So far, his English adventure wasn't panning out that differently from what he had imagined it would be. Sure, there were some unrealistic dreams of sweeping some rich lady - or gentleman for that matter - off their feet with his boyish good looks and Irish charm, but while Ed liked being a dreamer, he also happened to be a realist.
He hadn't been here for long yet. It hadn't been that easy to get a place, because while he could make a valiant effort of hiding the accent a little if he wanted to, he didn't really want to. Anyway, people always asked. Still, he had managed to get a room from a landlady by being as charming as possible and promising no trouble and no bringing home of women. He'd have to pay for it though, so after his first few interviews went less than great, he took his guitar and found himself a reasonably busy street to busk on.
Turned out that the charm and the good looks worked a lot faster there than they seemed to in job interviews and room hunting, so while he played his tunes and sung along, he was actually getting a decent amount.
He was near finishing one song when he heard a horse approach, so he stopped and moved to the side a little, leaning his head back and watching. Beautiful horse, as far as he could tell. He wasn't really an export, but it looked pretty.
"She's a beaut!" He called out to the rider, whose face was hard to make out properly from that angle and with that cap on. "Does she like music?"
Jon didn't often ride his horses through the streets for obvious reasons but today he had been showing her off to some potential buyers and it seemed stupid to arrange any other way. With dad gone, it was up to him to provide and he had plans. He had three horses, two were absolute beauties with speed the likes of which had never been seen and one was a wee little foal that Axel could ride if he held on tight. Maybe not all money makers but they were good enough to show around and find buys for.
If he made enough by the end of the week, he could afford some good food for once, instead of cans, and maybe have enough to start having savings. They needed savings, they had no steady income.
Jon slowed the horse down at the musicians question and tugged the reins so she slowed. Turning his head, he lifted his cap back a little so he could see the bloke. Irish. Huh. Not many of those here.
"She's not a big fan of that modern stuff, I'm afraid. She's more a folky type." Jonathan informed him as he stroked the horse to keep her relaxed. "She probably don't like that Dublin twang, sunshine."
"That's awfully discerning of her. More used to the dulcet lilt of her owner, is she? I could muster up a folksy tune or two for someone with such distinguished tastes." Ed took it in good humour, honestly happy to have encountered a fellow Irish person. Really much less of a sting in being called a Dubliner than the actual slurs he'd heard a lot since coming here. "Where are you two off to? Just enjoying a nice stroll?"
He wondered why someone would ride a horse through here. Although now that he'd identified the man as likely being an Irish traveller, it made it a little easier to make an educated guess.
"I'm hoping to get home before it gets dark." Jonathan admitted, not sure why he was still talking to a city boy like this but he figured he ought to be nice. It was a tough time for their lot and his dad had always told him to look out for his own. And Holden argued recently that 'their own' included all of Ireland for some bloody reason. Bloody bleeding heart liberals.
"Me and the old girl are knackered. We're gonna celebrate a good day with some whiskey back at mine." While he was sitting idle, he pulled out his cigarettes and put one in his mouth. "Nice strolls are for the lucky sods, I've been on my feet since 5am."
"Ah, the best way to celebrate." Whiskey sounded damn good. Ed glanced into his case briefly to confirm that, no, he'd not be celebrating tonight. He'd be lucky if he did scrape up enough to give his new landlady the good faith money she'd asked for. Shame, he'd have loved a drink or two.
"5am? Hardworking pair, the two of you." He let out a low whistle, grinning when the horse reacted to it. He held his palm up to gently press against her nose, wanting to calm her a little. "I'm Ed. It's nice meeting you two. Nice hearing your voice."
"I'm Jon, nice to meet you." Jonathan didn't offer a hand because he wasn't used to doing that with outsiders. They never really wanted to take his hand. "The girl you're stroking is Midsummer. She's not easily scared, she's just sensitive to commands." Edward was brave, he'd give him that, most city folks were scared of horses. Afraid they might bite or kick. Not his girl.
"You making good money with the likes of this?" Jonathan asked as he nodded his head towards the guitar case. "I thought it was only us bogmen struggling to find a career. They don't like the Dublin sort for jobs neither? Christ, what luck do the rest of us have?"
"Luck of the Irish," Ed said, with more than a small trace of irony. He looked at the horse, nodding his head. "That's a beautiful name. Fitting." She was a beautiful horse and clearly very well behaved.
He glanced at the money he'd made so far and shrugged. "You be the judge of how good the money I'm making is. Better than nothing, I reckon. I'm more suited for work on the street than in an office, you see."
He'd certainly been told as much today. Repeatedly. "Fuck 'em, eh? They have to pay us, don't they? Because they can't resist a beautiful girl like Midsummer and they ain't resisting my voice either." He winked and stepped back, moving his guitar back around. "Hope to see you around, Jon. Damn."
He tilted his head a little, getting a better look now with standing further away and with Jon's cap pushed back a little. "We are a handsome lot, ain't we? No wonder they feel threatened."
Jonathan lit up his cigarette and inhaled deeply as he considered what to even say or think on that one. Most lads, when they made those jokes, they said them in a different way but Edward was slanting in a direction that felt off. Maybe it was how he smiled or his body language but it was a red flag. Not that Jonathan minded a red flag but he looked at him for a while and then he nodded. "Luck of the Irish. As you say."
With a cigarette hanging from his mouth, he looked back at Edward, as if he was trying to get a read on him. "They'll always feel threatened on the unknown. That's part of the fun."
That was interesting. Not an immediate rebuttal of some kind, something to joke about it or - not that unlikely - lash out by calling him a queer. Not enough to draw any conclusions yet, but enough to have him smile a little more. Or at least smile a little differently. He strummed on his guitar, but without much intent. His eyes were on Jon. So much more to figure out now.
"I don't mind being a bit of a threat. There's a thrill to it, ain't there?" Certainly not how it had usually gone in his life. Skinny poor boy, he'd been more of a victim than a threat. He supposed that would have been different for a traveller like Jon living here. "Personally, I can never wait to go into the unknown. Some look for trouble." He shrugged. He certainly did.
Jonathan arrived back home later than he wanted to, the sun had set as he arrived but their was a fire going, candles lit and he could mostly see where he was going. Mostly. He had brought himself a torch from the local offy a couple of weeks back so he could ride down the country lanes and see where the hell he was going.
He tied up the horse as soon as he got back and left her in the makeshift stalls before he headed passed some of the locals. He said hi, he was nice and polite but he wasn't really in the mood to talk to people. He didn't like people. He didn't want to be social. He wanted to be alone but he didn't get the option. Dad left him in charge before he fucked off and for some reason, people took it seriously.
Walking up the steps of the caravan, he walked in to see Holden and Axel reading together by candle light, like good lads, and Alfie was in the kitchen doing God knows what.
Jonathan didn't say anything, he just flopped onto the nearest bed. Fucking hell, what a day.
"Long day, Jonny?" Alfie called out to him and then, a minute or so later, he sat down on the bed near his feet, passing him a bottle. "There you go, mate. Buck up."
He glanced over at Holden and Axel, making sure they were still doing fine. Thankfully they tended to handle themselves pretty all right. "There's some beans left on the stove, if you fancy. I cooked for my lads, didn't I?! Holden!"
Holden looked up and then simply nodded. "Yea, he did. Beans." Not much else to say on that.
"I walked from one sodding end of this city to another to meet those idiots and they fucking changed the pub to have a laugh at me." They apparently found it funny to make the pikey walk across the city and back. Jonathan was seething but what else could he do? "They didn't laugh when they saw the horse. They'd buy her. For 1800."
A good price but Jonathan wasn't sure if he wanted to sell to them or not. He supposed he had to but he didn't think those idiots knew how to handle a horse.
"Did you just make beans? Did you at least put it on some toast?"
"Holden did the toast. He's a good lad. Respects his elders and doesn't talk like a little shit." He lightly hit the back of Jon's head, but obviously didn't mean much by it. Felt bad to see him so tired. Made him angry at the bastards, but what else was new? "You wanna hold out for a better price? She's a future champ, that one. You said so."
Jon was the one with the eye for horses, Alfie trusted his instincts. "If you don't like them, don't sell her. I'll win the fight this Friday, that will have us sitting nicely."
"We just really have to think about what's the best move right now, that's all. If you think you can win, maybe we can hold off. I don't like 'em and I think she'd be wasted there. She needs a proper sort that understands how to best train her." And sure, they had jockeys but if they worked under guys like that, how did he trust them to be responsible.
"I'm going back into the city tomorrow. I'll see if I can find another buyer, might be able to drum up interest."
Jonathan rolled over and looked across at Axel and Holden. "You have a good day, boys? Learning lots of smart things?"
Axel nodded his head, kicking his legs back and forth. "I learned to punch. Alfie showed me." Ah. So no smart things.
"Axel did a book report. He's finished reading his book." Holden was prouder of that than the punching, although he understood why that was the highlight for Axel. A lot more fun, after all. "Ax, you can give your report to Jon when Jon's not so tired." Holden was worried for his brother, he looked pretty exhausted. "Do you want beans on toast?"
"Holden can't take a punch," Alfie felt that was maybe worth noting, "We gotta toughen that lad up or he'll be beat on every day of his life."
He was just looking out for his brothers. "Anyway, of course I can win. I'm the best! I'll stay sober and everything." He celebrated that decision by taking a swig from the bottle, then he grinned at Axel. "Do you wanna show Jonny your punch, Axel?"
Jonathan willed himself up and pushed himself off the bed and into a sitting position so he was by Alfie. "I'll eat later, it's fine. You can show me your book report, Ax. Then you can punch your stupid brother." Jonathan felt education came before Alfie needing a punch. Alas.
Axel took his paper and came over to Jonathan, holding it out shyly. Jonathan couldn't make sense of a lot of it but his boy had his lettering improving and his spelling looked better too. Jonathan couldn't judge him, he wasn't the best either. He was self taught, after all. "And you read the whole book yourself?"
"Holden helped. It was about a cat and it was really funny." Axel hoped he did a good job.
"You did good, huh? Real good. You proud of it?" Axel nodded. "Good, you should be. Wanna punch Alfie?" Axel nodded again. "Go for it."
"Axel's real good at reading," Holden said encouragingly, as he walked over to sit by his brothers. Or by his brother, at least, because Alfie was now standing up, crouching down and awaiting Axel's punch. He stumbled backwards dramatically, falling onto the floor.
"Knockout! Wow, Axel's the new champion!" Alfie reached out to wrap an arm around Axel and pull him down so he could cuddle him, only to end up tickling him as well. He liked playing with the kids, he always love that part. A lot less responsibility.
Jon had told himself all day that he wouldn't take that route home, that it seemed ultimately pointless and he didn't want Edward anyway - and yet, when he left the caravan that day, he grabbed his fiddle. Now why the bloody hell did he do that? Well, if Edward was busking, perhaps he fancied some company. And company didn't have to be an opportunity.
That was what he told himself. That he brought it as a show of support, perhaps a talking piece and not at all to show off a little so a guy like Edward might be drawn in. It didn't help to try and think these things.
As soon as he saw Edward, he felt right into the lap of temptation all over again. Those fucking eyes, he could drown in them and when they looked right at him, he lost his breath for a second. He paused across the street and looked back at Edward but he didn't approach. He looked away and lit up up a cigarette.
Of course Edward noticed Jonathan pretty much immediately, even though he was mid-song. Jon hadn't really left his mind since he'd talked to him the other day. Stood out, with those eyes and the voice and the general demeanour. Stood out not just because he was one of the few Irishmen he'd met since coming here. Stood out also because he had most definitely not been averse to his flirting and that realisation was... titillating, to say the least.
He saw him stand there and it wasn't as if he couldn't read the signs. Stoic strong man, not taking his eyes off of him but staying at a distance. There was a pull to that. Seemed to him as if Jon wanted to be wooed. He could certainly comply with that desire.
So, after ending the current song, he strummed his fingers again, breaking into his own interpretation of the old classic Raggle Taggle Gypsy. Seemed fitting enough.
He knew Edward was playing to him and only him, it was quite nice actually. He listened for a few before he took his case off his shoulder and opened it up. He started taking out his fiddle and bow out, dropping the case to the floor and putting his foot on it so no one could nick it.
As he looked at Edward, he reared up his bow and started to play along with Edward, still not approaching. Though he did look at him, even smiled ever so slightly as he played along. His grandfather had gifted him this fiddle, it was generations old and Jonathan had been taught by the community to play. He was pretty good, though he knew better musicians.
It was fun, to just play with someone. To be apart but be together. It was relaxing, in a sense.
This was quite something. He hadn't expected Jon to join in and if he would have dared to abandon his guitar case, he would have walked right over to play closer to him. However, he had his earnings of at least the past hour in that case, he wasn't budging. Still, he also wasn't looking away from Jon the whole time. He laughed when they finished the song, pausing to push the hair back from his face while thinking of another.
"This one's for you, Jonny!"
With that, he started on 'I'll tell me Ma', which seemed fitting enough. People were certainly having fun watching them. They might be more scandalised if they had been able to see how dirty some of Ed's thoughts were getting, but he was also simply enjoying himself.
Jonathan copied along, knowing the song well as he sang it to his Axel when he was sick. Jon had gotten pretty good at playing by ear and he did so. It was fun and hell, people were giving Jon some money too. He wouldn't say no to any money, he was scrapping by as it was.
Once Edward had finished playing, Jonathan put his bow into the other hand and got the money from his case, pocketing it and closing the case. He picked it up and walked across the road, case slung across his shoulder again but his fiddle still in his hand.
"Oh, it's going all right. I've even gotten some illicit offers, if you'll believe it." He bent down now to collect the money he had and quickly pocket it, holding a piece of paper out to Jonathan that had a number on it with three xs underneath. "I'm scandalised."
She had been a good tipper though, he had to admit that. He straightened up and looked at Jon, smiling brightly. "You've got all kinds of talents, eh? Didn't know I was going to have accompaniment today, it's an honour. True artistry there, you and your fiddle. You don't just have a good hand for horses."
"I'm a country boy, son. I got a lot of skills. You gotta have 'em or you'll die. Especially when they're all out to get you. No one hates nothing quite as much as they hate a pikey paddy and his gypo family." Jonathan remarked playfully as he looked at the paper Edward had and hmmed curiously at it. Well, he wasn't surprised. Edward was a very handsome lad, he probably got hit on all the time.
"I ain't just here to play music though." Jonathan explained as he started to put the instrument away in his case, knowing this would be a tricky pitch, especially in public. Still, Jonathan was daring.
He always took a punt at things. They hated him anyway, may as well make the most of it. "You should come with me."
"Yea? Why's that, mate, you gonna show me more of them skills?" Seemed intriguing. He said it in a joking tone, but he also picked up his guitar case to put the instrument away, clearly ready to follow Jon. He was a city boy. He had picked up a few tricks over the years as well and if he was reading this right then, no. This was not his first bout of a dalliance like that.
"'tis a lovely evening. Where am I coming with you?" He shouldered his guitar case and turned to face Jonathan. Tall, he liked that. Those cheekbones, the eyes, he loved all of that. So he met his eyes and said it quite brazenly, at least because he felt safe in assuming that they were on the same page. "I'm all yours, Jon."
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He hadn't been here for long yet. It hadn't been that easy to get a place, because while he could make a valiant effort of hiding the accent a little if he wanted to, he didn't really want to. Anyway, people always asked. Still, he had managed to get a room from a landlady by being as charming as possible and promising no trouble and no bringing home of women. He'd have to pay for it though, so after his first few interviews went less than great, he took his guitar and found himself a reasonably busy street to busk on.
Turned out that the charm and the good looks worked a lot faster there than they seemed to in job interviews and room hunting, so while he played his tunes and sung along, he was actually getting a decent amount.
He was near finishing one song when he heard a horse approach, so he stopped and moved to the side a little, leaning his head back and watching. Beautiful horse, as far as he could tell. He wasn't really an export, but it looked pretty.
"She's a beaut!" He called out to the rider, whose face was hard to make out properly from that angle and with that cap on. "Does she like music?"
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If he made enough by the end of the week, he could afford some good food for once, instead of cans, and maybe have enough to start having savings. They needed savings, they had no steady income.
Jon slowed the horse down at the musicians question and tugged the reins so she slowed. Turning his head, he lifted his cap back a little so he could see the bloke. Irish. Huh. Not many of those here.
"She's not a big fan of that modern stuff, I'm afraid. She's more a folky type." Jonathan informed him as he stroked the horse to keep her relaxed. "She probably don't like that Dublin twang, sunshine."
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He wondered why someone would ride a horse through here. Although now that he'd identified the man as likely being an Irish traveller, it made it a little easier to make an educated guess.
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"Me and the old girl are knackered. We're gonna celebrate a good day with some whiskey back at mine." While he was sitting idle, he pulled out his cigarettes and put one in his mouth. "Nice strolls are for the lucky sods, I've been on my feet since 5am."
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"5am? Hardworking pair, the two of you." He let out a low whistle, grinning when the horse reacted to it. He held his palm up to gently press against her nose, wanting to calm her a little. "I'm Ed. It's nice meeting you two. Nice hearing your voice."
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"You making good money with the likes of this?" Jonathan asked as he nodded his head towards the guitar case. "I thought it was only us bogmen struggling to find a career. They don't like the Dublin sort for jobs neither? Christ, what luck do the rest of us have?"
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He glanced at the money he'd made so far and shrugged. "You be the judge of how good the money I'm making is. Better than nothing, I reckon. I'm more suited for work on the street than in an office, you see."
He'd certainly been told as much today. Repeatedly. "Fuck 'em, eh? They have to pay us, don't they? Because they can't resist a beautiful girl like Midsummer and they ain't resisting my voice either." He winked and stepped back, moving his guitar back around. "Hope to see you around, Jon. Damn."
He tilted his head a little, getting a better look now with standing further away and with Jon's cap pushed back a little. "We are a handsome lot, ain't we? No wonder they feel threatened."
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Jonathan lit up his cigarette and inhaled deeply as he considered what to even say or think on that one. Most lads, when they made those jokes, they said them in a different way but Edward was slanting in a direction that felt off. Maybe it was how he smiled or his body language but it was a red flag. Not that Jonathan minded a red flag but he looked at him for a while and then he nodded. "Luck of the Irish. As you say."
With a cigarette hanging from his mouth, he looked back at Edward, as if he was trying to get a read on him. "They'll always feel threatened on the unknown. That's part of the fun."
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"I don't mind being a bit of a threat. There's a thrill to it, ain't there?" Certainly not how it had usually gone in his life. Skinny poor boy, he'd been more of a victim than a threat. He supposed that would have been different for a traveller like Jon living here. "Personally, I can never wait to go into the unknown. Some look for trouble." He shrugged. He certainly did.
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He tied up the horse as soon as he got back and left her in the makeshift stalls before he headed passed some of the locals. He said hi, he was nice and polite but he wasn't really in the mood to talk to people. He didn't like people. He didn't want to be social. He wanted to be alone but he didn't get the option. Dad left him in charge before he fucked off and for some reason, people took it seriously.
Walking up the steps of the caravan, he walked in to see Holden and Axel reading together by candle light, like good lads, and Alfie was in the kitchen doing God knows what.
Jonathan didn't say anything, he just flopped onto the nearest bed. Fucking hell, what a day.
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He glanced over at Holden and Axel, making sure they were still doing fine. Thankfully they tended to handle themselves pretty all right. "There's some beans left on the stove, if you fancy. I cooked for my lads, didn't I?! Holden!"
Holden looked up and then simply nodded. "Yea, he did. Beans." Not much else to say on that.
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A good price but Jonathan wasn't sure if he wanted to sell to them or not. He supposed he had to but he didn't think those idiots knew how to handle a horse.
"Did you just make beans? Did you at least put it on some toast?"
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Jon was the one with the eye for horses, Alfie trusted his instincts. "If you don't like them, don't sell her. I'll win the fight this Friday, that will have us sitting nicely."
For a few days, anyway.
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"I'm going back into the city tomorrow. I'll see if I can find another buyer, might be able to drum up interest."
Jonathan rolled over and looked across at Axel and Holden. "You have a good day, boys? Learning lots of smart things?"
Axel nodded his head, kicking his legs back and forth. "I learned to punch. Alfie showed me." Ah. So no smart things.
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"Holden can't take a punch," Alfie felt that was maybe worth noting, "We gotta toughen that lad up or he'll be beat on every day of his life."
He was just looking out for his brothers. "Anyway, of course I can win. I'm the best! I'll stay sober and everything." He celebrated that decision by taking a swig from the bottle, then he grinned at Axel. "Do you wanna show Jonny your punch, Axel?"
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Axel took his paper and came over to Jonathan, holding it out shyly. Jonathan couldn't make sense of a lot of it but his boy had his lettering improving and his spelling looked better too. Jonathan couldn't judge him, he wasn't the best either. He was self taught, after all. "And you read the whole book yourself?"
"Holden helped. It was about a cat and it was really funny." Axel hoped he did a good job.
"You did good, huh? Real good. You proud of it?" Axel nodded. "Good, you should be. Wanna punch Alfie?" Axel nodded again. "Go for it."
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"Knockout! Wow, Axel's the new champion!" Alfie reached out to wrap an arm around Axel and pull him down so he could cuddle him, only to end up tickling him as well. He liked playing with the kids, he always love that part. A lot less responsibility.
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That was what he told himself. That he brought it as a show of support, perhaps a talking piece and not at all to show off a little so a guy like Edward might be drawn in. It didn't help to try and think these things.
As soon as he saw Edward, he felt right into the lap of temptation all over again. Those fucking eyes, he could drown in them and when they looked right at him, he lost his breath for a second. He paused across the street and looked back at Edward but he didn't approach. He looked away and lit up up a cigarette.
What the fuck did he do now?
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He saw him stand there and it wasn't as if he couldn't read the signs. Stoic strong man, not taking his eyes off of him but staying at a distance. There was a pull to that. Seemed to him as if Jon wanted to be wooed. He could certainly comply with that desire.
So, after ending the current song, he strummed his fingers again, breaking into his own interpretation of the old classic Raggle Taggle Gypsy. Seemed fitting enough.
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As he looked at Edward, he reared up his bow and started to play along with Edward, still not approaching. Though he did look at him, even smiled ever so slightly as he played along. His grandfather had gifted him this fiddle, it was generations old and Jonathan had been taught by the community to play. He was pretty good, though he knew better musicians.
It was fun, to just play with someone. To be apart but be together. It was relaxing, in a sense.
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"This one's for you, Jonny!"
With that, he started on 'I'll tell me Ma', which seemed fitting enough. People were certainly having fun watching them. They might be more scandalised if they had been able to see how dirty some of Ed's thoughts were getting, but he was also simply enjoying himself.
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Once Edward had finished playing, Jonathan put his bow into the other hand and got the money from his case, pocketing it and closing the case. He picked it up and walked across the road, case slung across his shoulder again but his fiddle still in his hand.
"Alright, sunshine. How's the hard work going?"
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She had been a good tipper though, he had to admit that. He straightened up and looked at Jon, smiling brightly. "You've got all kinds of talents, eh? Didn't know I was going to have accompaniment today, it's an honour. True artistry there, you and your fiddle. You don't just have a good hand for horses."
Which was very attractive to learn about.
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"I ain't just here to play music though." Jonathan explained as he started to put the instrument away in his case, knowing this would be a tricky pitch, especially in public. Still, Jonathan was daring.
He always took a punt at things. They hated him anyway, may as well make the most of it. "You should come with me."
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"'tis a lovely evening. Where am I coming with you?" He shouldered his guitar case and turned to face Jonathan. Tall, he liked that. Those cheekbones, the eyes, he loved all of that. So he met his eyes and said it quite brazenly, at least because he felt safe in assuming that they were on the same page. "I'm all yours, Jon."
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