Chances

Chapter 2

Chapter 2Selby is just outside of Belgrave, in the middle of Puffing Billy country. The old steam train stops at the old station on its way to Gembrook, my grandmother took me on it when I was in primary school. It’s a tiny town with a population of just over 1,600. It attracts a lot of tourists hoping to see Australian wildlife but it’s a b***h of a place for bushfires. Every year the locals pray for a cool summer and the local fire station is always on standby. Every spring the locals clean the dead leaves out of their guttering and cut back overhanging branches.

I’ve always loved the winding roads of Mt Dandenong, especially on my bike but that day I took my car, a 1976 Chrysler Charger that runs on LPG and goes like s**t off a shanghai. Her house was at the end of a steep driveway and had a good view of the road below. It’s built in Western Red Cedar with a long verandah out the front. The small front lawn was hemmed in by a well kept garden of bushes and flowers. I heard dogs barking from the back yard.

I rang the bell and a moment later I saw the sign saying Office at Rear and an arrow pointing back along the verandah. I followed the direction of the arrow and walked up the driveway beside the house to a five foot tall cyclone fence. At the end of the driveway was a small bungalow also of Western Red Cedar but as I trudged towards it, a Blue Heeler hurled himself at the fence barking like crazy. Another dog loped towards the fence as well, this one was a large Rottweiler although he seemed to be the more placid of the two.

“Tam, shut that f*****g racket,” Jodie yelled as she opened the door.

Tam stopped barking and she smiled.

“Sorry about that. He’s Scott’s dog and he barks at his own shadow.”

“So the Rottie is yours?”

“Jack’s my dog, he actually comes from the same father as Tam believe it or not.”

I ascended the five steps to the tiny porch overlooking a much larger back yard. The fence cut the bungalow off from the yard but there was a gate at the back and another closer to the house. At the back of the house was a wooden pergola, on one side was the obligatory barbecue and the other side had an oven built with fire bricks. I could hear a Celine Dion song playing in the office.

“Nice place you got here.”

“Thanks,” she peered out over the roof, “Scott built the pergola, he has his own landscape business but doing the pergola was a freebie and it does benefit both of us.”

“Nice guy.”

“He is,” she peered at my car, “one of my ex-boyfriends used to own a Charger.”

“His name wasn’t Tony was it?”

“Greg,” she took a step back, “come in, do you want a coffee or tea?”

“Um, coffee thanks, black, no sugar.”

“Just like your women?”

“Ha ha,” I grimaced as I shut the door, “to be honest I’ve never been out with a black woman and it’s not for the lack of trying.”

“I’ve never been out with a black man,” she grinned, “I’ve certainly flirted with them but maybe I wasn’t their type,” she flicked the button on the kettle.

“Cosy office though.”

“It is,” she turned the music down. “It was a chook shed when I moved in. I had it completely gutted and rebuilt, I’ve never looked back since,” she indicated a chair at the desk.

“Pull up a pew and make yourself at home.”

I sat down to take stock of my surroundings while she made coffee. One of the things I noticed was her blouse, it didn’t strike me as being standard office attire. It was a soft pink silk, the ruffled collar was held together by three off centre gold buttons, the ruffles cascaded down the front to hide the other buttons.

“What?”

“Just wondering where you bought the shirt?”

“Style on me,” she flicked at the ruffles, “it’s an internet site, you like it?”

“Not on me but my nanna would certainly wear that.”

“Just put the words together and add the dot com after it. I love it, but I can see you wearing something like this though.”

“Maybe,” my eyes flickered to the black pinstripe skirt, “sorry, I wasn’t you know.”

“Checking me out?” Jodie chuckled, “check away, you know what side of the fence I’m on but considering our little agreement you’ll get to see a lot more.”

It was a throwaway line in reference to our deal. It also sounded flirtatious but I thought it was innocent enough until the end of our session when she leaned back and stretched, a sly smile nudged her lips.

“This looks fairly easy but I will tell you that I require the utmost honesty from my clients, so if you’re hiding a pile of money under your shirt or any other place, I need to know how much and where you got it. I’ve had some very generous offers from some very crooked people to hide their ill-gotten gains and I always refuse them.”

“It’s all there,” I replied, “I keep all my receipts.”

“So I see,” she eyed my shoebox, “it might be an idea to staple them together and keep them all in chronological order, it makes my job so much easier,” she leaned over and opened a drawer.

“But now we’ve got that out of the way, let’s show some skin,” she smiled at me and took out a drawing of a dragon.

“Nice drawing,” I studied it.

“Yeah,” she undid her collar and started unbuttoning the blouse, “I’ll show you where I want it,” she stood up and pulled the blouse out of the waistband.

Despite the fact I thought she was beautiful, I kept my cool as she parted the blouse and turning around, dropped it onto the desk to expose her back.

“I want it here,” she reached around to the small of her back, “and is it possible to have the tail curling over my cheek? The drawing I’ve got is about the size I want.”

I reached over and touched her spine.

“It’s going to hurt like f**k here because of the bone but yeah, the tail can reach your arse, I can take this drawing with me?”

“Yeah, I printed it out for you,” she pulled the blouse back over her shoulders and proceeded to button it again, “when can you do it?”

“This Saturday night?”

“Perfect,” she looked at my shoe box of receipts, “I’ll have your books done by then.”

“No worries,” I rose, “I’ll make up the transfer.”

“Any advice?” Jodie asked me as she walked me to the end of her driveway.

“Just wear loose clothing, tracksuit pants and a tee shirt, oh and don’t drink beforehand, it thins the blood out.”

“What about dope?”

“Dope is fine,” I looked at her, “I didn’t take you for a smoker.”

“I’m not, Scott likes a pipe after work and I’m usually on the wine but now and then I have a pipe or two. He goes to his girlfriend’s place most weekends so we won’t be disturbed.”

Saturday night came around too soon and for some reason I was a little nervous and I couldn’t explain why. I’ve done this for people many times over the years, maybe my gaydar was working overtime but I couldn’t escape the feeling she was flirting. However, to jump the gun with a straight woman has been a lesson I learned early on, fools rush in where angels fear to tread. Just do the tattoo and not her.

Jodie was wearing almost exactly what I’d suggested, a pair of tracksuit pants and a black tank top but before the session she wanted a smoke and so I sat and watched her smoke a couple of bongs. She had an intense look on her face as she studied the transfer I’d prepared.

“So where did you learn to draw?”

I hesitated before I told her.

“In jail.”

“Jail,” she eyed me, “what were you in jail for, if you don’t mind me asking.”

“Armed robbery,” I replied.

Jodie stared at me and then laughed, whether it was the dope or the shock of finding out you’re sitting six feet away from a convicted armed robber I don’t know, probably both.

“I was seventeen at the time, there were two guys involved as well. We did over a Seven Eleven store in Brunswick and got all the way to Preston before we were busted for running a red light in front of a cop car.”

She was still looking at me.

“I did nine months for it and haven’t broken the law since. I wasn’t actually the one holding the gun by the way. Because I was the girl, they got me to stay in the car and look out for the cops. I cracked under pressure when they questioned me and did the unthinkable and dobbed them in, which helped reduce my sentence. I was looking at four to five years.”

“Oh,” she pursed her lips and looked past me, “well that’s good. I’m sorry if I laughed but when you said armed robbery I thought you were joking.”

“I was young and stupid.”

“It’s funny,” she put the bong down, “I could have gone the same way, maybe. My dad’s a retired cop with Maroondah C.I.B and when I was eighteen I started hanging around with the Coffin Cheater’s. My dad hit the bloody roof and he took me into the police evidence room and showed me what these guys did to people.”

“So you got scared straight.”

“I couldn’t sleep for days and when Animal came around to see me I had dad go out wearing his gun and badge. Animal took one look at him and took off, I never saw him again.”

She stretched and locked her hands behind her head.

“Well, shall we?”

Jodie laid the cushions from the couch on the floor and stretched out. She pulled her tank top off, she wasn’t wearing a bra and she did look over her shoulder.

“Would you rather I wore a bra?”

“Nope, I’m too busy concentrating on tattooing to check you out.”

“I wouldn’t mind if you did anyway,” she shrugged, “you’re gay and I’m straight.”

She pulled her tracksuit pants and panties part way down her buttocks.

“If my girlfriends could see me now,” she giggled, “me with my arse bared in front of a lesbian tattooist, I never did do things by halves.”

I do talk to my clients while I’m working but most of the time I’m too focused. However because we were alone in her home, and due to my admission, I found myself opening up about me. I never knew my dad but I have vague memories of mum, more like snatches of memories because she was found dead of an overdose when I was five.

“I remember being taken out of school and told I was going to see nanna. She told me my mum had to go to hospital and would be there for a long time. By the time I found out the truth I was eight years old and it came out by accident at Christmas dinner.”

“She never told you earlier?”

“No, I think she just wanted to protect me from harm but at the time I resented her for it, I started getting into trouble at school and by the time I was twelve I was shop lifting. I ended up hanging out with a couple of hardened crims and when they decided to do an armed robbery I went along for the ride.”

Prison will do one of two things, it will either help you to advance your criminal career or reform you and in my case it was definitely the latter.

“I was f*****g terrified. I was skinny and like a cat on a hot tin roof. If it wasn’t for nanna I think I would have ended up necking myself. She used to make the drive every Saturday to see me and we’d sit there trying to pretend that this was just like visiting a hotel. She’d go home and I’d pace my cell and try to recall everything she’d said. It was nanna who bought me the drawing materials, she had to appeal to the prisoner governor before he let me have them.”

“She sounds like quite a woman.”

“She is,” I replied, “she’s more a mother to me than my own mum ever was. My mum was a street prostitute, she worked to earn money for drugs and to raise me. I live in the bungalow out the back of nanna’s house. She was always there for me.”

“What about your father?”

“I don’t know who he was. There’s no name on the birth certificate so we suspect he was some client. For all I know my dad could be a High Court judge or a copper.”

“You never know.”

When it was all over I felt drained. Not that the work itself was draining but I’d told her a lot about me, which I found slightly unsettling. However, she did love the work and kept admiring it in front of a mirror while I packed up my gear and rearranged the furniture.

“So, I have to wait a whole month to see you?”

“You can see me whenever you want,” I replied, “the studio is just down the road. I might be busy but I usually take a break for lunch.”

“Okay,” she regarded me for a moment, “we’ll do lunch sometime soon.”

I had the suspicion she was looking for something without actually knowing what she was looking for but I never expected Jodie to turn up to work. I remember telling nanna about it over dinner on Sunday night and she smiled.

“Maybe she’s got a crush on you.”

I laughed and she laughed too but when Jodie turned up on Tuesday just before half past twelve I didn’t notice until Davey, my young apprentice asked if she needed help. I’ve got designs all the way down the wall and she was close to the door. I was doing a freebie for my mate, Muzza.

“G’day,” she smiled at me, “told you I’d drop in.”

“So you did,” I turned the gun off, “um, I’ll be another half an hour.”

“Oh, I didn’t mean today,” she stared at Muzza’s chest which is a maze of tattoos, “but if you’re gonna be free I’ll duck into Belgrave and grab a few groceries and come back.”

Muzza was checking her out while she talked. She was wearing a white shirt that was open to her cleavage, and a black skirt, I knew he was mentally undressing her but she almost seemed to enjoy it because she leaned a little closer.

“Nice work,” she stared at a picture of a naked woman in a pool with her breasts covered by waist-length blonde hair, “I want her on me.”

“So did I,” Muzza grinned.

“See ya in half an hour,” she grinned, “you fancy chicken and chips? My shout.”

“No worries, thanks.”

Muzza looked at me after she was gone.

“Now that’s what I call punching above your weight.”

“She’s my accountant but she sounds curious.”

“Well if curiosity turns to rug munching, remember to take pictures.”

I laughed at that. If any other man said that I’d have said something else entirely, but Muzza is my mate. He could have been a one percenter, God knows he’s been around long enough to know some of these outlaw bikers when they were still jerking off behind the high school.

“I’ll keep it in mind.”

“So you’re doing back yarders for her, are you?”

“Did the tattoo on her back at the weekend, I do her for free and she does my books for free.”

“She’s got a nice arse.”

“On that we’re both agreed,” I turned on the needle, “now, let me finish this and don’t mention her arse for f**k’s sake or I’ll make a mistake.”

We had our first lunch together in her Holden Commodore out the back of the shop. I have a car and a bike, a Kawasaki 1200 cc sport tourer, and at first she thought the bike near the door belonged to Muzza until I told her it was mine.

“So, when are you taking me for a ride?” Jodie poked my leg playfully.

“I’ll take you for a ride whenever you like.”

“Ooh, I like the sound of that,” she chuckled.

“So, when and where?”

“Let’s see,” she took out her phone and brought up an organiser, “I can’t survive without my phone, I’ve got my whole life on this thing. I’m free on Sunday, come around elevenish and we’ll have an early lunch and go for a ride.”

I hesitated before I agreed and when she left some fifteen minutes later I stared at the phone number she’d left on my phone. I had her mobile number and she had mine but everything pointed to the bi curious type.

Nanna was philosphical about it over dinner that night.

“Just go, take her for a ride. You don’t know the full situation yet, go slow and ask questions, never judge a book by its cover.”

Kind of like closing the gate after the horse has bolted I thought, I’d been checking her out all along but I did resolve to take my grandmother’s advice. Grandmothers usually have good advice and one other piece of advice she handed out was to, “get your hair done.”

“What’s wrong with it? I just had it done three months ago.”

“Because it gives you something to talk about and it gives her an excuse to run her hands through your hair, women love touching hair.”

My grandmother cracks me up like that. She’s totally supportive of my lifestyle and if ever I need advice on how to break the ice with a straight woman or go further, she’s always got tips.

That Saturday I let Davey close the studio on his own, I always keep it open until three o’clock, and I headed down to Mountain Gate for a hair appointment nanna had made for me two days ago. My regular girl was waiting for me and I sighed as I sat in the chair.

“What’s the big occasion?”

“I need to look like a lady.”

“Hmm,” she tugged at my hair.

I’ve got mouse-brown hair but it’s always been kind of thin, it was just past my shoulderblades at the time.

“How bad do you want her?”

“Huh?” I stared at her in the mirror.

“You want to look like a lady means you’re trying to impress a lady.”

“Something like that.”

“Let me see,” she picked up a book of hair styles, “how about this?”

The model she’d picked out had shoulder length hair that was swept forward in a bob, she definitely looked more glamorous than me.

“Your face is thin and angular shaped, and you’ve got a good figure so yeah, it’ll suit but it is a radical departure,” she flicked through a few more pages and while I liked some I eventually decided on the one she’d shown me first.

“Go radical and put a blonde rinse through it.”

“No worries,” she put the book down, “so, do I know her?”

“Probably not and to be honest I don’t know if I should tell you her name, I’m taking her for a ride on Sunday.”

“But you like her.”

The end result actually shocked me. It wasn’t exactly like the model in the magazine but even so it was pretty impressive work. My hair was just past my shoulders and cut into a bob style, the blonde rinse added a finishing touch and when I stepped into the house a couple of hours later with a bag of clothes my grandmother’s face lit up.

“My God, it’s a new woman. She’ll be running her hands through your hair.”

“You’d make a terrible Christian, nanna.”

“It’s just as well I’m an atheist then.”

That next day I spent an hour that morning checking and washing the bike and then showered and got changed into a floral shirt and jeans. I kissed my grandmother goodbye and started the bike and as I poured on the power I felt the thrill of anticipation. I love the feel of the bike between my legs, no pun intended! I knew the road by instinct, every bend and curve beckoned like a lover but as to where this was all going in the grand scheme of things was still a mystery.