After finishing talking to grandma the other caller was gone and Rose went to check the garden. Rose agreed with her grandma’s attitude to keeping safe however it crossed her mind that she did not know if there was any difference between cyclones, hurricanes and typhoons and decided to gain some knowledge from the internet. Outside the wind was blowing freakishly and Rose was quite happy to hide inside.
As Rose approached her computer she noticed that it was open at Adrian’s photos and she was puzzled. Now what? She asked herself. Rose was sure that she closed that off when she went out. Interesting phenomena she said to herself not wanting to consider the possibility of memory problems. Especially since the doors and windows were all closed. She was ticked off by the incident but felt compelled to address her curiosity about the storms.
Reading about the different types of storms was interesting but also chill inducing and she felt her mood sinking again when she heard another noise that was somewhat different from the storm. Rose concluded that it might be generated by someone’s fists pounding her front door. Probably the bell is not working!
And Rose was right. After discovering that looking through the peep hole did not help she opened the door cautiously not to let the wind and the water redecorate her interior. She knew that the security door was closed and so she did not fear intruders. James was there almost plastered to the door by the growling wind. He was dry and handsome like always but Rose also noticed that he was well prepared for the weather. He was wearing waterproof clothing with a weather poncho and sturdy boots. He was clean shave and radiating strong energy. He was smiling when their eyes finally met.
‘Just wanted to make sure that you are ok, ’ he explained. ‘I tried to call you’ he added.
‘Thanks, ’ Rose said. ‘Everything is under control’ she added confidently. ‘How bad can this be? ’ she asked herself aloud.
‘Hah, it’s going to be big for sure, ’ he replied raising his voice now as the wind was growing in intensity and they could barely hear each other at only 30 cm distance apart. ‘Do you need company? ’ James asked.
‘What are you offering? ’ Rose replied smiling while opening the door for him. He was carrying a bag. ‘Emergency kit? ’ Rose teased.
He grinned and answered: ‘Even better’. The light went off almost immediately after that and Rose clanged to him. ‘Excellent, ’ he said ‘I was hoping for this. It could’ve wait another 5 minutes, ’ he said in a bright voice.
‘In coughs with them? ’ Rose joked.
‘For sure. We’re almost perfectly timed, aren’t we? ’ As they talked he turned on his emergency torch and walked Rose to the kitchen where he left his bag on the bench and started searching furiously the cupboards coming up very fast with 2 glasses.
‘Bingo, ’ he smiled at her triumphantly.
‘You play too? ’ Rose said rolling her eyes up. She could afford that as he could not see her in the dark room.
‘My grandma, ’ he said with a wink. The light was now on his face. The next thing that came out of his capacious bag was the bottle of rose`. He maintained silence while focusing on opening the bottle and then offering her a glass. The noise from outside was barely audible now.
‘To steady ourselves against the wild weather, ’ he justified himself. ‘It’s a rose champagne with grapefruit and strawberry aromas and a bit of cinnamon, ’ he said. ‘I was assured that it was an excellent aperitif, ’ he added with a large grin.
‘Grapefruit? ’ Rose said.
‘Your perfume is grapefruit isn’t it? ’ he asked.
‘Yes, ’ Rose said and he just smiled. Rose was tickled. Someone, outside her family, actually cared about what she liked. Ok, she realized that he was trying to get her to bed but they have some history there and he did not need to try so hard to seduce her or to get her drunk as the past experience was still a good memory.
He took her in his arms and kissed and whispered in her ears: ‘A vibrant, delicious and delicate drink just like yourself, ’ he said. Rose gulped with desire and expectation and finished her drink. ‘Slow down girl and have another drink. We have all night in front of us, ’ he reassured her.
By the end of the second drink Rose was wearing only her bra and knickers. ‘You said slow down, ’ Rose said to him while looking at herself.
‘My hands got a bit carried away, ’ he said smiling at her. He reached for her glass and looking intensely at her said: ‘We can continue drinking later, if that’s ok with you? ’
He was looking at her and waiting for her answer. Rose said yes while leaning onto him. She felt his arms raising her from the ground and carrying her upstairs. And then everything fell into place and it was perfect.
Rose woke up at 05:00am and found herself alone in bed again. Then she heard his voice coming from outside and looking out the bedroom window she saw James cleaning the drive way of debris. Other people were around doing similar things. He certainly was not a wuss. She hurried to have a shower and dressed for the day then put on a pair of boots and joined him. She noticed that her neighbors were also outside checking on the damage caused by the storm. James seemed to be at ease with them.
When Rose walked outside she was stricken by the stillness of the nature: the air was fresh and strong with smell of grass and flowers however there were no sounds at all as if they were on a different planet. No birds singing, no traffic noise and even people moving around were quiet as if they were ghosts. The atmosphere was spooky but she was sure that life chugged along quietly. Rose almost expected to be approached and asked if she spoke Klingon.
Then James saw her and his eyes twinkled with joy and his gaze lingered over her and she experienced the sense of belonging and the oddness of the place did not matter anymore.
‘No big problems, ’ announced Adele happily. ‘The electricity is still out but I hear on the radio that we’ll get it back soon, ’ she said. ‘Have you checked your garden? ’ asked Adele. Oh, Rose thought, she forgot about that one but before she was able to answer James intervened; ‘No need to worry about it, it’s just fine. A bit roughed up but fine, ’ he responded looking at Rose.
‘We’ll need to call our gardener, ’ Adele said looking at Rose.
Adele was the one that recommended to Rose her gardener and now when he came around he attended to both gardens, which was very convenient as if one of them was not home the other could deal with the situation. They also exchanged plants and gardening tips. James left by cab around 07:00 am with a promise to meet tonight at the bridge club. He did not say anything about his car or his house and Rose did not want to appear nosy. She recalled him once telling her under secrecy, that he grew up on an outback farm.
Before James left he had some advice for Rose; ‘No gardening today Rose! There are going to be plenty of snakes around as always after a storm, ’ he said trying to be helpful.
‘Huh, ’ Rose said uncomfortable to be told no.
‘And no walking on the streets either, ’ he continued watching her with amusement.
‘Huh, ’ Rose said again as the frustration was building up. He came and hugged her.
‘Some of the tree branches have been weakened by the storm and are going to fall down over the next few days, ’ he explained. ‘I knew people who were killed like that, ’ he added seriously now and stroking her hair. ‘I’d like to stay and try your ibric coffee but I’m running late, ’ he apologized and he was gone.
The Hoochie Coochie Man
ROSE was sitting in her favorite leather swivel lounge chair facing the garden. For her that was a moment of pure indulgence. The door was largely open and the beautiful view, a feast for Rose’s eyes, was complemented by the heavenly scented air that her nose was delighted to identify. Even after the desecration caused by the recent rainstorm the garden remained alluring and Rose felt inspired and more energized by it. She was glad to be here, she told herself and she realized that over the last couple of month she felt m
ore at ease living in Brisvegas.
Rose reviewed her situation: the storm was gone with no major calamitous effects discovered so far. She had a great time with James and a game of bridge to look for later today. Great, she told herself. That needed to be celebrated with a special coffee. She took out her ibric and started the morning ritual for her favorite cup of Joe. The doorbell rang before Rose was able to enjoy her labor of love; as a matter of fact she was just managing to pour it into a cup and she was definitely not happy about the interruption. After all it was only 07:30am, a bit early for a visit even in this neck of the woods.
However her inquisitive mood took over and she hurried to open the front door without checking first through the video intercom. Standing at the door was a harmless looking young boy smiling at her and Rose opened the door to him before having time to take in consideration safety matters. Then she suddenly became fully aware that her security door was unlocked. She must have forgotten about it after James’ departure earlier this morning. And she did not have the spray with her or the remote control. She’ll improvise she promised herself.
‘Just don’t show them your fear!’ she recalled her grandma’s advice. The boy standing in front of Rose did not appear dangerous and smiled with his whole face while starring quizzically at her.