Scandalous Risks Part III

Venetia is naive for her age, since she has never been good at social events or attracting young men, and she does not realise that a sexless friendship isn't that easy to maintain. She does realise that Neville has strong moral beliefs and that he is not like men and women of her own class who dont regard fidelity in marriage as all that important. Marina also tells her friend that she found out some few years earlier that her real father was not her mother's husband. Her mother is a socialite who is a well known painter and has had affairs, one of them with an art critic who fathered Marina. Marina tried to get to know him but he had not been interested..Her mother tells her that this man was never keen on children and that she has 2 parents who love her, but Marina is clearly damaged by the absence of her blood father. Venetia starts working for Charles Ashworth who is writing a book on modern morality, and she knows that he is a very strict moralist so she feels uneasy at times, though she is fond of Lyle. Neville tells her that Lyle and Charles are probably trying to find a girlfriend for their son Charley, who is a very narrow minded young man who seems awkward with girls. Michael, the younger Ashworth son, is young but quite a womaniser. Venetia's parents are relieved that she seems to have a job she enjoys and is living in Starbridge, and her father even seems to tolerate the idea of her dating Eddie Hoffenberg, whom he dislikes as a German. Venetia at first is happy with her relationship with Neville, to have someone who seems to enjoy her company and find her attractive is a novelty for her. He tells her that he accepts that their affair will not last as Venetia is a lot younger than him and she will want to marry a younger man in due course. She also feels uneasy about his relationship with Dido, he seems so obsessed with tryng to make her happy, that at times Venetia believes that he's still in love with his wife and possibly sleeping with her.