by Chewy Walrus
La Perdita Airport:
Grissom Montag had arrived with his jet about an hour ago, but Customs around this place were terrible. He'd just gotten finished and decided to take a break before heading over to MBL Consulting. So, he chose to take a walk out into the food court. Walking into a small pub, he took a seat at the bar. A young girl with a nice tan and a Hawaiian shirt behind the bar walked over to him, leaning on the counter. She had a beautiful smile, and her long blonde hair was pulled back into a ponytail.
"What can I get for you?" she asked sweetly, winking at Griss.
"I dunno..." Griss said, smiling and pulling his hat off of his head. "I'm a bit new in town. Any island specials or anything I need to know about?"
"Well," the girl began with a wink, "that all depends on what you're in the mood for..." She smiled at him and winked again.
Griss' smile widened as he talked. "Got anything sweet?" he asked, winking back.
"You want a sweet island special, huh?" the girl asked, resting her head on her fist. "Well, I could always whip up a strawberry colada..."
"A... what?" Griss asked, arching his eyebrow.
"A strawberry colada," she responded, her smile broadening.
"Never heard of it."
"Well, it's an island special, all right," she said, turning toward her liquor stock. "It'll just take a few minutes."
Grissom took extreme pleasure in watching her walk away. He smiled a bit, a smile that broke the minute his cell phone started ringing.
"Montag," he answered, rolling his eyes. "Oh, hey, Charley... Yeah... yeah... Well, now that you mention it, I'm not really all that sure if they have a maintenance man... I could put in a word for you, sure... You're gonna go ahead and have Burl fly you down in the chopper? ... Hey, Charley, look, I'm not so sure that it can make it from L.A. to... Oh, you're in Fort Lauderdale? Well, then, by all means, come on down... Burl there, too? ... Oh, he's in Atlanta... Renting a chopper then? ... All right, Charley, see you in a couple of days... Uh-huh... Bye..."
Grissom laughed a bit as he put his phone in his pocket, and the cute bartender walked up, a coconut half in her hand. "Girlfriend?" she asked, raising her eyebrow. "Wife?"
"Hardly," Montag chuckled. "No, Skynard had me down to a tee... 'Freebird' and all that."
"So, who was on the phone, then, wise guy?" she asked playfully.
"Just a co-worker, hon," Grissom said, leaning forward.
"Good," the bartender said, handing him his coconut half. Grissom thanked her and looked at the orange liquid and raised an eyebrow. A miniature umbrella, a strawberry, and a pineapple ring had been used as garnish.
"A strawberry colada, eh?" he asked.
"It's my own recipe," she said, slipping a folded-up cocktail napkin into his hand. "Don't lose that, now. It's got an important number on it..."
She then turned away, leaving Grissom to his drink. The beverage was, as he'd surmised, a refreshing pina colada and strawberry daquiri blend, which Montag rather enjoyed. She went a bit heavy on the rum, but he wasn't about to complain.
Finishing his drink and slipping the cocktail napkin into his pocket, he walked down the bar to the spot where his bartender was standing and knocked on the counter to get her attention. She turned slowly and smiled brightly when she saw who was trying to talk to her.
"What can I do for you, sir?" she asked. "Drink all right?"
"Oh, it was great," he said smiling back. "Hey, I was wondering what you were doing tonight after your shift."
"Well, I really didn't have any plans to speak of," she said, leaning on the counter, her face mere inches from Griss. "Why? What'd you have in mind?"
"Well, since you asked..." Montag said with a wink and a grin, pulling a pen and slip of paper from his pocket. As he spoke, he began to jot down an address. "I'll be staying here looking at a possible business venture for... most of the day. If it falls through, which doesn't much seem likely, by the way, then I'll be moving on. If not, however, then I'll be settling down here for a good stretch of time. Ring the bell, ask for Grissom. Got it?"
She smiled as she took the paper from his fingers. "Got it," she said, leaning forward and giving the rugged-looking man a passionate kiss. "Welcome to La Perdita."
As Grissom walked away, he pulled a cigarette from his pocket and placed it between his lips. "I think I'm gonna like this place," he muttered as he walked his way to the taxis parked outside.