Travis made eye contact with the waitress behind the counter. She stood, intently polishing a large, red wine glass with relentlessness bordering on obsession. The young, fit woman wore an elegant starched white shirt and a long, black apron. She fit perfectly into the atmosphere of the high class establishment. Travis finished his scotch. He looked across at Ainsley and wondered where her mind wandered tonight.
“You’re not listening to me.”
Travis rolled the ice cubes about in his tumbler, causing them to clink. He placed the glass carefully on a coaster. The young waitress began to make her way towards them. Ainsley finally met his gaze, her violet eyes appraising him as though she had only just noted his presence in the room. She searched his face. Her eyes dropped to her drink and she stirred the liquid distractedly.
“Sorry.”
The whole thing had Travis at a loss. His normally bubbly companion seemed so far removed, the resources to reach her were beyond him. He bent one knee in his tailored suit and closed the distance between them. Travis’ warm, large hand came to rest on her silken thigh.
“It’s O.K., Sweetheart. Let’s get you home.”
“No.” Her eyes flew to his. “It’s alright. I’m alright. I’ll just powder my nose.”
In an unusually unladylike motion Ainsley hastily dumped her champagne flute on the counter and slid from the bar stool, making her way around the curve of the bar to the ladies room like a bird in flight. Travis watched her go, perplexed. Close by, the eyes of a young waitress followed her progress.
“Is your Mum O.K.?”
Travis’ face slid into a slow smile. His Mum. He almost corrected the girl.
“I don’t know.” He said softly.
He shot her a telling glance, willing her to leave the topic alone. He adjusted the cuff of his shirt with the fingers of one hand. What the hell.
“Can I take you out for a drink some time?”
The waitress looked startled by his offer, then pleased. She gave him a genuine smile. He was treated to his first glimpse of her girlish dimples.
“Sure. If you want, I finish up at ten?”
“I’ll drop my Mother home.” Travis countered levelly “And then swing by and pick you up?”
“Sure.”
She moved away to serve other customers. She was still serving at the far end of the bar when Ainsley returned, looking even paler. Travis dismounted his stool and grabbed his jacket. He steered Ainsley towards the exit stairs.
Emerging from the basement into the cool of the evening, Travis observed a welcome shift in Ainsley’s mood. It was almost as though the coolness of the night air had shocked her back to reality. She turned to him, Travis wrapped his jacket around her slim shoulders and drew her into his embrace. As always, at close range, he was struck by her elegance. The moonlight accentuated her fine, pale features and obscured the unusual emotions swirling in her large, round eyes.
“Oh I’m sorry. We were supposed to be having fun.”
He lowered his lips onto hers in a tender kiss.
“It’s O.K.”
He held her for a moment in silence, half expecting her to speak.
“Won’t you tell me what’s wrong?”
She shook her head.
“Where are you parked?”
He indicated the direction and they fell in step with one another.
“Perhaps I’ll have the heart to tell you in the car.”
She didn’t. She stared doggedly into the passing, bright lights of the city, all the way home. Travis had never felt so alone. When he brought the car to a standstill outside her apartment, she gave him an absent kiss and made to leave.
“Ainsley?”
She still didn’t look at him. Her gaze was directed straight ahead.
“It’s got nothing to do with us, Travis. It’s my husband, I’m afraid.”
“Can I come in?”
Her eyes flew to his expression. He knew he must look formidable. He’d read her silence all the way home as a sign of mistrust. It angered him. The darkened car interior cloaked his eyes. To Ainsley he looked far more devilish than he could have ever imagined. Her heart flip flopped as she observed him, her handsome lover. She held on to the sensation almost desperately, relieved to be feeling anything at all. Eventually, she brought herself back to reality. His expression was granite, because of her.
“Oh I’m sorry.” Ainsley cursed herself for apologising again. “Of course. Of course come in. It will be nice to have a night cap.”
Ainsley missed the questioning expression her words produced. A night cap? It was barely 9pm. Never before had he been invited inside. In the past their tumbles had always taken place at his house, as a result of her marriage. Travis switched off the engine. Immediately the metal began to tick as it cooled. He made his way around the bonnet with gentlemanly grace and opened her door.
Inside, Travis was painfully aware of the stillness. As she collected their drinks from the far end of the room, he looked around the lavishly appointed room. A low, glass fronted cabinet adorned with lifestyle magazines, vases and photographs, took up the entire length of one wall. He moved closer. Frozen smiles from many years of marriage looked out at him.
He picked up a frame, Ainsley’s husband looked to be a much older man, perhaps 30 years his senior. Older than Ainsley herself. His tanned, firm features spoke of expensive methods of self-preservation, to which only the truly wealthy can aspire. Travis couldn’t help wondering if he would come to resemble this man. There was a good chance, considering his current rate of ascension through the ranks of a soliciting firm.
Behind him, Ainsley gave a little sigh. Abruptly, he replaced the photo and turned. A world of sorrow lay hidden in her eyes. Travis found the scene vaguely repulsive but he bit back his bile. He took the drinks from her shaking hands and placed them aside. He enveloped the older woman in his arms. Mechanically, he kissed her forehead. Beneath his lips, her skin felt papery and warm. She smelt of oranges and vanilla. Ainsley melted into his embrace and the silence deepened. Eventually Travis moved.
“Will you tell me now?”
The words hung in the air, as only awkward phrases trapped in uncomfortable silences can. She shook her head. Travis remained at a loss. From the corner of his eye he spotted a stereo. Abandoning her briefly, he strode over and broke the strange mood by switching on a record. Soft jazz floated into the room. Travis heaved a sigh of relief. He no longer probed her. It seemed futile. Instead his big arms simply held her. He rubbed the softness of her flesh through her dress with his thumbs and waited.
When she began to sob softly, he acted on instinct, extracting her from his chest. Travis took her face in his hands. He kissed the tears that continued their unhurried, silent descent down her pretty, too-fragile features. Finally, he placed his lips on hers. She met them hungrily. Her hands reached up to encircle his neck. He continued to ply her with softly insistent kisses and then, as the familiar rush of desire infused his veins, his lips became demanding. Ainsley answered, pressing her body to him, as though the heat in his could fill up the coldness in her own.
He warmed to his task. He felt the glimmer of answering passion stir within her. Travis went on making love to her mouth, his hesitation assuaged by her growing response. Ainsley’s pixie-like tongue darted in and out of his mouth, stopping to lick his bottom lip. He groaned and crushed her breasts into his solid chest. His biceps felt restricted in his suit jacket. Frustrated, he broke away and shrugged off the outer layer. Ainsley assisted by unbuttoning his work shirt. Beneath it, he wore no singlet. Her fingers met the fine, springy hair on his chest. She caressed her way towards his navel.
Through the delicate material of her dress, past the silk of her petticoat and the lace of her bra, Travis thumbed a budded nipple until her breathing rasped and her knees trembled. A lazy smile of satisfaction threatened his full lips. He gazed at his older mistress. She looked one hundred percent better. Her cheeks were rosy with arousal, her eyes shone in the dim light and she clearly wanted him. She met his gaze steadily and undid the buckle of his pants. Travis kicked off his shoes. He walked her bodily backwards as she continued her attempt to undress him.