I always said my epitaph would be "How hard can it be", my wife disagrees, she thinks it's going to be "Well I didn't think that would happen." After our recent holiday I think she may be right.
Let me explain. I'm Dave, I manage a lifting company in the container docks in Felixstowe, that's what the rest of the world call cranes. I'm originally from Portsmouth but came up this way ten years ago for work and been here ever since.
My wife is Abigail, she's an admin manager for Morrisons supermarkets based in their regional office in Ipswich, local girl born and bred. She's thirty five, I'm thirty seven, no kids but we do have a cat, to be honest she has a cat, I just feed the little shit and clean up the dead animals it brings in. We all live in a nice three bed detached place on the new Wimpey homes estate in Martlesham. You know the sort of place, integral garage, en-suite to the main bedroom, cable TV.
I play golf a couple of times a week with three mates, Barry, Paul and Ken. Ken's name is actually Norman but since he was twelve and at school he's been known as Ken, from his last name, Chekkin. As in Kentucky Chekkin. Barry's a bit of a bandit, claiming to play off 28 when he really should be in the high teens but as he is a bit tasty, ex 2 para and French foreign legion, we tolerate it. Paul runs a bouncy castle and ice cream van business, seems to do OK judging by the Merc he drives and the quality of girls he brings to ladies night at the club.
Abbie is a size twelve with a curvy body and long blonde hair, blue eyes and an independent streak a mile wide running right through her, she's quite close with the other guys wives, apart from Paul who hasn't got one any more (Lucky bastard, lol) and when we have our boys golf trips away the girls sometimes go for a spa weekend together.
The boys and I work on the basis of 'What happened in Vegas, stays in Vegas', not that we've been to Vegas yet but you get the idea. Now, that's not to say anything does happen in Vegas but if it did, like maybe meeting a hen party on the Isle of Wight and not much Golf getting played, well no one at home would hear anything of it.
One summers evening we were coming in on the back nine when Paul asked if we fancied another boys outing, a bit further afield this time. This intrigued us but no one wanted to be the first to sound too keen so we let it slide with a general agreement but no more than that. You could tell this was pissing Paul off and three holes later just as I was teeing off he said "Ibiza".
"Oh, nice one dickhead," I complained. " I just sliced that thanks to you distracting me. I'm going again, that one don't count."
The others decided I wasn't going again and I'd sliced because I always slice when I try to tee off with a five wood and why didn't I accept I was a shit golfer and use a driver or a hockey stick. Aresholes.
"What about Ibiza then?" I asked, accepting the judgement of my peers on my golfing abilities, for now.
Paul leaned back on his driver, "Oh now you're interested? Well, you now canny Mike," we all knew canny mike, he tried to give the impression of being some connected shady businessman with fingers in pies all over, when in reality I think he was probably no dodgier or connected than my auntie vera, and I ain't got an auntie vera. He got the nick name "Canny Mike" because he was from the North East and always said "Canny" as an alternate for Good, or Nice, or Lots, or attractive.
So, yes we said we all knew Canny Mike.
"He's got a place in Ibiza, five bedroom villa, ensuites the lot, sky TV, golf course next door. He says I can use t for a week, no charge."
Barry was right in there, "That's the price I like and the birds over in Ibiza, fackin hot as. I'm in."
Ken was a bit less convinced, "Canny Mike likes to look well dodgy, what's the catch?
I agreed, a free week's accommodation was one thing, owing a local small time dodgy businessman was another.
Paul gave us a tolerant, I'm cleverer than you smile. "I was doing some trading with him last week and mentioned I was going to take some time off in early September, it's been a busy season and I could do with a break, and he offered me the use of his place. He can't get out there and he's got a couple of antique clocks to bring back for his mum. It's her birthday in October and he wants them back here. He can't get out there and he can't send his boy since he got that ankle tag. Everybody wins."
I had to admit, it sounded a bit less dodgy once he explained it. "Alright, I'm in. Boys trip, yeah? Don't want the other halves cramping our style."
The others were equally keen, so we finished the round, enjoyed a couple of beers in the clubhouse and went our separate ways.
Whether it was Ken or Barry that let it slip I don't know, although I reckon it was probably Barry, but a week or two later Abigail came home from shopping with a couple of bags of clothes from Next, none from Victoria's Secret I was sorry to see, and a massive attitude.
"Were you going to go and not tell me, or were you going to tell me just before you went, Wanker?"
I pretended to not know what she was talking about, which lasted all of ooh I dunno, a minute?
"Don't lie to me. You and those golfing buddies of yours are planning on swanning off to Ibiza on a boys outing, leaving us at home to wait sweetly for your return. Do you really think I'd let you go and swan around those slappers playing the big man without me? I go or you don't, or you go and I don't and you don't bother coming back."
I know when I'm beaten and made a couple of calls, Barry and Coop had been on the receiving end of something similar, Paul laughed at me and pointed out, 'No Wife, Happy Life' the smug twat.
Short version, on the second weekend of September three wives and the latest girlfriend were in the departure lounge at Southend international Airport with us.
Ken couldn't make it, some dopey tart of a girl had got shagged him and tried to get ten grand out of him to keep quiet, when he wouldn't pay she'd sent pictures to his wife. You couldn't see her face and he wasn't saying but he suddenly needed all his money to pay a solicitor, and to rent a shitty bedsit.
His Brother came along instead, Coop. We'd met him before and he was sound.
I'll give Paul his due, the house was everything he'd said it was, five big double bedrooms, Sky TV in each one, pool, Hot Tub jacuzzi thing that seated ten, sun loungers and a golf course next door. I dumped my bags in our room and wandered into the kitchen, the big double American fridge had been pre-stocked to our order. Fortunately, the girls had taken care of that and so it wasn't just rammed with beer. There was tonic and lemonade too. No, there was food as well.
I grabbed a cold Bud and walked out onto the terrace between the house and the pool, Paul's girlfriend had already taken up residence on one of the sun loungers. I admired the view, the twin peaks were covered in bright yellow, I say covered, there were a couple of bright yellow patches and a V shaped bright yellow cover further down.