met Claire while I was out with Edward Matuna” I say.
“Me? Umbe, I stay off island for three weeks.” Tuna says.
“Well, you were with me when I met Claire Chung. It must have been before you went off island. Shit, I don’t care how it happened but if anyone asks, tell them that you were with me when I met Claire” I say.
“Shoot shoots, just say you met her one time you was with me at Globe” he says.
Four thirty in the morning finds me waiting for Claire in the parking lot behind C’est La Vie. She has finished her shift and is changing out of her cocktail dress back into a blouse and jeans, changing out of Lily’s clothes and back into Claire’s clothes. The transition from bar girl to expat island girl complete, she walks outside to find me waiting to drive her home. Over the past three weeks, this has become our routine. I work in the morning while Claire sleeps at my apartment. Mid afternoons we have lunch and I take her over to Natasha’s house where she and the other C’est La Vie girls live. After my evening workout with Tuna it’s time for me to go home and sleep, usually from ten or eleven at night until about three thirty or four in the morning, the usual time that Claire finishes work. It’s a routine that is far different from any that I have ever known, not like the nine to five and weekends off routine that I had with Emiko, but I’m happy with Claire. I’m, happy with my life on Guam. Back home and my first training session of the day is with Elisa Saru in an hour.
“Hey, if you go to bed right now I can take a half hour nap with you” I say.
Claire smiles at me and as soon as I unlock the door she runs to the bedroom. I walk back to find her stripped down to the lacy lingerie she wore at work.
“Baby, me so horny, me love you long time. Me sucky sucky, fifteen dollars, everyting you want, everyting” She says falling back onto the bed and laughing. I love that she’s quoting a cool movie.
“Too beacoup, five dollars is all my mom allows me to spend” I say. Full Metal Jacket, fucking awesome.
Claire, like a dream changes each time she rests upon my pillow, her long black hair flowing onto the bed sheets like an expression on canvas, an exquisite brush stroke. Restless, she moves, now lying with outstretched arms, an elegant portrait and my bed as her backdrop she beckons with a sigh. Bewitched, I’m overcome by the urge to sing;’“ All veils and misty, streets of blue, almond looks that chill divine some silken moment goes on forever and were leaving broken hearts behind . . . Mystify . . .you Mystify me” my voice a rippling imitation of Michael Hutchence’s baritone vocals singing to her. A southern girl with perfectly shaped lips, a sultry, sweet southern accent, deliciously dirty mind and what she calls her ‘Asian badonkadonk’, Claire is pure beauty. From her almond eyes Claire gazes tenderly at me and says; “Y’all gonna just stand around being mystified or y’all gonna get down here and please me?”
Fuck I’m tired! It was another night with Claire followed by an early morning of training Elisa Saru followed by another few clients and I’ve hardly had time to eat lunch. I have to finish payroll this afternoon before four and my phone is ringing.
“Hello, Tropics Gym” I say into the receiver. The caller ID says it’s a blocked call but the caller wasn’t transferred from the front desk. Whoever this is has the number to my direct line.
“Hello sweetie, can you ask Mr. Saru to pay his bill from the other night?”
It’s Claire.
“Hey Claire, what bill?” I ask. I didn’t know that Mr. Saru had been back to Cest La Vie but then again I haven’t gone out clubbing with him since I started hanging out with Claire.
“He came in the other night with two older gentlemen, businessmen. I think they were Japanese or Korean because they requested blondes. Only blondes! Can you believe that? Jenny made about four hundred dollars in tips.”
“Really, no shit, how long was she entertaining them?” I ask.
“I was entertaining in another room but I would say Jenny was in there for about an hour, maybe an hour and a half. You know it’s not the amount of time, it’s the quality of entertainment, darling” she says.
“Wow. What the hell did they order, karaoke and hand jobs? Never mind, I don’t want to know” I say.
“Oh honey, you know that it’s just drinks and karaoke. If Jenny or I was having sex with the clients, well I declare we would both be driving Cadillac’s and living at Alupang Towers” she says.
“Okay, okay, I still don’t want to know. So how much does Mr. Saru owe this time?” I ask.
“Twenty Two” she says.
“Ok, Twenty two hundred. I’m going over to see him now. I will call you after I talk to him.”
“Thank you, sweetie, I’m much obliged” She says ending the call.
Walking over to Mr. Saru’s office laughing at myself, just how the fuck did this happen to me? Never could have imagined that this is what my job would be like; babysitting Mr. Universe, Collecting money to pay a mamason, dating a bar girl. Fuck, is that what I am doing? I’m dating Claire? I guess I am. Kinda, we never talk about it. We never really talk about anything but we have been together every day or at least every night for over a month now. Damn! Mr. Saru starts grinning ear to ear as soon as he sees me.
“I bet you’re here for this” he says handing me an envelope “There’s twenty two hundred dollars in there and I need you to take it to Natasha. She’s been calling my office all day and I don’t want Adipo or my wife to hear about it. Remind me to tell you a story about the other night. You really missed out. Oh and we can’t let anyone know about this expense. Add it to your line items as treadmill repairs” he says.
“Treadmill repairs?” I ask in disbelief.
“Yes. Create a purchase order for repairs on some of the treadmills. Six treadmills fixed at three hundred dollars each or nine treadmills at two hundred dollars, it doesn’t matter. Just write up a purchase order. When accounting sends you the check, cash it and bring the money to me” he says.
“But the treadmills are fine.” I say.
“Don’t worry about the damn treadmills” he says. “I know the treadmills are fine and you are doing a great job managing the gym but this is my money. It’s all my money but my damn auditing accountant wants to see how every penny is spent. Well, we wined and dined the managers of the Tokyo Giants baseball team and I’ll tell you more about it later. I can’t have anyone know about it yet so I need to hide it as treadmill repairs” he says.
“Why can’t we just write it off as an entertainment expense? The treadmills are fine.” I say.
“Forget the damn treadmills. Alright? Make it the Spin bikes or the Stairmasters if you want to. I don’t care just get me an invoice for twenty two hundred dollars in equipment repairs.” He says.
“I am giving you twenty two hundred dollars to cover the gym’s entertainment expenses. The purchase orders are just for the tax write offs and you don’t need to worry about it. It’s all my money anyway but I need to show the accountant an invoice. Now will you please take the money in that envelope over to Natasha? Do it before she starts calling me again. Oh, and I know that you are going to see that little bar girl, Lily, the one that you run around with. Natasha told me that girl practically lives with
