Free Nine Ten Begin Again: A Grasshopper Lawns affair by EJ Lamprey

William asked knowledgeably and Donald nodded, slightly surprised. William smirked. ‘As a writer, I like to know the mot juste . As a man,’ he added hastily, ‘I find the idea repellent. But each to his or her own.’
    ‘My usual place has a really strict entry policy and they wouldn’t have made it past the foyer. As soon as they took off their coats the gatekeeper would have politely redirected them to a place more their style. I blame myself; when I saw this place didn’t have an inner security door I should have taken Edge to my usual. Mebbe they’ll get one, in which case we’d definately go again, though, it was a superb venue. Top music.’
    William wanted to know how they got away, and Donald said casually that ‘another club-member’ had helped shield her past the group. Edge was very aware of Vivian staring at her and not at all surprised when her friend got decisively to her feet.
    ‘I need to powder my nose. Edge, coming?’
    The big cloakroom off the foyer was empty, and Vivian immediately rounded on her. ‘What happened between you and Donald? And don’t you dare tell me nothing did.’
    ‘I wouldn’t dream of it. I never could fool you for a second.’
    ‘Huh. You fooled me for two months last time, but this is something else altogether. You look as though someone flicked an inner switch, and so does he. I’ve seen you in love before—twice—but this is different.’
    ‘It is different. Do you really need the loo? I’ll wait.’ There were boudoir chairs in front of a big mirror, and Edge turned one round and dropped onto it. ‘Actually, I’m dying to tell you. I would have been round to your place later anyway.’
    ‘Of course I don’t need the loo. I just had to know what was going on. Different how?’
    ‘I think,’ Edge groped for words, ‘I think I’m in delight. Does that make any sense?’
    Vivian patted her on the knee. ‘That describes how you look, exactly. Delighted. So your mother was right after all. Once for money, once for love, once for fun.’
    ‘I don’t think this will be a marriage, but yes, she was. I don’t even care if it doesn’t last, you know. I mean, I’ll care terribly if he loses interest or goes after someone else, but I’ve never felt like this before, and he says he hasn’t either, and I know that’s true. I just feel sparkly—which I may say is a neat trick considering he stayed until four this morning and I was too shattered to sleep after he left.’
    ‘William won’t be surprised at all, he suspected something would happen. I couldn’t think what he was talking about. When I asked he went all evasive, but he said I should ask you about a tattoo, and, if you blushed, I was to push you for details about the evening.’
    Edge got up abruptly. ‘William is absolutely fixated on that tattoo! I can’t tell you, Vivian. I trust you implicitly and always have, but it would be asking too much for you to keep it from him, and I don’t trust him anything like as much. He’s too fond of a good joke.’
    She went to the door and Vivian heaved herself up to follow, looking intensely curious.
    ‘I promise you I won’t tell William, but you don’t have to tell me. Is it too naughty for words?’
    Edge chuckled, and shook her head. As they entered the conservatory again William was shaking with gusts of laughter and Donald looked across at them both with a tiny shrug.
    ‘I told him about the tattoo. I didn’t think you could not tell Vivian, and he’d have badgered her until she had to.’
    ‘She didn’t tell me,’ Vivian said a little crossly as she sat next to William, ‘so you have to tell me now. I can’t be the only person who doesn’t know what you’re all talking about!’ 
    Donald looked resigned. ‘I don’t know how much you know of the story. Put it this way, the theatre world, pre-AIDS, was pretty slutty. I was good friends, had been for years, with an actor called Sebastian Gandry. We were flatmates for most of the