Doug
The harbour master had shown us where the yacht would be. I was walking pretty fast and Al followed me, carrying two bags, some fishing rods and other gear we needed on our little trip. If he was stupid enough to carry my stuff besides his own I sure wasn't going to stop him. The yachts at this part of the marina were looking very expensive, and I hoped that Kate would be just as great as the boat. Andrew didn't want to tell much about her looks when he raised the idea of asking her. We 'had to see for ourselves' which could mean anything. She could be the ugliest woman on the planet or drop dead gorgeous. I liked her voice when we briefly spoke on the phone to arrange this fishing trip and it was then that I had decided that her sailing skills were the most important so I tried not to care about her looks.
"What's the name of the boat again?" Al asked while he tried not to stumble. "The Golden Sunshine you idiot. You've asked me that about twenty times now. Just keep on walking. That guy back there said it was all the way at the end," I retorted while quickly looking back at the harbour master's office. "When you feel the water coming into your shoes you know you've gone too far," I sniggered. Al mumbled something but kept on walking like I told him. When we had reached the end of the marina we were greeted by a gorgeous blonde who waved and told us to come onto her boat.
"You can put your gear down below," she said in a friendly tone. "If everything is to your liking we can sit down and discuss the little details," she added while Al walked down the stairs, followed by me, to a nice looking room. To our liking? Geez, this boat was better than my own home! I walked back up the stairs towards Kate who was boiling some water. "You're not thinking of drinking coffee or tea while finalising our deal," I said. "Do you have anything else?" I grinned. "Ah, so you like my boat?" she asked playing all innocent. "Not just your boat," I mocked. This was going to be a great trip. It just had to be. While we drank some bubbly I signed a contract made up by Kate and she took the four thousand dollars I had agreed to pay for her services.
That night we were sailing the Coral Sea, well actually Kate was sailing and Al and I were taking advantage of all the luxury of the boat. We were about to play a game of poker when Kate came into the lounge. "Is there anything I can do for you guys?" she asked. Al quietly laughed and hit me against my shin. "No not really," I replied before Al would show his hunger for woman's flesh. "You're sure?" she asked reassuringly. "Well, yeah, we're fine but if you would like to drink something with us that would be great," I answered.
Kate sat down and gave Al a questioning look. "Can I join the game?" she asked. I guess it surprised us both but Al really was in a loss for words. "Yeah, you, uhm, do uhh you know ahh," he stuttered. "What are you playing?" Kate asked not even reacting on his stutters. "Poker," was Al's short answer. Kate looked down in disappointment before she kind off veered back up again. "Don't know how to play," she answered. "But you could teach me," she smiled. Al started to smile as well and explained the rules although I wondered how much Kate would really understand from his explanation.
Strangely enough Kate turned out to be a wonderful student and we spent the night by playing multiple games of poker. Kate had opened a bottle of wine to drink while we stuck to beer. Everything loosened up a bit. It was time for some small talk and hopefully some more. "Tell me Kate. Do you do this often? I mean, rent out your boat to strangers?" I asked. She smiled and tilted her head. "Only if the prize is right," she answered me cryptically. She was going to play it hard it seemed. "Keeping your cards close to your chest was only a rule for the poker game," I joked. Kate laughed and shook her head. "Well then. Let's play poker."
For a minute I thought she meant playing another game but she threw money on the table and we had no other option than to do the same. Within a short time we were parted from our money and hadn't much left of it. Al got a little sachet out of the pocket of his shirt and threw it on the table. "Wanna play?" he dared Kate. She looked at it and smiled. "I wondered how long it would take for you to get your coke out. Are you sure you want to play with that? You can lose it," she teased. At the end of the game she gratefully took the coke and walked to the kitchenette where she emptied the sachet on something, divided the coke, bent forward and sniffed up what I supposedly thought to be a line. With the remaining coke she came back and offered us a line as well. "I'm a nice person and share," she said. "Have another line," I tried but she declined. "I'm the driver, remember," she said and with that she sat back and relaxed.
The next morning I woke up to the smell of fresh made coffee. Kate stood in the kitchenette, already fully dressed. Well, actually she wore a bikini and a skirt. Not a sight I could disagree with. She looked gorgeous! "I put your fishing stuff out on the deck so after breakfast you can get started," she said. I wondered if she was leading me on. Besides being gorgeous she was a smart woman. By now she should be able to put two and two together and know we weren't here for just fishing but I left it for now. "Thank you Kate," I said instead. This woman was mesmerising and all I knew was that I needed another opportunity to come back to her after this trip was over. "Yesterday evening you seemed to like the powder," I started. "If I could get you more of it would you take me along a second time?" I asked her. I got a big smile in return. "You bet," she stated. "I guess you know where that stuff grows. We could be best buddies," she said while she pat my shoulder.
On our return to Cairns I knew Kate was a winner. She even caught us some fish and let us drool over her perfect body while she was sunbathing but most importantly she had brought us home safely. It was time to say goodbye although I really didn't want to. With my last bag filled and ready to go I turned to her. "For the right prize," I mockingly started. "Could we hire you again? Say, next week?" I asked. She shrugged. "I need to check with my boss but I'll let you know as soon as I know something," she answered. "You wouldn't mind if I take along some friends?" I wondered. Again Kate shrugged. "For the right prize remember," she answered cheekily.
God, I was about to fall for this woman and hoped she would call me with some good news. With my own bag over my shoulder this time I left the yacht and waved one more time to Kate. "Thanks for a great weekend. Hope to see you soon," I yelled. She nodded and moved back into her boat.
I got out my mobile phone and dialled the number of a good friend. "Yeah mate, she's awesome! Everything what Andrew said and more. If we play it right we've got ourselves a new runner. But hey! She's mine!"