High society by Ben Elton Read Free Book Online

me anyway. I’ve got as much chance of making a difference outside it as I have in. More, in fact. What they don’t understand is that I actually care, I mean really care, about what I’m trying to do. Principle, you see, they just can’t get their heads round it…I almost think I might do better outside Parliament anyway.’ Across the room Peter Paget’s parliamentary assistant removed her jumper to reveal the pale blue brassiere beneath. Paget was momentarily distracted.
    ‘I’m sorry, darling, I didn’t catch that, it’s this stupid mobile…Threatening phone calls? What do you mean? To you? To the Lemans? Well, I don’t see why you need me to come home because of that…’
    Again that pain. His wife was worried. She needed him. She was always there when he needed her. He should go to her. Now…
    But what good would he do? It had only been a phonecall. In fact, it had only been a phonecall to someone else. They were not even the ones being threatened. She didn’t need him. If she really needed him, he told himself, he would go.
    His parliamentary assistant’s hips wiggled as she pulled the smart little pinstripe skirt down over her thighs, gathering her tights along with it. How smooth and flawless her skin was.
    How young.
    It had been nearly two months now, seven weeks of tortured deception and frantic passion. Peter knew that while he might possibly continue to deceive his wife, he could no longer deceive himself. This was no moment of madness, no potentially forgivable stupid sex thing. This was a relationship. An affair. A proper, drawn-out, cliche of an affair.
    ‘Well, of course it’s upsetting if Laura Leman has had a threatening call, but I’m sure it was just a hoax, Angela. These things almost always are. Some crank doesn’t like Barry and wants to make his life unpleasant…I mean, he is investigating police corruption, for God’s sake. Those people are proper hard men…I really don’t think there’s any reason to be scared…You haven’t had a call, have you? Well, then…Look, I can’t just drop everything. I’ll come home as soon as is humanly possible, all right? I promise…’
    The tiny triangle of Samantha’s G-string looked exquisite against her beautifully waxed groin. What there was of the flimsy garment was of the same colour and expensive material as her bra. She smiled at Peter as she ran her thumbs around the frilled waistband. No one had ever bought her such nice underwear before. In fact no one had ever bought her underwear before at all. She was only twenty-three. Her boyfriends at university had spent their money on beer. Their idea of erotic bedroom attire was seeing her in their rugby shirts.
    Peter reminded himself that he must dispose of that receipt. It had been some time since he had bought Mrs Paget any underwear. He would, though, he really would. Soon.
    ‘…It’s just there’s so much work to do on this bill. I’ll get through it as fast as I can. Samantha has agreed to stay back and help, which is amazing of her because there’ll be no extra money, but she believes in this thing as much as I do. As much as we do. This is the defining moment, darling, I’ve lit the blue touch paper. I have to be here on the ground to see it through. Yes, yes, I knew you’d understand. Thank you, darling.’
    Peter Paget turned off his phone.
    Samantha joined him on the bed. ‘You were like a lion today, my darling. You thrilled me. You made me hot inside.’
    He closed his eyes as she kissed him. Angela need never know. The kisses made him giddy. Or perhaps it was the speed with which his life was changing. Only a few months before he had been so very depressed, with a career that was going nowhere and a happy but increasingly unexciting marriage. All his promise wasted, all his hope behind him, facing the featureless prospect of an extended middle-age watching his daughters grow away from him and his wife grow old.
    Now suddenly everything had changed. He had ached