Last Call by Allen Dusk Page A

So what stopped
you?"
    She thought back to that moment when
she'd sat in her car perfecting her ruby red lipstick in the
rearview mirror, glancing back at the towering wooden Tiki
sculpture beside the front door. Paperwork buried her desk, her
boss never quit assigning ridiculous deadlines, and she hadn't even
been on a date in months. Her salary would never afford a real
tropical getaway; plastic palm leaves would be the closest to
paradise she ever came. She could go back home and wear out another
set of batteries listening to erotic podcasts, or maybe it was
about damn time she took a risk and stepped inside
alone.
    Sophie realized she'd been staring off,
but the bartender stood there patiently, staring at her neckline,
waiting for his answer.
    "Well, I didn't get all dolled up for
nothing." She blushed again. She couldn't remember the last time a
guy had checked her out. "So, I figured maybe I'd have a couple of
drinks before I drove home."
    He laughed again.
    "What's so funny?"
    "Never had a Tiki drink before have
you?"
    "No, my version of exotic would probably be
mandarin vodka with Sprite."
    "Well, you need to pace
yourself with these bad boys. There's a reason they have names
like Zombie ."
    "A Zombie , eh? What's in
that?"
    "We use three different rums, some
fruit juices, bitters, and our signature cinnamon
syrup."
    "All right, you've sold me. That sounds
delicious."
    "One Zombie , coming right up." He glanced
down her shirt a second time before walking away.
    Sophie watched him select a tall
ceramic mug decorated with a topless mermaid basking atop
skull-shaped rocks. Tribal flame tattoos rippled across his
forearms while he assembled the drink. Fascinated, she studied the
detail of each precise bottle spin and long fluid pour. Her fingers
drifted up, casually spinning the red flower slipped behind her
ear. He impaled fruit wedges with a swizzle stick before sliding
them into the drink.
    "One Zombie , for the lonely lady." His
smile scattered butterflies through her stomach.
"Enjoy."
    Eager for a taste she wrapped her
painted red lips around the bright straw, and sipped fast.
Sweetness bathed her taste buds. "Damn, that's divine."
    "Good. Then you approve?"
    "This is probably one of the best
things I've ever tasted in my life."
    "I'm glad you like it. Just remember to
drink it slow."
    Sophie nodded with a smile. Lucas cast
a wink her way, igniting a spark within her, before returning to
his duties. He approached a growing pile of dirty glasses near the
sink. She paced herself, savoring each slow draw of the delicious
drink. Her eyes consumed his every move, fantasy invaded her
imagination.
    She pictured Lucas returning home alone
to his single bedroom apartment, an X-Box and stack of violent
games piled beside a TV. His simple bedroom with plain walls had
piles of laundry awaiting next week's turn at the coin wash. He'd
removed his shirt and laid it over a chair, muscles across his
chest flexing in slow motion. Hot desire rushed between her thighs,
distracting her with its sudden wetness but never halting her
fantasy. His jeans slid to the floor, a pair of boxers followed.
His smooth ass swayed toward the shower where steam billowed past
the plastic curtain. He turned, leaning in to test the water, the
silhouette of his cock dangling.
    An older man wearing a dark cap and
Hawaiian shirt limped up to the bar, his spindly arm slowly waved.
A faded hula girl tattoo wiggled her hips over his frail skin. "Hey
there, Lucas."
    Lucas looked up from his dish washing
duties; a keen smile filled his cheeks. "Evening, Chief. You want
the usual?"
    "That would be swell." The
Chief set his cap on the bar. Bold yellow letters proclaimed USS
Utah AG-16, Pearl Harbor. He ran his fingers over his thin silver
hair straightening his part. He glanced in Sophie's direction, his
baggy eyelids lifted. "This young man makes the best damn Mai Tai
I've ever tasted.
Even when I was stationed over in the Pacific I never had
'em this good."
    Lucas