The Flaming Girls Ch. 03

"I didn't hurt you did I Charlie? You know I'd never hurt you?" the concern in Benny's voice was genuine.

Charlie stroked his stubbly cheek and smiled at him. She kissed him softly on the side of the face.

"Of course not Benny, I always feel safe with you," She snuggled down deeper in his lap.

"You can stay the night if you want to; you know that luv," Benny hugged her.

Charlie winced a little. She'd lied about the pain, her belly was throbbing with a deep blunt pain but it was quite manageable. But there was no way Charlie was spending the night in that rumpled musty mess of sheets and duvets, breathing stale old man farts all night; her devotion to Benny only went so far. She would stay as long as he wanted her to but Charlie always went home, even when the rare punter splurged on a nice hotel room. She'd made it a rule to always wake up in her own bed.

Unbeknown to them both, from the comfort of his Bentley parked down the street from the underpass Walter Middleton had watched Charlie lean into Benny's baby-shit yellow Morris 1300 and then get into the passenger seat. He'd come back to the underpass out of curiosity. But Charlie no longer burned for him; he had extinguished her flame and she no longer held his interest.

He rubbed at his forehead as he drove away, his headaches were getting stronger.

Back at Glenda's flat she and Robin had finished for the night. Remnants of the Taj Mahal's finest chicken korma, saffron rice and garlic naan were scattered over Glenda's small kitchen table and four empty beer bottles graced her draining board.

"A good day's work," Robin stood up and pushed back his chair.

"And a productive evening, whoops, excuse me," she stifled a burp.

"My breath is going to stink of garlic and curry for days," she put the back of her hand to her mouth to stifle another.

"Mine too," Robin smiled.

"Just as well I've no one to care about it," he grinned sadly.

"No special girl in your life then Sargent?" Glenda asked.

"It's Robin and no," he shook his head.

"Did Charlie get home alright then; I forgot to ask," Glenda smirked.

"Yes. The tranny brass got home just fine," Robin said gruffly.

"All well and good then," Glenda reached out and rubbed a paper napkin on Robin's cheek.

She held up the napkin, stained with Charlie's lipstick, to Robin's face.

He blushed.

"Charlie got home fine," he smiled at Glenda, caught in the lie.

"She's... I don't know... she's not who I thought she was," he mused, pulling on his coat.

"Be careful with her Robin, she's got a way of making you like her even though you know you shouldn't," Glenda said showing him to the door.

To be continued