David cursed as he fumbled his key on the door lock and dropped them on the step in front of him. He bent down and picked them up, focussing intently on them as he inserted them into the lock, then realised it was already unlocked. He pushed down on the handle and stepped into his house.
The inner hall light was on, but that didn't stop him stumbling as he walked forward. Yes, he was drunk, and although the room wasn't quite spinning he knew he'd had more than he should. He dropped his suit jacket on the staircase, pushed open the door to the lounge and smiled, concentrating on not slurring his speech.
"Hi there. Sorry I'm a bit later than planned."
The girl on the sofa beamed a smile at him at she sat up straight, lowering the volume on the television. "Oh hey there Mr Evans. It's cool, don't worry about it."
He realised he was swaying as he stood there, so he took a step forward and sat heavily on the sofa opposite her. "I only just made the last train," he laughed.
She giggled. "You had a good night out then?"
He smiled, nodding. "Yeh...it was pretty...ummm interesting. I take it little George was fine? He went to bed with no problems?"
She nodded. "Oh yes, he was a little darling. I read him a couple of stories and then he fell asleep like in seconds," she laughed. "I checked on him about 10 minutes ago and he's sleeping soundly."
David smiled. "That's great." He didn't think there would have been a problem; little George was a great sleeper for a two year old. "Did Lucinda pay you before she left?"
The girl nodded. "Yeh," she giggled. "She reckoned you might have spent all your cash before you got home so thought it best to pay me before she left!"
David laughed. His wife was out with her sister for two nights at a spa, and had arranged for Lauren to come and sit for George while David was out.
"So, what was the occasion?" she asked.
"Oh, one of the young guys in my team is leaving for a new job so we had a night on the town to celebrate."
"Cool," she replied, tucking her legs under her as she got comfortable again. "Did you send him off in style then?"
David chuckled. They'd certainly done that. In fact, his colleagues had gone on to a casino after he'd left them so they were probably still sending him off in style, but he'd had to get the last train to the suburbs so couldn't go on with them. Probably just as well; it would no doubt have turned into an even more expensive night that would have taken some explaning to Lucinda when she got home on Sunday.
"Yes...I think we gave him a pretty good send off." She lifted the remote control and looked at the television as she switched it off. David found himself sneaking a closer look at her.
She lived a couple of streets away, and was the daughter of one of Lucinda's friends. He'd only lived in the area for three years, so didn't really know much about her. She'd sat for them a couple of times before, though not recently. She seemed older than the last time, and her hair was now dyed blonde. At least, he was sure she hadn't been blonde before. Then he noticed the dark roots in her parting and the dark eyebrows as she looked back at him. He blinked and looked away, hoping she hadn't noticed he'd been gawping at her. "So where did you go?" she asked, still smiling.
David cleared his throat. "Oh, just for a meal, then a couple of pubs, then a club. The boys went on to a casino but I had to get that last train."
Lauren frowned. "Oh, that's a shame. Couldn't you have stayed out and got, like, a taxi home or something? I wouldn't have minded."
David smiled. "That's good of you." Conversing directly with her gave him a chance to look at her face as he spoke. She had large, dark eyes, a thin sharp nose and thin lips and he noticed she was wearing matte pink lipstick. Mascara accentuated the natural darkness of her features, contrasting the bright blonde hair. "To be honest, it had already been a pretty expensive night so a casino and a taxi would've broken the bank...and probably really pissed of Lucinda," he chuckled.
Lauren laughed, and he noticed the metal braces on her teeth. He suddenly realised he didn't know how old she was. He'd seen her a couple of times in school uniform, but the make up made it impossible to place her age.
"Which club did you go to?" she asked with genuine interest.
"Huh, oh...ummm..." He hesitated, with good reason. The 'club' he had been to was not one he wanted to admit being at to his sitter, or indeed his wife for that matter. "It was...oh, what was it called again..." he let his voice trail off, hoping he seemed forgetful.
"There's some great clubs in town," she said. "I love Tropicana, the music is awesome."
David grinned. He knew of Tropicana, a proper 80s club. "Seriously?" he chuckled. "You like Tropicana. That's an 80s club isn't it, more my age group than yours!" He was 41, so the 1980s were very much his era for music.
Lauren giggled. "Well, yeah, but that old music is still cool."
David smiled, then rolled his eyes. "Less of the old there Lauren," he laughed. "You, go into town a lot then?" he added.
She nodded. "Yeh, fair bit. Well, when we've got money I guess. It's kinda expensive in town."
He nodded. "Not wrong there. So, who do you go with?"
Lauren shrugged. "Just my mates."
"No boyfriend then?" he said. He wasn't sure why he wanted to know that, and instantly felt awkward for prying.
She grinned back at him, her braces sparkling in the dim light. "Not at the moment. I'm going to uni in a couple of months so no point getting into a relationship I reckon."
David nodded. So, she must be in her final high-school year then. "Makes sense, plenty of boys when you get to uni. I mean...not that you are...well...you know...long distance relationships are diff..." he realised he was rambling and cursed his drunken brain.
Lauren giggled again, clearly amused. "Ah that's good Mr Evans...you're not calling me a little...ummm...slut then." She grinned at him.
He felt himself blush. "No, no that's not what I meant," he replied defensively. "It's just...at your age...you know...don't really need...ummm...to be...you know tied down..." He shifted uncomfortably in his seat, wishing he'd kept his mouth shut.
To his relief, Lauren seemed unfazed and just giggled again. "I know...just messin' Mr Evans."
He forced a smile, his eyes lowering to her bare knee showing though the wide hole in her jeans. She had pale skin, unlike the faked tanned girls that had been all over the town earlier that night. He noticed her toe nails were painted to match her lips, visible through her black sandals. He blinked, then raised his gaze back to her face, but knew his eyes had lingered on her black, halter neck top and her thin, pale bare arms. He cursed himself. That was the problem with spending two hours in a lap dancing bar; for the next few hours, you felt you could happily look women up and down with no regard for normal manners.
She took the ends of her long blonde hair in her fingers as she smiled. "Think you're gonna have a hangover in the morning then?" she giggled.
David chuckled. "Yes! God I hope George sleeps in!"
Lauren stood up. "You want...a glass of water or something?"
He nodded. "Actually...yeh, that would be a good idea."
