leaflets, but was forced to
place a cross next to that address. There was no promise of a vote
that day, and she was beginning to wonder if her luck was running
out.
It was almost
her final house call, and Jaycie straightened her skirt and fluffed
out her hair after slicking on some more lipstick. She looked the
part, but if she didn’t get a result today, she would be heading
home to drown her sorrows in wine and chocolate. She sat in her
run-down car waiting for the time she knew businessmen would be
arriving home before she set off to the last street of the day.
Bluebell Close
was a suburban paradise – every home had a sports car tucked away
in the ample garage, and every garden had an Olympic-size swimming
pool. Usually, the New Party did not bother canvassing streets in
this area, but Jaycie was feeling brave, and pulled into the road
nearby. She planned to walk the rest of the way – no way was she
going to let the residents of Bluebell Close see her awful
paintjob, dents and replacement bumpers.
The first two
homes were empty – lit up from the inside by lights on timers, and
not even a maid to answer the door. Jaycie cursed internally as she
headed to the third. Small, mushroom-like lamps lit the way up the
sweeping driveway, and she couldn’t help but admire the tiny trees
planted in the island in the lawn. She wondered if this person
would be willing to make a donation to the party, and rang the
smart-looking bell confidently.
“Coming,” came
a call from inside. A man. That was good. If nothing else, she was
determined to get out of the cold for a while. She put on a winning
smile – she loved the way she could make them fancy her without her
giving in to a relationship. She was a strong, confident woman who
knew what she wanted… wasn’t she?
“Hello…” a man
with greying brown hair and a fading tan answered the door. He wore
heavy black spectacle frames and his clothes were rumpled as though
they had sat in the laundry basket too long before being taken out.
Clearly, this was a man who lived by himself.
“Hi,” she
smiled. “I’m Jaycie Thornton from the New Party – can I have a few
minutes of your time, sir?” she felt awkward talking to someone who
seemed so shy. She had worked hard on her confidence and expected
someone who lived in a mansion to be much the same. Maybe he lived
alone and was simply lonely. Jaycie tried not to compare the
feeling to herself. Was she lonely? To distract herself she smiled
wider at the untidy man. The man’s eyebrows shot up into his
uncombed hair.
“Um, well, I’m
not really into…” he stuttered, eyes on the cleavage before
him.
“Oh, come on,
just a little minute? For me?” she wheedled. She saw defeat in the
man’s eyes before he relented. His shyness was adorable. He would
make a nice boyfriend, she thought. She hastily pushed the thought
out of her mind.
“Ok, just, er,
follow me,” he said, closing the door behind her. They went down
the wide, oak-panelled hallway into a large lounge. It was very
well kept, almost unlived in, and Jaycie sat herself on the edge of
one of the expensive looking couches.
“So, what can
you tell me?” the man said, pushing his glasses further up his
nose. Jaycie noticed he hadn’t shaved since the night before, and
had a sweet salt-and-pepper beard growing through. She wanted to
stroke it with the back of her hand.
“Well, the New
Party is offering – ”
“No, no, what
can you tell me?” He looked over his glasses at her. “You seem like
a smart girl, why are you out canvassing? You should be doing the
accounts in the office or something.”
“It’s the best
way to meet voters,” she smiled. “Do you vote?”
“I haven’t for
the longest time,” he admitted. “Can you convince me?”
“I can try,”
she leaned towards him as she searched in her bag – time to break
out the new business cards and personalise the pitch.
“You look like
you’re really into this,” he said, taking
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