She printed three copies of the report, put one in an envelope for David Carlson, one in her home file and the other in her brief-case for the office. All she had to do now was to log-on to the Bank's network through the Internet and post the document to the secure server.

But her mind kept wandering!

She had slumped in her chair, too! Against her regime! She was just about to unstrap her shoes. Another infraction! She tut-tutted again and pulled herself up straight. 'If you want to make it, then you must follow the rules!' She told herself out loud!

But she couldn't stop thinking about Catherine! Would she ever be able to talk to her about her mode of dress? How much involvement did her husband have? OK! So she enjoyed living alone, but it would be wonderful to have someone to admire and worship her figure. And help control it! How long had Catherine dressed like that? And to a waist that was certainly smaller than her own!

She was just a teeny bit jealous!

It made her want to know more! A lot more!

They obviously, did not share a corsetiere in Houston. She did not even know of one and anyway she obtained her made-to-measure corsets by mail-order from firms in England and California. They would be discrete and obviously would not offer any information, even if Catherine were a customer. Perhaps, they shared the seamstress, who made or altered their clothes to fit their narrow waists? Unlikely, as the dependable Mary had told her many times, that she was unique amongst her clients and possibly Houstonians.

Should she ring Catherine? She knew that her husband would be at the office. She could say she had lost her expensive Mont Blanc pen! Had she seen it? Had it slipped into the sofa, where she had been sitting? She could imagine Catherine squatting like a Playboy Bunny, rather than bending as she searched in the gaps between the cushions.

Very slowly and almost with the delicate daintiness of an Edwardian lady, she pushed the buttons on the phone to connect to the Bradfords.

The phone rang. And rang! And rang!

***

A few minutes later and she was back at the computer, with another coffee and a simple salad.

The modem was bumping and whistling, as she connected to the Internet. Twenty seconds later and she had transferred the report to the secure server and a copy was on its way by E-Mail to David Carlson.

Now for the much more serious business!

She started by searching the Web for the site that belonged to Peter Bradford's company. Surely, Houston Environments Inc. had one! She checked his card. They did not! She laughed, as she realised that a company that specialised in the production of some of the most hi-tech incubators for babies, did not have a presence on the Internet. Lack of conform to the information revolution did not seem to have affected their business.

She would have to ask Peter, his views on the Internet. Another question for the Bradfords! Why not ask him now? Surely, he would have finished that urgent business by now.

***

'Peter!' She had disconnected and dialled his direct line.

'Oh! Hello!' He had recognised her voice. 'I did enjoy our meeting. I take it there is something you forgot. I thought you were too professional for that!'

She responded to his gently teasing manner. 'I only wanted a quick one! Have you got a Web Site?'

'Not traditionally!' She felt that was an interesting reply. 'Our suppliers do, though! Try Texas Advanced Medical!' She heard him ask Catherine for the web address.

'Is Catherine there?' She shouldn't have said that! She blushed! What would she say, if Catherine came on the line?

'Yes! She's with me all of the time. Didn't I say, she's my secretary, assistant, Vice President, cook...' She tried to gather her thoughts, for when Catherine spoke. 'We've hardly spent a few hours apart since we met!'

Did he mean that literally? 'Really, like the McCartneys?' As she said it, she regretted it, as he was the client and she shouldn't get too personal.

'Yes! We've never spent a night apart!'

'That's amazing!' Why did she think their relationship was unusual?

'I think the longest we've gone without talking, touching or making a gesture, is no more than three hours!'

She could not reply. What would be more natural than spending all your life with someone you loved and cherished?

'Catherine controls me totally and organises everything we do!' Did he mean more than on a professional basis?

'Hang on! Catherine will be on in a second.' She gulped.

'Hi! It's Catherine!' What was she going to say? 'I can't find it at present!' She wasn't completely efficient. A relief! 'I've got your E-Mail address, so when I find it, I'll send it. Do you want to speak to Peter, again?'

'Ye--e--s!' She just about managed the stammer! 'Bye! Catherine!'

'Bye! Look after yourself and don't try to hard!' Did she mean anything else? No, she was just a very pleasant and correct lady!

'Returning to the Internet!' Peter's voice, brought her back to reality. 'All of the incubators are linked and monitored by the central control system, here in Houston. Would you like to see it?

'Yes!' Especially, as Catherine would be there!

'Sorry, but I thought that you had been briefed, as you hadn't asked much about the company.' She hadn't asked, as they had concentrated on the personal details. 'It's all described on the Texas Advanced site. Would you like anything in the post, as well?'

'Thanks! And no! I'll get it from the Web. Sorry for troubling you?'

'No problem! You don't know how much I enjoyed our meeting!'

***

By the time she had re-connected to the Internet, Catherine's message had arrived. She clicked to link to the Texas Advanced site and it gave her all of the information she required about the company. She bookmarked the site in her browser for later reference and printed off a few pages to add to the report and for her files.

But it didn't solve her dilemmas! And answer any of her questions about the Bradfords?

Returning to the E-Mail, this was only slightly more informative. Catherine had used a signature, with a little image constructed from curly brackets with spaces in between. But there was no personal questions or messages.

They were just a very private, close and extremely professional couple, who had built a fortune by using the best of high technology to their advantage. They also just happened to have a shared interest in corsets and tight-lacing!

Copyright 1999 by Ewart Higgins