Bidadisndat
Contributing Member
BLACKWATTLE CREEK
(Book 3 in the Changes of Pace Collection)
Liam stood aside at the foot of the stairs and after allowing two young ladies to pass and ascend ahead of him began climbing towards the first floor lounge of the Metropolitan hotel on the corner of Sydney’s Bridge and George Streets. Thirty minutes early for an appointment with his friends Greg and Sue and with nothing else to do he decided that having a drink whilst he waited would be as good a way as any to pass the time, plus with any luck he might even find an empty table for them all to sit at when the pair arrived. Unfortunately he was out of luck in that regard as it being a quarter past five on a Friday evening, when most office workers had finished for the day and were unwinding with a few drinks before a purported well-earned weekend off, all the tables were occupied.(Book 3 in the Changes of Pace Collection)
He ordered a Scotch and Dry and after picking up his glass looked around the bar and saw that the two young ladies who had preceded him up the stairs had snared the last available table. They appeared to be waiting for companions as their jackets were draped over the backs of two vacant chairs upon which they’d placed their shoulder-bags, and each was nursing a cocktail glass of what appeared to Liam to be Brandy Alexanders. Having worked part-time as a cocktail barman he would be likely to know, though at the moment it was such a popular drink for ladies that perhaps anyone could have guessed that.
One of the girls was a tallish, long-legged, fair-skinned and blue-eyed blonde whereas her companion was almost the opposite, being not so tall - though not really short either - with brown eyes, light almond skin and raven-black hair. She appeared to be of Indian descent, or partly at least, although when she spoke it was in a very correct English accent leading Liam to think that perhaps she was also a recent arrival from the old country.
He wasn’t exactly eavesdropping however from the snatches of conversation he picked up he was able to work out that the blonde had apparently set up her friend for a date with a new acquaintance of her boyfriend. She’d never met the bloke herself she admitted, but had been told by her boyfriend Barry that he seemed to be an OK kind of guy and that Sam would probably like him.
He managed to grab an empty bar stool and was able to sit and watch people entering and leaving the lounge as he waited for his friends. Mid-way through his drink two young men arrived at the head of the stairs and after sighting the two girls one of them gave a wave towards their table then they proceeded to the bar to order a couple of beers. It was obvious to Liam that one of them had already sunk a few glasses before arriving and after that one had looked at the table and growled “Are you trying to set me up with a Curry-Muncher?” rightly predicted that the blind date would not turn out be a good one.
“Her name’s Samira. Her father’s a Brit though her mother emigrated from India to England as a young teenager,” said the other. “She’s lived most of her life in London and doesn’t have any trace of an Indian accent at all; In fact she speaks like a well educated upper-class Englishwoman.”
“Still a Wog in my book. Got a good set of jugs by the looks of it though,” he added whilst leering hard and fixedly at the girl’s ample breasts which were supported by a lacy bra covered by a slightly sheer blouse, “so it might not be a complete waste of a night. You reckon she puts out?”
From where he was sitting, quietly spoken as it was Liam heard the comment and although he considered the guy to be an obnoxious jerk nevertheless looked towards the table again and observed that the attractive girl he was referring to did indeed appear to be fairly well endowed in regards to her bust measurement, though to his mind not overly so.
“No way, Jerry,” Barry replied, taken aback by his companion’s unexpected crassness. “I can tell you right now that she’s definitely not that type of girl.”
Samira, the focus of the man’s gaze, picked up on its particular direction and intensity as soon as she realised he was looking at her, and summing him up in two seconds flat decided immediately that she wouldn’t be going on any date with him. And she made that quite clear shortly after Barry and a sullen looking Jerry went over to sit at the table where introductions were made.
Jerry made no effort to appear friendly towards Samira and it soon became evident that despite her actually being much more than just passing attractive he wasn’t pleased by having been set up with her as a companion for the evening.
“I suppose we’ll be going to some Indian restaurant,” he practically growled in a churlish tone that revealed he wouldn’t be at all happy with the idea, though he was totally unprepared for Samira’s quick and pointed response.
“Actually, if you could drag your lecherous eyes away from my breasts long enough to watch my lips you’d see them saying I wouldn’t go anywhere with you, so I don’t care where you go,” she said, and whilst her stinging words may have been spoken quietly her now hard-as-flint eyes bored straight into him.
Nicole gave a small gasp of surprise but also having noted Jerry’s inebriation plus the direction and intensity of his stare had to concede that Samira’s choice of having nothing to do with her boyfriend’s acquaintance wasn’t unreasonable.
“Fine by me,” said Jerry as he abruptly stood, quickly downed his beer then weaving an unsteady path towards the staircase leaving a threesome at the table hurled a derisive comment over his shoulder as he began to descend: “Plenty of friendly white sheilas in better places than here I can go to.”
His parting comment with its stress on white was intended as a racial slur but whilst Samira seemed to be totally unfazed it was obviously an embarrassment to both Nicole and Barry. She gave the pair a lop-sided smile and after telling them not to worry about her suggested that they should go off and have a romantic evening together without her as she’d gone right off the idea of a night out and would rather just go back to the flat and watch some TV. Although surprised, Nicole thought that leaving her friend alone right now might possibly be the best thing to do as she’d learned that whilst Samira appeared to be quite strong she could also be a bit over-sensitive at times, and that any words of well intended comfort or sympathy might result in her breaking down in tears.
After several minutes of “Are you sure?”, “Will you be OK?” and similar comments Nicole and Barry departed, and with Samira now the sole occupant of a table for four Liam decided to seize the opportunity to grab the vacant seats.
“Excuse me for the intrusion,” he said to Samira as he quickly approached the table before anybody else with the same idea in mind did, “but I noticed that your friends have left and was wondering if these chairs are available.”
“Oh, sure. I was going to leave after I finished this drink anyway,” Samira replied with a forlorn smile as she picked up her shoulder-bag and began to rise from her chair.
“Oh no… Please; there’s no hurry. In fact you’d be doing me a big favour if you could sit here for a few minutes more at least: I have a couple of friends arriving shortly but it wouldn’t look good for a man to be hogging a table for four by himself, even if people did know he was waiting for others.”
“That would be good actually, otherwise I’d probably drink this too quickly,” she replied, raising her almost full glass for him to see as she placed her bag on one of the vacant chairs.
Liam placed his briefcase on the second vacant chair, slid into the third and after introducing himself told her he worked as a computer analyst/programmer at Sun Alliance Insurance across the street, and the two friends he was meeting also worked there though in a different section. Samira in turn told him that she had come to Australia from England about six months before and was currently employed in the home-wares section of the big David Jones’ Department Store on George Street. She also shared a flat with the girl and her boyfriend who had just left, however she felt a bit like an intruder there and was currently looking for a place of her own.
They’d been chatting companionably for ten minutes or so when a tap on his shoulder made Liam look around to see his friend Sue standing beside him. His attempt to rise was forestalled when she pushed him back down onto his seat though Samira saw his intention as being that of a man who would naturally and politely stand for a lady when she arrived. Probably take his hat off or remove his sunglasses if wearing either when meeting or talking to a woman too, she thought with an inward smile.
After lifting Liam’s briefcase from the chair beside him and placing it on the floor between their seats Sue sat down and was introduced to Samira. His other friend, Greg, was at the bar ordering drinks for himself and Sue - and would no doubt also add a Scotch and Dry for Liam - and when he looked towards the table Sue stood and after pointing at herself and Samira indicated with two fingers that he should order an extra glass. With no way to know what type of drink the girl to whom Sue was taking might want Greg simply ordered a second Grasshopper, which had been Sue’s choice on this occasion.
Because the bar was now packed Liam thought it best to go and carry two of the drinks Greg had ordered, and as he stood he whispered very softly into Sue’s ear “I only just met her but I think she’s rather nice… try to not let her leave.” A very slight bob of her head had been the only indication that Sue had heard him however when he and Greg finally got the drinks and pushed through to the table he was happy to see that Samira hadn’t gathered her belongings in order to leave and the two girls were happily chatting away like old friends.
The girls were only distracted from whatever they were talking about when the cocktails were placed in front of them, with Samira being very surprised by the appearance of a drink that she hadn’t ordered. She was given no time to protest however, as Sue declared that the Brandy Alexander that Samira had been drinking was these days considered to be rather passé, and that she should try the Grasshopper that Greg had delivered.
“This is Liam’s friend Samira,” Sue told Greg when he sat down beside her, “though her friends call her Sam. She’s coming to Bevy’s Place with us when we’ve finished here.”
“What? Bevy’s Place? Who’s Bevy?” chirruped Sam, completely surprised that Sue had apparently included her in the trio’s plans for the night.
“It’s actually the name of a very popular wine bar in Mosman,” put in Greg, unaware that until then Samira had no idea she’d been invited. “It used to be called The Upper Crust until the obviously lower class new owners renamed it. We’re meeting a few friends there and having a meal. The food’s really good… well, for that type of place anyway, and there’s live music on Friday and Saturday nights.”
Once again Sue forestalled any protest by telling her that because Sam had said she had nothing planned for the night, or in fact for the whole weekend, she would be going with them. “And you’re going to enjoy yourself,” emphasised Sue, “whether you like it or not!”
Sam was amused by the determined way in which Sue had insisted that she would be going with them, and although hesitant at first as she didn’t know the people she’d just met was nevertheless finally persuaded to accompany them, and by the time she’d finished her second cocktail now found herself actually looking forward to having a good night out.
With drinks finished they surrendered their table to another waiting group and after exiting the hotel and crossing George St hailed a cab to take them to Hickson Road, where Sue had managed to find a space to park her car early that morning. The cab driver wasn’t too thrilled with the shortness of the trip but was consoled when soon after dropping them off he picked up a couple who wanted to go to the airport, where he’d have a good chance of finding another long fare. From there Sue drove them across the Harbour Bridge, then on to Bevy’s Place where they found that an upstairs table had been reserved by the friends Greg had said they were meeting. Said friends, Pete, Carol, Garry and Margaret were already there and all made Sam welcome, and rearranged their seats so that she and Sue sat side by side with Liam and Greg opposite them.
Meals were ordered from a menu that seemed to be based mainly on the same cuts of steak but with different sauces, though it did include one each of chicken, seafood and pasta dishes, and it being Bevy’s Place the drink of choice was Cider. Sam had never tried cider before and whilst to her it seemed to taste like fizzy apple juice she was quite unprepared for the effect its alcohol content would have, especially as the two mugs she drank followed the two cocktails she’d had earlier. She didn’t became overly intoxicated however it was obvious to her new-found friends that she wasn’t accustomed to drinking alcohol, and Liam made sure that after her second mug she drank only the non-alcoholic variety. Not that she seemed to notice any difference because to her the taste was the same and she’d already had enough alcohol to make her feel good for the rest of the evening anyway. In fact she turned out that she had a quick wit and was able to engage in repartee that the company found quite amusing.
The topics of conversation around the table were varied but included a short discussion about a trip they would be taking next day to a place up north, where they’d help Liam work on a small cabin he was building on a piece of riverside land he’d purchased six months before. They’d do four or five hours work on the cabin after arriving, camp overnight and then put in a couple of hours more in the morning before returning a little before midday: A Fancy Dress birthday barbeque/party had been planned for late Sunday afternoon and as quite a few friends had been invited they didn’t want anyone to be kept waiting for them.
“You weren’t expecting to have such an exciting weekend, were you?” Sue asked after informing Sam that she’d be staying overnight and going with them.
“But I’ve never been camping before and I don’t own a sleeping bag, or have any clothes to wear or anything,” Sam began to protest.
“Don’t worry about that: We’re near enough the same size so I can lend you a pair of jeans and a T-shirt or two, and as I know Liam has an extra sleeping bag he can lend you one. I’ve got a pair of pyjamas you can wear, and I also have extra toothbrushes on hand because we often have people stay over, especially when we have parties. I’m going to do a bit of shopping in the morning before we head off so you can come with me and buy anything else you think you need, and as tonight you’ll be staying at our place there’s no problem.”
Sam hadn’t been fully persuaded about sleeping over but after they’d all left the bar and gone to Sue and Greg’s for a slice of cheesecake and a nightcap of Bailey’s Irish Cream she finally accepted the invitation. There didn’t seem to be much option to her staying overnight anyway as, probably due to the drinks she’d had, she fell asleep in an arm-chair whilst they were all talking. Greg and Sue pulled their fold-out lounge into its double bed form and after Liam gently lifted Sam from the chair and laid her out on it Sue pulled her shoes off, placed a pillow under her head and then covered her with a light blanket.
Liam too was given a blanket and pillow and he lay down beside her and slept until six in the morning when, without disturbing the still sleeping girl Pete and Carol, who had also stayed the night, woke him with a mug of freshly brewed coffee. He then had Pete drop him off at his own place to pick up his Toyota Landcruiser, saying that he’d be going to collect his trailer then go to the hardware store to get a few odds and ends before meeting up with the others.
He first drove to a friend’s property in Terry Hills where he had the use of a workshop and once there hitched up the trailer which had been heavily loaded with some of the building material for the cabin they’d be working on. A short time later found him at the hardware store where he spent fifteen minutes locating and purchasing the several items he needed before proceeding to the meeting point, via a McDonald’s drive-thru where he picked up a big breakfast.
Pete, Carol, Garry and Margaret were waiting when he arrived and Sue, Greg and Sam arrived twenty minutes later… fifteen minutes after the pre-arranged time because the girls had had to do some shopping for essential items for Sam. (Buying toiletries and a couple of T-shirts that weren’t nearly as tight around the bust as those Sue had lent her hadn’t taken long however Liam learned later that the two girls had also spent some time in a Lifeline good-will store looking for something to wear for Sunday’s Fancy Dress barbeque/party.)
Nobody was put out by the delay however, and a few minutes after meeting up they were all on their way. Sue having decided that Sam would be travelling with her and Greg, Pete transferred from Garry’s car to Liam’s Landcruiser so that he’d have company for the three hour drive up the coast, which meant the two cars travelling with them would each have two girls and a driver who unless invited to wasn’t usually meant to participate in any prattle the girls might be engaged in. Fortunately for both drivers on this occasion they were allowed to join the conversations - of course with the understanding that they weren’t to disagree with anything the girls were talking about - and by the time everybody arrived at the building site all were in high spirits.
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