Fiends

    ‘What’s about my fanny?’

    He stepped back and inspected it, frowning thoughtfully like an artist examining the lines of a statue. ‘Nothing is wrong with it… exactly.’

    ‘Oh, thank you.’

    ‘But it’s not the fanny of a pirate. They’ve got big, broad butts. Yours is much to graceful and delicate.’

    ‘Sorry.’

    ‘I’ll just have to grin and bear it.’

    ‘Bare it?’

    The way she smiled made Brad pull her close, holding her lightly, kissing her, finally pushing his hand down the back of her jeans and feeling the cool smooth skin of her buttocks.

    Tina squeezed him tightly, and let go.

    ‘Shouldn’t we be shoving off?’ she asked.

    ‘Should we?’ he murmured against the warm curve of her neck. ‘The fishies are waiting.’

    ‘Very true. Thanks for reminding me.’

    He let her go. Together, they untied the mooring lines. Then Brad turned on the ignition key and pressed the starter button. The twin inboard motors thundered into life. Tina came up beside him. He gave her a swat on the rump.

    ‘If you break it, you buy it.’

    ‘How much?’ he asked.

    She held onto him as the boat lunged forward. ‘You probably can’t afford it,’ she said.

    The bow lifted above the waves.

    ‘You’re forgetting, I’m a wealthy man.’

    ‘Right. Your dad owns a bait shop.’

    ‘There are different kinds of wealth,’ he said, grinning.

    ‘You’re wealthy in worms.’

    ‘How about ten bucks? Is that enough?’

    ‘Plenty.’ She smiled up at him. ‘You get a discount ’cause I love you so much.’

    Brad put a hand on her shoulder. ‘Have I wished you happy birthday yet?’ he asked.

    ‘No. What’re you waiting for?’

    ‘Happy birthday. The big seventeen.’

    ‘Yeah. I’m ancient.’

    Brad throttled down. The roar of the motors diminished to a sputtering whisper and the boat slowed, its bow slowly lowering into the waves. ‘Time for your party,’ he said, and killed the motors.

    ‘We’ll let her drift for a while.’ He lifted Tina onto the pilot’s seat. ‘Just sit tight on your priceless fanny.’

    ‘Ten bucks isn’t priceless.’

    ‘Right back,’ he said, and went below. In the galley, he opened his ice chest. Two glasses were tucked into the crushed ice along with two bottles of champagne. He left one bottle behind and hurried topside. Tina grinned. ‘Hey! Champagne?’

    ‘Happy birthday.’

    ‘Shouldn’t you have a towel to wrap round the bottle? They always have towels.’

    ‘A towel, a towel. Good idea. Hold these.’ He gave the bottle and glasses to Tina, then rushed below and found a beach towel. It was still damp and smelled of sun tan oil. He tucked it under his arm and picked up a flat, gift-wrapped box. As he reached the top of the steps, he heard a pop. A cork shot past his ear. It thumped the window. ‘Almost gotcha!’ Tina blurted.

    ‘Good thing you missed.’

    ‘Yeah?’

    ‘How far can you swim?’

    ‘Far. Very far.’ She scanned the shores. The nearest was at least a quarter mile away. ‘I could make it,’ she said.

    ‘This wouldn’t.’ He tossed the gift sideways. Tina gasped, but he snatched it out of the air with his other hand.

    ‘What if you’d missed?' Tina asked.

    ‘I never miss.’

    ‘But what if?’

    ‘Seriously?’

    ‘Seriously.’

    ‘I would’ve dived in after it. There’s no way I’d let this get away. No way in the world.’

    ‘It’s something pretty good, huh?’

    ‘It’s something wonderful.’

    ‘Gonna give it to me?’

    ‘Later. First, we’ve got to toast the birthday girl.’

4

    ‘Why would he want to follow you?’ Dan asked without looking away from the dark, twisting road.

    ‘I don’t know,’ Marty said.

    ‘You’d better tell me. I’ve got to figure out how to handle this.’

    ‘Can you lose him?’

    ‘Maybe. For tonight. But he can always go after you tomorrow. He can wait around till he finds you alone. Do you want that?’

    ‘Of course not.’

    ‘Then tell me what he wants.’

    ‘I don’t know what he wants. I testified against him once. He went to prison.’

    ‘What did he do?’

    ‘Never mind.’

    ‘Thanks for all the information. At least we know one thing; if it is your friend back there, he probably doesn’t plan to shake your hand.’

    ‘That’s for sure.’ She looked out of the rear window and gazed down the road, searching the shadows.

    ‘I’ll take you to my place,’ Dan said.

    ‘No, not your place.’

    ‘I’ve got a gun.’

    ‘No!’

    ‘Why the hell not?’

    ‘You want to shoot him? That’d be great.’

    Dan glanced at her, smiled with one side of his head. ‘It might not come to shooting.’

    ‘But it might.’

    ‘In that case, may the better aim win.’

    A few minutes later, he slowed down in front of his house. ‘Keep driving,’ Marty said. If you get your gun, someone might end up getting killed.’

    ‘Damn right.’

    ‘Keep driving, or you can just let me out and I’ll take my chances walking home.’

    He made a snorty sound, then muttered, ‘I just hope your friend isn’t armed.’

***