Blind Carnival

Last Station

Author's Note:

And here's the chapter we've all 'dreaded' - the LAST one! (Don't miss the epilogue, though.) 

I've found quite a few silly details while editing these last chapters. Firstly, this John's father is also called the Titan. Reminds you of anyone? ;) And his surname is Greaves, the same as the protagonist's of my very first novel, Convince Me the Winter Is Over. (It is one the most common surnames in Leicester. Those of you who know will know the significance *wink wink*) Maybe John the Architect is John the Archeologist cousin? Or brother? :D

I'm already working on the SEQUEL, and have lashings of fun with it. I'll be posting it on my site: komakov.ca. The link is in the comment.

You can find LINKS to my social media pages in the bio on my profile page.

I hope you enjoyed this story as much as I enjoyed writing it!

Love,

Katya xx

***

The drawing room of the Greaves residence is that level of posh that Olivia would need to properly research every piece of furniture if she wanted to put it in a book. The sofa is uncomfortable, and there are saucers under their cups.

Dr. Dowling, John's mum is much more soft-spoken and bubbly than Olivia expected. She's sort of fluttery and unintrusively fussy. John has his Mother's blue eyes, she's very tall, and in her younger years she used to swim for her uni team, which she informs Olivia of, ten minutes into their visit. She's obviously happy to see John and keeps on touching his sleeve. He's smiling like a big cat at her. Despite the mama's boy stereotype, Olivia appreciates a man who has a good relationship with his mother - and who has enough patience to listen to her chatter.

There's a lot of chatter. In the first twenty minutes, after the introductions, Olivia learns more about Dr. Dowling's dogs than she knows about John. And then Dr. Dowling starts showing Olivia the silver frames with old photos. Olivia finds out that John was a skinny beanstalk when young, and it makes her snort. His baby photos make her go 'awww.' Soon, the two women are sharing this superior female moment - and he looks between them, his eyebrows hiked up in confusion.

Thomas Greaves, in all his silver fox glory, is sitting on the sofa with the coldest facial expression Olivia's seen in her life. And she's spent years with her Mother, so she's seen plenty! He's even more attractive in real life than in his promo photos. His patrician profile, icy blue eyes, a firm line of his lips - she might, or might have not used his looks for her oldest protagonist, Albert Crawford. She's actually a fan. She might not appreciate his snobbism, but she does fancy his novels.

She does not, on the other hand, fancy his current behaviour. Him ignoring her doesn't bother her. Even saying his hello's to her, he seemed to be looking at her forehead. She didn't expect any different. What she doesn't fancy is the sort of disdain he radiates when talking to John, who, by the way, politely tried to engage him into the conversation three times by now.

Dr. Dowling is gleefully continuing her story about John's first bike, and the three of them join 'the Titan of Modern British Literature' on the sofa.

The conversation continues, between the three of them, about how lovely her and John's first date went, and how smart it was of Dr. Greaves to devise this plan for the two of them, and how the two of them understood it right away. It's lovely, civilised, and Bea - who also participated in this matchmaking, by the way - isn't mentioned once. That irks Olivia a bit, but on the other hand, Bea's face is still plastered all over The Sun, although mostly in the smaller sections now. It's understandable that Dr. Dowling prefers to pretend they aren't acquainted. By the way, Olivia's parents are now hinting on yet another wedding between them, and a shared memoire. They're milking the moment, and they're right to haste. The yellow press fame is fleeting.