The Twins Paradox by Alan Gasparutti (best contemporary novels txt) 📖

can travel at, you can come back here in next to no time.”
“I suppose so,” she said. “But I’m not sure I really want to go back.”
“Well, it’s your decision,” said Ramondo. “How sure are you that you want to stay here on Earth?”
“About 70%,” she replied.
“If you’re anything less than 100% certain that you really want to stay, then perhaps it would be best to return to the ‘Pilgrim,” suggested Ramondo. “You can re-consider your decision there. I’m sure Commander Ondichi will send another party here another day.”
“I suppose so,” she said again, as she turned to look at him. “Perhaps I could suggest that I remained here to carry out further examination of life on the planet.”
“That’s true,” said Ramondo. “Why don’t you suggest that to the Commander?”
“I’m afraid, afraid he’ll see me for what I really am,” said Doctor Gammazeta. “A cheap girl who wants a bit of men!”
“Don’t say that,” Ramondo told her. “Why ever would he think that?”
“Because I like men, maybe?” she replied, as Ramondo gave her a reassuring kiss. “You’re not the first man I’ve slept with. Now I’ve found someone I love, though, I just don’t know what to do for the best.”
“Well whatever decision you make, I’ll support you all the way,” he told her, at which point she kissed him.
They smiled at eachother for a few moments, before she clambered over him.
“You know what I find intriguing,” she asked, to which Ramondo just smiled. “Female animals on Earth have their udders towards the back of their bodies, whereas we women have breasts towards the top. What do you think of my breasts?”
Ramondo just stared at them, before Doctor Gammazeta moved closer to him, smothering his face with her breasts. Ramondo then grabbed them, and slowly wirled his index fingers around her nipples. She became aroused, as he then began to lick her nipples slowly. Ramondo too, was becoming aroused as his erection grew once more. Doctor Gammazeta grabbed hold of it and began yanking it again. As she could feel juices run from it, she decided to place it into her, and held on as he began to thrust himself.
As she knelt against his body, she panted inexorably. He was only interested in scoring, and was concerned with nothing else. It was a good job they had no neighbours who could hear her panting as it become ever louder, ever higher. She could feel her climax coming, until she could kneel no longer, and fell upon Ramondo. He clutched her body gently, as they turned together, kissing eachother.
“How are you?” he asked her a few minutes later, to which Doctor Gammazeta just smiled at him.
“Happy,” she then replied. “Maybe this is the way it’s meant to be, to go out with a bang. Maybe this is how I will remember you.”
“I’ll be behind you all the way, whatever you choose to do,” Ramondo told her. “You can rest here for a few minutes. I’m going to have a quick shower. We don’t want to be too late arriving at the Ribblehead Inn.”
By the time he had his shower, Doctor Gammazeta had ‘awoken’ from her dream, and was now sitting up on his bed, as he entered his room. She still sat there as he dressed.
“Aren’t you having a shower?” he asked. “You are coming for a drink, aren’t you?”
“I don’t know,” she replied. “What I want now is just to relax, in a warm, soothing bath. Would you like to bathe me?”
“Erhh, thanks, but no thanks,” said Ramondo. “I’ve done my bit to help you relax. I’m expected to be waiting at the Ribblehead Inn. In fact, we’re expected to be waiting at the Ribblehead Inn.”
“I may come later on,” she told him.
“But what if Henry and the others arrive home and find you in the bath?” he asked. “Or even worse, getting dressed in my bedroom?”
“I’ll tell them I decided to come home, because I had a headache,” she replied. “And I’ll make sure I get dressed in another room.”
“Yes, but those clothes you bought at Hawes market today are in my spare drawer,” said Ramondo.
“Well, why don’t you put them in the room next door, while I go and run my bath,” she suggested.
On that note, Ramondo did as she had suggested, before leaving for the Ribblehead Inn. As he walked there, he began to feel a little lonely all on his own. No Henry, no Lucas, no Zebrina, and not even Doctor Gammazeta to talk to. He had cheered himself up a bit by the time he started to sup his pint of bitter,talking to Philpott and Maurice and watching the action from the previous night’s champions league matches on TV. Then he began to wonder about the Doctor again, what she might say when she returned to the Interstellar Pilgrim, and how he would be regarded there. Just another notch in her crotch, perhaps? Or was she more than just a cosmic tart? Then another thought crossed his mind - what if Zebrina heard about his steamy affair? How would she react? Would their relationship be over?
Ramondo tried to forget this, and instead concentrate on the football on TV. Until about 8.15, when Doctor Gammazeta walked into the inn, dressed a little scantily in the new clothes she had purchased that afternoon. Her hair was loose and wild, and she received a few wolf-whistles as she walked towards Ramondo.
“Thanks for coming,” he said to her, a little surprised. “Don’t you feel a little cold, like that?”
“No, not really,” she replied. “It’s often colder than this where I come from,” to which neither he nor she expanded on, to avoid giving away their identities. “So, what do you think of me?”
“You look fine,” said Ramondo, nodding his head in approval. “Would you like something to drink?”
“A GT, please,” she requested.
“A gin and tonic, you mean?” he queried, to which she said yes. “I’ll buy a couple of bags of crisps, too, or would you prefer peanuts. I may as well get mysef another pint, too,” before asking Philpott and Maurice if they wanted anything to drink.
Ramondo now felt a lot jollier now, as he walked up to the bar. The barman said he approved of his new ladyfriend, to which Ramondo just said that she wasn’t local. He was then asked what had happened to Zebrina. Ramondo tried to be coy, simply saying Zebrina now had another job in Skipton and wasn’t always available, but was still on his ‘itinerery’. That made him feel good, as though he had two ladies to himself. When he took the tray of drinks, crisps and peanuts back to the table, he thought again about her, and knew that this wouldn’t be for much longer.
“So, what do you think of the wildlife here?” he asked her as he sat down at the table.
“I told you earlier how they intrigued me, don’t you remember?” she said to him. “But you know which is my favourite animal of all?” to which he shook his head. “You!”
Ramondo began to blush, and felt everyone in the room was looking at him, though when he looked around he could only see people drinking and talking to one-another.
“You shouldn’t feel embarrassed,” she told him. “You should be pleased with yourself. I know I am.”
This only made Ramondo more embarrassed, before he heard a large roar. He then realised that this wasn’t directed at him, but was merely on the TV, where he saw a replay of a goal for Chelsea in their champions league match the previous evening.
“You like football, don’t you?” Maurice asked him. “Do you support any teams?”
“I haven’t got any real favourites, though I suppose I prefer Manchester United,” said Ramondo. “The local teams aren’t doing very well – even those from the nearest cities, Leeds, Bradford and York.”
“It seems to me that everything here revolves around one thing,” said the doctor. “Money.”
“That’s right,” agreed Ramondo. “Too much in this world revolves around money. That’s basically the reason for global warming and all the environmental damage that’s being done to Earth.”
“From what I’ve seen, this planet is becoming too congested,” added Doctor Gammazeta. “The population of Earth is increasing at the same time as people are living longer. One day soon, this world will not be big enough for it’s people, unless something is done to counter this.”
“Oh there is the capacity to hold more people on Earth,” insisted Ramondo. “The problem starts where tropical forests are being chopped down, they will only end up as deserts, unsuitable for human life. There seems to me to be no follow-up plans to much of today’s world.”
“Like what to do with the forests when the trees have all been pulled down,” queried Doctor Gammazeta.
“Precisely,” he replied. “There are vast empty areas, like the centre of Austrailia, which are semi-desert, but which could be developed. Then there is the increase of sea levels. I believe they should develop more desalination plants, to take in the additional sea water, purify it and use it for irrigation elsewhere in the world.”
“One good thing that may come from global warming will be more eratic weather,” said the Doctor. “This may provide more rain in desert-like areas.”
“But will people be here to see this?” he asked. “That’s the billion-dollar question. That’s why Henry is trying to develop ecological ideas, in the hope that some authorities may see sense and take these ideas onboard.”
“And has anyone done so?” she asked.
“He has had support from various sources,” he told her. “We only hope it isn’t too little, too late.”
Ramondo then told Doctor Gammazeta about the various schemes in California, the Isle of Lewis and on Tenerife. While they were drinking and continuing their discussions, a familiar face walked through the front door. It was Henry, who went to shake hands with the Doctor, as he was followed by Commander Ondichi, Professor Schmidt and Doctor Procyon. He then gave Ramondo ten pounds, and asked him to buy four pints of lager. Commander Ondichi went along to the bar with him. Professor Schmidt and Doctor Procyon went to watch the football with Philpott and Maurice.
“So, what has Ramondo been teling you about me?” Henry asked Doctor Gammazeta.
“We were just talking about Earth, what can be done to save the planet, and the projects you have set up,” she told him. “I didn’t know you had so many ideas and such enterprise.”
“I suppose I’ve always had enterprise. It’s just that you can’t enforce your ideology when you’re couped up in a small area, if you get what I mean,” said Henry, to which Doctor Gammazeta nodded to signify she knew what he was referring to. “To be honest, I couldn’t have done this without the help from all my team. How do you find Ramondo, by the way?”
“He’s good, very good,” she told him, though she didn’t elaborate at what he was very good at. “I like your house. Ramondo told me how you and your team sorted it all out from a couple of old, tatty buildings. I like the location – the environment, the hills, the solitude.”
“At least we shan’t hear any noise tonight,” Professor Schmidt commented, unaware of the noise which had occurred in Ramondo’s bedroom the previous nights.
The eight of them stayed in the Inn for the best part of the next hour, before Henry and Commander Ondichi felt a little tired and decided to leave. Ramondo bought a few more drinks, but when he and Doctor Gammazeta had finished theirs’, he took her outside, where they wandered along Batty Moss. The night was fresh,