ONE
Leggy swimsuit model Kissma Ryan (real name Ella Simpson) left JFK Airport for a week's utter relaxation on a little known island in the South Pacific called Annaland.
The tiny blip in the ocean was named after Anna, wife of the Dutch explorer who discovered it in 1769 and proclaimed territorial jurisdiction under the sovereignty of Anna's original homeland, the Kingdom of Great Britain as it was called in those days.
Because the island has not yielded iron, gold, oil or other riches and the seabed is bereft of minerals and the surrounding waters sparsely populated by fish, the island lay neglected until 1969 when an American tycoon established a luxury lodge there. He eventually died in splendid isolation and the lodge lay abandoned until a South American drug lord turned it into a luxury tourist retreat to allow him to launder money.
Kissma left the aircraft at Pago Pago in American Samoa and next morning was off in a twin-engine floatplane fitted with long range tanks.
The other passengers were four married couples, one couple actually with the spouse to whom they were married, and a single man. At the end of a long flight the floatplane rolled dripping from the water to crunch to a stop on coral-strewn sands.
Philip Rushton, a weather-beaten sheep farmer from the South Island of New Zealand pushed ahead of Kissma and ignoring the steps jumped on to the sand. Kissma muttered 'You rude man' to herself and was glad she'd kept her rebuke to herself because he was standing on the sand holding his arms open and saying, "Jump – the steps are treacherous and you must not skin those beautiful legs of yours."
She didn't believe him for a minute, but he was rather handsome in a rugged way and appeared to be alone. Perhaps something would come of it if she complied, so she jumped.
The man caught her easily, she felt the power of him and obviously he felt something as well.
"God, you're soft, light and smell simply divine; I could eat you."
Well, perhaps he didn't quite mean it this way but Kissma had been eaten out by some of New York's most famous photographers and art directors – all males as it happens – so the idea rather appealed. Perhaps he could do that and then they could have real lunch? She was open to an offer, but no offer was forthcoming.
He raised his golfer's hat, said "Good-day to you Miss," and then walked away, picking up his soft carry-bag from the heap of luggage just unloaded from the cargo bay.
Kissma was peeved – he could at least had gathered her five bags for her and arranged portage. She did that herself and to her dismay found the volunteer porters would carry only one bag each – "Union rules" one very dark-skinned woman said, showing two rows of enormous and very white teeth, one at the front top being only a jagged stump.
Carrying the lightest bag herself, Kissma followed the four porters to her exclusive beach front hut. 'No adjoining guests within 300 feet guaranteed' the brochure had said. Well there was another hut within 10 feet of hers and heavens know on this tiny island where she was going to demand compensation for breach of guarantee. The solution was to drink more martinis and forget it.
She couldn't believe what she was asked to pay each porter – "Fifty cents American money for each porter," Mrs Big Teeth said.
"And tip?" asked Kissma, eager to raise the island's economy by say twenty bucks to be split by the four porters.
"No tipping allowed, this is British territory."
Kissma was saddened, thinking trust the Brits to stuff up free enterprise so far away from London. She looked across to the deck of the adjoining hut and saw a familiar cap; a nice fuzzy feeling ran through her. Kissma thought he'd be better company than those other couples who appeared to be coming here just to screw, judging by the conversations she'd heard when waiting to board the aircraft.
"Hi – you again?" came the greeting of someone coming up from the beach.
She turned and waved, smiled brightly and her mouth fell open. He was jogging towards her carrying a small netting bag of something, but he was naked. His face and most of his arms and the mid section of his legs were very suntanned; making her conclude that he lives in open necked shirts and shorts. His thingy was swinging from side to side.
"Come over in an hour – by then the shellfish will have soaked long enough in coconut cream to eat. We'll down some beers with them then see what you want to do. Dinner is not until after sex."
Well, well. This unorthodox outdoors man is not shy about putting it on a girl, but not very romantic either, thought Kissma. Such abruptness and lack of finesse is deserving only of a very short screw, if that was what he had in mind; of course she could rethink that.
An hour and forty minutes later – she had no intention of appearing too keen – she went over to his hut, dressed only an a pair of very high cut apricot shorts and wishing her breasts were much larger to wet his appetite.
There was no door to knock on so she said, "Hi."
He replied, "You're late by forty-five minutes."
She turned to stomp away but he gave a throaty laugh, saying, "Just kidding."
Well, some people!
"Jesus!" he said, gawking at her uncovered breasts. Of course he was covered up, wearing a Hawaiian type beach shirt and longish shorts.
"Er."
"What?"
"I thought you were a nudist so I was trying to meet you halfway."
"Nudist, I'm not...oh, I see. Yes, I do swim without clothing. Swimsuits these days are a real rip off, can cost a man almost as much as a proper suit. The whole industry is run by the Mafia you know, to launder money."
"Some good people work in that industry, I think."
"Nah, only hoods and the women are prostitutes."
"Oh."
"What do you do for a crust?"
"For bread?"
"No, for work – it's a Kiwi expression."
"Kiwi the bird, I do not understand yet I speak English, English is my language."
"You're a Yankee, aren't you?"
Kissma looked a little confused.
"Well, I'm from the North but call myself a New Yorker."
"What North?"
"It's up from the South."
"Look lady, we've lost a cog somewhere. I was asking what do you do for a crust, I mean for work?"
"I'd rather not say until later, if that's all right."
"Sure, but hey, you're not a Yankee prostitute are you?"
"Good heavens no, I model swimwear."
"Same difference isn't it – model means prostitute as all prostitutes say they are models?"
"Look buster, if you call me a prostitute one more time I'll hit you with my handbag."
"You don't have a handbag with you."
"I'm going."
"You can't."
"Are you attempting to hold me hostage?"
"No, you can't go until you've had the shellfish and washed them down with cold beers. It's beautiful, worth coming all the way from Manhattan to sample."
"Very well, please tell me the time as I don't wish to eat too much as I'll spoil my dinner if I do."
"It's almost one and dinner is not until after sex o'clock."
"Oh, I see now. You mean six o'clock?"
"Same thing, my mum's Australian and that's how we say sex o'clock."
"Then how do you say sex, you know the thing between a man and a woman?"
"I know what you mean, but I don't use the word because I can't find anyone to have it with me."
"Have what? Come on, say it."
"I can't, you're a lady."
"Huh, so I'm a lady now after being told forty-four times I'm a prostitute."
"I was only pulling you wick."
"I beg your pardon!"
"Joking – that is another Kiwi expression. I was only teasing you and knew you would bite. I've been to New York and know the difference between the North and the South and know the Mafia doesn't run the swimsuit business because the Jewish people do. Anyway, you'd never make money as a prostitute."
"Why, the occasional men I've been with say I'm very good."
"Yes, but they would be getting it for free, wouldn't they? If they had to pay for it they would want meat on those bones of yours."
"You're an authority on this, are you?"
"Sort of, I'm a sheep farmer – sheep rancher to you - so have a very good eye for what constitutes a good carcass."
"Hmmmmm. I think we should eat. May I wash the coconut cream off my shellfish as it's very fattening, and so are some shellfish for that matter.
"And the beer, that's fattening too?"
"Yes."
"Well, relax. I've already made you a dry Vermouth on the rocks; having seen your sweet body I knew you would be diet conscious."
Kissma's eyes widened.
"My sweet body?"
"Yeah, it's a cracker. I reckon those guys you've been with would have sensed you would be very good; I've already taken a good eyeful at the way you walk and move that ass of yours."
"Really?" So you are asking me for...?"