Qing was in the doorway, carrying two mugs. “You’re leaving?”

I let her see that I was unhappy about that. “Yeah, I’d rather stay all weekend. If you’d have me.” She smiled. I was still persona grata, even if Mikey wasn’t. “But I have a bastard idiot dickhead friend. He’s got himself in trouble. I got to give him a ride home.”

Emu shit. You don’t want it on your shoulders.

She nodded. “Huh. I hope his ears turn to emus and shi’ on his shoulders.” 

“What the fuck?” Most of the expressions people think are Australianisms were invented by Barry Humphries in London in the 1960s. Except that Humphries said “arseholes”, not “emus”. I liked Qing’s version better, but I was still amazed that she’d ever heard of the line.

Maybe Barry Humphries was big in Shenzhen. 

She ignored me. “But loyalty is goo’.”

“Oh, I’m staunch, me.” But I wasn’t feeling staunch. I took the tea and drank it quickly, then took Qing in my arms, rubbing my sweaty body against her clean one. I kissed her, with my hands on her ass. Her skin was cool to the touch. In a better-arranged world there’d be time to make it burn again.  

Qing enjoyed making me sorry I was leaving, and she was good at it.

I showered quickly, using her shampoo, and went back to the bedroom, still naked, to hold her again. Qing stroked my cock mischievously, and it turned out there were signs of life. I had to step back and put my clothes on.

And be polite. “Thank you. Um, for the hospitality. And the night was wonderful. So are you.”

“Yah. You take care of your frien’. And you. I’ll see you later.”

“Be sure of it. I want to see you. Um, among other things.”

Qing smiled, unreasonably cheerful. “Inter alia. In my tailia.” 

That was surprising too. But there wasn’t time to ask her about Latin puns or anything else. I left it, and after I’d taken a business card from my wallet and dropped it on her keyboard, I left her.

Outside, looking at the street, I brought out my keys. The car wasn’t far away. Always the way when you don’t want to leave.

An emu stalks a jogger, who is getting her shoulders out of range.