by Ray Gordon
‘You wouldn’t understand, Nat. Anyway, there’s a fiver so go and get the drinks.’
Sighing as her friend left the table and ambled up to the bar, Sheena began to wonder whether she was right. Rod had mentioned marriage, she reflected. But he’d been talking about marrying Deborah. He obviously liked Sheena, but was he only using her for sex? Was he lining her up as his permanent slut on the side to help him endure his marriage to a stuck-up prude? Sheena bit her lip as her friend walked back to the table. Nat was attractive and very sexy, she thought, eyeing her miniskirt, her long, shapely legs. Would Rod have gone for her if Sheena hadn’t been in the pub first?
‘That barman is a cunt,’ Nat said, plonking the drinks on the table. ‘He tried to rip me off with the change.’
‘That would go down well at the Castle Club,’ Sheena said with a giggle. ‘Calling the barman a cunt would go down very well.’
‘I’m not at the Castle Club, am I? What’s it like there?’
‘It’s really nice. There’s a thick carpet and everyone’s nicely dressed and . . .’
‘Apart from you.’
‘Fuck off, Nat. I look OK, don’t I?’
‘You look OK for this dump, but not for a posh club.’
‘I need some new clothes,’ Sheena sighed. ‘I’m meeting Rod tomorrow so I’ll have to buy something.’
‘Are you meeting him at the club?’
‘No, I’m seeing him here at six o’clock.’
‘Here? You’re going to come here all dressed up? They’ll throw you out.’
‘Don’t be daft, of course they won’t. Anyway, we won’t be staying here. I expect we’ll go to the club or out for a meal.’
‘He’ll buy you a few drinks and then take you back to your pit and fuck you, Sheena. I’d put money on it, if I had any.’
Sheena lowered her head and gazed into her beer glass. Nat was probably right, she reflected. Rod only wanted her as a bit of rough on the side, and there was no way he’d take her to the club again. A tear rolling down her cheek, she knew that she could never compete with the likes of Deborah. She could contact the woman, tell her that Rod had been screwing her . . . But where would it get her? Deborah had money, and she was well in with Rod’s father. Her dream shattered, she looked up at her friend and frowned.
‘You’re right,’ she agreed. ‘We’re both trollops, and always will be.’
‘You’ve had your dream, babe,’ Nat said, smiling at Sheena. ‘Now get back to the real world, OK?’
‘OK.’
‘Let’s get pissed.’
‘Yeah, let’s get pissed,’ Sheena echoed. ‘Let’s blow the money on booze and get totally fucking wrecked.’
Two
Sheena felt despondent as she dragged herself out of bed the following morning. Her room was a mess and the usual musty smell brought home the stark reality of her situation. There’d be no big house with a fitted kitchen and a nice bathroom; there’d be no money, no escaping poverty. She walked on to the landing and tried the bathroom door, but someone had beaten her to it. The water would take hours to heat up again, she thought broodily as she wandered back to her room.
She grabbed her handbag and checked her money. Sighing as she realised that she’d spent thirty pounds in the pub, she filled the kettle and made a cup of coffee. So much for a new dress, she thought sadly, dropping her bag on to the floor. Taking her coffee back to bed, she slipped beneath her quilt and pondered her future. Water dripping through the ceiling told her that it was raining, but she didn’t place the bowl on the floor to catch the drips as she usually did. All she wanted to do was get out of the slum she called home and search for a better life.
‘Fuck it,’ she breathed, finishing her coffee and leaping out of bed as she heard the bathroom door open. ‘I’m going to change my life if it’s the last fucking thing I do.’
After a cold shower, she dressed in her red miniskirt and walked into town. Nat was probably right about Rod, she reflected for the umpteenth time as she wandered into a clothes shop. But she wasn’t going to give up without a fight.
Sorting through the dresses hanging on a rail, she found a black one that she liked and checked the price tag. Thirty-five pounds. The woman behind the counter was on the phone, so Sheena grabbed the black dress and rolled it up into a ball. She’d never done this before, she thought apprehensively as she glanced at the woman. She was many things, but not a thief. Three girls wandered into the shop, distracting the woman, and Sheena slipped out into the street and walked down an alleyway. Breathing a sigh of relief as she looked at the dress, she felt swamped with guilt. Never again, she decided, taking a carrier bag from a dustbin and concealing the dress.
Walking along the street, she looked up at the huge office block and grinned. Gibson-Brown Architects. Was Deborah in the building? she wondered as she pushed the glass revolving doors and stepped on to the plush carpet inside. The security man looked up at her as she walked towards his desk, and she felt her heart banging hard against her chest. She had no idea what she was going to say as he asked her whether he could help her.
‘Is Miss Gibson-Brown in?’ she said softly.
‘Do you have an appointment?’ he asked her, grabbing a phone and punching in a number. ‘What name is it?’
‘Er . . . Johnson, Elizabeth Johnson.’
‘Security here,’ he said. ‘Is Miss Gibson-Brown available, please? There’s a Miss Johnson here to . . . Oh, I see. Thank you.’ He replaced the phone and gazed at Sheena. ‘I’m afraid she’s out, Miss Johnson. What time was your appointment?’
‘I – I didn’t have an appointment. You see, I’m supposed to deliver a package to her house and . . . I know the road, on the Golden Beach estate, but I forget the house number.’
‘You could leave the package with me.’
‘No, no . . . I have to deliver it to the house.’
Opening a book, he sighed. ‘I shouldn’t be doing this,’ he said. ‘But as you know the road . . . It’s twenty-five Beach Lane.’
‘Oh, thank you,’ Sheena breathed. ‘You’ve saved the day.’
After leaving the building, Sheena walked to the private estate with a spring in her step. So far, so good, she thought as she found the road. The detached house was huge, and Sheena stood at the end of the drive gazing at the Porsche parked by the double garage. A different world, she contemplated dreamily, imagining the beautiful kitchen. Wandering up the drive, she gazed at the Porsche and sighed. A world a million light years away. She crept up to an open window, then hid behind a bush when she heard someone talking, and listened.
‘Pick me up at seven,’ a woman said. ‘Seven, Rodney, and don’t be late. Well, you’ll just have to cancel your meeting. Look, if your meeting is at six, you can be here by seven. Yes, of course. On the dot, Rodney.’
Slipping away, Sheena wondered whether Rod was going to turn up at the pub. A meeting at six? Had he meant the meeting with Sheena at the pub? Walking home, she felt butterflies in her stomach as she hoped that Rod had lied to Deborah about a business meeting. He must think something of me to lie to her, she thought happily. But she knew in her heart that he only wanted her young body.
Wearing her new dress, Sheena arrived at the pub at six and sat at a table with a pint of lager. She’d done her hair and applied a little makeup and felt good, as one of the regulars asked her whether she’d come into money. Ignoring him, Sheena kept her eyes on the door. Her heart raced, her stomach fluttering. She’d never felt so apprehensive in all her life. What if Rod didn’t turn up? What if he really did have a business meeting and . . . Her pretty face beaming as the door opened, she waved at Rod.
‘Hi,’ he said, walking over to her table. ‘Wow, you look great.’
‘Thanks,’ she breathed. ‘And thanks for the money.’
‘I’m afraid I don’t have a great deal of time,’ he sighed, sitting next to her. ‘I have a business meeting at seven.’
‘Oh, right. Aren’t you having a drink?’
>
‘No, I’ve got the car outside. Do you fancy going for a drive?’
‘Where to?’
‘Let’s go somewhere quiet, where we can be alone. How about going up to the forest?’
‘Rod, I’m wearing my new dress. I thought we were going for a meal or . . .’
‘Yes, yes, I know. This damned meeting is a pain, and I can’t get out of it.’
‘OK,’ she said, finishing her beer. ‘Let’s go.’
Sheena didn’t know what make Rod’s car was as she settled on the leather seat, but it was big and obviously expensive. She imagined Deborah sitting in the car, sitting next to Rod later that evening, and she vowed to destroy their relationship. She didn’t like the idea of Rod lying to her, but she was happy to think that he’d also lied to Deborah. He’d also turned up on time and she was now the other woman in his life, which was a start. But she knew that she had a long way to go before she stepped into Deborah’s shoes.
‘I like it here,’ Rod said, parking on the grass edging the forest. ‘I used to come here when I was a kid.’
‘Yes, it’s nice,’ Sheena said softly. ‘But I’m not really dressed for a walk in the forest.’
‘You could take the dress off,’ he suggested, grinning at her.
‘I don’t think there’s time, Rod. I mean, you’re picking Deborah up at seven so . . .’
‘She won’t mind if I’m a few minutes . . . How do you know that?’
‘It was a guess, Rod. You’ve brought me here to fuck me, haven’t you?’
‘No, I . . .’
‘Come on, Rod. I may be a dumb blonde, but I’m not totally thick. You only want me for sex.’
‘Sheena, that’s not true.’
‘Isn’t it?’
‘You know it’s not. As I said last night, I like you as a person.’
‘Prove it.’
‘What? How?’
‘Where are you taking Deborah later?’
‘She wants to go to that new restaurant down by the river.’
‘Take me there instead.’
‘Sheena, I – I can’t.’
‘Why not? All you have to do is tell Deborah that you’re at a meeting. She’ll understand, won’t she?’
‘Well . . . No, no, I can’t. You don’t appreciate the situation I’m in, Sheena. Deborah’s father owns . . .’
‘Gibson-Brown Architects, yes, I know.’
‘How the hell . . .’
‘Take me to the new restaurant, Rod. You can see Deborah later.’
‘Sheena, be reasonable.’
‘I am being reasonable, Rod. You want my cunt, and I want to go out for a meal.’
‘Don’t put it like that, sweetheart.’
‘That’s the way it is, isn’t it? If you want me as your bit of cunt on the side, you’ll have to look after me. Don’t worry, I won’t cause trouble. I won’t go to twenty-five Beach Lane and talk to Deborah.’
‘Christ, Sheena . . . How the hell do you know where she lives?’
‘As I said, I may be a dumb blonde, but I’m not totally thick.’
‘Just give me a minute,’ he said, taking his mobile phone from his jacket pocket and leaving the car.
Sheena watched as he paced the ground in front of the car. He was talking to Deborah, lying to her about a business meeting, and Sheena felt smug. She hadn’t wanted to threaten him, but she did want to spend the evening with him and didn’t see that she’d had a choice. Nat would ask her about the evening, and she didn’t want to have to say that Rod had fucked her in the forest and then dumped her off at the pub. Gazing at Rod, Sheena noticed his pained expression as he slipped his phone back into his pocket.
‘It’s OK,’ he said, joining her in the car and starting the engine. ‘But I have to pick her up at nine.’
‘That’s good,’ Sheena breathed. ‘You see, it wasn’t that difficult.’
‘No, but . . . Sheena, you’re not out to cause trouble, are you?’
‘Me? Of course I’m not. It’s just that, when you arrange to spend time with me, I expect you to keep your promise.’
Rod said nothing as he drove to the restaurant, and Sheena knew that she was going to have to take the pressure off the situation if she was going to see him again. Her threat might make him think twice about seeing her, but she had something between her legs that he wanted. Deborah had finesse and money, but Sheena had her teenage body.
‘Have you noticed something about me?’ Sheena asked him as he parked the car.
‘The dress, yes, it’s nice.’
‘No, no . . . Something else.’
He looked her up and down and frowned. ‘Tell me,’ he said. ‘I’m afraid I’m not very observant.’
‘I haven’t said fuck once this evening.’
‘Oh, right,’ he said, chuckling as they left the car. ‘Whatever you do, don’t swear in this place,’ he added, leading her into the foyer.
‘Good evening sir, madam,’ a man greeted them.
‘I’ve booked a table for two. The name’s Robertson.’
‘Certainly, sir. This way, please.’
Sheena gazed at the white cloths and candles adorning the tables as she followed Rod. This certainly wasn’t the sort of place to swear. The thought made her giggle inwardly as the man pulled a chair out for her. If only Nat could see me now, she thought as Rod sat opposite her and ordered a bottle of wine from a waiter who appeared from nowhere. Sheena would have preferred a pint of lager, but decided not to say anything. Smiling at Rod, she realised that she was sitting in the very chair that Deborah would have occupied. One up to me, she thought happily.
‘It’s nice here,’ she said. ‘There aren’t many people around.’
‘Just as well,’ he replied. ‘It only opened last week and Deborah’s been on and on . . . You look lovely with the candlelight sparkling in your eyes.’
‘I expect you think I’m even lovelier with my knickers pulled down and my legs open.’
‘Shush, people might hear you.’
‘Sorry.’
‘Sheena, we need to talk. I’m marrying Deborah soon and . . .’
‘And I’ll be your bit of pussy on the side?’ she whispered.
‘Yes, but . . . I can’t have you causing trouble.’
‘Rod, I won’t cause trouble. I know what I am, I know my place, so don’t worry.’
‘How the hell did you get Deborah’s address?’
‘I asked someone.’
‘Christ, who the hell was it?’
‘Don’t worry, Rod.’
‘What else have you discovered?’
‘Nothing, I promise.’
‘Here comes the waiter.’
Sheena said nothing as Rod tasted the wine and nodded his head at the waiter. She’d never been out for a sit-down meal before, and thought it best to keep her mouth shut in case she embarrassed Rod. But she was learning all the time, she realised as the waiter passed her a menu. She was learning how to behave in posh company. The last time she’d eaten out was when she’d had fish and chips on a park bench. Far removed from this upper-class restaurant, she thought as the waiter filled her glass. Frowning as she looked at the menu, she waited until they were alone before asking Rod why it was written in a foreign language.
‘It’s French,’ he replied. ‘What sort of food do you like?’
‘I like fish and chips.’
‘You are lovely,’ he said, smiling at her. ‘The more I get to know you, the more I like you. They don’t have chips, sweetheart.’
She frowned and cocked her head to one side. ‘Why not?’
‘Because . . . Chips aren’t posh.’
‘Oh, I see. So, what can I have?’
‘If you like fish, there’s trout or . . .’
‘Steak and chips? I mean, steak and something posh?’
‘Steak with boiled potatoes?’
‘Yes, that sounds good. What made you say that I’m lovely just now?’
‘Because of the way you are. Yo
u’re worldly wise and yet – and yet you’re as innocent and naïve as a little girl. Oh, I almost forgot. I have a present for you.’
‘Really?’ she trilled as he reached into his jacket pocket.
‘There, it’s a mobile phone.’
‘Wow, thanks. What’s the number?’
‘I’ve written it on the instruction book. Now I’ll be able to ring you and arrange to see you.’
‘Thanks, Rod. But how do I pay the bill? I mean, is there a top-up card or something?’
‘It’s a contract phone. Which means that I pay the monthly bills, so don’t go calling Australia every five minutes.’
‘It’s lovely, Rod. No one’s never given me a present before.’
‘Don’t lose it, whatever you do.’
‘No, no, I won’t,’ she said, her face beaming as she slipped the phone into her bag. ‘Thank you so much.’
‘It’s also a camera.’
‘Wow, that’s amazing. Can I take a picture of you?’
‘No, it might end up in the wrong hands. And if we’re going to come to places like this, you’ll need a new handbag,’ he said, reaching for his wallet. ‘Take this and buy some shoes and a bag and anything else you want.’
Taking the cash, she gasped. ‘Rod, there’s over two hundred quid here.’
‘Two hundred and fifty. That should be enough to get you a few decent clothes.’
‘I – I don’t know what to say.’
He chuckled and leaned across the table. ‘Just don’t say fucking hell, OK?’ he whispered.
‘OK,’ she said, stuffing the cash into her bag as the waiter returned.
Rod ordered the meals and Sheena again kept quiet for fear of embarrassing him. She was doing well, she thought. She hadn’t sworn or said anything out of place, and she looked good in her new dress. Thinking of her friend, Nat, she could hardly wait to tell her that she’d been out for a meal with Rod. Nat wouldn’t believe her, but she’d show the girl her mobile phone and tell her about the money and . . . It was probably best not to say anything to Nat, she decided. They were good friends and she didn’t want to upset her.
‘Will you bring Deborah here?’ she asked as the waiter left.
‘I’ll have to,’ Rod sighed. ‘She’s been on about this place since it opened.’