The Perils of Skinny-Dipping (6 page)

Richard nodded in agreement.

‘
If you need any ideas,’ continued Mr Permelo, ‘I’m quite happy to help.’

‘
I might just take you up on that,’ replied Richard, waving at the bar tender to refill the glasses.

Richard and Mr Permelo met on the same day and at the same time every week. Richard had acquainted himself with Mr Permelo not long after he had arrived to work for AVP. He had been impressed with the South African’s direct attitude with his staff and noticed, when he shouted orders, people literally jumped to attention. That was Richard’s way too. He had had that authority in the classroom and hadn’t been afraid to use it. He had found managing the AVP office very frustrating and, at times, futile. Phil, he had decided, had never jumped to attention in his life. His laid-back attitude grated on Richard’s nerves and that woman, well… Mr Permelo had a very valid point as far as she was concerned.

It wasn’t long before the bar quietened down and the two men could talk about the business they had met to discuss.

‘
I’ve two girls who think they want to be waitresses,’ said Mr Permelo quietly. ‘One is a local girl and the other is from Mahalapye, here to live with her aunt.’ Richard nodded and Mr Permelo continued. ‘I’ll send the girl from Mahalapye round tomorrow. Usual routine.’

It had been on one of their first meetings that Mr Permelo had brought up the subject of Richard living on his own. Richard had agreed that, although it wasn’t an ideal situation, it was better than living with a woman who either didn’t know her place, or couldn’t string an intelligent sentence together. Mr Permelo had been delighted to come up with a solution that would benefit them both.

‘
I get lots of casual labourers looking for work,’ explained Mr Permelo. ‘I don’t have the time for them. I’m too busy running this hotel. If I do need staff, there are plenty of Kaffirs I can call on. What I could do is send the girls to you for an ‘interview’ and trial run for, maybe, a week. The job description is purely down to you, Richard, but I think it could cover all your needs. Of course, if you think one might be good enough to work here for me, I would consider it, after a good reference from you of course.’

Richard had smiled and given his approval. It sounded like an ideal solution. ‘What can I offer in return?’ he had asked.

‘
I need plants and trees for the hotel gardens. They’re difficult to source and not cheap to buy. I’m sure AVP wouldn’t miss a few now and again!’

‘
I’m sure that won’t be a problem,’ smiled Richard.

The usual routine was that the hopeful applicants would go to Richards’s house at four in the afternoon when he had returned from work. The arrangement had worked extremely well and, after the promise of a good reference to Mr Permelo, all his needs had indeed been met. He left the bar happy with the prospect of female company over the next week. However, there was another female on his mind who he needed to attend to first thing in the morning.

Chapter Six

Abbey was woken by the sound of knocking on her front door. As she lay for a second or two, the knock turned into a constant thump. She rolled out of bed and flinched at the stiffness of her muscles as she made her way across the floor. She opened the door. Richard was standing there, looking very annoyed.

‘
I thought you’d be up by now, Abbey,’ he chastised. ‘It’s gone eight thirty!’

‘
What can I do for you, Richard?’ yawned Abbey, as she put the kettle onto the stove.

‘
Aren’t you coming into work today?’

She turned to face him. ‘Richard, it may have escaped your notice, but I was in a road accident yesterday and I could have died! I have a cut on my face, my hand is still sore and I feel like shit. So no, I will not be coming into work today. What I
will
be doing, is visiting my friend and colleague who has also been injured and is probably still in hospital. Now, would you like a cup of coffee whilst your here?’

‘
No coffee thank you, and it didn’t escape my notice that you had been in an accident given the pickup is completely written off. I hope AVP are insured, that’s all I can say. What you were thinking of staying out all night, I’ll never know.’

‘
Look Richard, I made an executive decision, OK? I decided that, as the truck from Francistown was definitely on its way up the road, we had better wait for it. I also decided that it would be far safer to drive back in daylight rather than in the pitch black.’

‘
Hmm, well I’m not sure your last executive decision was the right one. Do you?’

Abbey stayed silent and kept her back towards him for fear of throwing the kettle at him.

‘
I better go,’ said Richard, breaking the silence. ‘Someone’s got to keep the home fires burning, as they say. I’ll see you tomorrow?’

‘
You might - you might not,’ hissed Abbey through gritted teeth.

The fly screen banged against the frame and Richard muttered something indecipherable under his breath as he stomped away down the hill. Abbey took a deep breath and shook her head at his insensitivity and lack of compassion

‘
What a total arse,’ she muttered to herself. ‘Typical friggin school teacher. Always right, always got to have the last bloody word.’

She made her way back to bed, holding a cup of coffee in her left hand.

Phil was at home and lying on the sofa when she arrived at his house later that afternoon.

‘
Is that wise?’ she asked, pointing at the empty beer cans already stacking up on the table.

‘
Purely medicinal,’ replied Phil, taking another slurp.

‘
Did you manage to carry them over here yourself, given you have broken ribs?’

‘
Nah, paid one of the kids five pula. Now he keeps coming back every ten minutes to check whether I need another delivery!’

Abbey cleared a space on a chair before sitting down, and relayed the visit she’d received from Richard earlier that morning.

‘
Well,’ said Phil. ‘It’s gonna be at least a week before I’m back, and old Rickcardo can stick that up his proverbial. Honestly, what is his bloody problem with the rest of the human race? Hey, do you think he’s married or has been?’

‘
Hmm, not sure,’ shuddered Abbey. ‘He’s not the easiest person to talk to, is he? And he doesn’t exactly have any animal magnetism. At least not that I’ve noticed.’ She looked at Phil and smiled. ‘Anyway, you behave yourself, OK? Otherwise I’ll be sending Nurse Judith round to tend to your broken body!’

‘
Steady on now, hun,’ laughed Phil, clutching his ribs. ‘Don’t go putting images into my head I really don’t want there.’

Satisfied that Phil was alright and on the mend, she left the bungalow and walked home. Children were playing barefoot on the road, rolling old car tyres with sticks. She smiled at the pure simplicity of an activity that brought so much pleasure, that didn’t have a complicated instruction manual or cost a fortune. The children recognised her from school visits and shouted ‘hello’ as she walked past. She smiled and waved back at them. She had just turned to walk up the hill when Darren pulled up beside her.

‘
Hop in,’ he said, ‘I’ll give you a lift up the road.’

Abbey happily accepted and climbed gingerly into the cab.

‘
I told you I’d look in on you today. How you doing?’

‘
I’m feeling a lot better thanks. Just a bit sore and I’ve got bruises in the most peculiar places.’ She rubbed her shoulder as she spoke.

He smiled at her and pulled up by the porch steps. ‘I have something that belongs to you. The guys found it when they brought the truck in.’ He handed a mobile phone to her.

‘
Wow, thanks. At least now I still have all my contact numbers, assuming the damn thing still works.’

‘
It does,’ he replied. ‘I took the liberty of checking it for you.’

‘
I’ll put the kettle on,’ she said when they got inside. Darren smirked at her. ‘What’s so funny about that?’ she asked, slightly bemused at the expression on his face.

‘
It’s not so funny, as so British!’

‘
I’d make you something to eat as well, but I haven’t been shopping and this hand is still quite sore and…’

Darren held his hand up and mouthed ‘stop’ at her. Without another word, he went out to the truck and appeared with two plastic bags full of shopping.

‘
I’d already thought of that,’ he said, ‘so I came prepared. Now, do as you’re told, sit down and I’ll pour you a glass of wine.’

Darren busied himself in the kitchen. He listened intently as Abbey chatted about her job with AVP, and the antics her and Phil had managed to get up to since they arrived. She explained why they had stayed the night at the café and then decided to set off early the next day to try and appease Richard’s mood.

‘
I feel a bit of a fool actually,’ she said. ‘There I was thinking I was being sensible and avoiding a possible accident by waiting until daylight. Some good it did us!’

‘
Listen, don’t be so hard on yourself. We both know there have been literally hundreds of accidents on that road over the years, some a lot more serious than yours!’

‘
Thanks,’ Abbey smiled. ‘Unfortunately that’s not quite how Richard sees it. You’d think he was going to have to pay for the repairs out of his own money!’

They spent the rest of the evening swapping stories about past jobs and the current delights of working outdoors. She sat beside him on the sofa, taking note of his soft features and toned body. He seemed to sense Abbey’s scrutiny and leaned over to fill her wine glass, brushing her hand with his in the process. He smelt divine, of soap and a hint of cologne and, still feeling slightly vulnerable after the accident, she could have quite happily sunk into his arms there and then.

It was midnight when Darren stood up to leave. She walked with him to the door.

‘
I seem to be thanking you quite a lot at the moment,’ she smiled, looking up into his blue eyes.

‘
Don’t worry, I’m writing out IOU’s on a daily basis now,’ he laughed. ‘See you soon, Abbey, and take care of yourself.’

This time he put both his hands on the base of her neck, kissing her on the forehead before walking away into the night.

Chapter Seven

After a week of rest and recovery, both Phil and Abbey were back at work. Phil still had the yellow smudges of bruises on his face, but his spirits were high and he was back to his usual self.

Abbey had not seen Darren since their dinner at her house and she hadn’t seen him around town either. Not that she had been specifically looking for him of course, or that she really had time to think about where he was.

Two government ministers from Gaborone were going to visit in a couple of days on a promotional tour before the up and coming local elections. The town had been preparing itself for the visit and banners and flags had been hung on buildings and fences. School children were going to be given the day off to line the main road and cheer the ministers as they drove past and the local choir had been practising for days.

Richard was frantic, as they were visiting every organisation that promoted Botswana in a positive light, and AVP was one of them. He was busy writing up a plan that included a tour around some of the plantation sites, and a speech with a photo opportunity right outside the office.

‘
They’ll have journalists following them everywhere,’ he said, going over his plan for the seventh time. He looked up at Phil. ‘You’ll need new trousers.’

‘
What?’ replied Phil, in a higher-pitched voice than normal. ‘What’s wrong with shorts and a t-shirt, Richard? Aren’t we supposed to look as if were hard at work?’

‘
Some people work hard and dress smartly at the same time,’ he retorted.

Phil tutted under his breath, threw his pen onto the desk and walked out of the office.

‘
Well, that went well,’ smirked Abbey. ‘The diplomatic core certainly missed out on you, Richard.’

‘
Hmm, and you’re not much better.’

Abbey whooped with laughter as Richard followed Phil out of the door. She muttered ‘dick’ when she thought he was out of earshot.

The day of the visit arrived. Richard had Phil and Abbey standing to attention outside the office, waiting for the cascade of black cars to pull up. They both looked clean and smart. Richard was pacing up and down in front of them. Abbey felt like she was back at school in assembly on a uniform inspection day.

Phil leaned over and whispered in her ear. ‘Seen anything of lover boy?’

‘
He’s not my lover!’

‘
Not yet.’

‘
Phil, I’m warning you. Let’s not go there, unless you want us to fall out and I’ll make a scene in front of our nice visitors,’ she said, still smiling and barely moving her lips.

‘
Oooh, tetchy today, aren’t we? OK, OK, don’t look at me like that. I promise I won’t mention Darren or the word ‘lover’ ever again, at least not in the
same
sentence anyway. Oh look, is that Darren’s bakkie that’s just pulled up over there?’

Abbey craned her neck to look in the direction Phil was pointing, when she realised she had fallen straight for his wind-up.