there was something different about Mila. She had a secret! Mila was really... a…
Man!
No she wasn’t. I just wanted to check to see if you were awake!
It hadn’t even occurred to Marley to ask Mila where she worked, they just both got in the car and he headed towards The Strand, the long way, around the northern circumference of Castle Hill. This happened to be the exact opposite direction to Mila’s workplace.
“Where are you going Marley?”
“I’m doin’ a Strandy with you, it’s like our first date, we should do something memorable and iconic to Townsville,” he said energetically.
“Some date! No food, no drinks, and don’t even think about asking me to get in the backseat with you!” she joked with him.
Marley drove from the Rock Pool end of The Strand to the roundabout at the Gregory Street headland. Then he pulled over into a car park close to a coffee shop.
“What are you doing?” Mila asked turning her head to look at him.
“Righto, sweet cheeks, fork it or walk it,” he said seriously, but only for a second, then he burst out laughing. It was just as Mila was grabbing for the door, giving her answer loud and clear without the use of any words.
“Mila! I’m kidding. I really pulled over and parked because I think we should go and have a coffee,” he said.
“Marley! I’m late for work!” Mila replied.
“Didn’t you already ring them and tell them your car broke down and you’d be in when you could get there?” Marley asked optimistically.
“Yes, but I’m already late enough,” Mila said trying to be the adult.
“Well, what if I can’t get you there until you have a coffee with me? That’s not any different to what you’ve already told them, and you know what? You look really, really thirsty. Car morn! Car-morn Mila, Come chilla with me Mila, Have a lar-tey with Mar-ley, do it for Bob!”
“Who? What?” Harghhhh! Righto, a QUICK coffee then you HAVE to take me to work, Okay!” she said, acting like she was unhappy about it but loving the spontaneity and persistence he showed.
Off they went to enjoy the 180-degree ocean views from the C-Bar. They ordered coffees and sat at the front table and continued to chat effortlessly as though they had been friends for years, laughing often and not running out of conversation. Living up to his word, Marley delivered Mila to her work. But for the rest of the afternoon he could not stop thinking about her. She felt the same but was not going to act on it. Marley was not so patient. He couldn’t wait to call her at work and give her an ‘update’ on her car and offered to pick her up after work. Stuck for a lift she agreed. True to his promise he was out the front waiting for her at 5.01 pm. As he watched her walk out of the office, he was hoping for a quick gust of wind so her dress would fly up Marilyn Monroe style and show off her lovely long toned legs.
“Good Afternoon Mila, I have something for you,” he said grinning, happy to see her again as she stepped into the car.
“Is it a fixed vehicle with no bill?” Mila asked optimistically.
“Nup, you needed a fuel dump so you owe us for a tank of fuel which was $60 plus $40 labour, so it’s a clean one hundred dollars all up,” he stated.
“And why did I need a fuel dump?” Mila asked.
“There were some contaminants in the fuel line and it was affecting the fuel quality and performance of the engine – maybe from a bad batch of fuel at the bowser? Any-who, it’s all sorted now and your car won’t be farting black shit as you drive up the road,” Marley replied.
“Whatever, as long as it’s fixed,” said Mila, relieved her brand new car was not the lemon she feared it might be.
“So, here is the something I have for you that I was talking about,” Marley said. He passed her twelve envelopes, the first one had the word ‘Invoice’ in bold letters and the rest of them were numbered consecutively from one to eleven.
“How many invoices do I need?” Mila asked in surprise.
“Oh, only the top one is an invoice,” he said, waiting for her to open the other eleven.
“What?”
“Just open them up in numerical order and say what you see on the page.”
“What’s going on?” She had no idea of what was happening but she was loving it, absolutely loving every single moment of it.
“Just say what you see,” he repeated.
Opening the envelope marked with a one, she pulled out a piece of paper. It was a printout of a photo of an eye, one of Marley’s eyes, opened wide.
“Eye?” Mila asked with a strange look on her face.
“Correct!...Next,” Marley said, happy his idea seemed to be working.
The next page had a photo of a nose under an armpit, with the letter S on it crossed out.
“What? Smelling an Armpit?”
“Noooo, think about it. What does an armpit do?” Marley prompted her.
“STINK!” Mila said with disgust.
“Correct, but only half correct, what else is on the page?”
“An S, crossed out,” Mila said looking at him, then blurting out, “TINK!”
“Correct!” Marley said smiling. “Next envelope.”
This was the most daring photo. It showed a man’s rear, facing a toilet, with his legs apart, with a stream of liquid in between the man’s legs. Mind you, the man’s trousers were still on and the liquid was clear water.
“Yuck,” said Mila, shrieking and playfully punching Marley in the arm.
“Incorrect and it’s not really yuck, my duds aren’t down, it’s just a clue, and might I say, a nice shot of my arse!”
“Pee!” she said.
“Close....rhymes with,” he hinted.
“Wee?” she cringed.
“Yes! Correct. Next Envelope.” Marley was rubbing his hands together in pure delight.
The next photo was a set of traffic lights with the red and amber colours crossed out.
“Green?” she asked, puzzled.
“What’s green mean?” he asked.
“GO!”
“Correct, next.”
Marley had taken a photo of the Welcome to Townsville sign but only showed the first two letters “TO” so that was a give away.
A
