Tickled to Death and Other Stories of Crime and Suspense (33 page)

Charles gave a little laugh. “And has my ‘attention' been satisfactory?”

Mariana Lythgoe's famous smile irradiated her face. “Oh yes, Charles. Thank you.”

He picked up her fine but freckled hand and kissed it. “I must go.”

“Yes.” A little silence hung between them. “But, Charles, you will come and see me again, won't you?”

“Oh yes, Mariana,” said Charles Paris. “I will.”

S
IMON
B
RETT
has been interested in theatre from an early age. A former president of the Oxford University Dramatic Society, he appeared in cabarets and reviews there and directed the Oxford Theatre Group's late-night show at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 1967. He has produced radio and comedy shows for the BBC and for London Weekend television, but he now devotes himself full time to writing plays and scripts for radio and television as well as his popular Charles Paris novels. His most recent novel was
A Shock to the System
.