Every Man's Fantasy part 2 of 6

Every Man's Fantasy part 2 of 6



Ezra was certain she was not on holiday because no one ever came to Capelin on holiday, yet he was still unclear whether Yuima was a prostitute or just an innocent customer who miss understood quite what she looked like or where she was. She also seemed a little anxious, occasionally looking around the empty bar and resting her gaze on the doorway.

"Just stopping here for the night," he told her. "I'm off prospecting tomorrow."

Yuima knew the planetary prospector's life to be a glamorous one of danger, thrills, fights and women in every spaceport, but she showed only a polite interest. Even so, Yuima and Ezra were soon getting on well, talking about Yuima's home on Earth and Ezra's adventures, space-hopping around the galaxy. Although Ezra was failing to secure the services of an entertainer, yet nothing else was happening in the pub or in the street outside. Even the barman, who had been pretending not to listen while he rubbed a glass with a dirty towel, gave up eavesdropping and went away to do some genuine work.

They took their drinks to a table in the window to be more comfortable and, although both kept a surreptitious eye on the door, Ezra became genuinely interested in Yuima, who had gained an engineering degree, had recently started working for one of the big East Asian engineering firms and specialized in hyperspace drives. He still didn't buy her story of a solo holiday on Capelin but believed Yuima was waiting for someone, so obviously was she scanning the pub's entrance; yet she kept up her half of the conversation well enough.

People gradually drifted in and the bar was noisy and full by the time Hestia, the gorgeous entertainer Ezra had been seeking, arrived in the boisterous company of about twenty men and women. The men were in military uniform and the women wore the revealing kind of garb preferred by entertainers and, apparently, Japanese hyper-drive engineers on holiday.

Excusing himself to Yuima for a moment, Ezra got up to speak to Hestia but saw she already had a client, an officer in naval whites. When Hestia saw Ezra, she whispered something to her escort and while he obediently stood up and made his way to the bar, Hestia signaled Ezra to approach.

"Hi, Hestia," he said, when he had pushed through the throng to her table, "I hoped to meet you here earlier. This is my last night in Capelin for a while."

"Oh, what bad luck, Darling," she replied. "If only you had called me before. A cruiser landed this afternoon and we all went down to the Northern Docks to meet it. ... I always love watching big stately vessels come into a tight dock," adding with a salacious grin; "it barely fitted." But Ezra was too preoccupied to notice the opening she gave him for a dirty joke. He was thinking how the arrival of a military ship explained why it was so quiet in the town-centre when he had arrived.

"It was just my luck!" he said. "I expect the pubs and hotels at the docks are heaving."

"Too right! That why we came down here," Hestia agreed, nonchalantly shrugging away his failure at sexual banter. "I'm sorry I can't even recommend a friend to you. As you can see, everyone I know already has an escort."

There were gorgeous entertainers all around. Some were sitting on the sailors' laps: others had got up to dance, in a voluptuous but energy-saving style. Clearly disappointed, Ezra glanced back at Yuima and Hestia followed his eyes. Even before he spoke, she had kindly advice for him:

"Not a chance, darling," she said, gently. "I've been in the game for years and unless this is her first night, she's not that kind of girl."

"Oh, well," said Ezra: "I can at least be a gentleman. I'll take Yuima on a tour of the town (such as it is) and show her a good time."

"Well aren't you just the sweetest man imaginable," Hestia cooed, stroking Ezra's cheek. "What a pity that horrid old Commodore grabbed me first." Just at that moment, the horrid old Commodore himself was marching up to Hestia, carrying two glasses, keen to know why she was talking to another man.

"Well, good bye, Ezra," she said, gently pushing him away and fixing an engaging smile to turn on the Commodore. "Duty calls. Have a safe trip!"

Putting his own brave face on, Ezra returned to Yuima, who had spent the last five minutes thoroughly scanning the crowd without success.

"Yuima, it's too noisy in here for me," Ezra said. "Would to care to go somewhere else?"

Yuima checked the time, decided she had waited long enough and smiled sweetly up at Ezra. "Yes, I would like that, Ezra. Thank you."

As they passed through the throng to the exit, Yuima gave each face a last scan before resigning herself to whatever fate her disappointed vigil had ensured. Outside the bar, however, Yuima made her mind up to be happy. She performed a graceful hop to get onto the moving walkway that would take them across the centre of the space-station and linked her arm with Ezra's to steady her for when the change in artificial gravity and coriolis forces would throw her off-balance.

By nutbuster