Eye Candy (31 page)

Within seconds, two large leather vest-clad bouncers appeared. The bouncers gently but firmly lifted the man from his bar stool
and carried him away.

The woman on the bar
stool, now quite alone, went on with her self exploration, her ardor growing with each passing moment. A crowd quickly formed around her, until Danny and Candy could no longer see her.

Chloe appeared, elbows resting on the bar, a toothpick in her mouth.
“If you play, you pay.”

“
How often does that happen?” Danny asked.

Chloe pointed to the brunette
, whose eyes were now closed as her body convulsed in gentle, steady contractions. “Her reaction is pretty standard. But his was a serious bummer.”

“
Where did they take him?” Candy asked.

“
Downstairs. To the soundproof room. They’ll strap him down so he can’t hurt himself or anyone else. If it doesn’t wear off in a couple hours, they’ll call the company that manufactures this stuff. The company will send a courier with an antidote. If the antidote doesn’t work, the courier will offer a cash settlement.”

“
Does the antidote work?” Candy asked.

“
Most times.”

“
How much is the settlement if it doesn’t?” Danny asked.

“
That’s strictly confidential,” said Chloe. “But the rumor is it’s about seventy-five grand.”

Candy was shocked.
“That’s not very much.”

“
Which is why I stick with Purple Passion.” Chloe flicked the toothpick from one side of her mouth to the other. “Can’t go blind chewing gum. You guys really aren’t going to dance?”

Danny and Candy considered the dance floor. The Red Hot Cyborg Players were deep in the music, lost in a grooving melody. Blackie jumped up and down in place, bouncing on his toes, absently clutching the microphone stand with one hand. Whitey stood atop a row of large monitors, bobbing his head and stroking his bass. Kong played his drums effortlessly, keeping perfect time. And VanCat
’s four arms and four hands strummed both guitar necks in a smooth rhythm.

Candy turned back to Chloe.
“We don’t really dance.”

“
Do you do the horizontal mambo?”

Candy and Danny exchanged glances.

“Not yet,” Candy replied.

“
How long you been together?”

“
This is our sixth date,” said Danny.

“
Keeping track. You’re a smart man,” said Chloe. “It’s your sixth date and you guys haven’t gone all the way?”

Candy shook her head. Danny grinned.

“That is so sweet. And so old fashioned.” Chloe pointed at the two packets of Love In Space sitting on the bar. “You guys should grab a shuttle and head down to the Space Port. Take that with you. Chew it on the ride up.”

Candy and Danny exchanged a knowing glance; the Space Port had been their destination prior to their shuttle mishap.

“You guys ever been in orbit?”

Danny shook his head.
“We tried a few days ago but we had shuttle trouble.”

“
You should try again. First time in zero G. Wish my first time had been in zero G. Talk about a one-of-a-kind experience. . . .” Chloe smiled and adjusted her wedding ring. She toyed with her toothpick and glanced at the human male bartender, who was juggling about ten limes. “That’s Colt. We’re both actors. I wish he was as good at being faithful as he is at juggling. Not that I have much room to talk. In this town, this business, this job, there’s a lot of temptation. They call it the City of Angels but I think the angels all hit the road a long time ago. I wish I had.”

Chloe seem
ed to suddenly gather herself. “Seriously. The Space Port runs twenty-four seven. It’s only”–she checked her watch–“ten. You guys hustle, you can be in orbit by midnight. Naked.”

Chloe snapped her fingers, twirled once in place and executed a perfect two-step. She moved down the bar and smacked Colt
hard on the ass with one hand.

Colt lost his concentration and dropped his limes.

Chapter 23

A One-Of-A-Kind Experience

The orbiter blasted off at 11:15 sharp.

By 11:30, they were in orbit, docking at Bay 12 of the Horizon Space Hotel.

By 11:45, Candy and Danny were alone in their room.

By 11:47, they were naked.

Chapter 24

No More Substance Than Shadows

Check-out time was 11:00 a.m.

Danny and Candy departed their room and floated to the austere white dining room, where they savored a complimentary continental breakfast, enjoyed entirely in zero G.

They admir
ed the view through the massive windows, and looked down upon the earth. They oohed and ahhed at the swirls of white clouds, the greens and browns of north America, and the impossibly-blue ocean surrounding it.

Candy and Danny took turns feeding each other forkfuls of scrambled eggs and crispy fried potatoes, laughing each time a bite escaped the tines of the fork and one of them was unable to gobble it out of the air.

Pouches of hot coffee accompanied warm, freshly-baked cinnamon rolls spread generously with icing. Candy dabbed a bit of the icing onto her finger and held it out so that Danny could suck her finger clean.

But she dabbed the icing onto the tip of his nose.

Candy laughed almost uncontrollably. Danny fixed her with a wry grin, waiting for her to wipe off the icing.

At last, Candy gently removed the icing from Danny
’s nose. She sucked on her own finger, savoring the icing while Danny watched.

They hadn
’t actually made love the night before, and Danny felt the ache of a needed release returning after a sound night’s sleep. The bed in their room was mounted vertically to one wall, with the sheets and blankets affixed to form a giant envelope of comfort. Danny and Candy had floated around their cabin, arms and legs entwined, kissing passionately and occasionally admiring the view of the lights of the United States at night.

But the moment of congress had never seemed to
arrive. With heavy eyes, they at last slid down into the bed and cinched the covers to hold them in place while they slept.

The packets of Love In Space remained unopened, forgotten.

After breakfast, Candy and Danny boarded the shuttle for the flight back to the Space Port. Re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere was a blazing, sparking light show that in and of itself was worth the price of their fares.

The ride soon smoothed out, the captain announced that they were lined up for their approach, and all too soon the wheels of the orbiter chirped on the runway.

~

Candy and Danny sat on her sofa
two hours later, side by side, holding hands.

They savored the silence.

“What a night,” Candy murmured.

Danny smiled.

She rolled her head sideways on the sofa cushion. “How come we didn’t . . . you know?”

Danny shrugged.
“I was happy doing what we were doing. I don’t mind waiting.”

“
You don’t?”

“
No. Do you?”

“
No, I don’t mind at all. It’s kind of nice, I think.” Candy yawned and stretched. “How long should we wait?”

Danny shrugged once more.
“Once upon a time, people waited until they were married.”

“
I always thought that was so quaint. But I never really understood if it was actually possible. I always thought that if I loved someone enough to want to marry him, I wouldn’t be able to control myself, and wouldn’t want to wait. I’d want to fuck like minks all the time, all day every day, and all night every night. But I guess that’s the point, huh? You want to do it really, really bad, but you don’t. You wait until you’re married.”

“
How do minks fuck?”

“
What?”

“
Minks. How do they mate? Everyone always uses that expression ‘fuck like minks.’ Do minks fuck a lot? More than, say, rabbits? Or gorillas? Or lions?”

“
Rabbits are known to be rather amorous creatures,” said Candy. “I don’t know about gorillas or lions.”

“I’ve seen video of gorillas doing it. The big male Silverback gorilla was putting the female into different positions. First, he did her from behind. Then he turned her over and did missionary. Then he sat up and spread her legs. It was almost like watching porn.”

Candy laughed.

“And lions mate for, like, three days. They do it something like eighty times,” said Danny. “I think that’s the most in the animal kingdom.”

“I’m sure Helen and Sparky could give them a run for their money,” said Candy. “It just goes to show you that God created all living creatures with an almost irresistible urge to reproduce.”

“If there is a God,” said Danny. “I’m hopeful, but, for me, the jury is still out on that one. After all, you and I resisted while we were in orbit last night.”

Candy smiled. “That’s why I said
almost
irresistible. You want to make a bet?”

“What kind of bet?”

“I’ll bet you a million dollars that I can make you believe in God.”

“Do you have a million dollars to bet with?”

“No,” said Candy. “I don’t need it because I’m going to win the bet. You said your airplane is worth a million-five, right? I’ll bet you your airplane that I can make you believe in God.”

“My Viper Jet? I’m not sure I want to make that bet. Besides, how are we going to prove it one way or another? Mankind has been trying to prove the existence of God for eons. Without success. And I’m talking about
real
substance, here. It’s like chasing shadows.”

“I’m not talking about discovering some almighty physical, scientific proof of the existence of God,” said Candy. “I’m talking about making you believe.”

Candy extended her hand.

Danny examined it closely. “What? Is there a hundred-dollar bill in there?”

“Do we have a bet?”

Danny remained silent.

“See, the great Doctor Olivaw is at a loss for words once something tangible is on the line . . . like an airplane.”

“I worked hard for that airplane. It was my lifelong dream to have my very own fighter jet. I worked and I saved and I worked and I saved and then I worked and saved some more, and I finally got it.”

“By the grace of God.”

Danny merely raised one eyebrow in doubt.

Candy’s open hand remained outstretched. “So? Do we have a bet?”

“I’m not sure I want to wager my airplane.”

The phone rang.

Candy answered
it, listened, and hung up. “Well, doubting Thomas, I’ve got to go downstairs for a bit.”

“
You have a client?”

“
Cli
ents
,” said Candy. “Plural. They’re on their way. I need some coffee. You want some coffee? I’m not sure it’ll help you find the Lord but it might help you wake up a little bit.”

Danny followed Candy into the kitchen.
“But it’s Saturday. It’s supposed to be our day off. I was thinking we could take the Viper Jet for a spin. One last flight before I gamble it away to you. Maybe go out to Catalina for some lunch.”

Danny felt strange and somehow guilty making such a suggestion. But the truth was that he and Harley had indeed had a nice time at The Blue Bar, and he wanted to repeat the experience. But this time he wanted to share the experience with the woman he truly wanted to be with. He wouldn
’t take Candy to The Blue Bar, however. That place would be forever associated with Harley. He and Candy would find a place of their own.

“
Catalina sounds nice,” said Candy. She filled the coffee maker with coffee beans. The machine ground the beans and began applying hot water. “I haven’t been there in years. We could go there for dinner, after my clients leave. We can take the ferry if you don’t feel like flying.”

“
I always feel like flying.”

“
Or if you feel like having some drinks. Maybe we should get a room someplace. Have you ever been to Catalina? Suze told me about this place with an underwater dining room called The Blue Bar.”

“
Uh, yes, I’ve been there once.”

Candy
retrieved two mugs from the cupboard. “You’ve been to Catalina or to The Blue Bar?”

“
Both.”

“
Oh, great. When was that?”

“
It was . . .” Danny tried his best to recall the past several days in reverse, trying to figure out when he and Harley had gone to Catalina. But an impending feeling of guilt, mixed with dread, made it difficult to think. “Tuesday.”