Women Who Talk Pt. 04

Alana stared at her dashboard for a few moments.

"Okay, set it up, I can't say it's my thing but I'm open to changing my environment."

They farewelled each other shortly after that but Robyn was left with the distinct impression that Alana had crossed the same line as her, and that meant she was definitely on her short list. They had exchanged phone numbers and she glanced at her phone as she pulled the blouse out of her skirt. What would it be like with her? Neither of us have been with a woman and I'm a total virgin, she mused as she unbuttoned her blouse, it could get awkward for both of us.

She parted the blouse and stared at herself in the mirror, seeing herself in a new light. She pushed her breasts together and rubbed her thumbs against her nipples. Jeff had come so close to doing that the other night.

And he still might, she swallowed.

So why did that fill her with foreboding? Was it because she was in love with someone else or was it something else?

Her phone beeped and she stepped over to the bed and looked at the message.

Alana: Thank you for today, you're a soothing influence. I've never told anyone what I just told you. Thank you for listening.

She swallowed as she sent her reply.

Robyn: No worries! You're great company. We should do lunch soon.

Alana: Okay, sure. Have a great night tomorrow night!

Robyn: You too. I'll look forward to reading Harry Potter.

The reply didn't come back for another twenty minutes.

Alana: She's my favourite author, the book is in my big black bag now so I can't forget.

Robyn: You've already chosen your Monday bag? I wish I could be that organised.

Alana: The perils/benefits of living alone, I've got time to plan ahead. Try doing that when you're living with someone!

Robyn stared down at the text she'd just composed.

Robyn: Speaking of spare time, I'm not working tomorrow do you feel like going out for lunch? She bit her lip and erased it but then her phone beeped.

Alana: Look, speaking of sex... if you ever need to talk to someone about the ins and outs of sex then I'm willing to give you the benefit of my somewhat limited experience. I'm busy this weekend with mum and I've got to catch up with Karen too but I'll leave it up to you.

Alana: P.S. I hope you don't think I'm intruding or getting maternal. I just wish I'd opened up to an older woman before my first time, I might not have made stupid mistakes.

She stared at her phone and then looked out the window as she considered her response.

Robyn: Thank you, I'm kind of okay but I'll certainly keep it in mind. We'll definitely have lunch on Monday and talk about Harry Potter, and maybe sex. Have a great weekend.

Alana: Thank you. Don't forget to ask your friend Penny about this group. I really want to come and check it out.

Robyn: Hang on and I'll call her.

Penny answered on the second ring and she sounded tired.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Um, I was talking to Erin's boss, Alana about the group and she was interested in coming along."

"To our group?" Penny fell back onto her bed.

"Yeah, don't worry. I didn't say yes because I needed to speak to you. I don't know how these things work."

"It's just a matter of being invited by someone else. There's no formal nomination process, the next one is at Kathy's place. That makes two new members in one month, we've got Astrid from Norway coming along too."

"Sounds exotic. Is she one of Sigrid and Elke's friends?"

"Elke I think although it's possible Sigrid knows her too. So, how was your day?"

"Same shit, different day. I introduced Alana to Cindy, she's going to make her a blouse."

"Cool, speaking of Cindy, she's going to be setting up her workshop in that spare room of mine, I'm going to gut the room on Sunday."

"No worries, well, I'm about to make dinner. I'll... um, see you tomorrow night."

"Looking forward to it, have a good night."

She farewelled her and then called Alana and at first it went through to voicemail but as she was about to send a text it rang.

"Alana, I was just texting you."

"Sorry, I was on the loo, I heard it ringing but you can't interrupt the flow."

"No worries, it's cool. You can come. It's the first Friday of every month and this month we're at Kathy's place but I'll fill you on the details in the next week or so."

"Okay," she replied, "the cute blonde woman with the hot panel van."

"That's the one," she grinned.

"No worries... well... I have to go and let Mac back in but I'll see you Monday and thanks."

After Robyn had ended the call she stared at her phone for the better part of a minute as she went through the messages.

Maybe Erin was right.

***

Penny held the two jackets up in front of herself that Saturday afternoon. She was happy with what she was wearing now, black leather jeans, beige blouse open to the third button, the black studded leather belt and even the boots. They came halfway up her calves but the jacket was a problem, she had a black leather dress jacket with ruffles or a dark red suede jacket with fringes and she loved both jackets equally and either one would suit the outfit she was wearing.

She'd been at work for the morning but that afternoon she had gone home via Sigrid and Louise's house in Olinda. The upcoming date night had been weighing heavily on her mind and she needed a sounding board.

"Why do I feel like I'm fucking my client?"

"Since when is Robyn your client?" Sigrid raised her eyebrows as she pushed a plate of bacon rolls across the bench, "she's a woman who's come to you for advice about sex. No money has changed hands, no laws have been broken and from what you've told me you've done everything right, so why carry a burden that neither you nor anyone else can carry?"

"I don't know," she confessed, "I admit I like her but she is with someone else and she does like him even if it's in an awkward kind of way."

"Stop trying to play a role. You're trying to micromanage this and while that might be the way you are at work, it's a bad idea with your social life. You're going to fuck up but it doesn't mean you're a bad person, it just means you're human."

"I know that too," she winced, "I feel like my mother right now, she was the fucking same, mum can't go out to the milk bar without putting on makeup and doing her hair, she's obsessed with her appearance. Her maid was more maternal than mum, at least she let me put my feet up on the couch and be myself."

The phone rang and she plonked down on the bed and picked it up, it was Robyn and she accepted the call and put it on speaker.

"Hey, how are you?"

"I'm nearly ready," Robyn ran a brush through her hair, "I tried to call back after you tried to call me but you were busy, thanks for the text though. What are you wearing?"

"White blouse, black leather trousers, black boots but the choice of jackets are a black leather one or a dark red suede one and I can't fucking decide," she paused as she recalled Sigrid's advice and then launched out into the unknown.

"What's your suggestion?"

"Red suede sounds good, I'm wearing my black leather jacket."

"Okay," she put the black one down, "I'll be leaving in about half an hour, give or take, so I should be pulling up about sixish. How was your day?"

"It was pretty busy," she rose and walked to her bed, "housework until ten, then into Croydon to get my hair done."

"Sounds like a fun day out," she picked up the suede jacket.

"How was your day?"

"Ah, I finally pulled the pin and called this climate system installer, he came over because his boys were doing a house not far from here and after I accepted his quote he told me they could do it this coming Tuesday and Wednesday, but they want to come in on Monday arvo to get themselves set up so I know what I'll be doing on Sunday arvo, moving furniture."

"Fantastic," she picked up her leather jacket, "do you need a hand moving furniture? I can probably get Jeff to come up and give us a hand."

"Way ahead of you there, Cindy and Mary are coming over with Mary's oldest boy, Barry, he's going to clean out the guttering but thanks for the offer."

"No worries, well, I gotta go, so I'll see you at six?"

"On the dot, I'm so looking forward to this."

After she'd hung up, Penny stared at her reflection in the mirror.

What am I going to do with her?

The signs were there, she could sense it in her voice and the way she listened intently to every word she said and yet the younger woman hadn't made a move that she could interpret as an invitation. She frowned as she recalled the conversation she'd had with Kathy earlier, they'd become firm friends and Kathy was the type of person who didn't make friends easily but when she did she was a friend for life. She'd raved about Robyn to Penny over the phone when she'd called to ask her about helping her to clean out the junk room tomorrow and it left her wondering if there wasn't something more there.

And then there was Alana. What right did she have to intervene? Her role up until now had simply been that of big sister/therapist, guiding her through the intricacies of sexual intimacy without touching her. However, be that as it may, Robyn had certainly endeared herself to other members of the group already. Either way, she was going to play her cards close to her chest she decided as she made her way out to the car.

Robyn studied her reflection in the mirror as she adjusted the collar of the blouse. The blouse she was wearing was an off-white chiffon one with lace work on the sleeves, she wore a camisole under it and tucked them into a pair of black jeans, which went well with black ankle boots and the black leather jacket.

Ready to rock, she smirked.

***

The Swagman Restaurant was on Burwood Highway and had been a Melbourne fixture for years. Almost everyone could repeat the first line of the advertisement jingle by heart because many had grown up with it. The fare was not designed for upper class snobs, it was a smorgasbord and for the one price you could eat until you couldn't eat anymore. Because of its size it also had a stage, the acts ranged from local bands and singers through to international acts like Smokie and Suzi Quatro and tonight the place was literally pumping.

Many of the people were older than Penny but there were quite a few who were in her age group as well as Robyn's, all dressed up to listen to the Queen of Rock and Roll belting out old favourites as well as songs from her newest album. She wasn't due to come on until later though and so the two of them browsed the help yourself food bars. Robyn took Penny's advice and loaded her plate with small portions with each visit. She tasted seafood she'd never tasted like oysters and calamari, and then there was caviare, she didn't know it came in two colours, black and a vibrant pink but it was very salty.

"And people pay a fortune for this?"

"It's an ego trip," Penny dipped her spoon into some of Robyn's caviare, "I've had it before and I agree, it's as salty as fuck, it's highly overrated," she grinned.

Robyn took another mouthful of wine and let it sit in her mouth for a few seconds before it slid down her throat.

"Good job there's wine to wash it down with," she squinted at her glass, "what is this?"

"Riesling," she glanced at the wine menu, "not from my winery though."

"You own a winery?"

"No, I'm one of the shareholders in a winery in the Barossa Valley, I've only got two percent so I'm one of about thirty other shareholders with similar stakes but it's a good little money earner, I get a nice cheque every quarter."

"I didn't know about the winery," she swilled the wine in her glass, "Colleen did tell me she went into partnership with you in an alpaca farm near Warbie."

"Oh, you know about that?"

"Yeah, the only person in the area I know who owns an alpaca farm is Trisha Grant."

"Yeah, that was her married name and to cut a long story short, I managed to save the farm by the skin of its teeth when I handled her divorce, but she was still looking at either culling the herd in a few months time or selling it off for dog food and that's where I came in," she drained her glass and flicked at her hair.

"Colleen and I bought into the farm after the dust settled and saved the alpacas from being sent to the slaughterhouse. Trisha was over the moon, she'd moved onto the farm by then and every time I go up to see her I look at the alpacas grazing in the fields and think, I saved you," she sipped her wine and smirked.

"I'm sure they're grateful too but all they do is stare at me with that curious expression on their faces and wonder what the hell this woman is staring at me for. Is she going to eat me?"

"We used to go out there, my girlfriends and I," she stirred the remains of her food, "when she and Rob were still together and they'd let us feed them or pet them. I never had much to do with him but she was always ready to talk, I knew they'd split up but the last time I was there was about three years ago, just briefly to say goodbye to Rob but there was just some dude I'd never seen."

"The divorce was in progress then," she replied, "six months in litigation, she had to take out a bank loan against her house to keep the farm operating and the dude was her brother. He lives there now with his wife in the main house and Trisha lives in a small cottage that used to be a shed with her partner, Denise."

"I did hear about that," she grinned, "along with half the fucking town, that's the problem with growing up in a small town, everyone knows your business whether you like it or not," she picked up the drinks menu.

"See something you like?"

"Creme de menthe? I've never had that."

"Well, it's my shout, you supplied the tickets, I supply the drinks and the ride home."

"Or dessert," she looked past her, "decisions, decisions, decisions."

"Just have both," Penny shrugged.

"I do believe I will."

Suzi Quatro came on at about eight o'clock and the atmosphere shifted from that of a restaurant to a concert hall as she belted out an old favourite, Glycerine Queen followed by 48 Crash, Can the Can and Devilgate Drive. By then the crowd was in full throng, some of the women were up dancing at their tables or down at the stage and then there was a brief pause whilst Suzi welcomed them all and cracked a couple of jokes. Penny was mesmerised by the diminutive woman on stage, almost dwarfed by the big base guitar, on the way to the restaurant she'd related the story of how she had her poster hanging on the door of her bedroom for years. Suzi had of course grown older and put on weight but that being said, she could still cavort about on stage with the best of them, the crowd settled down for a long night of rock and roll.

***

Helen got out of her mother's car and stretched as she stared across the highway at the restaurant, she'd known Penny was going to see Suzi Quatro tonight and it had made her wonder about this mystery date. Her boss had been evasive when talking about it but because her black Toyota four wheel drive was so distinctive she opted for subterfuge and drove to Box Hill to swap cars with her mother. It had made for an uncomfortable moment when her mother protested that she didn't know how to drive that truck and so she used the lie that the car needed a service.

"I'll pay for the service," she wrinkled her nose against the all too familiar stench of cat piss from one of her mother's five cats, "but I can't have you driving around in an unsafe car, the brakes felt spongy the last time I drove it."

"And what if I have to go shopping?"

"I'll do your shopping when I bring the car back," she replied.

That had clinched the argument. It meant her ageing mother could chill out in front of the telly with her sudoku and crossword books. Her mother's 1995 Ford Falcon was much newer than her ageing Landcruiser and if it was one thing Helen wanted when her mother died it was the car. This model had the six cylinder engine but it was like a bullet from a gun on the open highway compared to her four wheel drive and it cornered like it was on rails.

However, if she was going to smoke she needed to do it outside the car because her mother hated the stench of cigarette smoke, something Helen found ridiculous when compared with cat piss and cat food. Her mother's condition did concern her neighbours and friends as she was showing early signs of dementia but so far Helen had managed to keep them at bay with the option of a second opinion due to her mother's history of mental health issues. Being behind the wheel of the Falcon today though had caused her to rethink her stance.

Perhaps she could get her mother reassessed and then use the argument of the worried daughter. With her mother in a home the car would be hers by default but she'd need to lie about selling it but that could be easily arranged by taking out a loan to match the value of the car.

With all that aside however, she'd been surprised when Penny's date turned out to be Robyn. So the boss was moving in on her girl. It had almost caused her to abandon the chase altogether but a sense of pride dictated that she stay close tonight. She'd follow them when they left the Swagman, only then would she make a decision.

***

Robyn considered herself a responsible drinker. She never drank and drove, which was why she was always the nominated driver whenever she went out with friends. Even when she wasn't the driver however she rarely had more than a few because she didn't like the feeling of being out of control and the inevitable worshipping at the porcelain god. The last time she'd been drunk was eighteen months ago on a work night out in the city. Yvonne had pulled over on Canterbury Road to let her puke her guts out, she'd sworn off Bacardi after that night, even the smell of Bacardi made her feel nauseous.

Tonight though she was tipsy and that had as much to do with the atmosphere and the company as the alcohol Penny generously paid for and by the end of the night she was onto the top shelf, trying out drinks she wouldn't normally touch because of their higher price. Another contributing factor though was guilt because whilst they were both agreed that this wasn't a date, at the back of her mind she had the feeling that this was a date and that brought up a rather uncomfortable fact. She was going out with Jeff and he'd been enthusiastic about her date, but that was because he didn't know about her sexual orientation, he just thought it was a girl's night out and went to a mate's joint to watch videos. Would he have been so happy if he knew Penny was gay?

Robyn chanced a look at her as Penny drove away from the Swagman just after 11:15. She doubted that very much and yet it wasn't a date, they'd agreed on that already, when it was arranged and on the way over tonight.

So, why was she feeling guilty?

"I thought you were going to go the other way," she spoke up as Penny put her foot down.

"Nope, it's straight back to your joint, I've got an early start in the morning."

"You working? On a Sunday?"

"Moving furniture," she reminded her, "Cindy and Mary will be there at ten and you're going to be hungover to the max, the last thing you want is us moving furniture and making loud noises, been there, got the tee shirt. I wouldn't do that to you."

"I didn't mean anything by that," Robyn rested her arm on the console, "I don't know what I mean to be honest, it's like a slippery slope and I'm looking down hoping there's something soft at the bottom."

"You're doing fine," she patted her hand, "seriously, I had a great time so stop trying to over think a night out and just sit back and enjoy the ride home, if you feel like puking just yell out and I'll pull over and let you do a technicolour yawn."