Part 1

Living alone can be lonely when you are on the wrong side of forty-five, your friends are married and only invite you over when it’s their birthday, or there is some other special event they wish to celebrate with you. Sitting in a bar looking for a partner is not my idea of having a good time, nor is a one-night stand, which stopped me from looking at dating apps despite my friends telling me to go online and find someone.

My name is Jade, and I’m forty-seven. Once divorced and once left behind when my lover moved to Germany to start his life again, leaving me behind without an explanation or being asked if I would like to join him.

My figure over the years has, well, let’s say, I’m cuddly. Yes, I have put on a kilo or two, but I’m not fat, and my derriere is a little more comfortable than when I was a twenty-something nice to squeeze if a man would like to try; I’m sure I could be accommodating, and my 38c boobs, at my age, gravity is taking its toll, and sag a little, but don’t droop to my knees. I still hope to find a man to fill the void I have missed over the last five years.

My work as a supervisor at a pharmacy, which is open seven days per week, allows me to see people of all ages and types. The type I was looking for was a man of similar age to me, not married or living with someone.

Every time a guy dropped off his prescriptions, I would check the ring finger of his left hand, looking to see if he was married. Of course, not all men wore rings, so I had to be observant to see if they had a woman close. I used this technique as a process of elimination, mentally removing them from my list as I went, giving me a short list of regulars to pursue as a suitress.

There was a guy who looked around my age. His name was Mr Cook, he was tall with grey hair, a little portly, but not fat, with a tanned complexion. He looked affable, was constantly smiling, and spoke in a soft dulcet tone. The more I saw him, the more I wanted to meet him. But how? How do I get a date with a customer who sees me as a shop assistant? As luck would have it, I was putting stock away on the bottom shelf when I stood up and quickly turned around and bumped into Mr Cook, knocking me off balance.

He threw his arms out to stop me from falling. One arm went around my back, and his other hand landed on my breast. After steadying ourselves, he removed his arm and hand and said, “Oh, I’m sorry...” he looked at my name badge. “Jade, I didn’t mean to grab your ... you know your...”

“Breast is the word you are looking for,” I interjected. Poor guy, I’ve never seen anyone look so embarrassed for accidentally touching my breast.

“Yes, that’s it. Your lady bit. I only tried to stop you from falling.”

“It’s okay, Mr Cook. It was my fault. I didn’t look where I was going. Thank you for stopping me from falling, and I know you didn’t mean to put your hand on my breast. Think nothing of it.”

Contact. Not how I had expected, but we had met in an awkward situation, and he was embarrassed, turning red in the face.

“Thank you, Jade. I only wanted to drop off my prescription when I bumped into you.” I saw him glance at my left hand and thought. He’s interested, and I felt a little giddy that the man I wanted to meet had shown he might be interested in me.

“Can I make it up to you and ask you to lunch, if that’s not too forward?”

“No, you don’t have to do that; it was an accident,” I said, hoping I hadn’t blown my chance of getting to know him better.

“Please, it’s no trouble. I have no one at home, and I would like your company. It doesn’t have to be today. It can be any day you are free.”

“Thank you, Mr Cook, today will be fine.”

“Jade, please call me Carl. Mr Cook is way too formal. Are you okay with lunch at the coffee club? And what time suits you?”

“Thank you, Carl. Is twelve thirty okay?”

“Sure, it’s a date. I’ll be back in a couple of hours.”

He called it a date! Wow, am I getting ahead of myself and letting my head run away with thoughts of romance? I like him, and his voice is so soothing. I could listen to him all day.

Carl arrived at the pharmacy at twelve-thirty, and we crossed the walkway in the shopping centre to the Coffee Club, selected a table, perused the menus and placed our order.

“Jade, I don’t mean to be rude, but I see you are not wearing rings on your ring finger. Does that mean you are not married or living with anyone?”

“It’s okay. I was going to ask you the same question, but as you have asked first. I was married at twenty-six and divorced by twenty-nine. We both wanted children, and after a year of trying to fall pregnant and couldn’t. I saw the doctor, and he referred me to a gynaecologist, who did so many tests, and all came back okay. He said he could see no reason why I couldn’t fall pregnant and suggested my husband be tested to see if he was shooting blanks.

“When I spoke to Anton, he hit the roof and told me there was nothing wrong with his sperm, and it was all my fault. After that tirade, our marriage quickly fell apart.

“I lived with another guy for ten years, and on my forty-second birthday, he told me he was moving to Germany to start a new life, and I wasn’t invited. I’ve been alone ever since. No husband, no lover, and no kids. Yeah, life sucks being lonely.

“I’m sorry to hear that. It sounds as if you have had a rough time.”

“I have, but life goes on. Tell me something about yourself. What do you do? And that tan, you must work outdoors, but your hands are soft, and I take it you are not married either?”

“I’m forty-nine, a stockbroker, divorced two years ago, love playing golf and using my Bertram 35 cruiser. My wife and I had many memorable weekends swimming, snorkelling, and catching cray when we spent our time at Rottnest Island they were the days. I would love to recapture that time again; they were the best time of our lives.”

Carl had a distant look about him as he recalled the days on his boat with his wife.

“But all that’s gone now, and I haven’t used the boat in years and probably should sell it.”

All too soon, our lunch was over. And it was time for me to go back to work. I wanted to ask Carl to dinner but thought it was too soon, and he may see me as desperate wanting to date him.

“Thank you. Lunch was great, and listening to you reminisce about your wife and boat, I hope I haven’t brought back any sad memories for you.”

“The pleasure was all mine, and I enjoyed your company. No, you didn’t bring back any sad memories, only good ones.”

“See you again when I need my scripts filled out,” he said, then he took hold of my arms and kissed me on the cheek before we went our separate ways.

I was happy to have met him and had broken the ice. Inviting him to dinner at a time of my choosing should not be a problem.

The next day, I was surprised when Carl arrived at the pharmacy holding an assorted bunch of Roses. Came up to me and said, “I saw these Roses and thought how good they looked, and I thought I should buy them and present them to a beautiful lady.”

“Thank you, they are gorgeous.”

“Just like you, gorgeous.”

He likes me. He seriously likes me. I bit the bullet and thought, don’t wait, you may lose him. “Carl, how would you like to come to dinner this Friday at my place?”

“That would be very kind of you. I would love to, and what wine do you like?”

“Great, it’s a date, and I love Chenin Blanc.”

“Two bottles of the best Chenin Blanc coming up on Friday.”

“I take it you like seafood.”

“Yeah, see food and eat it. Haha ... sorry for my poor attempt at an old joke. I love seafood, thank you.”

“Shall we say seven?”

“Yes, no problem. I look forward to it.”

The girls in the pharmacy teased me for the rest of the day about dating a customer.

Shelly said, “You do know he takes Viagra, don’t you?”

Shelly was at least twenty years my junior, looked sexy as all hell and was sassy.

“Yes, I do. You can’t help but see it on his prescriptions. Okay, if the guy needs help in the bedroom, it’s nothing to be ashamed about.”

“Make sure he takes his blue pill so he’s ready and raring to go when you hit the sack.”

“Is that all you can think about, Shelly? Sex, and more sex.”

“What else is there to think about? I hope you have a great time in bed!”

“No, I hope we have a great time before we make it to bed.”

Yes, I planned to seduce Carl by how I dressed and the food I prepared. They say a way to a man’s heart is through his belly, and I planned a seafood extravaganza. We would have prawn cocktails and oysters for an entree, and for the main course, there would be baked fish stuffed with herbs and spices, a scallop or two, sautéed potatoes and salad.

I’ll have scented candles on the table and in my room. I would wear a long dress split to the tops of my thighs, a plunging neckline, an open back, a sexy black silky bra and lacy panties.

Poor Carl. He will melt like butter cut with a hot knife when he sees me in my sexy attire and tastes my food. I’ll have him so hard, blue pill or not, that he won’t be able to resist my womanly charms.

On the day, I finished at four. Giving me plenty of time to get home, shower, change, prepare the food and set the candles. After my shift, I switched on my phone, and there were six missed calls, all from Carl and one text message.

The message was brief. “Sorry, I can’t make it tonight. Call you tomorrow. Carl.”

What the hell? I called him to demand a better explanation. The call went to voice mail. “Hey, you shithead, bastard. You’ve fucking stood me up. Who is she? Is she some young bimbo you’re bonking on your boat? You’ve hurt me, and don’t bother calling. I never want to see you again, you arsehole.”

I didn’t cook the fish but had the prawns, oysters and some cheap wine. My phone pinged at ten.

Carl had sent me a message it read. “Jade, I’m so sorry that my message was short, and as you can see, I tried to call you several times. You’re right. I am with another woman...” When I read that, I couldn’t read the rest and threw the phone onto the lounge and cried.

After work on Saturday, my phone rang, and I could see it was Carl. I hadn’t deleted him from my contacts list, and I ignored it and let it go to voice mail.

He rang again, and I didn’t answer, then again and again; he never stopped calling until I got so mad I answered, preparing to use every profanity I knew to abuse him.

“You fucking arsehole, you have the audacity to call me after admitting you were with another woman, you pig. Go fuck yourself.”

His voice was calm. He didn’t shout or raise his voice after taking my tirade. All he said was. “You didn’t read all of my text, did you? If you had, I don’t think you would be so abusive towards me.”

I was in stunned silence. He was right. I flew off the handle when he told me he was with another woman.

“When I wrote the text. I was sitting next to my dying mother, who is in a Brisbane Hospital. I got a call from my sister, midday Friday, who said Mum was not expected to make it through the night. I quickly jumped on the first flight available. I’m sorry. I didn’t want to stand you up. I called, but you didn’t answer. Can I make it up to you by taking you to Rottnest on my boat for a long weekend? Can you arrange to have a Friday, Saturday, and Sunday off? I would love to spend the weekend with you.”

I was snivelling after listening to Carl tell his story. “Oh, Carl. It’s me who should be apologising to you. I was jealous when I read part of your text about being with another woman. I should have read it all. Can you please find it in your heart to forgive me? ... I’m sorry; I should have asked first. How’s your mother?”

“Surprisingly, Mum made it through the night and is improving. The Doctor told me they would keep Mum in hospital for another two to three days, and if she continued to improve, she would go back to the nursing home. Yes, I can forgive you. I like you and want to get to know you better. Do you like the sound of spending a weekend at Rottnest with me?”

“Yes, I do. I would love to spend the weekend on your boat. I’ve never been on a boat before and never been to Rottnest. When are you due back in Perth?”

“Tonight at nine forty.”

“Would you like me to collect you from the airport?”

“No, but thanks for the offer. I have my car there. Are you working Sunday?”

“Yes, I am.”

“Okay, I’ll pop in to say hello.”

“Thank you. I look forward to seeing you.”

Me and my stupid jealousy. That will teach me to read everything before I jump to wild conclusions. My happy state of mind returned. I still had my man, and he wanted to take me away for a dirty weekend. Well, he didn’t say dirty, but I did.

I had some important business to take care of when I went to work on Sunday and arrived an hour before opening. I worked on the shifts, giving myself three consecutive days off in two weeks.

Carl arrived mid-morning with another bunch of mixed Roses, and when he gave them to me this time, he kissed me lovingly. “Mmmm, I like that. I could get used to this, you giving me flowers and showering me with kisses,” I said, relieved we were still together.

“You are worth it, and I still feel bad for not letting you know I had to go to Brisbane.”

“Don’t let it spoil our time together. It’s happened you had to go, and you told me. It was my fault. Can we please put this behind us and move on?”

“Yes, we can.”

“Great. I have worked the rosters, so I get three consecutive days off, not this weekend but next. Will that work?”

“Perfectly. I’ll get the boat fuelled and ready so we can be at Rottnest by Friday lunchtime. How does that sound.”

“I’m easy whatever you say.” He smiled wryly when I said, “I’m easy.” Mmmm, I wonder what he thought.

For the next two weeks. Carl treated me to lunch every day, along with buying more flowers. He was romancing and spoiling me, and I liked it.

Two days before our trip and while at Lunch, I asked. “What clothes and footwear do I need to pack? Remember, I’ve never been on a boat before.”

“Bathers, maybe two pairs, a wrap to cover your shoulders. You don’t want to get sunburnt, do you? Shorts, tops, hat, a cardigan, a pair of slacks, to be safe in case the breeze gets too cool, and flat shoes. I know you women love to wear heels. Well, they don’t belong on a boat.”

“What about food and drink?”

“Nothing to worry about, my lovely. I have that all taken care of.”

“What time do we need to leave?”

“Let’s see. A forty-minute run, about thirty minutes from your place to the marina, arrive at noon or just before. How about I pick you up at ten?”

“Super, I can’t wait.”

I packed my bag with everything Carl suggested, along with several pairs of sexy panties. I wanted this weekend to be memorable for many different reasons, and yes, I wanted to have sex with a man I liked, and I think I was looking forward to that most of all.

On the day. I wore white shorts, a blue hoop top, white sneakers and a wide-brimmed straw hat, and I thought I looked very nautical. Carl arrived a little early, and I greeted him at the door with a loving kiss that lingered and lingered. Oh, wow. That was our first serious kiss, and I looked forward to more over the weekend.

Carl picked up my bag, took it to his car, and opened the door for me. I got in, and he closed it behind me. Oh, wow, another big impression. He drove a BMW sporty-looking thing. I sat in the seat, and the leather squeaked. “Wow, smell the leather, it’s so new.”

“Yep. Picked it up last week. What do you think?”

“I’m gobsmacked. What a car.”

“Yeah, neat init.”

We zoomed down the road to the East Fremantle Yacht Club, and I’m sure Carl was breaking the speed limit, but never mind, we arrived in one piece.

We grabbed our bags and walked down to where his boat was parked, and he blew me away yet again. I had no idea about the size of a Bertram 35, but when I saw it. I stopped and almost fell to the ground. It looked so impressive, but the name on the back of the boat was the icing on the cake. It blew me away. It was called. “Jade.”

“Carl,” I screeched disbelievingly. “What have you done? Your boat has my name on it.”

“Well, fancy that,” he said in his dulcet tone while smiling at me.

“Have you changed the name on your boat?”

“Yes, I have. I have a new lady friend, and what better way to honour her than to name your boat after her.”

I dropped my bags and ran to him. He held his hand out and said politely, “No running.”

I made it to him, wrapped my arms around his neck, and gave him the sloppiest smooch I have given a guy in a while. He responded in kind, and this time, our tongues did tingle as they touched.

We broke the kiss and got on board. Carl showed me through the boat; it had an open covered rear deck, lounge, kitchen, two bedrooms, toilet, and shower room.

I was later told that a lounge is called a saloon, the kitchen is called a galley, bedrooms are called cabins, and the toilet is known as the head.

“Any other nautical terms I should know?”