Page 42 of Fling

Tara closed the app and let out one more theatrical laugh to annoy Colin. A part of her couldn’t believe her actions. Sexting her virtual lover while having dinner with her unsuspecting husband felt so transgressive, so bold. But she knew exactly what Jack meant. It turned her on too. The sheer recklessness of it all was so irresistible. 11.11 couldn’t come quick enough.

After finishing her meal, Tara grabbed her wine and walked towards the door.

‘Enjoy your night, honeybun,’ Tara said, making it clear her night didn’t involve Colin.

‘You too, babe,’ Colin replied, making it clear he didn’t care.

Chapter 15

While waiting for the clock to strike 11.11, Colin decided to make good on his promise to hang up his vintage pub signs in his man cave. He went out to the backyard and opened the shed door. He was immediately greeted by a wall of dust and made a mental note to take an antihistamine later. He rooted through the many boxes in the shed, unable to remember which box contained the signs. That was the main reason Tara had been nagging him to clean the shed for so long. All of her boxes were labelled but Colin didn’t share her knack for storage organization.

As he was looking, he saw a large dust sheet laid across something big. Colin pulled off the sheet to reveal his 1988 Triumph Bonneville motorcycle. He had almost forgotten how beautiful it was. And sitting right on the seat was a crate containing his vintage pub signs.

Jackpot.

Colin kicked some boxes out of the way and wheeled the bike out of the shed, into the light. She was a beauty, but sadly an ageing one. She was a vintage Bonneville and he had nicknamed her Bonnie. He, of course, was her Clyde. There was some rust on her body despite her being kept in storage and it was clear she needed a lot of work. Like himself, she hadn’t escaped the cruel hands of time. Colin began to think about how far he had drifted from his rebellious nature. The bike that had once made him feel like an untameable renegade had spent ten years in a suburban shed. It didn’t feel right.

Maybe there were still some miles left on her tyres. She wasn’t beyond repair, though, and Colin could tell looking at her that she could be saved with some tender love and care. Due to the bike’s age, procuring parts wasn’t the most straightforward process, but it was a challenge Colin was up for.

He killed an hour giving the bike a shine and taking note of which parts needed replacing. After he was finished, he decided to leave Bonnie in the back garden to give her some air. She had been locked up for far too long. And a part of him wanted Tara to see the bike out of the shed.

He grabbed the crate of pub signs and brought them into his man cave. When he was finished hanging each of them up with adhesive strips, he stood in the middle of the room and admired the rustic saloon-like vibe they gave the room. It now felt like a proper man cave. ‘Guinness is good for you’, one sign read. ‘This Bud’s for you’, read another.

There were about twenty of them in total, each one a unique collector’s item in its own right. As he looked around the newly decorated room, he felt a sense of pride in his work. Not because the work was particularly challenging but because he had done something he wasn’t supposed to. It was a small act of rebellion but an act of rebellion nonetheless.

After his revolutionary evening faded into night, Colin lay down on the couch, ready to chat with Claire. Tara was now in bed for the night so the coast was officially clear.

Claire’s online light turned green at 11.11 exactly and Colin’s face lit up with anticipation. He could see the moving ellipsis that indicated she was typing. After an entire day of counting down the minutes, their late-night rendezvous was about to begin.

Claire: Hey there, stranger x

Jack: Hey sexy, how was your day?

Claire: I had an amazing day thanks to you x

Jack: Oh really?

Claire: Yeah, I woke up thinking our conversation last night was a dream

But then I realized it wasn’t x

Jack: Well, that’s good to hear because I couldn’t stop thinking about you all day

Claire: Oh really? What were you thinking about doing to me? x

Jack: All sorts of sordid things

I was thinking about you especially when I was lifting in the gym

Claire: Oh, you’re into bodybuilding?

Jack: Yeah, it’s a passion of mine

Claire: You just keep getting better and better. I bet your muscles are huge x

Jack: I’m not usually one to brag but I benched 100kg today. All because of you

Claire: Because of me?

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