“Yes what?” Mila asked.
“Will you let me take you to dinner sometime?” he asked.
“Nooooooooooooooooooooooo!” Mila replied without thinking but then realised she didn’t want everyone in the room to hear their banter.
“Owwwwwwch! ” he said falling backwards clutching at his heart. Then he mimed ripping his heart out, throwing it on the floor, stepping on it, twisting his foot at first and then stomping on it with both feet.
Mila giggled as she watched his 190 cm athletic frame energetically contort. Then she caught herself perving again and looked around at the four people behind her in line who were watching the display with great interest. Leaning in and hoping they couldn’t hear her, she whispered to him, “I’m sorry, I’m seeing someone. And I’m not a cheater.”
“Oh okay, I didn’t realise, I’m sorry,” he said, backing off and trying to regain a professional approach. “He is a lucky man. And I, better get your details, in case you ever become single and need a shoulder to cry on,” he said unable to let the opportunity go by.
“You’re a bit of work aren’t you? My details are linked to the rego of the car, since I bought it here, brand new, only four months ago,” she said handing him her registration papers.
“Fantastic...” he said searching the paperwork for her name, “Mila!”
“Thank you....” Mila said stepping across to the right and focussing in on the young man’s name tag, “Mar-ley!”
“I like the way you say that, it’s very ...Um. Doesn’t matter. So were you named after Milla Milla, the town up north on the Atherton Tablelands, near Cairns?” Marley asked.
“Um Nooooo, I wasn’t. And you’re the second person to ask me if I was named after cheese! Were you named after Bob?” She paused. “Mar-ley?”
“True dat!” Marley replied clapping his hands once then pointing his right index finger at her. “Mumsy and Dadsy were quite the scoobers!” he said matter of fact as he rolled up a piece of A4 paper and imitated smoking it like it was an enormous spliff, before sitting back into his chair like he was relaxed from his imaginary inhalation. He started to chuckle.
Mila giggled too. She was very taken with Marley but true to her declaration, she was not a cheater. Her mind wandered for a moment, long enough to imagine grabbing hold of his business shirt and tearing it open by wrenching the front collar apart, exploding each button from its hole then using his shirt to pull his shoulders towards her, before lunging for his bright and brash smile and locking on to his lips. Feeling goose bumps trickling up her arm, Mila rubbed her arms to cover up any visual trace of lust and belted out sternly, “Well I’d LOVE to stop and chat but I have to find a way to get to work, ‘cause I am late as!”
Ever the quick thinking opportunist, Marley jumped out of his seat and walked over to grab the keys of a demonstration vehicle, saying, “Oh, I can fix that, we have a courtesy service so I’d be happy to drive you to work right away if you like?”
“Oh you’re offering to take me? Why you do offer a good service here don’t you?” she smiled.
“Oh I’d personally like to offer YOU a FULL service but you’re a lovely lady and I’m a gentleman so I shan’t suggest anything of the sort,” he said as posh as he could with a smile brighter than the morning star.
“Stop it!” Mila said, not wanting him to stop it.
Marley signalled to his boss, old beer-bellied Baz who was now on a phone call back in his office, and yelled, “Baz I’ll be back shortly, I’m dropping a customer off to work.”
Baz saw Marley walking out the front door and the four men still waiting in the service queue that he would now have to serve. Putting the phone aside, he yelled towards deaf ears, “That’s not part of your job!”
The four men left waiting in the queue stared at Marley and then at their watches in disbelief. Their wait for service had undoubtedly just doubled. But their disgruntled expressions soon turned to knowing smiles. Marley was simply living their dream of walking away with such an incredibly hot looking young woman.
On the drive to Mila’s work Marley couldn’t keep himself from prying, “So did you say you bought your car from us four months ago?”
“Yes, my dad and I came in.”
“Four months ago, argh, damn it! I must have been on holidays.”
“Maybe, I don’t remember seeing you before,” Mila replied.
“I’m never going on holidays again, I don’t want to miss you coming into my work ever again.”
“Hey, I don’t want to have to go in to your work, it means my car is broken, you better fix it or I want a new one,” Mila said trying to be tough.
Marley decided to change the subject. “So how long have you been seeing your boyfriend?”
“Two months,” Mila replied.
Marley felt like he may have a chance. Even though he didn’t think he was the stealin’ type of man, he felt a connection to Mila. There was something very different about how he felt while he was in her company.
And 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