel to blush and giggle. "But, yes, Hazel may stay with me tonight. I think a bit of mutual cuddling is in order. I'll return her in the morning," he said to Jack.
Haze snuggled up to the older man. "That's why I love you, Henry. You always seem to know exactly what I need." It was Henry's turn to blush.
"In which case, we'll bid you goodnight," said Jack, kissing his daughter and shaking Henry's hand.
"Indeed. Goodnight. I hope this introduction has not dissuaded you," Henry said, shaking my hand also.
"It's certainly given me a lot to think about," I said rather shakily.
The trip home was silent. I was in a state of utter shock.