Autobiography

neither happy nor unhappy. That same
afternoon, we made love.
I was like a teenager because this was the only
woman I had made love to other than my wife,
and it was a fantastic experience. As we
relaxed afterwards I had to ask myself if I was
falling in love. That was my last thought before
I drifted off into a blissful sleep.
The whistling kettle woke me, and as I stirred
Ann-Marie called out, ‘One sugar or two,
cheri?’
That was the first time she had addressed me
like that, but from that moment on she always
called me ‘cheri’. She would often say, ‘How is
my cheri today?’ and it was endearing and
intoxicating.
She climbed back into bed, we drank our tea
together, and made love again. She was a joy,
a delight. I wanted to stay with her in her little
3 rd floor flat forever. Afterwards she got out of
the bed, slipped on a dressing gown and
offered to run a bath for me. I was just too
relaxed and sated to move and, lighting a
cigarette, told her to go ahead and bathe first.
She ran the bath and I heard the bathroom
door close. I climbed out of the bed and
walked to the window where I sat on a window
seat looking out on to the East India Dock
Road. It was early afternoon and still relatively
quiet. I idly watched two tramps talking to
each other, but my mind was still engaged on
recent, pleasant events. I gradually focused on
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