Star Fish Read Free

strength of character and a big personality.’
    ‘And there we have it.’
    ‘Liv you are not only an old slapper, you are also a genius. Thanks so much.’
    So that was it, sample profile completed, form filled out, photo attached. I was on the shaky stairway to man heaven!
    The day dawned for me to face my fate. Starr & Sun was about to gain a new recruit. After negotiating the seedy alleyway and hesitantly climbing the stairs to the agency I took a deep breath and pushed open the dark green door. I was pleasantly surprised to find a bright and cheerily painted yellow reception area. There were several healthy looking plants dotted around and a plush looking leather sofa in the corner. A glass coffee table displayed various astrology publications.
    I walked up to the reception desk and suddenly all my fears returned, as here in front of me was what I can only describe as a 1980’s reject.
    I am not normally a bitchy kind of girl, but when one is confronted with the likes of Cordelia Drake, one can only be grateful for what little breeding one has.
    Cordelia Drake must have been around forty-five with bleached blonde, dry, wiry hair with about three inches of dark roots coming through. Her denim mini-skirt, stripy tights and thigh-length boots were worn with tight red T-shirt revealing a cleavage that would have made Jordan’s eyes water.
    Ms Drake wore purple lipstick and matching nail varnish in a shade of what I could only call ‘Varicose Vein’ that clashed horribly with her red top. She was tapping away on her keyboard at about 90 miles an hour.
    The funny thing was when she opened her mouth to greet me she sounded as if she had not only one, but about fifteen ripe plums in her mouth!
    ‘You must be Amy. The pleasure is mine, dear.’ She offered me a spindly hand with a gold sovereign on her middle finger.
    I did my best to keep a straight face. Maybe she had gone to a really posh school and was fighting against her upper-class upbringing or maybe the Starr & Sun clientele were just so awful that the tactic was to make them feel superior next to Cordelia Drake, who did not have beauty or style on her side. I finally decided that she had worked on the voice in order to snare new recruits to Starr & Sun over the telephone, banking on the fact that once you were actually there you would be so gobsmacked by her appearance that you would hand over any amount of money to join up and run way!
    ‘My boss, Mr Starr will be with you in a minute to interview you,’ Posh Voice piped up.
    Oh my God I thought. What kind of weirdo would have employed the likes of Cordelia Drake?
    But Cordelia’s employer turned out to be far nicer than I had imagined an owner of a dating agency would be. For some strange reason I had pictured somebody without a life of their own. Somebody who wanted to live through other people’s fantasies.
    This guy was wearing a smart grey suit, which matched his friendly, bluey-grey eyes. His smile was open and warm and his handshake firm and welcoming. My dad had taught me that a firm handshake is very important. I am glad that I acknowledged his worldly wisdom on this one, as I cannot bear a wishy-washy limp-wristed offering either. I think it reflects gravely on somebody’s personality. There is no excuse for not putting effort into that important first bodily contact.
    ‘Christopher Starr – Capricorn – the son in Starr and Sun,’ he introduced himself
    ‘Ah, I see. I thought the company name was just a clever idea for an astrological dating agency.’
    ‘Yes, well that’s my mother for you. It’s her business, although she’s semi-retired now and has left the running of it in my capable hands.’
    ‘Is it interesting?’ I enquired.
    ‘That’s one word for it.’ He smiled his friendly smile. ‘Wouldn’t really have been my first career choice but I am beginning to enjoy it, and there is the perk of meeting a lot of single women.’ He then caught my eye and looked slightly