AZOTUSLAND chapter twenty three

Yes, he's back...put on yer seatbelts-sah
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The Wednesday morning rush the next week was good for business but hard on the crews. Martine called down to the IC and asked Maugham to come up and help in the Big Room and for Andy to open the IC up for spillovers for people in a rush.

As Maugham logged out and got up to leave Andy asked him "Can you put the small sign out for me Maug?"

"Sure troll, we wouldn't want the sun to hit you," he hissed.

Maugham hiked upstairs and his hands dropped at his side when he saw the scene inside. "Cripes!"

He tied back his hair and entered the melee next to Martine. She bumped him playfully with her hip and asked him to assist Roo by taking orders for her down the line. Hans was meticulously cleaning the condiment bars and was actually doing a good job of turning over tables and wiping them down for new customers.

Upstairs Sex had walked into the Cafe, waited a good twenty minutes to get her Chai Latte then found a small table out on the long deck and sat down. Jacob came over after a few minutes looking like he could not find a place.

"Miss?"

"Yes?"

"Do you mind if I sit here?'

"No I do not mind but I must finish my book this morning so I will not be a very good host."

"Thats, er, fine," he said.

After a few minutes he noticed she was reading The Multi-Orgasmic Man an a serious way and he tried to strike up a conversation.

"I hope you do not mind my asking, but does that book make use of the concept of "Chi"?

"Yes, it does" she said flatly, looking into his soft but deep brown eyes.

"I read that control of Chi is esssential in lovemaking ," he said warmly.

"Yes, it is essential to control Chi in many ways and at the appropriate times," she said clinically, returning to her book.

Jacob grabbed his newspaper and pretended to read it, occasionally sipping his tea. He thought about Ked Woman. Damn she was sexy in a quirky way, but she knew exactly what she was doing. He always had the feeling that she was really running things with them but he could not prove it. She was subtle and sly unless it came to how she thrusted on him and seemed to know just when to stop and let him cool down. Then she would pull him over on top of her and grab his ass gently at first, but then more aggressevly and moan loudly, but then back him off, once again just before the precipice.

Forty minutes later he would be drenched and she too and she would have gotten him to shudder, but not come at least four or five times. And when he did at last, it had the force of four regular orgasms and the reverb would come like hard waves and shake his whole body for minutes after.

But she always seemed troubled the next day and a bit aloof. Quiet, introspective and a little lost. She often would become monsylabbic and he would finally leave.

Jacob was not sure about their future, and he wondered if somehow he was actually being played. It was confusing and he felt a little...no, a lot outmatched.

So he decided to pretend he was shallow and play the field.

This woman was having none of it.

A few tables down Rev. Tanka was discussing something with Maurice in hushed tones.

"Maurice, dear brother...I have-vah da plans for you-hoo," he said smiling. Maurice was not impressed. He had been soundman/producer of Tanka weekday radiocasts for over nine months and it was a thankless task with many promises made, but few, if any, ever delivered.

"Ah have-vah this friend down in Tex-sus der Maurice." then he would breath in heavily and continue, "Anda he hassah him da love boat cruises for da Christians. And-hah I am in SERIOUS-sah negotiations-sah with a da Mr. Smithey who runs-sah dees tours for da Christians!"

"And I suppose you want me to be your cabin boy, right man?"

"Now, no no no no Maurice...ho ho..back and down boy."

It pissed Maurince off when Tanka called him "boy' but he realized the reverend didn't have a racist bone in his body. He was just flat out crazy and utterly devoid of self-reflection or he would not embarass himself so. Maurice let it go.

Once, early on, he had tried to explain a "point" to the Rev, Tanka, who eyes somewhat glazed over and he finally interupted and said "Well la-ha I dunnuh know about all the complicated stuff there Maurice. I never went to dah college like-ah you. But let's go have us a smokie!"

Maurice disliked "smokie time". First off, the Rev Tanka was almost always out of smokes. Second, he could clearly see the man was killing himself and it reminded him that twenty years from now it would be him wheezing and gasping for breath while killing off his lungs.

"Dis Mah-han is a geni-oous!" said Tanka. "He takes the hot topics of the day-yuh and makes dem hottah. Then he books him the love boat cruises for da Christians who pay da big bucks to learn about-tah dees tings."

"I have-vah sent him da cassetes about da White Schuooger and Da damons, and he is-sah considering yours true-lay to be in the level three seminars-sah on da boat-tah!"

"Okay, so when do we leave and what's in it for me?" (Maurice thought about saying "me-yah" but knew it would be lost on Tanka. All humor or subtleties were.)

"You will travel as my sound-dah man, anna be there for ahall of my-yah lectures-sah. And hav-vah your own stateroom on da boat! And-ah an extra $500."

"When do we leave?" Maurice asked unimpressed.

"On July the Fourth-thah from ama da San Francisco! And wee will be gone for ten days-sah up to Alaskah. Now lets go get a smokie."