Page 75 of Love Is…?

Olna threw drunken finger guns at Jayde, which were aimed so poorly that the live band at the other end of the cavernous room would be the only fatalities. Then she tossed another enormous mouthful of alcohol down her throat. “Tessa Connor. Pretty girl. Bit innocent, but that’s okay.” She tried another elbow jab, but Jayde moved back. No way was she having Olna touch any part of her. “She was tame in the bedroom, if you know what I mean.” Olna squinted. “You look like you know what I mean. Tried to get her into more, you know, but she wouldn’t. Bit of a waste, if you ask me.”

Jayde wasn’t asking. Nausea was roiling in her stomach. Olna continued, seemingly thrilled to cast aspersions about Tessa’s overall skills when it came to sex.

“So, I got what I needed with other girls, right? Tessa was all good with it. She understood.”

The conversation from weeks ago zipped through Jayde’s mind as Olna rambled on.

“I wonder if she did actually understand,” Jayde said, staring at Olna. Then, suddenly sick of the whole interaction, the intoxication, the conversation, Jayde waved at the bartender, who brought over the handheld EFTPOS reader. Jayde tapped her card, then stood, and turned to Olna.

“Enjoy Melbourne,” she said through a tight smile, then, after weaving her way through the pub patrons to find Luce, Jayde thanked her friend for the invitation to hang out, and made her way to the exit.

Jayde paused near the curb, and breathed deeply. Christ! So, that was Olna. The Olna, participant in the relationship explosion. Olna, the recipient of Tessa’s ‘I love you’. Jayde growled. Olna didn’t deserve a single bit of Tessa’s heart. And now Olna was here in Melbourne to surprise Tessa. Jayde would bet anything that Tessa wouldn’t be thrilled with that particular surprise. Jayde decided that Olna’s presence in the city was not information to share with Tessa when they next talked.

“Hey, there. You left. Wanna go to another bar?”

Jayde spun around, straight into a cloud of exhaled fumes. Olna, leaning heavily on the A-frame board that advertised the cocktail specials inside the pub, seemed to think that Jayde was her new drinking buddy.

“No, thanks. I’ve got work tomorrow.” She stared at the woman, and sighed. “Olna, it’s probably a good idea to call it a night. Head back to your hotel.”

Olna peered owlishly at Jayde. “You’re ruining my vibe.” She pointed her finger in admonishment. “I reckon I’ll head up the street to find someone else to party with.”

She let go of the sign, checked her balance for a moment, took a single step, then clutched at the sign again. “Nope,” she announced loudly, as three men waiting at the bus stop nearby watched her pursuit of vertical with great interest.

A taxi crawled to a stop, and the driver, a bearded man, his hair wrapped in a beautiful yellow and orange ombre turban, powered down the passenger window, then leaned across the centre console. “Looking for a taxi, love?”

It was time to go home, text Tessa for the four-hundredth time, have a shower, and go to bed. She looked at Olna, whose gaze was fixed on the cracks in the footpath, then she flicked a glance at the men, now looking as if they were more than happy to escort Olna farther up the road to admire much more interesting footpath cracks.

Jayde sighed.

“Yeah, mate. Give me a minute?”

The driver nodded.

Jayde held Olna’s elbow, and pulled her around.

“Olna, you’re in a foreign country, completely smashed, and even though the rest of the world thinks Australians are a bunch of friendly folk, some of us can be right arseholes. So…” She guided Olna to the taxi, and opened the rear door. “You’re heading back to the hotel, okay? Where are you staying?”

Olna, having collapsed into the seat, frowned. “The black building. Fancy one in town.The Keyboard?” She looked up hopefully, as if her answer might earn a gold star. Jayde made eye contact with the driver, and raised her eyebrows.

“Probably notThe Keyboardhotel,” Jayde said, adding a one-shoulder shrug.

“I reckon it’sThe Keysborough,” he said with a nod.

“That’s it!” Olna exclaimed.

The hotel was reputable, and had an excellent rating on theSafe Travels For Womenwebsite so Jayde grunted in satisfaction.

Checking that Olna was buckled in, and relatively upright, Jayde leaned in the front passenger window, resting her elbow on the door frame.

“What’s your price from here toThe Keysborough?”

The driver shrugged. “Probably a bit over forty.”

Jayde blew out a breath at the inflated price. She flicked a glance at Olna. The woman might have lied, cheated, and hurt Tessa horribly but Jayde wasn’t about to let Olna get disappeared into the night by a few bastards at a bus stop.

“No worries, mate. How does seventy sound? Covers the fare and any clean up if she chucks.”

After getting a, “Goodo” from the driver, Jayde leaned across and tapped her card. She stepped back, gave Olna a thumbs up through the window, and the taxi pulled away.

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