"Town, town, Commercial!" Her voice sounded too smooth and refined to be touting for passengers on a matatu. In the pre-dawn light, I could barely make out the shapes around me. The temporary stalls, made of sticks and cutoffs, stood forlonly in untidy rows beside the road, and next to the bus stop. On the other side of the road, at the stop for vehicles coming from town, I could hear the loud voices of touts, almost more clearly than the woman's. She came to where I was standing. "Are you going to town, boss?" She sounded as if it would please her very much.
"How much are you charging?" Her hand was laid gently on my upper arm, her breast brushing against me, and her body exerting a gentle pressure towards the door of her vehicle.
"Special for you chairman. Fifty bob," she said, almost respectfully. I allowed myself to be led.
As I climbed on, she turned to call out to other customers. I couldn't help noticing her narrow waist, flaring out to wide hips tightly encased in her dark red trouser. Her head was smothered in a woolen hat, but sharp, intelligent eyes looked out onto the world, shaded by thick lashes. I almost wanted to tell her she was unfitted for such work. At the next stop she called out in her too-melodious voice. Still, people came into her matatu, even when there were others calling out in strident male voices.
We moved on towards the next stop. As she came to collect my fare her tap on my shoulder was almost tender. Not that it was hesitant or timid, but it lacked the usual abrasiveness of matatu conductors. When she turned so that I could view her from the side, I could see her groin, with her pubis showing plainly as a samosa of flesh, from which thighs curved smoothly down towards her knees, showing their very pleasing thickness. Her bum was well-filled out and rounded. I could not help wondering how such an attractive woman kept conductors, drivers, touts and passengers at bay; she must field too many passes at her, for any normal human to bear. Her beauty seemed to me to belong to salons or possibly a supermarket attendant, yet she seemed blissfully unaware of how she affected the male psyche. Maybe she had become so used to being pestered by men who recognised her attractiveness, but were not really interested in her.
As the journey progressed, I watched her constantly, without ogling her directly. When, after Westlands she had collected all the fares, she sat in her seat near the door. I tried to turn in such a way that I could see her, without making myself obvious. Her thighs, pressed against the seat now seemed to be wider than before, but only because of being flattened. She sat with her hands in her lap, as if she were in a Catholic shrine rather than public transport. The fingers were smooth, tapering to neatly kept nails. What was this woman doing living the rough life, I wondered not for the first time.
Despite what I was pleased to call my discretion, she caught me admiring her charms. If she didn't have a facemask, I fancied I would have seen her smile, but her eyes brightened noticeably. I too smiled behind my mask, as I averted my eyes.
In town the vehicle turned into the terminus and she stood to open the door. As the driver slowed behind the others, some passengers jumped off, while she swung her body expertly out of the way, without getting off. I neared the door with my phone in hand, the new contact screen open. By now the driver had stopped, and she stood beside the door. She eyed me doubtfully but then slowly took it from my hand and punched in her number and name - Edith. I took it back from her, lifted my eyes to hers and then made a kissing gesture onto the phone, before pocketing it and walking off, getting lost in the crowds.
In the office, images of her kept coming to my mind, but I fought to keep my discipline and not call her before the afternoon, letting her curiosity build. After lunch I dialled the number.
As soon as she answered I said, "Hello Edith! This is the man in blue suit to whom you gave your number this morning. My name is Robert."
"I thought you would never call."
I was not going to let her doubts interfere. "I will not only call again, but I want to meet you away from your work. I will let you know tomorrow evening when and where."
She made a sound like a choke but I could not be sure as she was in the midst of traffic, whose noise flooded her microphone. "Ok," was all she said.
As soon as I got home the following evening, I guessed that her vehicle would be going into parking at around 9:30, making it the best time to call her. "Hello Edith!"
"Hello Robert!" she sounded a bit out of breath. Instead of asking the reason, I assumed she was excited about my calling her.
"How was your day?"
"It was not bad. How about yours?" She still sounded excited.
"I promised to confirm today where we will meet. Come to Tai's Chicken Inn Kikuyu at 6:30pm on Friday. Drop everything, and if you have to report sick do so." My voice brooked no argument and I was betting that none of the men who wooed her would take her to a place like Tai's. She probably had never been there.
There was a silence at the other end of the line for a second. "OK, I will try." Her voice sounded a bit doubtful, but there was curiosity in her tone as well.
"There is no trying. Only doing. Good night, my dear Edith! Bye!"
"Good night. Bye." It felt as if she expected more from that phone call but did not know how to prolong it.
I was a bit on edge the next day at work and even made a slight error. I was surprised at myself. But then I reflected that some time ago, I was weaker and would have called her, or sent an SMS. I kept distance even the following day, allowing her curiosity to reach a peak, and also to maintain the image of a man who was busy doing something with his life, and not staring at the phone all day waiting for her reply. I did send a confirmation message on that Thursday. "I will be at Tai's a little before time 2moro." She replied in confirmation and I let that be the last message between us.
On the Friday, I resisted contacting her, even though my old nature clamoured to hear from her, or just make some form of contact with her. But I stuck to my guns, keeping her on tenterhooks so that she would meet with me driven by her own curiosity rather than my persuading her.
