Dudes Down Under (17 page)

“
Oh, my lord, Lucy. I’ve never seen … wow.”

Charlie looked in every direction, trying to take it all in at once. Crystal clear water was pouring from a high crevice, pounding down into a rock pool where the bottom was clearly visible. The spray from the waterfall filled the air and the sound was superb. The pool was large and merged on its furthest bank into another fast-flowing stretch of white water. His camcorder was on but Charlie himself was speechless.

He took Lucy by the hand, and gently placed a kiss on her palm. “Thank you for sharing this with me, Lucy. I’m lost for words. It’s almost too beautiful.”

Lucy’s eyes filled with tears. It felt marvelous to finally share this part of her life with someone, more especially someone who clearly appreciated what they were seeing.

She didn’t break the spell, keeping her hand in his. Happiness was a pleasing visitor. She didn’t, for once, question it.

*  *  *

“
Okay folks, I have been through all the safety procedures. Any questions?” The instructor asked the four famous people in front of him.

“
Yeah, buddy, can we stop now?” Tristan pulled a disturbingly sick-looking face.

“
Hey mate, up to you. Don’t do this if you are not comfortable with it, okay? You are meant to enjoy it. It’s not supposed to be like surgery without benefit of anaesthetic, you know. Lots of people choose not to do it. You aren’t the first, believe me.” Frenchy hoped he sounded convincing; he’d never seen the very likeable superstar wearing a green face before.

“
You can go up in twos, you know. That’s easy to arrange, mate.”

“
I need to watch someone else do it first. Maybe then … I … well, maybe then.”

“
No problem, mate. We do all the steering from down here, mate. You just take in the scenery. We do the work for you.”

“
Who’s up first?”

Jack looked over at Lana. She didn’t look too thrilled - more like determined. “Well, m’lady, what do you say? Us first up?”

“
Oh hell, why not? You only live once, right?”

Frenchy strapped them into the harness and life belt, and went over what to expect one more time.

Tristan and Izzy seated themselves in the speed boat and waited to see what happened.

Frenchy gave the crew the thumbs up and off they went.

The boat increased speed and the chute rose higher and higher till the crew were satisfied that it had attained at least five hundred feet.

Lana grabbed Jack's hand and hung on, then looked around.
My Lord, oh my God, I’m flying. Ohh - this is amazing! Look at the resort below us, and the water is so clear from up here.

“
Okay, m’lady.” Jack's voice could barely be heard.

She was utterly speechless. He squeezed her hand, smiled at the rapt look on her face, and felt good.

They were winched safely down to the landing platform. Lana was not surprised to find her knees shaking. “That was the most unbelievably great experience!”

Jack draped his arm around her and hugged her close. “Good, m’lady. I’m so glad I was with you to share it.”

Izzy looked at her husband and gave him her smile, “Honey, it’s fine if you don’t wanna do this. I’ll go up on my own. You know that’s not a problem, okay?”

Tristan looked at her beautiful face and made his decision, “Let’s do this thing - fast - before I have a chance to change my damned mind.”

Like the pair before them, they were strapped in securely. With Jack, Lana, and the crew watching them, off they went.

Izzy looked at her husband’s face. His eyes were closed tight. She gave his hand a hard squeeze and he opened them and looked around him, everywhere but down. He had done it. He doubted if he would ever do it again but this wasn’t so bad. He looked down and saw the clear water beneath him and the mountains off to the east of the island. Man, this was not so bad.

Izzy smiled one more time. She was proud of him and he knew it.

Back on deck everyone congratulated him. They were taken back to shore, and the four of them decided on lunch and more exploring for the remainder of the day.

Chapter 21

“
So, Doc, what do ya think? Is he sick or what?” Skeet was anxious. Cyril sure as hell wasn’t his usual self.

“
How old is Cyril, Skeet? Any ideas?”

“
Let’s see, Lucy did tell me a while back. Um, I reckon he’d be around seventeen by now, Doc. Why, is that important or something? I mean these guys can live like a real long time, can’t they, Doc?”

“
Yes, they can go till about ninety years. You figure it, you’re the croc handler.”

“
I can’t understand what’s wrong and he ain’t a normal croc, Doc. He’s been raised like a little kid since he hatched. Lucy says her dad even drained, er …” shit! “... Lucy said the owner told her that he’d been raised special. You know he ain’t like the wild crocs.”

Hello, will you stop talking about me as if I were not here? I don’t like being patronized. Just give it me straight, I can take it. I’m dying, aren’t I? Sob! Is it leukemia? Cancer? Sclerosis of the liver. That would be understandable. I can’t bear it. Tell me … sigh! Please.

“
He needs a female, mate. He’s at that age. You know, the birds and the bees. He wants to get it on, Skeet.”

“
Holy shit! I hadn’t thought about that. I mean he still sleeps with his Pooh Bear. I haven’t covered the other stuff. I still read him
Wind in the Willows
to put him to sleep. Where in the hell am I gonna find him a female that’s, you know, good enough? She’d have to be hand-raised, wouldn’t she?”

“
Well, maybe. I don’t know if Cyril would really give a shit about that part of it, mate. He'd probably, you know, just do the wham bam and thank you ma’am thing, wouldn’t he?”

“
Nah, crocs don’t do that. It’s not a mate for life thing but they do like to hang around for a couple days together. Then the female will build a nest site and attack any other croc who comes even remotely close.”

“
What about you contact the Australia Zoo, Steve Irwin's joint, God rest his soul. All the crocs there are pretty well tame, aren’t they?”

“
Bloody good idea, Doc. I’ll take care of that right now. Thanks, mate.”

“
You’re welcome, Skeet. I think our boy deserves a beer or six. He behaved very nicely.”

What is this bees and birds shit? I don’t eat bees. I like my Pooh Bear. The book bores me to tears so I always fall asleep. What is a zoo? Can I eat it? What is this mating stuff? Will somebody tell me what the hell is happening around here? Am I dying or what? I need a drink.

*  *  *

“
The water is cold, Charlie. It will take your breath away when you first dive in.”

Charlie was about to tell her she had already done that. The white one-piece she was wearing showed her beautiful body off to perfection. Cold water would be a very good idea about now.

“
Um, right, Lucy. I’ll be in shortly. You go ahead.”

Shit, if I take my jeans off, you are going to see exactly why I need cold water. It would probably scare you away. I don’t want to lose you, special lady.

Lucy climbed up to the very top of the waterfall and dived into the cold clear water below. She was unaware when she surfaced that the white costume was completely transparent.

She looked around for Charlie just in time to see him dive in. He surfaced nearby and swam across to her. “That feels marvelous,” he said. He reached over and pushed Lucy underwater. She surfaced, spluttering, and returned the favor. Their combined laughter echoed off the walls of the high rocks. They played like children together until Charlie swam behind her and wrapped his arms around her. Lucy turned in the circle of his arms and looked up at him. With a groan, Charlie covered her soft mouth with his own. All play turned to molten heat, rapidly.

They swam entwined around each other and Lucy slipped out of the bathing suit. Charlie drew in his breath as her beautiful breasts were exposed. He bent his head to suckle gently at first one then the other. They swam to shore and Charlie picked Lucy up in his strong arms, not wanting to ever let her go. He asked her the question without speaking; she answered by sliding her hands over his body, coming to rest on his enlarged and throbbing penis. Lucy freed his costume and he lifted and lowered her onto himself. The rhythm was made to be danced. He lay her down on the picnic blanket and held his need under control until he heard her cry out. He plunged into her hard and deep, his own cry following hers soon after.

Then, like babes in the wood, they curled around each other and slept, only to awaken and begin the exploration again, slowly this time, exhilarated by the seeking and finding of the places unsearched and untouched before.

*  *  *

“
Now, Cyril mate, I gotta talk to ya, um, man-to-man, uh, man-to … Just listen up, okay? Comes a time in a man’s life when he needs certain things that his male mates just can’t supply, well unless they are like Al Pacino in
Dog Day Afternoon.
”

So, okay, I am with you. This thing don’t happen with boy bank robbers. I’m fascinated. Do tell.

“
He gets urges that only can be handled by a female. Are ya with me so far?”

Gotcha, so it’s like gotta be Lucy, or Ginny, or the tummy-tickler, right?

“
Now, mate, when this urge thing happens, well you just have a woman and bingo! You feel much better.”

Um, hang on a sec; have a woman do what exactly?

“
After it’s all finished, over and done with, well ya just never know, you might even get to have babies.”

WHOA! I missed something between good morning and BABIES. I didn’t think I could do that. You mean I could get, you know, pregnant? Wow, that would be, um ... hang on ... aren’t I a boy crocodile?

“
I’m so glad we had this little chat, mate. So are you with me? You get it? Um, grunt twice for yes.”

Forget about it. Grunt, my arse. I ain't grunting till you tell me how on earth I am supposed to look after a baby. You still have to dress me, for heaven’s sake.

“
If you get real lucky, you can have up to sixty or more babies at once, mate. Cyril ... Cyril, wake up, mate … stop kidding around. Crocs don’t faint. Oh hell, I’ll get ya a beer.”

*  *  *

“
Lucy honey, wake up. It’s getting dark, little one. We should head back.”

“
Mmm, okay.” Lucy snuggled in even closer and Charlie grinned down into her sweet face. “C’mon, hon, wake up before I forget being sensible and … oh God, what are you doing? Don’t stop … oh Lucy, you are … oh God!”

“
Charlie, what was it you were saying?”

“
Shut up and kiss me again, woman.”

“
Gladly.”

*  *  *

Tristan, Jack, Izzy and Lana spent the entire afternoon swimming and eating and resting in the shade of the palm trees. It had been a fun and happy day, and they were all exhausted and ready for an early night.

Jack pulled up outside Lana’s bungalow and helped her carry her stuff up to the door. “Can I come over later, m’lady?”

Lana looked up at him and planted a soft kiss on his mouth, “Not tonight, okay? Tonight I just want to shower and hit the sack.”

“
Exactly. I can help you with that,” he said.

“
No, not tonight, hon, okay? I need to think.”

“
Don’t think us out of existence, m’lady. Please.”

“
No, but I need to regroup. Okay?”

“
Sure it is. Maybe tomorrow? Lunch or dinner?”

“
Sounds great. G’night, Jack, and thank you for an amazing, perfect day.” Lana reached up and held his face gently between her hands, kissed him soundly and went inside.

Chapter 22

Lana felt more human after a long shower. She wasn’t kidding when she had told Jack she needed to regroup. This was almost too perfect and the nagging doubts she carried with her constantly were all clamoring to be heard.

He was in the business; he surely could understand ambition. If he couldn’t live with the demons that drove her, there was no way in hell this could ever work. Besides, everyone knew that this sort of thing happened on a holiday - it was no big deal.

Lana grinned at herself. Yeah, right, no biggie! She was fooling herself. Nobody else seeing the two of them together was gonna believe this was a casual fling thing.