Dancing With Devia (2 page)

“Hey, get out of here.” He raised his arm to come between her and him, and to stop her lips reaching him.

“I was
just
saying thank you!” She retorted indignantly.

“Listen lady. I don’t know you. I’m definitely not interested, and you just don’t go around kissing men you just met like that. Uninvited. It’s not right.” He pulled up his collar to make his point as she reached for the handle of the door looking a mix of angry and hurt.  He didn’t care what she thought. He didn’t know her, or want to know her.  She got out of the truck and slammed the door shut. He was so incensed when he drove away his tires spun as he angrily pulled away.  He wanted out of there, as quickly as possible.

***

A couple of weeks later, my wife and I were having coffee together. The kids were at school. We both had a day off, her from her job as an administrative assistant for a local real estate agent
,
and me, as a boat captain for a small boat operator in our town. It was simple work, work that had started from another passion of mine. Years ago, when I had started sailing, a friend of mine had set up a day cruise company, for holiday makers to take the boats out, that sort of thing.  It was mainly day boat trippers, and I had helped him out once or twice, eventually I gave up my stifling day job in an office to do it full time.  I remember that Crystal was furious that I would even consider giving up my work for it, but eventually it all panned out, and I started making more money doing that than my
previous
day job.  Things were a little easier
with Crystal
after that. It also meant that I had more spare time to be with her and the kids.  My wife and I had become much closer over the years, and the kids enjoyed having a sea captain as their dad.  Sometimes
when we went out on the boat,
I even dressed up like a pirate and made all sorts of ‘oooh arrrrgh’ pirate sounds. I
would wear
a patch
I made
over my eye, a plastic parrot on my shoulder,
and
walked, or rather limped, with a wooden crutch and smoked a fake pipe.  The children would go into fits of laughter.  The tourists used to laugh too and call me Captain Ron. Which I
thought was funny too and really
enjoyed, but mainly I was just a normal guy, working at a fun job that I loved.

So there we were, chatting over coffee. I wasn’t listening at first.  I am a man after all.  When I heard her say the name Devia, my ears pricked up.  I was suddenly paying as much attention to her talking as a winning lottery ticket holder does waiting for the last number being called out. That one, elusive, last number on his winning lottery ticket.   

“Sorry, what did you just say?”

“I said, a new woman joined the company the other day. Dee-Vee-Ah.” She pronounced it the same way the other woman had, and for a moment he saw a vision of Devia in his mind.  “She’s really nice,” she continued. “She is working in my department and will be working as a realtor for the company.”

“A realtor?”

“Yes honey, you know, that work I do?  The company I work for?” Crystal was joking, but I got the tone of her voice, it was borderline sarcastic.

“Yeah I know. I’m just surprised, that’s all.”

“Surprised at what?”

“Surprised that she is a realtor. That’s all.”

“What do
you
know of her?”  Crystal sounded suspicious.

“No, no, it’s nothing. It’s just that you said your company wasn’t hiring any new people on.”  Julian lied quickly, feeling the perspiration starting to bead on his forehead.  He felt guilty.
Like he had almost let the cat out of the bag. Although he didn’t quite know what cat, or what bag. He just knew from the way that Crystal was scrutinising him, that he was almost in deep trouble for something.

“Oh. Yeah, they said they weren’t hiring anyone new, but somehow she managed to get a job.
Merv seemed really taken by her for some reason.  He gave her a glowing introduction when she arrived.” She laughed suddenly. “You know it was the strangest thing.
He was sweating like a pig.
I have never seen him look so nervous. You would think he had just been caught by his wife with his pants down getting a blow job.”  She laughed again and Julian looked away. Suddenly realization hit Julian.
Devia obviously was a woman who got what she wanted.
Chances were, Crystal had hit the proverbial nail right on the head.  He felt sorry for her boss Merv, suddenly being saddled with her.  He wondered where Merv had had the misfortune to meet Devia. He thought for a moment how he had felt meeting her in the supermarket parking lot that time. She had seemed very forceful, and he felt grateful that his incident with her had been brief. He would hopefully never have to see her again.

Before they knew it, summer arrived
and the days were once again warming up
. Crystal had been busy with her work and his work was just picking up too.  The kids were busy with their school, sports activities and life in general was good. Days were rolling into one another, uneventful, with one day pretty much like another.

Today there was a private party in the name of Cobmane booked for the boat and he was due to meet them at the marina at seven am.  He kissed Crystal as he left
that
morning.  She was still dozing in bed, her arm over her forehead, her mouth slightly apart as she slept.  She didn’t stir so he left her a note by the bed, promising his return later. He covered the remaining page in badly scrawled kisses. He knew she liked that.

The morning was perfect and bright.  The sky was a crisp clear blue and high up were a few fluffy cumulus clouds floating by.  The gulls were circling and then swooping down and mewling loudly.
A rather tattered looking elderly heron, a regular resident at the marina, stood at the dockside on one leg.  His loud squawking calls sounding like an old man vomiting over the edge of the deck. Julian smiled at the cacophony as he passed.  The heron hurriedly flew away, rising up into the air with a loud angry croak, his legs trailing behind. Getting on the boat, Julian started preparing the boat for today’s sailing.  There wasn’t that much to do as he always had the boat ready and beyond immaculate.  The boat was his pride and joy and he knew her like the back of his hand. 
It
was like his second wife, he loved her so much. Over the years, he had loved sailing, teaching the kids how to tie knots and how to steer her through the waves. Crystal wasn’t a natural sailor, but eventually she too, had learned to love her. She always beamed with him with regard to their mutual love to sail her, and when she was on board they were like a couple of kids together. They had shared so much passion and laughter on the boat. It became a joint joy and something that neither of them had expected to do together. When they had first met many years ago, he had been sleeping in the stockroom of a local car dealership.  He had been driving for days and had just delivered a new load of cars to the showroom and had sat down on the couch in the back of the office. The next thing he knew a beautiful blonde creature was waking him up.  As soon as he opened his eyes and saw her, it was love at first sight. Crystal had been between modeling and acting jobs, and if she hadn’t been at the car dealership that day, they would never have met.  Her legs had been a mile long, and looking up to her face, her long blonde hair had fallen like a silk curtain when she had bent down to wake him.  His eyes had initially opened directly to the view down her blouse, showing her plastic surgeon had constructed perfect cleavage. He knew then, that she was going to be his wife. It was only a matter of time. Julian was coiling ropes as reminisced, a smile curling the corners of his lips. He loved his wife with a raging passion.

“Cooeee,” Julian heard a woman’s call from the entrance to the marina, and he stopped what he was doing and straightened up to look.  His hand coming up to his eyes to shield them from the bright, early morning sun. His heart sank as he saw that ‘Devia’ woman walking towards him.  She was dressed in a pair of too tight red shorts and a strappy red polka dot top that showed at least six inches of cleavage and more curves than a man cared, or needed, to see.  She was tippy toeing along the marine in her spiky red high heels. She wore a large brimmed straw hat on her head and a stiff fifties style raffia bag over her arm.  Devia was waving and laughing at him.  He groaned, hoping that she wasn’t in his boat party today.  He watched her approaching, part of him hoping she would walk on by, but just the fact she had recognised him and now knew where he worked, was enough to darken any day.  A cloud pas
sed
over the sun and the sky temporarily darkened, he looked up with a sense of foreboding.  She was still waving and smiling, coming closer with every step.

“Hi again,” she said with a broad smile. Her green eyes twinkling as she looked at him. She held out her hand and waited for him to help her aboard. He still hadn’t taken her hand, and he eyed her suspiciously.

“Sorry?”

“No, don’t you be sorry.” She drawled, as she put her hand in her bag.  Papers rustled until she found the envelope which held her reservation information. As soon as he saw the company logo on the envelope he knew she was part of the booking. She held it out for him to read and he took it from her. “It’s my reservation number and information.” She said to reiterate the fact. She smiled happily as he read it.  His eyes were screwed up against the now blinding light and he couldn’t believe what he was reading.

He read it.
‘Devia Cobmane.’
The rest of the document said the number of hours he had been booked for and the price she had paid.

“Ok. How many are coming?”

“None honey.
Just me.
I’ve got you all to my l’il ol
e
self. All day.” She smirked, and held her hand out again, reluctantly he took it. He didn’t want to, but he didn’t see what choice he had. How could this be happening?

She came onboard and he looked down at her ridiculously high heels. He thought to himself how inappropriately she was dressed for the days sailing. She looked as though she was trying to mimic a forties or fifties pinup girl look and was unfortunately failing badly. Her makeup was garish and the would be hairstyle aged her badly. Mutton dressed as lamb. He started to feel trapped just being in her presence.  Something about her made you feel that the life was being sucked out of you, one breath at a time, until you couldn’t breathe at all.

“One moment, I will be right back.”  Julian stepped off the boat
making sure he had his cell phone
and left her sitting by the helm.

“Andrew? It’s Julian”

“Hi Julian.”

“Just a quick question.  Is there anyone else that can take the Cobmane party out today?”

“No, why?”

“I just don’t have a good feeling about this.”

“What do you mean?”

“I can’t explain. I just feel I shouldn’t take her out.”

“She asked especially for you Julian so that is not even possible. I can’t move her to another boat. She wants
you
as her captain. She was
very
clear about that.”  Julian felt his jaw clench. He heard his heartbeat thudding in his ears and felt even worse.

“What’s going on?” Andrew asked. “Anything I should know?”

“Nothing, is there any way someone else,
anyone else
, can do this?”

“No.  Sorry, Julian. There isn’t. Are you ok?”

“Yeah. I’m good.”  There was silence as both men waited for the other to speak. Finally Andrew did.

“Look, it’s just one job.
  What’s the big deal? 
Get out there, bring her back in and it’s over. There will be different people tomorrow.”

“Understood.”  Julian said curtly. He hung up and walked back to the boat.  She was lying on the cushions in the way he had seen Betty Grable posing for promotional stills in the old movies.  Betty Grable had been famous for her legs.  Devia was not
to be known for hers in his opinion
. She didn’t come close, and she was trying very hard, too hard, to be alluring. It made him thoroughly sick. 
And he was thoroughly annoyed. 
But this was his job and he was being paid to take her out on the boat.  Take her out he would. Julian accepted his fate, and decided he would be cool, aloof and completely professional. He would do his job and nothing else.  He would ignore her as much as possible. She had paid for a sailing trip and that’s what she would get. Nothing more, and nothing less.

As the boat, the Ocean Islander, cut through the blue sparkling waves, the sun glinting on the peaks, Julian started to feel
better about the day’s situation.  H
is heart
began to
soar with the ocean breeze. He could forget everything when he was sailing.  It was just him and his boat.
  And, of course, one unwanted passenger.