Part 1: The Bet is On
Caitlin O'Shaunessy opened her eyes to the shrill ring of her alarm clock. She grinned to herself as she sat up and hit the 'off' button on her alarm. Saturdays were, generally a rule, a day for sleeping in. But today String had promised to teach her how to ride a motorbike. His huge BMW, to be precise. Cait had ridden a quad bike, a bicycle and horses, but never a motorbike, and was really looking forward to it.
Cait sprang out of bed, heading straight to the shower. She had promised to meet String at the hangar at 9, which meant she had exactly fifteen minutes to shower, brush her teeth and grab some breakfast before she got into her car for the ten minute drive to the Van Nuys airport.
Cait couldn't keep the grin off her face as she drove to the Santini Air hangar. She remembered the heated conversation that sparked off the whole deal. It had ended with String yelling, "Oh, you're such a girl! I'll betcha whatever you like that you can't learn to ride a motorbike without crying!" And she had whirled around, grabbing him by the lapels of his work-stained overalls. "And I'll bet that YOU can't learn to ride a horse without crying, smart-ass!"
Dom had come in at the end of the conversation and stood at the office door with a big grin on his face. "I'll take that bet, Cait!" Raising his voice, he yelled for Everett, their mechanic and general dogsbody.
"Yeah, boss?" Everett trotted into the office, still wiping the oil off his hands with a grimy rag.
"You want in on this bet?"
"What's that, boss?"
"Cait here says String can't learn to ride a horse without crying. And String says Cait can't learn to ride a motorbike without crying! So, you in?"
"Hell, yeah, boss! I'll put a fifty on Mr String, here."
"So I guess I've got the fifty on Cait then?"
"You're on, boss!"
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String had woken that morning, feeling more than a little uneasy. He didn't mind spending time with Cait, in fact he really enjoyed her company. And he really looked forward to teaching her how to ride his bike. But he didn't want to see her get hurt, and he REALLY didn't want to be the one to make her cry. After all, it was just a stupid bet, made in the heat of the moment. But in order to win he first had to make her cry, then he had to keep a stiff upper lip the following week when he was scheduled to learn to ride a horse? He was sure that he could take the punishment to his own body, but making Cait cry? He wasn't sure he was emotionally up to the challenge. "Why do you always push my buttons, Cait?" he groaned to himself, as he finished the last slurp of coffee and rinsed his coffee mug out. He looked at his Breitling. Dom was due to pick him up in less than five minutes, so he could keep his appointment with Cait at the hangar at 9 that morning. Fighting the urge to crawl back under his duvet, String pulled on his leather vest and checked that he had his favourite sunglasses and wallet. He had risen early that morning, unable to sleep, so decided to give his home a thorough clean. He grinned faintly at the smell of lemon-scented polish and window cleaner that lingered in the air. Squaring his shoulders, he nodded to Tet, who was sat by the door, eyeing his master. "C'mon, Tet." String carefully shut the door behind him and made his way down to the jetty, where his quick hearing warned him that Dom was less than a minute away.
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