Page 8 of The Side Road
‘Oh my god,’ the woman mumbled.
‘Does she have a name?’ Oliver asked.
‘She does. It’s Mia,’ Leo said. ‘Short for missing in action.’
Mia turned and considered the men. ‘I hate you both.’
‘No, you don’t.’ Leo had one of those rare smiles that offered eternal comfort. It focused solely on Mia with unwavering favouritism. ‘Come over here and meet Oliver properly. He’s very nice, and he won’t bite.’
On the contrary, Oliver thought, if the circumstances were different, he would very much like to bite Mia.
She walked over to them and held out a slim-fingered, pale hand. ‘It’s nice to meet you,’ she said.
When he took her hand, she quickly withdrew it.
‘Same,’ he replied and wanted to say more, but the moment passed.
Turning to Leo, she said, ‘There’s a bag of ice on the veranda. Can you get it for me?’
‘I’ll go,’ Oliver said before she had time to intervene. He retrieved the ice and a small bag containing three grapefruit, bringing the items into the kitchen. Leo was nowhere to be seen.
Sidling up to Mia, he whispered, ‘I’m sorry.’
Lining up more glasses, she didn’t look up or acknowledge his apology.
‘It’s been a weird few days. Levity helps,’ he added.
Still ignoring him, she promptly opened another bottle of gin.
Oliver retrieved the grapefruit from the bag. ‘Well, Mia, missing in action, what are we doing with these?’ He might as well have been talking to himself.
Without ceasing her pouring, she said, ‘I was out of lemons and limes. I can’t see anything wrong with using grapefruit.’ Her tone was firm, the topic non-negotiable.
Her schoolteacher voice was hilarious, and Oliver had to stifle another smile. He pushed his sleeves up, opened the bag of crushed ice, and filled the tumblers. Then, taking a knife from the drawer, he cut the grapefruit into thin slices and garnished the drinks. After sliding two glasses to one side, he said, ‘I thought these could be ours. If you’re not driving, you can be more heavy-handed with the gin.’
She hesitated, then added a decent splash of gin to both drinks.
After taking a tumbler from the table, Oliver held it up. ‘Cin cin,’ he said.
She followed his lead and raised her glass.
He finished half his drink in one gulp – the tumblers were quite small. Citrusy and heavily scented, it wasdeliciously refreshing. Not as good as a strong cup of coffee, but it gave him the kick he needed.
He noticed Mia had done the same, and her drink was almost empty. Perhaps they were both in unfamiliar circumstances. Neither belonged in the parsonage, or, for that matter, in Eagle Nest. She certainly looked like a peacock in a henhouse.
Getting his attention, Mia pointed to a high shelf. ‘There’s a tray, would you mind?’
Oliver followed her gaze. On the shelf was a wooden tray with handles. It wasn’t beyond her reach, but she would have to stretch.
‘That depends,’ he said. ‘Are you going to check out my arse?’
‘I’ve just met you. That would be rude.’
‘Once you get to know me, are you going to look?—’
‘The tray!’ she snapped.
Oliver smiled. He retrieved the tray. Leo served the drinks to the eager crowd, and Mia started pouring the second round.
