Chapter 5

It took a moment for Lex to realise what he’d said, what he was holding, and when her brain finally caught up, her mouth was still miles behind.  “Oh!  My bag!  What – How did you, what happened?” Otis passed it to her, proud like a dog with the biggest stick in the yard.  “I ran that guy down - it took me ages, but I got him on the ground and sat on him.  I used your phone to call the police, hope that’s okay, but they said it would be about an hour, so I just chatted with him while we waited.  His name is Ethan, a pretty cool guy actually, but he’s fallen in with a bad crowd, and they’ve got him doing stuff he doesn’t really want to be involved with.” “Spare me,” she muttered under her breath; the guy stole my bag – his motivation isn’t really a big interest of mine.  Lex sorted through her bag, checking for the phone, her wallet and credit cards.  Not that there was much room on any of them; two were maxed out and the other had a balance of about one hundred dollars available, but still.  “So, did the police arrest him?” He nodded, his face empathetic.  “Yeah, but I actually think it was the best thing for him.  His mum was on her way to bail him out, and she’s going to send him to live with his dad in Victoria for a while, get him out of the city.” Lex shook her head, incredulous that Otis could be so concerned about a common thief.  “Okay, good then.”  Reaching her hand out, she said, “Thank you.  This is very much appreciated.” He shook her fingers, and the instant their skin connected, heat flooded up her arm, electrifying her nerves.  Perhaps it was his luminous eyes, or his random act of kindness, or his scruffy appearance, but there was something so foreign and exciting about him, Lex found herself fascinated.  Besides the crush she’d developed on her Year 12 maths teacher, she hadn’t felt such girlish butterflies before, a sensation of being tugged out of her own body towards his. She made up her mind: I want you.  And what Lex wanted, she pursued and obtained, from promotions to auctions to conquests.  Dropping her weight onto her left hip, she pursed her lips and sent a wave of feminine wiles his way, squeezing his fingers sensuously. Otis seemed completely unaware.  Seeing him up closer, she guessed he was a few years younger than her, but his blitheness and innocence made him all the more appealing.  He dropped his hand and said, “Well, it was nice meeting you, Lex-” “Come in,” she interrupted.  Lex realised her invite sounded more like a command, so she tried to soften it by adding, “If you want to.  I’d like to thank you properly.  Do you want a drink?” He hesitated, analysing her face to see if she was serious.  “Well, okay.  I could use a glass of water, if you don’t mind.” She ushered him inside.  “I think I can do better than water.  I’m drinking Shiraz, do you want a glass?” He picked his way into her house, staring around at the elegantly placed vases and landscape paintings.  “No, thanks, I don’t drink.  Just water.” She closed the door behind him, and said, “You don’t drink?” “Nah.  Never been able to afford it since I was old enough to drink it, then I just figured I didn’t need to start doing something that’s such a bad habit for so many people.  Besides, I’ve never needed to be drunk to have a good time.” “Right…”  Alcohol was about her only indulgence, the one way she could actually relax.  Brushing the topic aside, she said, “Water it is.” In the seldom used kitchen, Lex pulled down a glass, then opened her refrigerator, looking for the Waterford crystal water pitcher. Otis grinned at her, his cheeks lifting upwards adorably.  “So, waiting for pay day, hey?” “What?”  Any mention of pay or cash and her hackles immediately rose.  Her income was high, but so were her expenses, and often she struggled to scrape through until the end of each month. But I never let it show.  Lex had big plans to be wealthy one day soon, and she knew in order to get there, she had to project an appearance of wealth; the right postcode, the right clothing, the right hairstyle, the right car.  No one would ever be able to guess that there were angry overdue notices cluttering her mailbox, when she wore $2000 jackets and lunched at the most exclusive restaurants in Sydney. Yet in less than 30 seconds inside her home, Otis had already called her out.  Lex reacted defensively.  “What are you talking about?  How- Why do you think I need to get paid?” His ivy eyes widened in puzzlement.  “I just meant, your fridge is empty.  I was kidding.” “Oh.”  Looking back to the open door, she took stock of her vacant shelves and expired dairy products.  “I don’t eat at home much.” “Right.  That’s cool, I eat out a lot too, you know, Maccas, Hungry Jacks…” It grew awkward in the kitchen, the silence stretching between them like sagging elastic.  Otis accepted the water glass and gulped it hastily, while Lex tried and failed to stop herself ogling his strong neck and the hypnotising way his Adam’s apple bobbed up and down. “Pretty quiet here,” he remarked, placing the empty glass on the bench top. “Well, I live alone.” “No housemates?  That must be awesome!  I was living with these two guys up until last week, and there was always some new hassle, and no one ever did dishes and the bathroom was about ten kinds of disgusting.  I swear, there was a wash cloth in the corner of the shower that was so mouldy, it had grown legs and was moving on its own at night.” His voice rose in excitement as he painted the picture of his bachelor life, and Lex realised the gap between them was wider than she’d thought.  Otis was young, focused on the now, broke and apparently happy that way.  She was future-driven, older than her years, balancing between horrendous debt and generous pay.  She wasn’t going to change who she was, and he had years left before he thought about getting a real job and growing up. And yet…  I still want him.  Despite the logic, Lex felt the pull in her lower belly, her needy, tactile body calling to his.  Unwilling to let him go just yet, she said, “Well, my fridge is empty, but we can order some food, if you like?” Lex saw him waver, and realised the source of his hesitation.  She might not have cared about people, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t perceptive.  “My shout, of course.  The least I can do for the man who single-handedly ran down my bag and returned it to my door.” He smiled, and it felt like sunshine on her face as he said, “That would be awesome!  I know a great Indian place around the corner.” Within fifteen minutes, Otis had made himself at home in her terrace house; he commandeered her laptop and placed an online order for delivery, then began hunting through the cupboards for plates and cutlery, chatting in his animated way about how clean her house was. Slightly dazed, Lex sank into a bar stool beside the bench, and watched him, unsure of how this had unfolded.  Sure, she’d asked him to stay, but the only thing on her mind had been somehow dragging him upstairs and into her bed.  Playing house wasn’t in the picture. And yet, there they were.  A few minutes later, the doorbell rang, and she made to stand.  Otis leapt up, gallant.  “Sit, my lady.  I’ll get it.” It was odd how the smallest act could sometimes seem so wonderful.  “Thank you.” Lex heard his enthusiastic conversation with the delivery guy, then he returned bearing two plastic bags filled with food.  “Grub’s up!” Conversation dwindled as they ate; not from a lack of topics, but because her unexpected guest barely drew a breath as he devoured four full plates of Indian fare.  Lex picked at a Vindaloo and watched him, fascinated.  “Enjoying that?” she asked as he chased the last of the mixed sauce around his plate with a sliver of naan. “Awesome,” he said, the word muffled through his full mouth.  He swallowed and spoke earnestly.  “I hope you got enough – sorry, it’s sometimes a long time between decent feeds for me, and I tend to go into a food trance.” He mimed being a zombie, but she was stuck on his last statement.  “Wait, you’re not eating well?  Or you’re not eating at all?” “A bit of both.”  He began to gather the plates up, his long defined arms clearing the clutter away.  “When I was living with the other guys, we all pitched in for food when we could, but sometimes there just wasn’t enough.  And now they’ve kicked me out…”  He shrugged good-naturedly.  “Well, I’m just trying to scrape together enough for rent somewhere new, and that doesn’t leave much left over for dinnerables.” “You got kicked out?  Where are you staying then?”