The Naive and Sentimental Lover by John le Carré Read Free Book Online Page A

County Cork now—”
    â€œ Please, ” said Helen, directing a second quelling glance at her husband.
    Well, Cassidy had had this feeling that the car was right, he couldn’t explain it really, and so in the end he’d stopped and gone back to take a second look. And anyway to cut a long story short this young salesman hadn’t pushed him at all but recognised one of the breed, so to speak, and in ten minutes they’d done the deal. Cassidy wrote out a cheque for five thousand pounds dated that same day and drove away in the car.
    â€œGoodness,” Helen breathed. “How terribly brave .”
    â€œBrave?” Shamus repeated. “Brave? Listen he’s a lion. You should have seen him out there on the terrace. He frightened the hell out of me. I’ll tell you that for nothing.”
    â€œWell of course I did have the weekend to stop the cheque,” Cassidy admitted a little injudiciously, and would have gone on with a great deal more of the same thing—the Automobile Association’s report for instance which had been one long paean of technical praise, the car’s genealogy which he had only stumbled on months after he had bought her—if Shamus, suddenly bored, had not suggested that Helen show him round the house.
    â€œAfter all, if he’s a compulsive buyer, maybe he’ll buy us too, eh: I mean Jesus, we can’t pass over an opportunity like this. Now Cassidy have you brought your cheque book? Because if you haven’t you’d best get in that grey bedpan and hurry back to the West End and fetch it, I’m telling you. I mean we don’t show the house to just anyone, don’t you know. After all, if you’re not God, who are you?”
    Once more Cassidy’s seismographic spirit recorded Helen’s reticence and understood it. The same worried glance troubled her serious eyes, the same innate courtesy prevented her from putting her anxiety into words. “We can hardly show it to him in the dark, darling,” she said quietly.
    â€œOf course we can show it to him in the bloody dark. We’ve got the lamp haven’t we? Christ, he could buy the place by Braille if he felt like it, couldn’t you, lover? I mean look here, Cassidy’s quite clearly a very influential person and very influential persons who can wander round Sevenoaks signing cheques for five thousand pounds don’t bloody well like having their time wasted, Helen, that’s something you have to learn in life—”
    Cassidy knew it was time for him to speak. “Oh now look here please don’t worry. I can perfectly well come another time. You’ve been so good already—”
    In an effort to make his intention real, he rose falteringly to his feet. The woodsmoke and the whisky had had more effect on him than he knew. His head was dizzy and his eyes were smarting.
    â€œI can perfectly well come back another time,” he repeated foolishly. “You must be tired out, what with all the packing and making do.”
    Shamus was also standing, leaning his hands on Helen’s shoulders, and his dark, inward eyes were watching Cassidy intently.
    â€œSo why don’t we make a date for next week?” he suggested.
    â€œYou mean you don’t like the house,” Shamus said in a flat, menacing tone, more as a statement than a question. Cassidy hastened to protest but Shamus rode him down. “It’s not good enough for you, is that it? No central heating, no poncy fittings like you’ve got in Londontown?”
    â€œNot at all, I merely—”
    â€œWhat do you want for Christ’s sake? A tart’s parlour?”
    Cassidy in his day had handled scenes like this before. Angry trade unionists had beaten his rosewood desk, deprived competitors had shaken their fists in his face, drunken maids had called him fat. But finally such situations had remained within his control, occurring for the greater part on