Page 31 of The Cornish Christmas Book Clu
‘Right, ladies, this is our chance,’ Evelyn said chidingly. ‘We’re tied withthem.’ A severe nod went in the direction of Proper Choughed.
Tamara caught Melissa’s eye and winked. If they didn’t pull their socks up, they’d get a rap on the knuckles or be forced to write out a hundred lines ofI must pay attention on quiz night. She’d only answered a couple of desultory questions so far and knew she wasn’t pulling her weight tonight. Most of the blame for her absentmindedness lay at Gage’s door. That famous self-control of his had been rattled when he’d first seen her, but he’d refocused to help his new team and so far the men hadn’t missed a single question.
But she wasn’t the only distracted member of the Back of Beyond Brainstonight. Melissa had given an almost unheard-of wrong answer to a question on American football. Amy flat-out admitted her brain was fried after losing a difficult case at work. Laura had dragged herself in after being up all night with a teething toddler, her white ghost costume only adding to her exhausted look. Even Evelyn wasn’t on her A-game and spectacularly messed up a literature question, which opened the door for Nathan to ease his team ahead. Josie and Becky were the only two on form, but it wasn’t enough to carry the rest of them.
‘The last round is General Knowledge,’ Pixie announced.
That might or might not help their fading chance of pulling off a victory. Old Jimmy Trevail shuffled around the room to put the question sheets face down on each table and when he was done, the bell rang as the signal to turn them over. Tamara couldn’t decide if it was a good omen when they swiftly answered the ten questions. They swapped papers with theJam First Geniusesand by the time Pixie started running through the answers, she was afraid to look at Evelyn. They’d got the name of The Beatles’last UK number-one hit wrong by putting ‘The Ballad of John and Yoko’ from 1969, instead of one called ‘Now and Then’, which Pixie declared topped the charts in 2023.
Evelyn’s hand shot up. ‘That song was made with the use of artificial intelligence — surely that doesn’t count.’
‘I’m sorry, but it does. All the official charts list it as The Beatles’ most recent hit. That means Proper Choughed regain the coveted trophy and win the traditional round of drinks.’
‘Don’t be a sore loser, Mrs Taylor,’ Micky Broad yelled and tapped Gage’s shoulder. ‘Our new member has you on the run. You might want to do a bit more studying before you challenge us again next month.’
‘I believe I’m off home, ladies.’ Evelyn slipped her camel coat back on and found her handbag. ‘I’ll see you all on Tuesday at my house.’ She exhaled a weary sigh. ‘Ophelia will almost certainly be there, so I hope she’ll be cordial to you.’
It’d been a relief when the other woman didn’t turn up tonight, and no one asked where she was.
There was a general move to leave, so soon only Tamara and Becky were left.
‘I’d better get back to work,’ Tamara said reluctantly. ‘See you at book club.’
She needed the loo first, so started weaving her way through and headed down the dim hallway to the toilets. A couple were standing by the wall and Tamara was about to walk around themwhen she realised that the man was Christos. The young woman he was talking to was Emily, Becky’s daughter, who looking distinctly uncomfortable.
Christos glanced back over his shoulder and his bleary eyes made it obvious he’d been drinking. Pixie never touched alcohol while she was working, but her fiancé clearly had no such reservations.
‘Everything all right, Emily?’ Tamara gave the girl’s arm a reassuring squeeze.
‘She’s fine. Just having a friendly chat, weren’t we?’ Christos’s overly hearty response only elicited a shrug from Emily.
‘There you are, Tamara. I wondered where you’d got to.’ Gage smiled at her, then threw a worried look at Christos. He’d clearly heard enough of the conversation to be concerned.
She’d never been so pleased to see him. ‘You haven’t met Emily yet, have you? She’s Paul and Becky’s oldest.’
‘Oh, hiya, it’s good to meet you.’ Gage smiled at Emily, and introduced himself, then turned his attention to Christos again. ‘About time you got back to work, isn’t it?’
‘I was going anyway.’ Christos made himself scarce.
‘Are you sure you’re okay, Emily?’ Tamara asked again, needing to be sure.
‘Yeah. Thanks. I only wanted the loo, but he stopped me and chatted a bit...’ Emily’s voice trailed away.
‘After you’re done in the loo, why don’t you join your mum?’ Tamara suggested.
Emily nodded and hurried away.
‘I might try and have a quiet word with Becky,’ Tamara told Gage. ‘Not right now, though, to spoil the evening.’
‘Thanks for stepping in,’ Gage said in a low voice.
‘You did your bit too. I’ve got to get back to work now, but I’ll see you later.’ She hurried off.
Chapter Twelve
Gage tore off his tie and tossed it on the bed. This was a casual Sunday lunch with his family, not a job interview. So why did it feel more like the latter?
‘Paul is here.’ Tamara popped her head in around the door.
