Wheel of Fortune: Volume Two

By Humphrey Muller

When the diffident and ineffectual Derek Mann loses his teaching job in a girls grammar school and drifts from one temporary post to another, one of his precocious pupils gives him her grandfathers wartime diary with a mission to return to Apartheid South Africa and find the opal mine she believes to be her rightful inheritance. Intrigue and violence bedevil the quest, which ends in a desert under the Southern Cross. The wry, often laconic style gives full reign to the characters latent sexuality.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Apr 17, 2000
• ISBN: 9781462098224

Humphrey Muller

Humphrey Muller, once a professor of English in South Africa during the Apartheid years, moved to Scotland to devote more time to creative writing. He has since written a number of novels (A Twist in Time, the Cage and the Cross, Wheel of Fortune, Continental Drift), and with his wife Carolyn has co-authored two novels (Rapture at Sea and Spirit of Ecstasy by 'Carolyn Charles').

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All Rights Reserved © 2000 by Humphrey Muller

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Printed in the United States of America

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It’s that damn wheel anonymous with oil in its hub that skewered loose to skewer my soul that had fled anonymous violence in African heat.

C H Muller: ‘Wheel of Destiny’

Volume 2

Westward Ho!

Contents

Chapter 38

Chapter 39

Chapter 40

Chapter 41

Chapter 42

Chapter 43

Chapter 44

Chapter 45

Chapter 46

Chapter 47

Chapter 48

Chapter 49

Chapter 50

Chapter 51

Chapter 52

Chapter 53

Chapter 54

Chapter 55

Chapter 56

Chapter 57

Chapter 58

Chapter 59

Chapter 60

Chapter 61

Chapter 62

Chapter 63

Chapter 64

Chapter 65

Chapter 66

Chapter 67

Chapter 68

Chapter 69

Chapter 70

Chapter 71

Chapter 72

Chapter 73

Chapter 74

Chapter 75

Chapter 76

About the Author

Chapter 38

A Change of Tune

Jacquie and Derek couldn’t believe the beauty of Barbados as the yacht slowly rounded the 30-km long island. They approached from the south-east and were struck by the exhilarating shoreline brimming with rugged beauty. As they rounded the southerly portion of the island they were entranced by the sugar-white beaches that shelved gently into the turquoise sea. Dave anchored the Stingray in Carlisle Bay which had all the features Jacquie expected from a tropical island—palm trees out front, coral reefs out back and submerged wrecks with aquarium-like snorkelling anywhere you chose to slip into the water. The crystal-clear water itself was crowded with an incredible selection of tropical fish.

The warm and placid Caribbean waters gently lapped the dazzlingly bleached sands that were peppered with bronzed bodies. Jacquie shielded her eyes from the sun as she scanned the beach, wondering how real the threat of danger really was. The island looked like a paradise island and it was difficult to believe that it could harbour any threat.

But Dave advised caution. ‘Best stay on board while I scout around with Nina,’ he said. ‘I need to stock up with fruit and fresh vegetables, and stick up a notice for new crew. Dolf and Stef will keep you company in the meantime!’

Dolf and Stefanie were due to take a flight for Venezuela in order to explore South America. When Dave and Nina returned, laden with fruit and vegetables, Dolf and Stefanie were already saddled with backpacks. They duly paid their charter fees and Dave booked them off the crew list.

‘Now with sadness in the eye we must take farewell,’ boomed Dolf, enveloping all of their hands in turn with his large sinewy hands.

Stefanie hugged each one, lifting herself onto her toes in order to reach the men. ‘Alles liebe und gute!’ she said tearfully, kissing Derek. ‘It was a wonderful happening to meet you all. And when we marry on Jacquie’s birthday it would be our greatest wish to have you as our witnesses! Then we have double gemutlichkeit!’

‘Who knows!’ laughed Jacquie, wiping her eyes with her hand. ‘We’ll be there if we can. You two are such sweet lovely people!’

Stefanie hugged and kissed Jacquie again. ‘Now you find your mine with lots of rubies and gold! Let them not shoot at you and stop you! And when you marry your Derek we two will be your witnesses!’

‘Thank you,’ Jacquie said tearfully. ‘I’ll keep you to that!’

Dolf’s eyes were wide with sincerity, looking even wider through his owlish glasses. ‘We thank you for your patient listening to our growing difficulties with the English language!’

They got into the rubber dingy with their back packs, Dave at the helm. They turned and waved as the little boat pulled across the translucent water. ‘Now goodbye! We wish you have a cooler time than we have in the jungle!’

‘Write to us!’ shouted Derek.

‘We write from the Hegau,’ Dolf shouted back as the distance grew between them. ‘The German post is very sleepy, but we will write!’

‘Aufwieders zehn!’ shouted Derek.

‘Aufwieders zehn!’shouted Dolf and Stefanie, waving and laughing together.

Dave dropped the German couple on the shore and made his way back to the boat. Derek paid the balance of his and Jacquie’s charter fees out of his travellers cheques. He reckoned they should have enough left for a flight to New York where, hopefully, he would be able to sell some of the diamonds in his cufflinks.

‘I feel terribly responsible for the damage to your boat, Dave,’ Derek said when he made over the cheques to him. ‘Whatever your insurance doesn’t pay I’ll make good.’

Dave smiled.‘This will keep me going for now.You and Jacquie just keep going and find that opal mine. Then you can speak of compensation!’

Jacquie smiled at him. ‘You’ve been wonderful to us, Dave. But if there’s a shortfall now I can sell some of the shares I invested from the sale of my grandmother’s house.’

He shook his head. ‘Let’s wait and see what the insurance pays out first. In the meantime I’ll get some basic repairs done, like the boom, and more professional stitching of the sails.’ He squinted at the shoreline. ‘I do hope there’s no trouble for you here. Everything seems very peaceful. I’d really feel better if you came with me to St Vincent, you know. It would be easier to give anyone the slip from there, and you could get a direct flight to New York from there. Whoever’s after you would expect to find you here.’

‘How far is St Vincent?’ Jacquie asked.

‘Just a hop, skip and a jump away!’

‘What do you think, Derek?’ Jacquie looked at him, frowning. ‘We must move on quickly now.’

‘It’s tempting.’ Derek looked wistfully at the turquoise water and palms. ‘It’s a pity to leave the Caribbean so soon.’

‘I can get the repairs done just as easily in St Vincent,’ Dave said. His eyes twinkled, sensing Derek’s longing. ‘Tell you what, we’ll leave tomorrow. I can pick up crew in St. Vincent.’

Jacquie’s eyes spoke her gratitude. ‘You’re a brick,Dave,You really are.’

‘I’ve been called worse things,’ he smiled, fingering his beard. ‘Now let’s take a run into Bridgetown and sample the rum punch. We can lift the glasses to our next leg, as Dolf would say.

Barbados was like a cross between a humming top and the horn of plenty, Jacquie thought as they rumbled into Bridgetown in a minibus pumping out the loudest reggae she’d ever heard. It was like going to a party. The people were happy and friendly and reggae was every-where—bursting out of cars, taxis, buses, shop doorways and ghetto-blasters all along the way. Pineapples, bananas, coconuts were hanging off the trees in every garden.

‘It’s a small island with a big heart,’ David smiled, looking through the window of the bus as they drew into Bridgetown. The place was seething with activity, people rushing along the avenues of old buildings with overhanging balconies. There was a distinct colonial feel about the place. ‘They call it Little England. There’s also a rash of bars and restaurants.’

‘I didn’t realise it was so commercialised,’ said Jacquie. ‘I thought we’d find long stretches of deserted beaches and sugar plantations. At least the hotels aren’t clustered thickly like ant heaps, like some parts of Gran Canaria!’

Dave obviously knew his way and took them straight to the Mariner’s Arms which, he said, was a popular haunt for seasoned yotties. It was a melange of pounding music and heavy with the sweet smell of ganja. Dave and Nina quickly fell into conversation with some yachting types at the bar while Jacquie and Derek found a corner table.

‘It’s certainly hot in here!’ said Jacquie, sipping her run punch.

‘What’s that?’ said Derek, leaning over to hear better.

She shouted: ‘I said it’s hot in here!’

An ebony musician with admirable physique and lush dreadlocks stood on a raised dais, striking a kettle drum with a practised air while nonchalantly surveying the sweaty punters.

‘What’s not in here?’ shouted Derek above the rhythmic din.

‘Never mind!’ laughed Jacquie, waving away his question.

Derek sat back and looked at the musician, amused by his nonchalant expression that somehow managed to convey his enjoyment of the rhythm. He looked at Jacquie who flicked a nervous smile at him, still sipping her drink through a straw as though it were a milkshake. He sensed she was not quite relaxed, sitting coltishly with her legs wrapped around the front legs of her stool.

‘G’day!’ said a female voice with a familiar twang

Jacquie gave a start, looking up. Derek looked up at the same time, almost startled by the clear aquamarine eyes of the girl who smiled down at them.

‘I’m Sharon!’ she said, taking a seat between them. ‘I’ve been chatting to Dave over there.’ She indicated the bar, waving a hand that still held a drink.

Mercifully, the music stopped and the kettle-drummer moved away from the dais.

‘Pleased to meet you,’ said Derek. ‘I’m Derek. This is Jacquie.’

‘Hi!’ she flashed a smile at Jacquie. ‘Mind if I stick my beak in?’

‘You know Dave?’ Jacquie asked, taken aback.

‘Just met the guy! Top bloke, isn’t he? But guess what! We’re going to be shipmates. You’re part of the crew?’

‘Er, yes,’ Derek said, surprised. ‘Has Dave just recruited you?’

‘Sure has!’ She beamed at him. ‘Bars are good for pickups, I always say. So we’re bound for St Vincent tomorrow? I just have to get my shift.’

Jacquie smiled hesitantly. ‘That was pretty quick! Welcome aboard. Is St Vincent where you wanted to go?’

‘Anywhere’s cool with me. So long as it’s sailing.’ She smiled at them. ‘Are you two an item?’

‘Yes.’ Jacquie’s reply was clipped, made with a precision that warmed Derek’s heart.

‘That’s cool bananas!’ Sharon looked at them with laughing eyes. She had a narrow, almost pinched face with sculptured features, a nose almost too long and sharp, but there was a boyish charm about her that was disarming. Her short honey-blonde hair was scrunched up on top of her head like an untidy haystack. Her thin and flexible lips readily opened and stretched into a wide smile, like a gash of good humour

across her face.

‘You’re Australian?’ said Derek.

‘You got that right!’ The gash was back again.

Dave and Nina came back from the bar, pulling up stools around the little table.

‘You’ve met Sharon, then?’ laughed Dave. ‘Amazing what you pick up in a Barbados bar!’

‘That was my line!’ objected Sharon, draining her glass.

‘Would you like another drink?’ asked Dave.

‘Yeah! Sure! I’ll just call the waiter!’ She waved her hand and snapped a finger at a tall waiter who responded with alacrity.

‘You guys want more punch?’ he said, his upper lip glistening with sweat. He smiled, showing a row of white teeth.

‘A Pina Colada for me,’ said Sharon, crossing her legs and resettling herself on her stool. She wore a tight mustard skirt and abbreviated mustard top that left a compact midriff exposed with a taught belly button. She had a lean and wiry body, her knees looking almost bony below her skirt. She leant an elbow on the table, cupping her sharpish chin in a palm. ‘So,’ she said, fixing Derek with a challenging look. ‘Rearing to be off, eh? Can’t wait to leave Little England?’

‘We’re in a hurry to move on.’ Jacquie answered for Derek. ‘We’d like to fly to New York as soon as possible.’ She could have bitten off her tongue as soon as she said it. But then, she thought, Sharon would have to find out anyway, being a shipmate. ‘We’re making our way to your country, actually.’

‘Good on you! Which part?’

‘South Australia. Port Augusta, to start with, then on to Coober Pedy. Do you know it?’

‘You gotta be kidding!’ she laughed. ‘It’s a dump!’

‘Where are you from then?’

‘Emu Plains. Not so far from Sydney. Know it?’

Jacquie shook her head. ‘I’ve never been to Australia.’

‘Well, just take heaps of water with you if you’re going into the desert. I prefer the beaches, myself.’ She looked at Nina. ‘What’s a glamorous babe like you doing in this neck of the woods? I sure wish I had your figure.’

Nina preened herself. ‘Ah, that’s sweet of you, luv!’

‘You must have loads of men after you!’

‘Oh,’ she smiled widely, showing her teeth to good advantage. ‘I manage to keep them at bay. I let special one’s get through, mind.’ She gave Dave a knowing look, then looked back at Sharon. ‘But look at you! I bet you don’t have to watch your weight!’

‘You gotta be kidding!’ Sharon gashed her wide smile at her. ‘I’ve had liposuction, would you believe it?’

‘I don’t believe it!’ Nina looked scandalised. ‘You’re as thin as a rake!’

‘Thin girls get cellulite too, I tell you! You won’t believe the orange peel thighs I had. I’m just one of many Ozzie girls who feel trapped by their bodies. I thought about my weight twenty-four hours a day.’ Sharon warmed to her favourite topic. ‘In the shower, I’d look down at my body and hate it! In the bus I’d grab my thighs and wish I could get rid of the bulge.’

‘They look fine to me now,’ said Derek, craning his neck for a better view of her legs. Jacquie gave him a disapproving glance, but giggled nevertheless.

She flashed her smile at him. ‘But they were a disaster! Absolutely unreal! If I caught a glimpse of myself in a mirror, I cringed to see how big my bottom and legs looked. I longed to wear tight skirts or feminine dresses, but felt compelled to cover myself up in trousers!’

Jacquie gave Derek a secret look, stretching her mouth into a grimacing line, as if to say ‘What have we here!’

‘That’s ridiculous,’ insisted Derek, winking at Jacquie who looked as though she was about to explode with laughter. ‘Your legs look absolutely ravishing!’

‘Oh God, do you really think so?’ Her eyes widened with gratitude.

‘He is a one!’ giggled Nina, digging her elbow into Jacquie. ‘Your legs are perfect, Sharon. They’re half the size of mine!’

She shook her head. ‘Trouble is, you see, now I’ve got these awful scars!’ She stood up and rucked up her skirt, revealing a portion of her narrow thighs, well bronzed by the sun. ‘At first I felt so self-conscious about the scars that I covered up my legs when dashing into the surf. Now I just say, what the hell! Scars are better than orange peel, I suppose.’

Derek and Dave looked at each other in disbelief, then pointedly looked at the area Sharon presented to view. Derek thought there were some slight indications of faded scar tissue, but was impressed by the neat symmetry of her thighs.

‘They look great!’ he said sincerely.

Sharon flashed her smile at him and dropped her skirt. ‘You’re just being nice!’ she said.

But he wasn’t. In spite of himself he blushed, suddenly aware of a quick twinge of lust.

Dave laughed. ‘I’ll give you plenty of exercise to work off the fat, Sharon!’ He blushed a deep red when the implication of his comment hit home.‘I mean,manhandling the ropes.’He grinned and changed the subject, looking at Derek. ‘I was swapping stories with some other ocean crossers just now.’ He nodded towards the bar. ‘I heard some horrifying stories. Thirty-five, forty-five days to cross the pond. Some running out of water, taking shortcuts (they thought!) and ending up in the doldrums; arguments, and even mutinies on board!’ He smiled. ‘Well, I said, I can top that! How about being attacked by a Shakleton!’

They laughed while Dave swallowed his drink. Dave said: ‘Of course, they didn’t believe me.Tell me another,man!was the general consensus!’

Sharon sucked in her cheeks, her pinched face looking puckish. ‘What attack?’ she asked, frowning and looking nonplussed.

‘You left our little coterie before I told the story,’ said Dave. ‘We were attacked by an aeroplane in mid-Atlantic. We…’

‘You are kidding me!’ Sharon stared at him.

He laughed. ‘I kid you not! We were…’

‘Dave!’interjected Jacquie,scowling and shaking her head.‘Is this wise?’

Dave grinned apologetically, looking chastised. ‘You’re right, Jacquie.’ He smiled at Sharon whose eyes were still on him. ‘It’s a long story, Sharon. We’ll tell you about it when we’ve left land.’ He changed the subject again, smiling blandly at everyone. ‘What do you say to a barbecue on the beach tonight?’

‘A barbi? Cool!’ Sharon’s eyes resumed their brightness. ‘Look, I’ll see you later. I’ll meet you at the beach. I’ll get my shift now.’ She sucked up the dregs of her Pina Colada.

‘Just a minute, luv,’ said Nina, looking concerned. ‘Don’t rush off, dear. Can I just see your hand?’

‘My hand?’ she grinned, stretching out her small hand. It had green-painted fingernails. A silver band with a large pink gemstone adorned the forefinger.

Nina took the hand gently and turned it over, palm upwards. The musician returned to the dais and the kettledrum began to thump again. Nina placed her other hand over Sharon’s, as if trying to protect it. She looked up at her, through her spiky lashes, her eyes suddenly dark with concern. ‘Sharon, you must be careful, luv.’

‘What’s that? The music’s so loud!’ She bent forward, laughing nervously. ‘Are you a fortune teller?’

‘It’s just that…’ She let go of her hand and spoke loudly but kindly. ‘I sense a presence around you, luv. A sense of sadness.’

The thud of the music beat louder and quicker. Nina raised her voice. ‘I sense someone in a trapped situation. Trapped or caught and can’t get out! Lying in water!’

‘What!’ she creased her nose and brow. ‘I can’t hear a thing!’ She stood up, looking away quickly and making her hair more dishevelled by scrunching it with her hand. ‘Sounds like mumbo jumbo to me, Nina.’

‘Are you sure you’re all right?’ shouted Derek.

‘Everything’s cool bananas! See you later at the braai!’

‘At the barbecue?’ shouted Dave.

‘Yep! See you, Dave.’ The music increased by another ten decibels and she held a hand to her ear. ‘I’m out of here! See you!’ She was gone in a trice.

‘What did she say?’ shouted Derek. He couldn’t believe his ears.

‘She said she’ll see us at the barbecue!’ shouted Jacquie. ‘Can we please go? It’s so hot and loud in here!’

It was a relief to get out into the fresh air.

Chapter 39

Sirens

‘When are ye awa’?’Fiona asked.‘I nae keer weer we gae,as lang as it’s soen!’

Dave smiled, delighted at having filled the last vacancy for crew so quickly, even before sailing from Barbados. She had been waiting for him on the return of his little party from Bridgetown, having seen his notice. She had actually responded to his ad for crew in an English magazine and had then decided to take pot luck and come to Barbados anyway, seeing his ad again on the local notice board! It’s a small world, Dave thought, running his eye over Fiona’s ruddy face and somewhat dumpy body. What she lacked in femininity she gained in muscular strength. She confessed to having little sailing experience, but hopefully her strength would be invaluable when it came to holding down ropes! In any case he was pleased to have someone else to help with the expenses. Sharon, with her light and agile body, looked like a promising sailor so altogether he was very pleased with his complement of crew when the Stingray set sail.

The intention was to find this dream of a port which Sharon told them about, have a good look round, then head direct for St Vincent.

They found no port—just the most beautiful forests tumbling down steep mountains into a green and milky sea. Giant Frigates soared overhead as pelicans circled the boat, keeping a surveillance on them before landing like ungainly 747’s on rocks nearby. Being on the open Atlantic side of Barbados, they were permanently exposed to the trade winds and the rolling sea and so pushed northwards, rounding the northernmost cape until they found a sheltered cove for safe anchorage. The water here was warm and tranquil, and so shallow that a short swim brought them to a point where they could easily wade ashore.

Sharon was so entranced by the magic of the spot, with the white beach backed by swaying palms, that she urged a longer stay before the final departure for St Vincent.

The girls felt the spot was sufficiently secluded to sunbathe on the deck while Dave and Derek swam in the crystal clear water around the boat. It was while floating languidly on his back, buoying his body by paddling gently with his hands, that Derek heard Dave’s urgent whisper.

‘Derek!’ he called. ‘Come over here and look at this!’

Dave was half submerged in the water, holding with one hand onto the low stern of the boat. He gave Derek a conspiratorial grin, like a naughty schoolboy. ‘You’ve got to see this, Derek!’

Derek flipped over onto his stomach and paddled towards him with a puzzled ‘what’s-going-on’ look on his face.

Dave jerked his head sideways, raising himself against the boat and peering over the side. ‘Here,’ he grinned.

Derek followed his example and lifted his weight up, following Dave’s eyes.

The sight took his breath away. The four girls were all sunning themselves, sitting and half reclining around the mast, either presenting a profile or facing towards them. They were all topless and chatting casually for all the world as though they were enjoying a picnic in the park. Derek’s eyes focused first on Jacquie, relaxed and reclining, her upwardly nubile breasts presenting a tantalising paradox of delicate softness and quivering firmness. She wore sunglasses and was laughing at something one of the others had said. When she laughed her breasts quivered deliciously.

‘Now you know why I had a celibacy rule,’ Dave said. ‘How do you keep a clear head with a sight like that?’

Derek smiled. ‘Thankfully, you’ve got Nina now.’ He looked at Nina whose big soft breasts instinctively drew his eyes away from Jacquie. She wore a full swimsuit but had lowered the top to reveal her luscious D-cup breasts, her nipples very prominent in the middle of her dark broad aureola. They drew Derek’s eyes like targets.

‘This has got to be the most titillating sight you’ve ever seen,’ Dave whispered. ‘Nina’s voluptuous, but you know what? I wouldn’t half fancy a bit of that comely Ozzie crumpet!’

Derek was taken aback by the frank crudity of Dave’s ogling. He had always seemed a paragon of self-control. ‘Sharon? She certainly has a snappy little figure,’ he acquiesced. ‘A lean, hard-bodied girl. She’s a bit anorexic, like a catwalk model.’

‘Yeah,’ Dave grinned. ‘With tits like tight little apples.’

‘Amazing what liposuction can do!’ Derek sniggered, feeling himself like a naughty schoolboy ogling through a crack in the dressing room. ‘What about Fiona?’ He gave a little laugh. ‘She’s pretty sumptuous!’

‘You’ve got to be joking!’ Dave said, lifting himself and peering over the edge again. ‘Her tits are like two fried eggs sliding out of opposite sides of a frying pan!’

Derek stopped a rising guffaw. ‘Don’t be so cruel, Dave,’ he admonished. ‘She’s a nice girl. Where’s she from?’

‘Some small town in the Scottish borders.’ He lowered himself back into the water and Derek, almost reluctantly, did the same. ‘It takes a while for the ear to get used to her speech. It’s as though she keeps missing consonants and she says Ken a lot. I like her though.’ He smiled. ‘As a person, I mean.’

‘Nina’s very nice too,’ Derek smiled, his head just above the water. ‘As a person and as a woman. At first she seemed very enigmatic to me, but now I can see she has a loving nature. You’re lucky she dotes on you, Dave.’

‘Sure,’ he smiled whimsically, his head bopping close to Derek’s. ‘I did sort of fall for her, I guess. It was just a matter of time until I caved in, sharing my cabin with someone so…’ He smiled impishly, searching for the right word, ‘…so sumptuous!’ He laughed but looked sad with his wet hair greying and the worry lines around his eyes. ‘But male menopause is a tricky time, Derek. Wait until you reach my age. One’s sexual appetite is easily swayed.’ He smiled. ‘We males are the victim of evolution, you know. The older we get the more some sort of animal urge takes hold of us and makes us want to spread our seed. I think the older we get the more inclined we are to sew wild oats.’

‘Is that why you fancy Sharon?’

‘Sure.’ He ducked his head under the water and came up again like a walrus, shaking the water from his hair. He blinked the water out of his eyes, seeking Derek’s eyes again. ‘She’s so different, you see. Variety becomes the spice of an old man’s life. That’s why I took to the sea. Not to screw young women,but to change my lifestyle.’He laughed.‘I set celibacy rules when ocean crossing as a sort of protection against the vagaries of sex. Survival in the face of storms—and attacking aircraft—has to come first.’ He smiled. ‘I’m afraid I’ve put a strain on you and Jacquie?’

It was a question rather than a statement. Derek shook his head. ‘We needed time to establish our relationship on something other than sex. I really love her and,well…’He laughed awkwardly.‘I suppose sex is not the right foundation for a relationship, though I’m crazy about making love to her. It’s good to get one’s priorities right.’

Dave gave a loud laugh. ‘That’s very high-sounding, Derek! You sound like me ten years ago! I don’t look for relationships with women anymore. I just like to screw them.’ He came nearer and gave Derek’s shoulder a good-humoured squeeze. ‘Well, you two have the double cabin now, old fellow. Enjoy it!’ He smiled sincerely. ‘I envy you. Screwing a gorgeous girl you genuinely love is the closest you can get to heaven. Enjoy it while it lasts.’

Derek’s heart twisted at the thought of how lonely Dave was. ‘If Nina’s not the right woman, Dave, you’ll find her.’

His smile didn’t disguise the sadness in his eyes. ‘Perhaps that’s why I keep looking. But every time the only satisfaction’s in the screwing.’

‘You can’t mean that.’

‘Sure I do. When you become a burnt-out case screwing’s all that’s left. You have to keep going from flower to flower like a bee.’

‘You remind me of a friend I had in South Africa, Dave. He couldn’t get enough of young ladies. In the end he was killed by a landmine.’

‘Then he’s lucky. He’s at peace now.’

Derek felt troubled by Dave’s revelation. ‘There has to be more to it, Dave. Love has to last. I’m turned on by Jacquie because I love her. I’m not turned on by some model like Sharon who looks like she hasn’t had a good dinner for a year.’

‘You don’t think Sharon’s cute? What about those bewitching eyes? Come on, you’d screw her if you had the chance, Derek. Admit it.’

‘Why would I want to? If I want sex, I’ll make love to Jacquie.’ He smiled shyly. ‘The only time we had sex was on the beach in Gran Canaria. It was incredible. If I wanted to…to screw anyone else, as you say, there’d have to be something wrong with our relationship, and I’d rather address that first. If you don’t respect the person you’re with, you shouldn’t be with her.’

‘That sounds like adolescent twaddle, Derek. Be honest with yourself.’

‘But I am, Dave. If anything, she’s given me stability. Like a central pivot.’

‘Yeah,’ he grinned. ‘I wish you luck, old chap. I do hope it works out for you.’

He let himself submerge again, the water closing over his head. Derek felt depressed by the talk, not wanting to accept the possibility of becoming as burnt out as Dave was. He accepted that he was a product of physical and social evolution, but surely man could rise above the mere instinctual level of life? Even if there wasn’t a God, surely love was there. Why else did he long to enjoy Jacquie on various levels, emotionally, spiritually, as well as physically?

As Dave’s head resurfaced from the turquoise water Nina’s voice spoke to them from above. ‘What clandestine and dark secrets are you two discussing?’ She lowered herself into the water. Although she had pulled her swimsuit back over her shoulders, the pink fabric moulded tightly to her body and showed off her breasts, even the points of her nipples, to full advantage. She swam close to Dave and planted a kiss on his mouth. ‘Sharon’s challenged us to a swim to the shore. Coming?’

‘Here we go then!’ smiled Dave, submerging again and nuzzling his head between her thighs.

‘Dave, fuck off!’ she shrieked, laughing. The water boiled around them and soon they were swimming side by side, their arms lifting and wheeling above their heads in a steady crawl. Derek was surprised to see what a strong swimmer Nina was, easily keeping pace with Dave.

Derek didn’t feel much like swimming and used the boarding ladder to lift himself onto the back ledge of the boat, just below the helm. He lay on his stomach, gazing across towards the sweep of the shoreline. Palm trees were backed by a dense growth of vegetation, the bright pink of bougainvillaea and other flowers showing through like daubs of paint. The girls, including Jacquie, had just reached the shore and were wading out of the water. Two wind surfers crossed his field of vision. He smiled, remembering the topless bathing scene that had so excited Dave. He thought how lovely Jacquie looked amongst them, the fairest of the flowers with her rich chestnut-red hair and soft feminine body, sleek but not thin, nubile but not voluptuous. There was a time, he remembered, when he thought of her as gawky and too thin. If anyone was gawky and too thin now, he thought, it was Sharon. But it was Jacquie that he loved. He felt truly blessed that someone so gorgeous, someone so much on his own wavelength, was apparently in love with him. He closed his eyes and drifted off, the warm sun and the cool breeze conspiring together to cocoon him in a dreamless sleep.

‘Hi, sleepyhead!’ chirped Sharon in her confident Australian twang.

Derek’s eyes opened, blinking. Her eyes smiled directly into his, her wide lopsided smile giving her a wholesome girl-next-door look in spite of her puckish face. The memory of Dave’s comment, that she had enchanting eyes, surfaced in his brain, even before he had time to smile back at her.

Derek sat up, swinging his legs against the side of the boat. He looked down at her. The haystack of her hair was festooned in garlands of bright flowers.

Her smile was lopsided and cheeky. ‘Brought some flowers for you, lazybones.’ She lifted herself out of the water, levering herself by pulling on Derek’s knees. He was taken aback when she eased herself onto his lap, her knees spread wide so they could both fit onto the narrow ledge. Derek laughed awkwardly, seeing that she was still topless, her taut little breasts almost touching his chest.

‘Take it easy!’ she said with a bright laugh. ‘You Poms are so nervous. I won’t bite you. Scout’s honour!’

She lifted her arms and took a garland from her dishevelled hair and placed it on his head. ‘This is to give you the feel of the island!’ Her eyes crinkled at him. She leant forward, adjusting the wreath to a rakish angle, the tips of her breasts just touching, then dragging, across his own nipples. Desire flared in a spasm of lust, scorching his loins and drying out his throat. The effect was unspeakably heady and embarrassing, making him blush to the roots.

‘Sharon,’ he laughed awkwardly. ‘Jacquie will hardly approve.’

Her eyes twinkled into his at point-blank range. ‘Jacquie’s not such a prig, Derek! Trust me, everything’s under control and I play by the rules. So no big deal!’ She readjusted the wreath. The feathersoft drag of her taut nipples against his was delectably illicit.

‘I wonder where the others are,’ he said, trying to sound casual, but meaning Jacquie. He glanced sideways towards the beach.

She read his thoughts. ‘Jacquie’s with Nina sitting on a rock. I can see her from here.’ She smiled into his eyes again. ‘Everything’s cool, Derek. She’s a great girl. I think you two are going to be very happy.’

‘Yes,’ he said. ‘I’m incredibly lucky to have found her.’

‘You were her teacher?’ she smiled, her fingers delicately touching the hairs on the back of his head. ‘She’s pretty lucky, too. I bet she was the teacher’s pet.’

‘Well…,’ he began, feeling his old embarrassment return. ‘I tried not to think of her like that then. I mean, as a…’

‘As a sex object?’

‘I didn’t mean that!’

‘I know what you mean, silly. I know what it’s like to play the guilt-game. I’ve been there. All I meant was she’s a lucky chick. But then all the good looking chicks get the good-looking guys.’

‘Well, I…she looked more like you, in a way, when she was at school. And even then I had a bit of a paunch.’He smiled.‘I expect you have lots of incredible good-looking chaps after you.’

‘Oh, I do have a boyfriend.’ She wrinkled her nose, looking down to see Derek’s paunch. ‘Ja, you do have a bit of a paunch, don’t you?’ She ran her hand lightly over his stomach. ‘But it’s cool. It makes you kinda cuddly, like a teddy-bear.’ She looked back into his eyes. ‘Sure, my boyfriend’s a hulk—a lifeguard. But he’s obsessed with the body-beautiful image. You know, he thinks there’s nothing worse than a chick with saddlebags. That’s why I had liposuction.’

‘I can’t believe you did that!’

Her eyes relaxed their smile. ‘That’s where my guilt-trip comes in, Derek. You know what I did to raise the money? It cost two thousand dollars and I didn’t have a cent. But I needed the operation real bad.’ She dropped her eyes, looking at her thin thighs that were still straddled around Derek.

‘What did you do?’

She gave a little shrug and spoke quietly.‘I don’t know why I’m telling you this, Decco. You seem such a nice guy and so kind.’ When she looked up her eyes were damp. ‘I was a legal secretary. I’ve been to uni, you see. I forged the signature of a partner on a cheque for two-thousand dollars. I knew I’d be caught, of course, but…’ She smiled thinly. ‘Well, I didn’t care.’

‘And you were caught?’

She nodded. Her eyelashes drooped and she ran a hand lightly over Derek’s stomach again. ‘I couldn’t believe the heaps of agro! It was splashed all over the newspapers.’

‘Oh Sharon,’ he said with feeling. ‘You poor dear.’

She looked at him. A tear glistened in the corner of one eye. ‘But I’d bloody do it again, Decco. And if I were to do it again, I’d have more fat taken out. If I have to live with these scars, I may as well be happy.’

‘Sharon, I can hardly see any scars. You’re blowing things totally out of proportion, I assure you.’ He spoke kindly.

‘I think they’re unsightly. Look.’ She took his hand and made him feel the taut skin of her sinewy thighs. Instead of a costume she wore tight-fitting denim hot-pants, the original trousers legs having being cut off crudely, as though torn off just above the buttocks line. The threads from the tear, wet from the sea, stuck to her thighs like rat tails. She splayed her thighs apart a little more, so Derek could feel the scars on her inner thighs. ‘You can feel the scar tissue, here…and here.’ Her hand brushed against a bulge in Derek’s costume and she lay her hand on