I had known (or at least known of) Mr. Stuart for most of my life, what with him being a friend of my parents, chairman of the rotary club, volunteer at the church, scout leader and general fine upstanding man of the community and all. A kindly accountant by trade I always assumed that he would take news of my romantic involvement with Kate in his stride. I was a little surprised when that day came. The day when he opened the door to the sight of my gormless grim. My surprise coming firstly from the fact that he was at home during the afternoon hours* and not at his office as I had expected and secondly from the pointed threats of very real physical violence which the mild mannered keeper of books spat at me before sending me speedily on my undignified way. It may have been my disheveled appearance or perhaps that in my younger days I had acquired an unwarranted reputation as a bit of a wrong?un. Although on balance it was probably because I was buried hilt-deep in his daughter at the time. *Me being nocturnally employed at the time.