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John Meets Barbara Simpson, Former Owner of Cachet'

      John smiled, extending his hand to her. "Very glad to meet you, Barbara." Her sharp, chisel-like features reminded him almost of a fine, sculpted statue. He saw her as a very attractive woman, maybe a couple years older than Sophia.

      Barbara's hair was a chestnut brown and pulled back into a bun. Her makeup was exquisitely applied, John thought. She reminded him of one of those movie stars who always gets the man. Her tall, slender form sported a black pin-stripped skirt with matching jacket that fit her like he imagined expensive clothing should. A real class act, in his mind. One of his faults in life was his almost uncontrollable attraction to the female bottom. In his opinion, Barbara Simpson had what he would consider a great posterior.

His First Mozart Concert in Boston

      As the concert continued, John moved through the selections. Sonata in C major, 1st movement followed by the 2^nd and 3^rd movement. Then, on with more sonatas and preludes.  He couldn't remember a time when he was busier than this. Before concluding he played, Piano Concerto No.20 in D minor. The orchestra began slowly and soon he joined them. His fingers gently touching the keys. This was very well received.

A Brief Interlude With Mary Trent After The Boston Concert

"Mary, I can't tell you what a breath of fresh air you've been." He could see a look of apprehension on her face. "I want to continue this with you, but I need to tell you something first."
     "You're married!" Mary said it right out; no hesitation. "Is that what you wanted to say?" She placed her hand on his. "I'm not blind, John. The first thing a pianist notices is the hands. I saw your ring yesterday."
     "You okay with that, Mary?"
     "Depends." She dropped her left hand to her lap."Did you notice my hand?"
     John had a look of surprise on his face. "Are you married, too?"
     "Shame on you, John. And I thought you were a pianist." She lifted her hand up. She had no ring. "Would it make a difference?"
     Her face grew expressionless, while her big, hazel eyes just looked into his. The silence grew, adding to the intensity. She touched his hand, gently.

International Competition at Carnegie Hall

      John asked what the venue was called. It struck fear into John's heart when Pete told him it was, "The Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto Competition."
     "Isn't that a mouthful John?" Gleason said. "And it will be held at Carnegie Hall. This is the gateway to the big top, my boy. Are you interested in this arena?"
       John froze. "Are you shit'en me, Pete? I don't think I'm ready for something like that."

John Dupree Auditions at The Academy of Music

      "What is your name, young man?" The request came from this other man that now captured John's curiosity.
      "John Dupree, sir." As John extended his hand.
      "You are very good, John Dupree. I expect we will hear much more from you in the future. Tell me, can you play the "Hungarian Rhapsody?"
        John eyed the man carefully. "Yes, sir."
      "And, do you think you can accompany me if I play along with you?"
      "I guess. Maybe. What do you play?"
      Laughter from those standing around shook John. He looked into their faces and wondered what was so funny.
      The man held up his hand in a friendly gesture. "I play the violin sometimes, but not as often as I used to." He motioned for someone to bring him a violin. They did. "How about Number 2?"
      John felt as though the man was making fun of him: like this was some practical joke. He watched as the man motioned for John to take his position while he positioned himself to John's right at the piano. With a couple of quick movements as though tuning the violin he now gestured for John to begin. John played on and after the introduction, the violin joined in. The two played on together moving through the slow, climbing piece and then moved forward into the more robust melody. Both seemed to compliment one another as their instruments joined in a fury of blissful playing that brought a heightened pleasure to both them and their audience. As they brought it to a close each faced one another and gave a quick salute by bowing to each other.
      "Young man you almost gave me a heart attack. My pulse rarely climbs so high as this."
      John enjoyed this, but felt stupid since this violinist was obviously very accomplished. Maestro Krachmalnick interjected, "John Dupree, meet Eugene Ormandy, Musical Director of the Philadelphia Orchestra. I don't think he had this much fun since he played 1^st string violin."
      John almost fell over. Of course he knew of Ormandy and owned records of concerts performed by him. He just didn't make the connection. He was delighted.
      "Mr. Dupree I would like to change the remark I made earlier. I said that we will no doubt hear more from you in the future. I think we will hear more from you in the present, as well." He stepped forward and gave John a hug. "I must go now. It has been a pleasure to know that the best playing will not die with the older generation." He winked and smiled as he left the stage.          "Mr. Dupree", Krachmalnick eagerly spoke, "We will be in touch with your manager, Mr. Gleason if that meets with your approval? May I ask about how many pieces you can play with competence?"

John Playing One Of His Philadelpha Concerts at The Academy of Music

      At its conclusion the house lights rose and the audience showed their pleasure with very loud applause. John rose from the piano and gave a very sharp bow to the orchestra, waved his hand and then bowed before the audience.
      Jacob Van Lenten turned to Sophia: "Your man is a crowd pleaser, as well as a gifted pianist Sophia. Do you know what that means?"
       Sophia, tears of joy in her eyes, looked at Jacob and didn't answer.

John Has a Talk With His Manager, Pete Gleason

       "What does that mean, Pete?"
       "Well, laddie I'll tell ya. You're a hot commodity. Your just being noticed by the swells - the money people. This is normal. Once someone with talent attracts the attention of the big boys they smell a piece of the action. Who approached you, Johnny? Was it Broadway Limited? Ace McCoy, maybe?"
       "Who the hell is that?"
       "Don't matter none, John. There's lots of them out there. Let me give you some advice; it's free. If you move toward the big time, and I think you can, big agencies with big people behind them will want to manage you. When you go with them they want to own you. You become a piece of property. They will polish you and write a story about you and they will manage everything about you. Do you understand?"
      .  .  .   When you go under contract to the sharks you will have an accountant just to keep track of your payroll for a bunch of people half of which you'll not know."
        "You make it sound like the Mafia, Pete."
 Pete gave John a hard look. "You think the gangsters are not in show business, laddie-buck? And they're not the ones I was referring to."

A Weekend At The Van Lenten's After A Very Successful Concert

      "And how's my little pianist doing?" Sophia said, a slight slurring of her speech presenting itself. "Tonight, love", she continued in a quiet voice, I wanna get humped, so don't drink too many of them sneaky peters."
     He looked at her, smiled and said just as quietly, "You bet, sweetie." Looking around the room he asked, "Where's Louisa?"
      "You mean Louisa and Jason, John, or just Louisa?" Sophia let the question drool off her lips as though seething with jealousy. "They went up to their room after I listened to her praise for you over and over. Perhaps she's masturbating with you in mind, sweetie. You have that effect on women."

A Long Ride Home To New York

"      I guess it does seem like we're moving in different directions some of the time. Maybe it will get better when your legal problems are straightened out and Barbara can take some of the pressure off your shoulders."
     She looked up at him and laughingly said, "Just like a man. If we fix things by adjusting my life things will get better. Right? John, if we are going to ¥work' we both need to make adjustments. But, how do we make changes in your life? Don't try to answer that, sweetie. Where you seem to be going is the plan. Remember? You become a concert pianist and climb the ladder of success and fame. That seems to be on track. One of the problems with that is you'll be moving in circles that grow wider and wider from our center. You will be this young, vibrant, handsome, charismatic and talented man who will gather more fans and temptations in a month than most people gain in a lifetime."
      John found himself staring at her mouth as she spoke, listening to every word as though it was on a marquee. Suddenly self-conscious of his gaping mouth and perhaps startled look, he turned away and looked out the window.
      "Is that what is bothering you, Soph? I have noticed in recent times a jealousy; a change in your mood that jumps out of you and seems to bite me in the ass."

John And Sophia Talk Divorce

      "What are you talking about, Soph. How does getting divorced make sense?"
      Sophia took out a joint and lit it up, puffing strongly. "Look, sweetie, one of the problems we are faced with is your career getting hurt. We both have a lot on our plates right now. I could lose a trial and I could do time. At the least, if I'm charged it will be big news once again. You don't need that. Listen to me, we can divorce as easily as we got married. When things blow over we can get married again. In the meantime we can still be together. At least privately."

Divorce in Hand - Life Continues On - Other Paths

      He pressed the key into the door, knowing Sophia would still be at work. The excitement he felt; knowing how surprised she would be actually gave him goose-pimpled flesh. He knew the best plan for him would be to have another apartment in the same building. How much simpler life without Sophia would be in this way, he thought. He dropped his bag on the way to the bedroom and then heard a noise.
      "Is that you, Soph?" John threw open the door, peering into the darkened room.
      "John! Is that you?" Sophia's voice came from beneath the covers. "What are you doing home?"
      "Are you sick, sweetie?" He flipped on the light and saw a very disheveled Sophia; hair all tangled above her pale, startled face. He was about to repeat his question when he noticed another form beneath the covers. "Jesus Christ, Soph!" he yelled. "Jesus, you're fucking some bastard. And in our bed." He moved toward the covers.

      "I'll be at the Waldorf, on your tab. Maybe I can get a hooker for the night." He picked up his bag.
       As he opened the door he turned to Sophia, who was sitting quietly at the table with tears in her eyes, "Tell me, honey, if we weren't divorced would this qualify as adultery?" He pulled the door shut, wiped the wetness from his eyes and pushed the button for the elevator.

A Night At The Waldorf

      He slipped out of bed, dragging himself into the bathroom. "My God!" he said, looking in the mirror at a guy he knew, yet confusion seemed to distort the details. As he jumped in the tub/shower his thoughts were on the girl in his bed. He remembered her falling all over him at the piano and again at the bar. He searched his mind for a name, but couldn't remember one for her. After brushing his teeth and his hair and putting on clean underwear he decided it was time to meet his house guest, again.
      He pulled the covers back and looked at the nude girl. About 23 years old, he guessed. After shaking her a couple times she awoke and stared up at him.
      She reached out to him. "Good morn'en!", she said. "You're some kind of wild man, darl'en. And where the Hell did you learn to play the piano like that. You could be a professional, if you wanted."
      He laughed. Something about that statement seemed humorous.
      "I hope I wasn't too forward, miss er, . . . I'm sorry I can't remember your name. Must have been that Scotch."

John And Louisa Have An Affair

      As they danced slowly to the tune, each drew closer to the other. Their bodies seeming to melt  together. He could feel every contour of her body as she swayed in his tight arms. As they danced to the far side of the room he could feel her soft breath on his neck, then her kiss. The song ended and they waited for the next, hoping it would be another slow one. It was. By the time they returned to the table, John was noticeably aroused. Before leaving the club they stole several kisses from one another and he knew they were now at another plateau.     
      "What happened between you and Sophia?" Louisa asked. "She is so beautiful, John."
       "That's a long story." He told her. "Perhaps when we have more time I'll tell you about it." He remembered her promise to him.
       "Okay." Louisa whispered. "We will have that time. I promise you."

      Sleep came quickly. Soon after, when he felt the presence of warm flesh beside him in the coolness of his room he opened his eyes, peering into the darkness, pondering the presence of Louisa in his bed. He knew it had to be her and remembered not locking the door when he went to bed, perhaps hoping for just such a visit. His hand drew slowly downward from her mouth, over her chin, across her breasts, stomach and coming to rest at the apex of her long legs. He ran his fingers gently between her legs and felt himself grow as he felt her hand close around him. They kissed for the longest time as they lay touching one another.
     She opened to him and he was hers. He recalled how this went on for the longest while as they continued, switching positions every few minutes and never once breaking the cadence as though it were set by some rhythmic cycle of love, and lust. Finally, he recalled her words, "John, I'm through with Jason."

He rolled to one side and looked at the direction of her voice in the surrounding darkness. He remembered how that comment made him feel. While it felt great in one way, the thought she may be looking for another fiance un-nerved him. He had great feeling for Louisa, but so soon after Sophia he didn't feel like taking on a new relationship.

      As though she could read his mind, Louisa quickly added, "Don't worry, John. I'm not that fickle to swap out partners so easily. I just know that Jason is not for me. Thank you for helping me see that. He's a boar!"

      They had a secret affair that lasted a short while as she continued seeing her former fiance', Jason. One day she told John she was pregnant. It was not easy to know for sure who the father was, but she told him not to worry. Keeping John's friendship was more important to her then pulling him into her life in such a way as this. Jason stepped up to the plate, believing he was the father and they married. Once again, John's life was blessed by a benefactress. Once again he may have fathered a child. Like so many other times he cast the direction of his thoughts on the child he had with Sally and wondered if she was okay.

Life Moved Forward For John Dupree, But Not Without Set-backs

The months rolled into years and John's career grew ever more popular as the demand grew for his talent. As suggested by Jacob Van Lenten, John agreed to an agent with the sole function of producing work which directly resulted in a recording contract. He picked up concerts abroad and his reputation grew to the point where his name was becoming well known.

 The years further defined John Dupree, not only as a world class virtuoso, but by a reputation that could be considered anything but virtuous.

The End of The Beginning . . .

The Virtuoso ©
Naples, FL2011