Bang Gang(12)

"I'm guessing the horny females of our lovely village haven't all just  taken a sudden liking to Tuesday morning coffee," she whispered.

"Sorry," I said.

"Don't be, all business is good business, I just hope this isn't too  hard on you." Her look was so pointed. That  Trent's-an-asshole-and-you're-better-off-without-him look I'd come to  know so well. She put a hand on my shoulder. "Best thing you ever did  splitting up. He's so … " She groaned. "Troublesome."                       
       
           



       

And really hot in a tux. I forced the thought from my mind, pissed to  find the same flutters in my belly that I'd felt the night before. A  bodywand session should have sorted it. Did sort it. Or so I thought. It  hadn't meant anything, just fantasy gone mad. The shock of seeing  Darren so …  toned …  the thought of some rich bitch being fucked by him and  Buck, the others, too. I mean, that could never be me …  I'd never take  five guys …  even if I'd had the orgasm of the century at the thought of  it. It meant nothing.

Totally nothing.

I definitely wouldn't want that.

That's for women like Mandy Taylor and Hannah Bowen. Women who are …  brash.

Confident.

Horny.

Sexy.

I checked out my reflection in the side of the coffee machine. Was I  horny and sexy? The thought made me laugh out loud. A couple of dabs of  eyeliner did not make a sex kitten, that's for sure.

Not yet, anyway.



Tonya came in at the end of lunch, puffing and sweaty and midway through an apparent jog around the village.

She gripped a section of belly and wiggled it at me over the counter.  "Keeping fit, need to tone up a little. Then I might hit the online  dating. Again."

"You look great as you are," I said. She did, too.

Her eyes met mine and widened. "Not as fine as you! Jesus, Jodie, what  the hell happened? Did someone break in and commit armed makeover? If  they did then please send them my way, I'll leave the window open and  won't call the cops."

"It's just a bit of foundation … " I mumbled, but I was smiling.

"Like fuck it is! That top's new." She pointed straight at my chest.  "Those babies are definitely in a decent push-up, and … " She leaned over  the counter to check out the rest of me. "New jeans. Definitely new. So,  what's going on, pussycat?"

"Just thought I could smarten myself up a little." I handed her a mug of  tea. "Seems I'm not the only one around here. World's gone crazy."

"The Trent effect." She rolled her eyes. "Mention a five-mechanic gangbang and the whole village goes makeup crazy, go figure."

I leaned over the counter. "That's not why I'm doing this."

"Oh, I know," she said. "You're doing this because it's about time you put some effort into being you again."

"It is?"

"Oh yes," she smirked. "It really is. Which is exactly why you're taking  a day off to come shopping with me. Girls' day. Don't say no."

"But … "

Lorraine's hands appeared on my shoulders. Her voice was loud in my ear.  "Yes, you are having a shopping day. You haven't taken time off since  Easter."

"Exactly!" Tonya exclaimed.

"Definitely," Lorraine insisted. "This Friday. I'll get Emma to cover."

"Friday," Tonya confirmed. "Spa, lunch and shopping."

Spa, lunch and shopping sounded expensive. I said as much.

Tonya just scoffed at me. "Get Trent to help out, now you know about his  lucrative little side-line, I'm sure he won't mind dishing out a bit so  you can have some downtime."

I shook my head. "This has nothing to do with Darren. He does enough. We do alright."

I could feel Lorraine's scorn at the back of me, but she didn't say a  word. That was something she'd never been right on, truth be told. You  can say a lot of things about Darren Trent, but the accusation that he  doesn't do his bit to look after the girls was way off the mark.

Tonya didn't even try to argue with me, she knew as much, too.

I let out a sigh. "I could come, maybe get my nails done, just the cheap ones … "

Tonya clapped her hands. "Get in!"

"But!" I added. "I'm not going to be going shopping crazy, I'll just be there for the company. I'll be your personal shopper."

"It's a start." She downed her tea in one and started jogging on the  spot. "In that case I better keep up with the keep fit, see if I can  drop a dress size in the next few days. Laters."                       
       
           



       

I watched Lorraine chalk my day off on the rota and couldn't help but smile.





Petey shrugged at me, hung up the phone. "Another service to book in," he began, but I waved him quiet.

We'd had ten new service bookings today already. Ten.

None of them due, all of them female.

Mandy fucking Taylor had a lot to answer for.

Buck grinned at me, tugged at his beard. "Think we should open the books up? Take on some new clients?"

I shook my head. "Fuck that. Not locals. Got enough shit going on already."

I dived back in to the air-con job I'd been working on and only surfaced  again when a chorus of wolf whistles started up. My gut dropped at the  prospect of another Eleanor Hartley drive-by, but the figure approaching  our shutter doors wasn't anyone after a Bang Gang special.

I've known Tonya since we were kids. She was already Jodie's best mate  by the time we started up. I don't think they ever weren't. She was  jogging today, in some pale grey leggings that showed enough to get the  guys whooping.

"Knock it off, lads," I grunted, tossing a roll of tape in Jimmy's direction to get him to quit with the hip thrusting.

Tonya came bounding straight up, her dark ponytail bouncing around her  shoulders as she jogged on the spot, her tits bobbing up and down. I  smiled, but it wasn't in that way. I'd never seen Tonya in that way,  pretty though she was. Her cheeks were flushed pink and her breath was  heavy. I knew exactly what the guys were thinking, but she seemed  oblivious. Oblivious or totally disinterested. It made a change around  here lately.

I raised an eyebrow. "Come to chew me out about Mandy Taylor?" I asked.  "If so, you needn't bother. I already know what a fuck up that was."

"Jesus, Trent, would I?" She gave me a healthy tut. "I don't need to  tell you when you've been a wanker. Pretty sure you can work that out  for yourself."

I made my way outside and she followed, stopped jogging to do some stretches. I lit up a cigarette. "So?"

She rolled her eyes at me. "I'm on a route, you know, keep fit. Maybe I was just passing."

"Never kept fit past my door before."

"Never kept fit before," she laughed. "Ah, fuck it." She stopped with  the exercises and pulled a pack of cigarettes from her bra. I smirked as  she lit one up. "Jodie," she said. "I'm here about Jodie."

"So she sent you to chew me out?"

"Has Jodie ever once sent me to say her piece for her?" She took a long drag. "She's no idea I'm here."

"Oh?"

She smiled. "I guess you haven't seen her today."

"Why would I have?"

"No reason. She's just …  found herself a little." I didn't have time to  ask questions before she changed topic. "I'm taking her out for the day  on Friday. She totally deserves the break. I wanted to make sure you'll  have the girls, don't want her racing back for the school run before  we're done."

I nodded. "Righto."

"So you will?" Big dark eyes sparkled at me.

"Goes without saying, Tonya."

She clapped her hands together. "Excellent!"

Her enthusiasm was infectious, I found myself smiling. "Where you taking her?"

"Hereford," she said. "Spa, beauty shit, shopping."

I pulled a face. "She's up for that, is she?" I couldn't remember the last time Jodie went in for all that girly pampering crap.

"Yes. She's up for it."

I felt a niggle in my gut. I puffed away on my cigarette, tried to play  down the unease. "What's this in aid of? She got a hot date or  something?"

She shook her head. "No, no. She's just …  you'll see for yourself when  you run into her." She tapped my arm. "She's finding herself again. New  clothes, makeup …  she looks fucking amazing. I just want to give her a  helping hand along the way. It's time she lived for herself again. It's  been too long. Work and the girls." She flashed me a look of scorn. "And  Brian."